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What is this?

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guineapig543

New Born Pup
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I woke up this morning and this is on leo’s side. I’m taking him to the vet after work but does anybody know what this is?
 

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everything was fine when i saw him yesterday, he is still eating and there is nothing on his brother who is in the same cage.
 
Hello. I’m pleased you are taking Leo to the vets very soon. It’s hard to say from that photo. Is it an open wound or a scab?
 
I suppose it could be a burst abscess or cyst. Keep us posted what the vet says. Good luck.
 
I called the vet for an appointment and they are booked until monday, will he make it? there’s an emergency vet but it’s almost 8 hours away.
 
I’m sorry to hear they can’t get him in.
Is there any way you could email pictures to them to impress upon them the need for him to be seen? He may be in pain.

All we can suggest, other than seeing the vet, is that you keep the area clean and dry and that you switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh him daily so you can be sure he is definitely eating enough hay to enable you to step in with syringe feeding if his weight drops. (you cannot tell hay intake by eye - it is the largest proportion of their food intake so any drop in hay would not be seen by you watching him but would quickly show on the scales)

Emergency and Crisis Care as well as Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
 
guineapig543 said:
I woke up this morning and this is on leo’s side. I’m taking him to the vet after work but does anybody know what this is?
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Hi

I could be a burst cyst or an abscess but it is good that you are taking him to the vet because we can only guess.
It must have been quite a shock for you, though!
 
Lordy, that's enormous! I'm guessing you can't remember seeing any big lumps? No idea what it is but if it's obviously an open wound it might be wise to prepare a strong saline solution because you'll want to avoid infection. If it's like a dry scab it's not so much of a worry but if it's fresh, moist flesh I'd be wanting to sloosh it every 6 to 8 hours or so until it dries out. It's the moisture of an open wound that can allow bacteria to flourish. Try to avoid touching it - it will hurt. And keep an eye on him in case he's biting or scratching at it. If they're bedded on shavings or anything maybe transfer to towels or fleece so you reduce the chances of bits getting stuck in it. It might sound grim but have a good sniff - it might smell a bit, you know, piggy... but monitoring the smell of something is a very good way to pick up early signs of infection. Know how it smells before it risks going dodgy.

When one of mine had a large lump removed from under her chin they had to leave a huge open wound so it could 'heal from the inside'. If they stitched her up there was apparently a risk of this thing reappearing. It looked awfully painful but she never batted an eyelid. We can buy something called *'Hibiscrub' here which is actually the pink stuff vets wash their hands in before operations. Well we had to dilute this stuff down (sorry, can't remember the final concentration) and sloosh it under her chin morning and evening with a syringe while she sat on a bath-towel. Gentle dab around the wound, bit of lettuce as a reward, she never even flinched. She was a tough old bird that one! It took her about 2 weeks to heal up nicely. Vet was so overtly surprised she recovered that I was quite offended!

*[Little aside - I had an op myself this year and had to wash down in Hibiscrub a couple times before the surgery (which went fine). So we had some left over and I used it as a foot soak for me and the teens when we got pervasive cheesy feet in the summer. It was the only thing that got rid on the pong!]
 
Free Ranger said:
Lordy, that's enormous! I'm guessing you can't remember seeing any big lumps? No idea what it is but if it's obviously an open wound it might be wise to prepare a strong saline solution because you'll want to avoid infection. If it's like a dry scab it's not so much of a worry but if it's fresh, moist flesh I'd be wanting to sloosh it every 6 to 8 hours or so until it dries out. It's the moisture of an open wound that can allow bacteria to flourish. Try to avoid touching it - it will hurt. And keep an eye on him in case he's biting or scratching at it. If they're bedded on shavings or anything maybe transfer to towels or fleece so you reduce the chances of bits getting stuck in it. It might sound grim but have a good sniff - it might smell a bit, you know, piggy... but monitoring the smell of something is a very good way to pick up early signs of infection. Know how it smells before it risks going dodgy.

When one of mine had a large lump removed from under her chin they had to leave a huge open wound so it could 'heal from the inside'. If they stitched her up there was apparently a risk of this thing reappearing. It looked awfully painful but she never batted an eyelid. We can buy something called *'Hibiscrub' here which is actually the pink stuff vets wash their hands in before operations. Well we had to dilute this stuff down (sorry, can't remember the final concentration) and sloosh it under her chin morning and evening with a syringe while she sat on a bath-towel. Gentle dab around the wound, bit of lettuce as a reward, she never even flinched. She was a tough old bird that one! It took her about 2 weeks to heal up nicely. Vet was so overtly surprised she recovered that I was quite offended!

*[Little aside - I had an op myself this year and had to wash down in Hibiscrub a couple times before the surgery (which went fine). So we had some left over and I used it as a foot soak for me and the teens when we got pervasive cheesy feet in the summer. It was the only thing that got rid on the pong!]
Click to expand...
I didn’t notice anything! it is scabbed over, but i am going to take him out and clean the scab, as well as change the bedding. Somebody said polysporin is safe for guinea pigs so i may add a little dab to help keep infections away
 
guineapig543 said:
I didn’t notice anything! it is scabbed over, but i am going to take him out and clean the scab, as well as change the bedding. Somebody said polysporin is safe for guinea pigs so i may add a little dab to help keep infections away
Click to expand...
I've been told by my vet not to use polysporin, as it contains antibiotics that are unsafe if ingested. The good news is that a crusted over scab is less likely to get infected, the scab basically protects the tissue underneath. Did he had a lump there? It looks like a huge cyst or abscess that has ruptured. Hope he heals up soon!
 
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Turns out he had cancer, there was another big lump i found on his chest and the x-ray showed it was interfering with his breathing and he was wheezing quite a bit. I’ll miss you Leo, you were the best furry potato i could have asked for❤️
 
Oh I'm so sorry 😔
Poor Leo, you had a good life with your brother until this happened. Your loving owner has spared you from suffering x
If you can spend time together with his brother, you will console each other. When George was left alone during lockdown after his cage mate Ivy died we sat together every day. I had my breakfast next to him in his cage on the floor. We became close and although he was happy when more pigs eventually arrived our closeness has remained. Now he is old and being nursed himself I can see how he is trusting me to help him because of our history together 💕
 
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