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Poorly piggy :(

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Hi, sorry for just joining and asking for help straight away but i'm not sure what to do :(

We've had our two male piggies for nearly a year now and they've lived together quite happily. One of our guinea pigs has never really liked being held but the other one seems to love it.

In the last two weeks i've noticed that Genga (the one that doesn't like being held) has not been letting Snuggles into the bedroom area.

Last night i heard a lot of squeeking but couldn't see much as my son was asleep so i had a look this morning.

Snuggles has a big chunk of fur missing and quite a bit of blood on his back although i can't see a wound and seems quite nervous and i've noticed he seems to have developed two scabby areas on his tummy.

Can someone please give me some advice as i don't want him to be suffering.
 
Awww what a shame.

If blood has been drawn guinea pigs should be seperated. How are they getting on at the moment?

With two guinea pigs in one cage a way to avoid arguments is to have 2 of everything. Two bedroom areas, two food bowls, two water bowls. Have you already done this?

As for the scabs on his tummy is that from the other biting him? If you aren't sure I would get him to the vets tomorrow.

Hope you get on ok x
 
Hello. :)p

Not sure that scabs on his tummy would be from fighting. They are more usually on the face, back or neck. He could have mites of a fungal infection. I would get them checked at the vet to be sure.
It does sound like Snuggles may be being bullied. A guinea pig under stress is prone to mites. I would put in another sleeping place so they don't have to share (an upside down cardboard box will do). Make sure both are eating and provide separate bowls and water bottles. Do you weigh your pigs regularly? Weekly weight checks are a good idea as weight loss is a good indicator of a health problem.
If blood is drawn/ bite wound, then yes, you will need to separate them.

Feel free to ask as many questions as you want. :)
 
Thanks guys, i'm in the process of setting up a makeshift house out of the run i use for them in the garden. I think it might look like mites :( Can i treat him for this or does he need to go to the vets?
 
I would say going to the vets would be best to ensure you get a correct diagnosis and treatment x
 
Thank you. I used to go to a lady called Vedra when i had my last piggies years ago. I shall try to find out if she's still around as i trust her more than most vets :)
 
Welcome to the forum Louise.

I see Vedra too, live a few minutes from her, since finding her for the first time three years ago I haven't looked back!

I agree that mites is a strong possibility, could explain the scabs on one pig and the dislike of being handled for the other. I would have both boys treated to be sure. Oral or injected ivermectin is preferable, 2-3 doses, each one 7-10 days apart. I wouldn't use a topical (spot on/on the skin) treatment when there is broken skin at all.
 
Hi Laura, thanks for the advice. I shall be paying Vedra a visit next week. Unfortunately my car is playing up so can't get there any earlier :(
 
Hi again, i just thought i'd give you an update on Snuggles. I took him to Vedra on Thursday and she's been treating him. Apparently he has a fungal infection and as the weather has been so humid it's spread so quickly it covered pretty much his whole body :(

She's had to strip all of his fur out and he's on antibiotics and an anti fungal medicine. She said i should be able to pick him up on Friday but he'll need further medication over the next 4-5 weeks :(

At least he's in the best place at the mo and getting better though :)
 
Hi Louise, it is me you left Snuggles with on Thursday before Vedra collected him from me.

I have to say you definitely did the right thing in bringing him to Vedra, his condition was severe, but I am glad Vedra has him on such a vigorous treatment and I do hope he continues to improve and recover. Do keep us updated if you can.
 
Hi Laura, thank you so much for taking him for me. I just can't believe how quickly it progressed :( It seemed like one day he had a little patch on his belly and a few days later he was covered bless him :(

At least he's in the best place and Vedra said he's going to be ok so that's good :)
 
I do hope he is well enough to come home to you on Friday. I must admit, his condition was beyond what I could help with and when he scratched at his skin and scabs he was suffering seizures. I did give him a dose of pain relief and cut his nails, not really achieving anything in the long run but with Vedra away for the day I just had to do what I could, and this was as much as I was comfortable doing. I figured he would need his hair stripping out and oral anti-fungal medication, but can see why Vedra has him on antibiotics as well. He is in very good hands , if anyone can get him feeling better it is Vedra.

Did Vedra mention anything about sawdust to you? I did have to clear out his carrier and put a towel in for him, Vedra is allergic to sawdust/woodshavings, and it's not good for piggie skin either, may explain a little why Snuggles' skin did get as bad as it did.

I hope you don't mind me sticking my nose in like this by the way, I admit I was shocked by how bad his skin was, I have limited experience with skin issues so perhaps explains why Snuggles did seem in such a state to me, but if I can help others with what I noticed about him (as I do all my inpatients and all my own pigs) it would be appreciated.
 
I don't think you're sticking your nose in at all. I really appreciate your help. I was in a bit of a panic because i knew he'd got bad and i didn't know what to do with him so i was very grateful that you could take him for me. It shocked me just how quick he deteriorated so maybe the sawdust had something to do with that.

I just wish i was able to get him to her sooner but my car had broken down and i had no other way of getting over there :(

I had no idea they shouldn't be kept on woodshavings, in fact the shop sold that to me when i bought him :( What is the best to use for bedding for them? He is an indoor piggie if that helps at all.

Again, thank you so much for your help. Not sure what i would have done if you hadn't been there :)
 
I hope Snuggles (love the name) makes a full recovery very soon. He's in good hands with Laura and Vedra.
There are lots of alternative beddings you can try. Mine are on fleece and vet bed as I have a piggy who is allergic to woodshavings. (and I am) There's also Megazorb, Aubiose and Carefresh. I haven't tried these myself as we have such a large area to cover fleece works out much more cost effective for me. There's a link here to some reviews http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=53208
 
Thank you Katie, i like the sound of a fleece :) Could i use my daughter's old fleece blankets? I have about 20 of them and they're lovely and soft or do they need a special type?

That is going to be one extremely spoiled guinea pig when he gets home cause i feel so bad that he was suffering :(
 
Just managed to open the link and have a read and it looks as though the fleece blankets i have will be perfect. Thank you for the advice :)
 
Thank you Louise, I do apologise for looking very confused when you turned up, Vedra didn't warn me at all and I'd just woken from a nap, but I am glad I was able to help in just a small way. I knew Vedra was the lady for the job though, I am so relieved to hear Snuggles is doing ok at the moment.

Now I do have a quick question to ask you. Every single medical pig that comes through my doors, I take photos of the medical condition where possible - example being I currently have a pig here with oral fungal but who has managed to get himself a very nasty looking eye injury, so I have pictures of the eye condition so I can look back on it and use the photo not only for personal learnings, but where appropriate to educate others and share what I have come across. I did take pics of Snuggles' skin condition, now when I take pics without prior consent from the owner I keep them purely for my own personal learnings, I never share them without the owners consent. But if I may, and this is where my question comes in, could I possibly post them on the forum in such a way that it helps other people seek help for their fungal pigs sooner than you were able to for Snuggles? If you are happy with it then I would like to show just how bad the condition can get without the right treatment being given ASAP. I could either put the pics and subject as it's own thread, a post in its own right to act as that warning to other owners, or I could add it on here - it's your choice, that if of course if you are happy for me to share the pictures I took.
 
Of course that is ok. It's scary to see how badlya guinea pig can deteriorate and if i can do anything to help another guinea pig from suffering the same i will.

I hope people on here don't think too badly of me letting him get into that state, i genuinely thought he had mites and was treating him for that when clearly that wasn't the case :(
 
Just heard from Vedra and Snuggles has started scratching again so he needs to stay in and have more treatment and we won't be able to pick him up till next week.

At least he's in the best place at the mo :(
 
Hi Laura,

Vedra still has him. Apparently even with anti inflamatories, antibiotics and anti fungal baths he was still scratching so she had to put him in a full body bandage and said she needed to keep him for a few more weeks :(
 
I am sorry to hear he is still not home, thanks for updating. I hope he stops scratching soon.
 
I've been to pick Snuggles up today and he seems a lot happier. Unfortunately he still has a body bandage on because he won't stop scratching. Vedra said he's had so many dips that there's no way he could have parasites or anything else on him so the itching must be in his head.

Anyway we'll keep him bandaged up for a while and see how he goes but he's had lots of fuss today and seems to be settling back in nicely :)

Oh i've changed his bedding now too. He has a lovely fleece (my son wanted him to have his power rangers fleece blanket lol) so he'll be nice and comfy :)
 
Thank you so much for updating, Louise. I am pleased he is back home with you, it is a shame about the continued scratching.
 
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