SEVERE Mange Mites.. HELP!

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piggiewiggys

Post   » Wed Mar 22, 2017 12:34 am


Hi everyone,

I'm new to this site so I hope I'm positing this right, my story is going to be long but please read it I'm so desperate for help at this point.

Two months ago I rescued 2 Female girls who were living in a hutch with 6 other pigs outside pretty much living in their own poop, had grocery store brand food and NO hay. They lived off low brand pellets, cucumber, and treat sticks. The women had over 20 pigs and couldn't handle them anymore. I quickly rescued two sisters and took them home, got them cleaned up, proper cage, hay, veggies, and nice comfy fleece. Later that night I noticed one of them itching a lot so I moved them into my room to keep an eye on them. I was woken in the middle of the night to one of them having a seizure turned on her back mouth open tongue out and gasping for air. I quickly picked her up and her seizure stopped but freaked out and took her to the closest 24/7 overnight vet. On the way there every single time she would scratch she would have a seizure. The vet took one look at her and said she has mange mites, told me Revolution for Cats and Dogs would fix it and she should be better within a month. $350 later we were on our way home with Revolution.

We treated her and her sister, 2 drops behind the ears every week for 4 weeks. Her sister had very dry flaky itchy skin and it cleared up after one treatment of Revolution. The girl who had it the worse, who was having seizures was still itchy.. even more itchy. She was having a seizure every 10 mins so I took her to a Exotic vet this time. He said he doesn't see many Guinea Pig's with mange but it for sure is Mange Mites. He said I can't do revolution again since it would overdose her and sent me home with a cream called "Neocort" it has Lignocaine, Neomycin, Hydrocortisone in it. I have looked everywhere and have not found a post about treating guinea pigs with this but I used it. We would apply the cream wrap her in medical bandage and then put her little guinea pig sweater on her (normally don't agree with clothes for guinea pigs but it stops her from itching and she can't pull it off)

It's been another month now, she has been wrapped up 24/7 for this whole month (yes we change the bandages often) and when she has her bandages on she is fine, she does try to itch but cannot because of the bandages. She seems to be doing better until the bandages come off.. her skin looks so extremely flakey and dry. Black dandruff just falls everywhere, you can't even touch her without having so much shaded hair all over your hair. The second she realizes her bandages are off she won't stop itching. Her fur did grow back but its so corse and dry, I had her bandages off for 5 mins today to change them and she managed to rip her fur out and get an open wound again. Her right side, under her chin, her legs are her problem areas.

Someone in a guinea pig group I'm in told me to call the exotic vet back and ask for Ivermectin injections. They told me they don't inject ivermectin for guinea pigs they only use Revolution. (Maybe Ivermectin is hard to get in Australia?) I honestly don't know what to do anymore. We've spent so much money rescuing them, vet visits and medication cost. We're in the middle of moving houses and are so tight on money. It's breaking my heart to see her in pain like this. I just want her to be able to roam free without bandages holding her back. Has anyone dealt with this? I'm in a guinea pig group on Facebook and so many people have experienced mites and had it clear within a few weeks. I don't know what more I can do, can I do revolution again? Other than her mange mites she eats a lot, she drinks, she poo's normal, she is a bit less active because I'm sure her bandages are weird and annoying to her.

Please any advice helps at this point, we've tried everything and I hate seeing her in pain like this.

Thank you for taking the time to read all of this!

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daisymay
Supporter 2016-2021

Post   » Wed Mar 22, 2017 5:31 am


(Maybe Ivermectin is hard to get in Australia?)
A normal vet uses it on dogs, cats even horses.

I am also in Australia and I can get Ivermectin. I get a syringe full and add a few drops (depending on weight of piggy) behind the ear on the hair less part. And I repeat every 2 weeks.

Maybe this link will help? https://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html Hoping you get a few ideas. And THANK-YOU for rescuing the 2 girls. Hoping the others got rescued as well. Some people should NOT have pets!

Welcome to the world of being a piggy slave. A piggy having a seizure is a scary thing and something one never gets use too! Maybe this will help?

https://www.guinealynx.info/records/view ... f=86&t=240 Dr Vella is a great piggy vet in Sydney so I have heard. Maybe your vet could ring him or email him?
told me Revolution for Cats and Dogs would fix them
I have used Revolution for my girls but only the pink one for puppies and kittens as was told the others (Revolutions) too strong for piggies.
I had her bandages off for 5 mins today to change them and she managed to rip her fur out and get an open wound again.
Is she on any antibiotics for the open wound/s?Perhaps Gorgeous guineas could help in the way of a soothing lotion? You could email them and they could advise you. http://shop.gorgeousguineas.com/ Nothing worse I find than having an itch one can't scratch. Poor little piggy!

User avatar
Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Mar 22, 2017 8:59 am


The revolution should have helped. Ivermectin is pretty similar. There may also be a concurrent fungal infection. The cream you are applying has an antibiotic that should help with a skin bacterial infection if there is one. That antibiotic looks like it's being used safely topically (covered so the pig can't lick it off and only used topically - if ingested it would cause problems).

Look over this topic:
https://www.guinealynx.info/records/view ... p?f=1&t=96

Have you read https://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html ? Is this guinea pig having any more seizures? I suspect the bandaging, while helping in some ways, may increase the possibility of fungal issues.

See also https://www.guinealynx.info/topical_ivermectin.html

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Wed Mar 22, 2017 9:53 am


If the cream you're using is an antibiotic, and if the problem with the skin is fungal, the antibiotic won't do anything to help it, and may actually make it worse. You can get an antifungal medication at a pharmacy -- Nystatin and Lotrimin are common brands here. You want something with one of the -azoles in it -- clotrimazole, ketaconazole, miconazole, etc.

If the problem is widespread, you can also bathe her in an antifungal shampoo. Nizoral and Malaseb are sold here.

piggiewiggys

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 11:13 am


Thank you everyone for replying, I hope I'm doing this right I'm new to the form not too sure how to reply to each person!

I'm torn between if it is fungal or if its mange mites or both... It honestly looks like both but you would think she would be better after revolution if it was just mange mites. I can't bath her she will literally cry and go into a complete fit and will be in pain until she's completely dry. Do you think it would be best to start treating her for fungal? I was looking at a fungal cream today called Clonea Antifungal Skin Cream 50g it has Clotrimazole Cream 10mg/g

piggiewiggys

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 11:16 am


Also what about coconut oil? Would that help her feel any better? I wish I could get a picture to post her but the second I unwrap her bandages to change them she freaks out. She hasn't had a seizure in a while but thats because she's bandaged up.. if I were to take them off she would scratch and have a seizure. I started noticing today a bald patch under her chin and on her leg now. I called my local guinea pig shelter and they said if I bring her in they will treat her with ivermectin for me

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 11:26 am


You don't need to reply to each person individually, just one post will do.

I'd definitely start with the antifungal cream. Like you, I think if the only problem were mange mites the Revolution would have helped. The cream won't hurt, and may actually help. You can try it on just one area and see if it does any good.

If you use the cream, I wouldn't use the coconut oil. The cream should soothe the skin. And while cold pressed coconut oil has some antibacterial and antifungal properties, it won't have a strong a concentration as the cream.

piggiewiggys

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 11:38 am


Thanks for your help! I will try the fungal cream then. Should I put it all over her or just where she has ripped her skin open? It's going to be hard because the second you touch her skin she goes into a fit :( And you're right about the cream I've been using, in a way I feel like it has been making her worse. After I put it on she does calm down a bit but the sores get bigger and her hair really falls out in that area.

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 11:44 am


Truth be told, if it were me, I'd get both an antifungal cream and an antibiotic cream and put one in one place and one in the other. I'd use the antibiotic in a much smaller area where the problem isn't so bad, and the antifungal everywhere else. And yes, I'd put it all over her.

But, if she has that kind of reaction to even being touched, it might be easier to bathe her with Nizoral. You wouldn't actually have to put her in a bath -- you could put her on a thick towel and use a cotton ball to put the solution on her. With the cream, you'd have to rub it in, and that might traumatize her more than just having the shampoo solution applied gently.

piggiewiggys

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 11:49 am


Whats the best fungal and antibiotic cream I can get? I just moved to Australia so I'm not really familiar with the products over here. My vet told me to get fido's free itch which kills fleas and mites but I feel like it isn't doing much. It smells extremely strong too and you aren't suppose to wash it off. I'll look up the one you just mentioned though! Should I separate her from her sister incase it is fungal or is it too late now?

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 3:40 pm


I wouldn't separate her. It'll just stress her out, unless her sister is harassing her now. Just watch the one without the mites so that you can catch any problems early.

I have no idea what brand names would be good. Here, we usually recommend Nystatin or Lotrimin, Monistat if you can't get either of those two. But I have no idea whether they're sold in Australia or not.

piggiewiggys

Post   » Thu Mar 23, 2017 4:49 pm


I found a cream, really hope this works! Thanks for your help :)

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