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really big toe

Laura M.

Laura M.

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Jun 14, 2019
Messages
185
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Points
330
Location
Devon
Hi, I got my Severus in May, and when I got him, he had a really big toe on his front left foot. Because he is a rescue, we thought that maybe the previous owner didn't cut his nails properly and maybe it got infected. When we cut his nails we missed out that toe, but now it is bigger and we don't know what to do.
Here is him a few days after I got him:
IMG_20190606_172425_edit.jpgIMG_20190606_172414_edit.jpgIMG_20190606_172217_edit.jpg

Here is him last night:
IMG_20191023_181839.jpgIMG_20191023_181828.jpgIMG_20191023_181822.jpgIMG_20191023_181807.jpg
I'm kinda upset that the shelter didn't tell me anything about this. Can you?
 
P.S. I don't want to see the (extremely expensive) vet until I am out of options.
 
Hi!

The toe should really be seen by a vet; this is definitely no longer normal!
If you have worries about the cost, please speak to the rescue again.
 
That definitely needs to be checked by a guinea pig savvy vet. I am somewhat concerned that a rescue would rehome a piggy with an issue like that. Did they get it checked out prior to putting him up for rehoming? Was it pointed out to you at the time you got him? The reason most of our piggies live their lives out with us, is because they have ongoing issues. When we do put a piggy up for adoption that has an ongoing issue, it is always written into the contract, that we will continue to pay for the treatment, as long as they use the vet we use.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
That definitely needs to be checked by a guinea pig savvy vet. I am somewhat concerned that a rescue would rehome a piggy with an issue like that. Did they get it checked out prior to putting him up for rehoming? Was it pointed out to you at the time you got him? The reason most of our piggies live their lives out with us, is because they have ongoing issues. When we do put a piggy up for adoption that has an ongoing issue, it is always written into the contract, that we will continue to pay for the treatment, as long as they use the vet we use.
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They didn't mention anything about it, so I assumed he would grow out of it.
 
futurefame said:
They didn't mention anything about it, so I assumed he would grow out of it.
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It might be worth speaking to them, if only to get a bit more info about how it started, etc. That is presuming they even noticed it! Do you have a good guinea pig savvy vet you can go to?
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
It might be worth speaking to them, if only to get a bit more info about how it started, etc. That is presuming they even noticed it! Do you have a good guinea pig savvy vet you can go to?
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I haven't had them long enough to need a vet
 
futurefame said:
P.S. I don't want to see the (extremely expensive) vet until I am out of options.
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Sorry if you brought home a piggy with an undiagnosed health issue, but really the vet should always be the first place to go, its really the best and only option with any health concerns- its always a good idea to get any new piggy registered with the vet and have a general health check so your vet knows what is normal for your piggy if an illness appears or gets worse later on. Hope the toe is ok x
 
Hopefully it’s nothing serious, my fingers are 🤞🏾 for you.

I agree that you should speak to the rescue. Do you know how long he was with them before you adopted him? If it was quite a while I question how they could have missed his toe.

On a side note, does he have a companion? Piggies are herd animals that need to live with their own kind. They need that constant companionship and interaction to live a full piggy life 😁

Let us know how it goes with the vet.
 
Siikibam said:
Hopefully it’s nothing serious, my fingers are 🤞🏾 for you.

I agree that you should speak to the rescue. Do you know how long he was with them before you adopted him? If it was quite a while I question how they could have missed his toe.

On a side note, does he have a companion? Piggies are herd animals that need to live with their own kind. They need that constant companionship and interaction to live a full piggy life 😁

Let us know how it goes with the vet.
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He lives with his 2 brothers, Albus and Neville, but they all get along.
 
Hope you can find out what it is, and it's nothing serious!

I'm probably barking up the wrong tree, but have you checked that there's nothing constricting that toe and causing it to swell etc?
I also wondered if guinea pigs can get fungal nail infections like humans do, and whether that might cause a toe to look like that. Unlikely I expect but it reminded me of some human toes I've seen ... I think the vet is the only person who's going to be able to find out what it really is though. Best of luck in getting an answer x
 
The vet said that it is probably just trauma from before we got him, maybe scarred tissue or something. She cut a bit off and told us to do it when it grows this long. She says it's not a tumour or fungal infection, thank got. She also noted that he had a white bit in his eye, and she thinks that's a scar too.
 
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