• 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

Small brown lice?

Status
Not open for further replies.
piggy person

piggy person

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Nov 3, 2009
Messages
472
Reaction score
0
Points
230
Location
In Splodge and Marmites Hutch
I was having a cuddle with one of my boars, Bill, and I noticed he has a few little brown lice on his fur? There wasn't many but is there anything I can use that'll get rid of them and stop them from spreading to Ted?
Thanks :)
 
Piggies get different types of mites and lice so the best thing to do is take him to the vet to determine which one he has. Mange mites will need injections to get rid of. The spread quickly and hurt so going to a vet as soon as possible is best.
 
If you can see them moving then it's possible that they are running lice. They live on the hair shaft and are visible to the eye. They are passed easily between piggies, so if Bill lives with Ted then it's likely that he will already have them, or will need to be treated anyway as a precaution.

This link provides some useful information: http://www.guinealynx.info/lice.html

If you have never dealt with lice before then I would definitely recommend taking the piggies to the vets for proper diagnosis. Luckily most types of lice are easily dealt with by using shampoos such as Lice n' Easy by Gorgeous Guineas, and are really more of a nuisance than anything.

Although you may not see many now, if they are indeed lice then they will produce eggs which will hatch into many more. During and after treatment it is essential that your thoroughly disinfect their cage to get rid of the lice and eggs.

Pop them along to the vets asap for proper diagnosis and treatment. But don't worry, it is usually easily sorted :)
 
piggy person said:
I've had a look on guinea lynx and I think it might be static lice. I think I'll buy some lice droplet things, and then see if he's okay.
Click to expand...

I would be cautious about what you use and really would recommend getting them checked by the vet first before you treat yourself. Some treatments are not effective on lice that live on the hair shafts (as they are not parasites), while some shop bought products are really not recommended.

I always find it's better to be safe than sorry with these little furbabies :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top