White Spot Above Guinea Pig’s Eye Help

[Jada Wood]

I got my guinea pigs from Petsmart on New Year’s eve (about 2 weeks ago) and they’ve been in good health, very active, etc. But today I noticed that my black guinea pig had some white above his eye that I’ve never seen before. I thought it was just a speck and that it was nothing that couldn’t just be wiped off but it wouldn’t come off even though I carefully brushed him and wiped him. I’m really concerned because i’ve only had these guinea pigs for less than a month and I’m 17 and my mom doesn’t want me to spend money on taking them to a vet. Does anybody know based on the attached picture if it’s mites?

 

[Jada Wood]

also another thing i forgot to add was he hasn’t been scratching at it.

 

[DM030819]

@Jada Wood It looks like a patch of fungal to me. So you'll need to go to the vet for treatment.

 

[Hoppity.K]

Hi & welcome. The best thing to do is take your lovely piggy to the vets to get checked. What’s his name? He’s lovely x

 

[Lady Kelly]

Hi and welcome to the forum. I agree with jaycey, it very much looks like a fungal patch to me. I'm dealing with very similar under the eye at the min. Best to get to a vet asap as it can escalate quite a lot if left and can pass to humans as well

 

[VickiA]

Lovely piggy.

When you get unexplained hair loss on the face it is often fungal, but we cannot diagnosis from a photo. I’m afraid if you have pets you have to be prepared to take them to a vet when needed, and you need to get this checked by a vet to diagnosis and give you the correct treatment. Please don’t just treat on spec at home as you may make matters worse. If it is fungal or mites it will not go away on its own and needs treatment. Please ask your mum to take him to the vets.

 

[Wiebke]

I got my guinea pigs from Petsmart on New Year’s eve (about 2 weeks ago) and they’ve been in good health, very active, etc. But today I noticed that my black guinea pig had some white above his eye that I’ve never seen before. I thought it was just a speck and that it was nothing that couldn’t just be wiped off but it wouldn’t come off even though I carefully brushed him and wiped him. I’m really concerned because i’ve only had these guinea pigs for less than a month and I’m 17 and my mom doesn’t want me to spend money on taking them to a vet. Does anybody know based on the attached picture if it’s mites?

View attachment 78502

Hi!

This looks like ringworm to me! Sadly it is anything but uncommon in pet store guinea pigs. The time between inection and outbreak is about 10-14 days, so exposure to spores and infection must have happened at the shop.

Your mum can reclaim any vet cost that results from diagnosis and treatment from the pet shop by presenting the vet bill together with the sales receipt. If necessary, she needs to insist on seeing the store manager. You can also make a formal complaint to your local authorities about selling highly infected and infected animals to unsuspecting customers.

Please be aware that ringworm is the most infective and transmissive problem between all mammals (including humans); it can also affect reptiles and birds. You need to be very careful with disinfecting and handling. Good hygiene is paramount! As is investing in a good disinfectant that is antifungal and not just antibacterial.
Please do not resort to mucking around on spec with low-dosed broad spectrum pet shop stuff that won't cure and only prolong the suffering - and in the end either costing your piggies their lives or you a lot more money than if you'd done it properly in the first place.
Please also be aware that no online place is legally allowed to diagnose and treat; all we can do is telling you when you need to see a vet and what avenues to pursue with them.
Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures
Guinea Lynx :: Fungus

However, please be aware that vet cost are the biggest part of what you spend on any pet. Please start saving up with your family for a vet fund on a weekly basis in order to be able to afford vet care for any serious illness or in an emergency, which can easily cost you several hundreds of dollars. It is part and parcel of responsible pet ownership to keep a pet in your care healthy and pain-free and with access to medical care.
New Owners' Problem Solver And Information Collection

 

[Jada Wood]

Hi & welcome. The best thing to do is take your lovely piggy to the vets to get checked. What’s his name? He’s lovely x

His name is Calypso my other guinea pig named Gizmo is currently experiencing hair loss. I called petsmart and they said since it’s been 14 days with their guarantee they’ll refund us, treat them, and then we can buy them back which seems a little sketchy to me because we will have to buy them back meaning somebody else can buy them before us and the pet care in the store itself doesn’t even treat guinea pigs

 

[Wiebke]

His name is Calypso my other guinea pig named Gizmo is currently experiencing hair loss. I called petsmart and they said since it’s been 14 days with their guarantee they’ll refund us, treat them, and then we can buy them back which seems a little sketchy to me because we will have to buy them back meaning somebody else can buy them before us and the pet care in the store itself doesn’t even treat guinea pigs

Having to buy back your guinea pigs is not at all a correct business practice! Your guinea pigs have either got a guarantee to be treated during that time, but you have full rights of getting them back without any extra cost. The refund does not cover any proper vet cost and as you say, it doesn't come with a guarantee that you are getting your guinea pig back, which you have already bonded with back. Can your mum complain to the store manager and insist that the store refund your private vet cost?

 

[Jada Wood]

Having to buy back your guinea pigs is not at all a correct business practice! Your guinea pigs have either got a guarantee to be treated during that time, but you have full rights of getting them back without any extra cost. The refund does not cover any proper vet cost and as you say, it doesn't come with a guarantee that you are getting your guinea pig back, which you have already bonded with back. Can your mum complain to the store manager and insist that the store refund your private vet cost?

So we went and they have ringworm. for no charge theyre taking both of them to the vet and treating them and then they’ll call us so we can come back and buy them with the refunded money. it’s a bad business all together

 

[Wiebke]

So we went and they have ringworm. for no charge theyre taking both of them to the vet and treating them and then they’ll call us so we can come back and buy them with the refunded money. it’s a bad business all together

All the best!

Please disinfect their cage thoroughly with a disinfectant that also kills fungal spores; it is well worth the money to pay for a good product. Ringworm spores can stay live for up to 18 months; they are highly infectious and transmittable.
Any wood needs to be either thrown away or completely dunked and then dried. Any fabric in contact with the guinea pigs (including any human clothing in contact with your guinea pigs) needs to be washed a higher temperature. You also best give yourself a wash from top to bottom with nizoral shampoo to make sure that you do not develop ringworm if you have handled your guinea pigs in the last few days.

Please ask your mum to read our ringworm hygiene guide. We have learned the detailed tips in there the hard way, but they really work!

 

[Jada Wood]

All the best!

Please disinfect their cage thoroughly with a disinfectant that also kills fungal spores; it is well worth the money to pay for a good product. Ringworm spores can stay live for up to 18 months; they are highly infectious and transmittable.
Any wood needs to be either thrown away or completely dunked and then dried. Any fabric in contact with the guinea pigs (including any human clothing in contact with your guinea pigs) needs to be washed a higher temperature. You also best give yourself a wash from top to bottom with nizoral shampoo to make sure that you do not develop ringworm if you have handled your guinea pigs in the last few days.

Please ask your mum to read our ringworm hygiene guide. We have learned the detailed tips in there the hard way, but they really work!

i will definitely get on that. i have towels in their cage while i wait for fleece to come in the mail and a few blankets and a small bed so i’ll definitely wash those. Do you have any suggestions of a disinfectant for the spores that I can use? I’ll definitely dunk all of their wood which is only a chew toy and the hay rack. I have a c&c cage so would it be recommended that i wipe down the coroplast as well?

 

[eileen]

hi,F10 disinfectant is the best solution,as it kills fungal spores,viruses,bacteria and fungal

 

[Wiebke]

i will definitely get on that. i have towels in their cage while i wait for fleece to come in the mail and a few blankets and a small bed so i’ll definitely wash those. Do you have any suggestions of a disinfectant for the spores that I can use? I’ll definitely dunk all of their wood which is only a chew toy and the hay rack. I have a c&c cage so would it be recommended that i wipe down the coroplast as well?

Yes, please wipe everything down, including all the grids and connectors. I actually used F10 concentrate and made up a basin full at the recommended strength to clean all grids and connectors (I have well over 100 of them). I also thoroughly wiped the coroplast when my Barri had a relapse in October. He'd been surrendered to rescue via a vet after he ended up with a very bad case of ringworm due to wrongly applied home treatment. The first vet he was seen by wanted to euthanise him straight away!
Thankfully with stepping in promptly with the right medication and always having a disinfectant at home, I have been able to keep the ringworm confined to Barri despite him living in a room with 30 other piggies. Doing it properly is a pain, but it is well worth it!

You want to give your piggies a bath upon arrival to make sure that there are no further ringworm spores lurking in their coats. I have now had twice had an outbreak that was carried in by a spore sitting in the fur of either an ex-ringworm piggy or one in contact with a ringworm pig.

Here are our recommendations re. disinfectant brands in several countries that we have found most effective as well as detailed tips on what to clean how: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures