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Separating two bonded boars whilst treating one for ringworm

ashimay

ashimay

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Whilst carrying out the daily health checks on my two boars last night I noticed that Otis had what I suspected to be a fungal infection on one of his ears, a quick trip to the vet this evening confirmed that it was indeed ringworm (in the early stages) and checked over my other boar and confirmed that he was yet not infected.

She then recommended that we separate the two boys to avoid the infection spreading to my other boar. Otis is most definitely not the dominant of the two boys and I’m worried that seperating them may cause tension when re-introducing them (as my other boar is a bit of a bully) or may stress them both after his treatment is up, is this likely? Is there a better way to deal with this problem or is separating them the best thing to do and hope that reintroducing them will go smoothly?

I’ve never had to deal with ringworm before, so all of this is rather new to me and I’ve read the post on dealing with ringworm and the necessary disinfecting proceedures etc, but any additional advice would be appreciated!

Thank you!
 
ashimay said:
Whilst carrying out the daily health checks on my two boars last night I noticed that Otis had what I suspected to be a fungal infection on one of his ears, a quick trip to the vet this evening confirmed that it was indeed ringworm (in the early stages) and checked over my other boar and confirmed that he was yet not infected.

She then recommended that we separate the two boys to avoid the infection spreading to my other boar. Otis is most definitely not the dominant of the two boys and I’m worried that seperating them may cause tension when re-introducing them (as my other boar is a bit of a bully) or may stress them both after his treatment is up, is this likely? Is there a better way to deal with this problem or is separating them the best thing to do and hope that reintroducing them will go smoothly?

I’ve never had to deal with ringworm before, so all of this is rather new to me and I’ve read the post on dealing with ringworm and the necessary disinfecting proceedures etc, but any additional advice would be appreciated!

Thank you!
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome!

Please don't separate as infection has most likely already happened. If you follow the tips in our very detailed practical Ringworm Care guide, you can prevent the companion (and yourself) from coming down with it with the help of a couple of fungicidal baths.
Key to any ringworm treatment is absolutely hygiene and a good vet grade disinfectant like F10 - the latter will be your best friend.
In over a dozen years of existence, I hope that we have worked out all the potential angles that invisible but long lived ringworm spores can be transmitted and how to counter them: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures

What treatment has your vet prescribed?
 
Excellent! Thank you for the advice, I was rather skeptical about separating them, so this is good to hear! :)

The vet prescribed the Itrafungol oral solution to be given once daily, she also told me that it's a solution often given to cats but works just fine on guinea pigs (this did cause me to raise an eyebrow, but my friends who have kept guinea pigs much longer than I have recommended the vet as the most cavy savvy in the area!)

Thanks again!
Wiebke said:
Hi and welcome!

Please don't separate as infection has most likely already happened. If you follow the tips in our very detailed practical Ringworm Care guide, you can prevent the companion (and yourself) from coming down with it with the help of a couple of fungicidal baths.
Key to any ringworm treatment is absolutely hygiene and a good vet grade disinfectant like F10 - the latter will be your best friend.
In over a dozen years of existence, I hope that we have worked out all the potential angles that invisible but long lived ringworm spores can be transmitted and how to counter them: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures

What treatment has your vet prescribed?
Click to expand...
 
ashimay said:
Excellent! Thank you for the advice, I was rather skeptical about separating them, so this is good to hear! :)

The vet prescribed the Itrafungol oral solution to be given once daily, she also told me that it's a solution often given to cats but works just fine on guinea pigs (this did cause me to raise an eyebrow, but my friends who have kept guinea pigs much longer than I have recommended the vet as the most cavy savvy in the area!)

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

Itrafungol is a godsent for getting on top of ringworm! Sooo much easier, efficient and less stressful than a bath every 3 days! You will find it strongly recommended in our guide.
It is sadly not at all cheap but once you have been through ringworm with 16 piggies the old-fashioned way, you can't help feel that it is worth every penny! ;)
Itrafungol is perfectly safe for guinea pigs; it's been used for at least 8-10 years for them and has been increasingly more prescribed for guinea pigs in the intervening years. Only a very few basic medications are actually licensed for guinea pigs and other small rodents, so vets have to borrow quite a lot from other species for more specific treatments.

A few days on it for the companion should also take care of any potential infection. ;)
I would still strongly advise you to give both a bath with an anti-dandruff shampoo like nizoral at the end of the treatment as I have had a couple of cases where ringworm has been carried in on the coat of a not affected piggy over the years!

You still need to follow our hygiene tips because while ringworm is not the most dangerous thing to catch, it is the single most infectious and species jumping problem you can come across, not helped by spores staying live for up to 2 years... Better do it properly the first time round and not skimp, so you are rid of it once and for all and it never gets past nuisance level! :(
 
Itrafungol is perfectly safe for piggies and is the most effective treatment. Unfortunately it's not cheap! Last time my vet charged me to write a prescription and then I brought it online which saved me around 50%. I agree with the not separating, the other boys been exposed to the spores already and the stress of them being without their companion isn't good for them. First time I dealt with ringworm I separated mine and came back from holiday to another two with it anyway
 
A lot of medications given to guinea pigs/rabbits are for cats/dogs. It’s perfectly fine and dosages are adjusted accordingly
 
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