• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

skin worries

Status
Not open for further replies.
lynneprice

lynneprice

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Dec 22, 2010
Messages
95
Reaction score
2
Points
150
Location
ebbw vale south wales
hi . I am wondering if anyone has any ideas on this.
my piggy has loads of little black bits on her white fur ,Have studied these intensly and they do not appear to move so am guessing its some sort of dermatitus?.
she has had this quite a while (with no effect to her) but have noticed recently there seems to be more of it and she has withdrawn from me and does not like being handled or stroked .she is eating well but her weight is fluctuating at the moment one week she gains say 20ish grams and the next week loses 20ish grams?
have looked at lice and mites and does not seem to be either of these
Any help would be appreciated
lynne (ps sorry for rambling on :red
 
mites normally show them self first through dry skin, i would deffo take them to the vet to be safe. hope this helps
 
If they are mainly on the rump area above the grease gland then they are static lice. I had 2 piggies that were white fortunately they are easy to spot but they don't appear to move (unless you see them waving their legs whilst under a microscope :( )

You need Gorgeous guinea's Lice & Easy or Flea or Die shampoo. Bath them every 6-8 weeks in that & they shouldn't get them. By the way they usually come from hay so maybe change the hay you are using. Hope this helps :)
 
I agree that it's likely to be static/ hay mites. Vetsect shampoo is also good for getting rid of them.
 
thanks for your help ,just wondering she has had this since last year but only recently become more widespread ,have changed hay since last year so would it have been the hay i used to use or the hay i use now ?
Also will i need to treat her cagemate ,she has no black bits on her at all.
 
Well it could be either hay really! It's hard to tell unless you examine it under a microscope. They aren't a problem once they are cleared, bathing them regularly will keep them to a minimum. Yes you need to bath both guineas regularly, have they been bathed before? The only hay I know that doesn't harbour static lice is the Oxbow Timothy hay. It is sterile, from the US but most good pet shops sell it, or you can order online. It isn't cheap though. I used it in the Spring months when the lice seemed rife in normal hay, then went back to the normal hay in the winter.
 
i use meadow hay for bedding and alfafa timothy hay ,from us.from the hay experts online.
i bath my piggies every month in gorgeous guineas shampoo.i will try oxbow hay and try another company for their bedding hay although i heard the hay experts were good
thanks
 
I think Gorgeous Guineas is more of a shampoo that gives them luscious locks rather than treating problems. Try Lice & Easy http://www.gorgeousguineas.com/shampoos.html & I think you have to bath them & leave it on for a while, then repeat a week later to irradiate the lice, but follow the instructions on the bottle. Do both piggies because if one has them the other will have, but probably disguises them better lol! Good luck!
 
Thank for all your help ,my lovely .Will order the special shampoo for them.just one more question if you dont mind, obviously will sanatise ther cage but they also have fleeces would a 60 degree wash be enough ? and can you recomend a good bedding hay
thanks lynne x
 
60 degrees should be okay I think, I never used fleece lol! Watch it doesn't shrink though rolleyes

I just bought normal hay Meadow hay from the pet shop, it had to be long, not that chopped up stuff as they liked to bury themselves in it & make tunnels, no wonder mine got the little blighters (lice) lol! If you bathe them regularly it will keep the lice down though, after the initial weekly treatment. I would put my hay in a sack & give it a good shake before putting it in with them, that way it gets rid of a lot of dust, hay seeds & the hay mites first (discard the stuff that drops to the bottom of the bag, pick the loose stuff off the top to give the piggies).

This is the western timothy hay but it is expensive https://www.thehayexperts.co.uk/Hay...thy+Hay.21/Western+Timothy+Hay+:+425g.71.html if you are on a budget it is probably a bit dear, as piggies need plenty of hay. However if money is no object you can buy it in bigger quantities :) If you regularly bath them the lice won't be a problem anyway & as long as the hay is fresh & not dusty or mouldy they will be happy piggies!
 
Just looked at that site & that hay is fine. I am guessing the problem is probably the Meadow hay then. You could try one of the sites recommended on here, the Dustfree one or something, but I have never tried them so I can't really say if they are any better. Just keep them shampooed regularly they will smell sweet anyway lol!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top