Hey everyone. So I have an abyssinian named homer. He has very long hair in the back. So today I had my friend come over to help me clip his nails and give him a haircut. She pointed out to me that part of his bum had a missing patch of hair. So I took a look at it and it didnt look irritated at all and there was no blood or anything bad that I could notice. And it didn't seem to bother him at all. I also noticed that there was some white crust in his hair on the back that I assumed was from his brother cause they mount eachother often. So we gave him a haircut and a bath in just some warm water and cut out the clumps of hair with the white stuff (probably ejaculant). So my question is. Should I be concerned about the bald spot or does it sound like his hair just got ripped out on something when it was clumped together. I apologize that I wasnt able to get a photo yet but any answers are very helpful. I plan to call the vet tomorrow and ask aswell but for now I'm trying to not be too worried as he seems unbothered at the time.
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Skin patch. Should I be concerned?
- Thread starter Michael07
- Start date
Betsy
Anniversary Herd
Any bald patch in a piggy needs to be looked at by a vet. It could be anything so always best to get a professional diagnosis.
Firstly I love the idea that you have a friend over to give your piggies a pamper session - what a great idea and a great friend!
But I do agree with @Betsy. It probably isn't urgent, but I would pop your piggy along to the vet to have it looked at.
Skin conditions can present in lots of different ways and are usually really hard to spot and diagnose, and a vet will be able to do this.
Hopefully it is nothing, but better to know for sure.
But I do agree with @Betsy. It probably isn't urgent, but I would pop your piggy along to the vet to have it looked at.
Skin conditions can present in lots of different ways and are usually really hard to spot and diagnose, and a vet will be able to do this.
Hopefully it is nothing, but better to know for sure.
What lucky piggies that have such a kind hooman looking after them and what a good friend you have helping you care for them.
I would take your piggy along to the vet as the bald patch could be something that needs treatment, always best to get these things checked out.
I would take your piggy along to the vet as the bald patch could be something that needs treatment, always best to get these things checked out.
Lady Kelly
Senior Guinea Pig
Where abouts on his bum is the patch? Is it a very small patch? Could it be where the grease gland is? Perhaps posting a photo would help as we could then see what you mean.
First thank you everyone for the kind responses. I was able to take some pictures but not the best. (Sorry about the poo)
Lady Kelly
Senior Guinea Pig
Ah yes that is not the grease gland so I would go to the vets for a health check. It could be mites or lice which are easily treated with appropriate strength products (please note over the counter medications are rarely strong enough to combat the infestation)
That’s a good photo. And all good piggy photos have poop. But I agree that your piggy will need to see a vet to find out the cause for the hair loss. Hope you can get it sorted easily by the vets.
Hey everyone, I posted on here around a week ago asking if I should be concerned about my pigs skin patch he has. First thank you for all the helpful responses. Second I ended up taking him to the vet and they did a mite test but didnt find any mites. and they did a ringworm culture which takes 2 weeks. Anyway an update on him. He seems very happy. Very active. Not any different than before the skin patch. However the patch seems to have gotten worse. I sort of have a theory. I noticed yesterday that his brother seemed to mount him and ejaculate on him on the same spot as the hair loss. Is it possible that this "stuff" from his brother is irritating his skin and causing hair to fall out? Anyway I'm supposed to call the vet a couple times between this week and next to give updates and see the status on the ringworm culture. But until then. any pointers or anything to put me at ease is greatly appreciated!
Hi!
No, boar glue doesn't irritate the skin.
Please be aware that your vet not finding mites necessarily means that there aren't any. We have seen this often enough.
The patch getting larger means that the problem is not addressed and is still ongoing. To be honest, it looks rather like a mange mites patch to me. It doesn't have the crustiness of a fungal skin infection (of which ringworm is only - if the most aggressive - form). This also means that lab tests can come back negative for ringworm but your piggy can suffer from another variety of fungal skin infection.