URI - Sneezing/Wheezing - Dandelion & Burr (first pigs)

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Mon Nov 14, 2011 1:20 pm


Vet says everything sounds good -- that perhaps what I heard was water he sniffed while drinking from the bottle this morning. He sounds fine now. No sneezing/coughing.

I got another round of Revolution. Dose one today at the vets, two more doses for two and four weeks from now.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Nov 14, 2011 10:30 pm


If it is a normal viral cold, your pigs should be fine. Some colds also result in bacterial infections - which might pose a problem. The temperatures you describe should be fine. If you see itching, another round of an antiparasitc sounds good.

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Mon Jan 23, 2012 2:09 pm


Hi all.

Burr has a bite wound. This Friday we did introductions, and Burr & Tumbleweed got in a fight after I put them in the new 3x6 C&C cage together.

Burr was nipped in the face and has a cut on his upper lip and nose. His nose is red (will take pictures today at the vet). Tumbleweed has a very small nip on his chin.

Wounds have been cleaned with warm water and a diluted hibiclens solution. A divider went up after the incident, thus they have been on separate sides of the cage since the incident. I am seeing the vet this afternoon.

I weighed on Saturday morning, and again this morning. They've been eating, but Burr has lost 70g (EEEK!) and Tumbleweed has lost about 50G. Dandelion has lost about 20g, but he's within his normal weight fluctuation.

I plan on taking home some critical care from the vet. I'll see what the vet says, but I'm assuming that I will be hand-feeding Burr (and possibly Tumbleweed) for the next few days just to make sure he doesn't continue to lose weight.

What to do about their housing situation & Tumbleweed living solo?
Once blood has been drawn during introductions, the rule is that both pigs are unlikely to ever get along, correct? I have a bad feeling about trying to introduce them again, so it's not something I'm planning to do. This makes me feel worried for Tumbleweed.

I am not sure Tumbleweed has ever been housed with another guinea pig. He's incredibly energetic and aggressive. During introductions, up to the point of the fight, he was chasing, chattering and humping both Dandelion & Burr. When he was too tired to chase, he was humping the pillows and beds.

Now he sits at the cage divider looking for B & D. I've noticed Dandelion and sometimes Burr will sleep next to Tumbleweed right near the divider. There's no bar-biting now, but I'm afraid to take the barrier away and try again. Is it okay for him to live alone on the other side of the cage? What can I do to keep Tumbleweed happy and healthy but my original bonded pair happy?

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Mon Jan 23, 2012 7:45 pm


Vet said to keep them separated, divider in large cage should be just fine. She checked their wounds, said they look superficial and are healing up nicely.

She prescribed Metacam for Burr who has a little bite on his lip -- she is having me give it over the next three days in case it's causing him pain while eating, this way he should feel a bit better. Also took home some Critical Care and will give them a feeding tonight to make up for lost weight this weekend.

All is well. I don't plan to introduce them again. I don't want to get a fourth piggy. I'm concerned for Tumbleweed who will be living alone. I am worried about him not having a friend to share a cage a free-range cage with. Will living next to some piggies be enough?

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Jan 23, 2012 8:54 pm


Be sure you keep a close eye on those wounds anyway. Check for signs of infection daily. With the weight loss you saw, they could still be more serious.

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:16 pm


Ok. I will. Do you advise continuing cleaning with hibiclens too? No puss or inflammaton presently.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:23 pm


Use your own judgment on whether cleaning would help. The biggest problem would be if they are deep and the infection would be deep too.

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Tue Jan 31, 2012 9:53 am


Update for my records: Everyone's wounds are all healed up now. Living side by side in separate divisions of the cage seems to be working well.

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Sun Jan 13, 2013 1:34 am


Burr - now nearly 2 years old, has symptoms of either Ringworm or Mites.

Another of my pigs (Simon) has Ringworm but he is in quarantine and I use towels/wash after touching him.

We treated everybody in the herd (6 boars living as pairs in their own C&Cs) with Ivermectin on Wednesday (about 72 hours ago)

Burr seems to be scratching much more - there are small scabs and red skin.NO hair loss and no clear ring pattern like Simon's Ringworm.

Question:

After treating for mites, is it common for the areas affected to become MORE irritated for a time?

If it's Mites, when should I expect to see healing? (from what I've read, likely after the second treatment - is this correct?)

Burr has been getting anti-fungal cream once daily since then, but with no significant response. I can A.) More aggressively apply anti-fungal cream or B.) Apply once daily as I am or C.) Stop applying it.

Sidenote: Simon needed an oral Anti-fungal in addition to cream treatment and baths, so if Burr has the same fungal infection, I expect he'll need similar treatment. However, Burr's irritated skin looks very different from Simon's.

[edit] I know this is sort of confusing - I plan to treat everyone with Ivermectin once every two weeks regardless, just as a safety measure in case we also have Mites. I mention Ringworm because it seems LIKELY since it's highly contagious and I have another pig with it. I'm not sure if I have one thing or two things going on here. The best bet will probably be to take Burr in next week to get a scraping and a fungal culture done.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sun Jan 13, 2013 10:15 am


I have heard some people say there is initially more scratching as they die and irritate the skin (they live below the skin). I think if you continue as you are doing, it should clear up. If there are open sores, a topical fungal treatment may irritate them. I don't think fungus is quite as scary as mites.

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JadeMagpie

Post   » Tue Jan 15, 2013 2:22 pm


There are some open sores. Burr hasn't lost any fur, so I am leaning toward thinking it's mites. Poor guy was in pain when I put the fungal treatment on him. He does this thing where he bites his front paw. I put my hand by his mouth hoping he'd bite me instead of himself.

My sister corrected me and I see that ivermectin needs to be done every 7-10 days, so we'll be treating for mites again tomorrow. I'll be cleaning out his cage completely tonight.

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GP_mum
Supporter in '13

Post   » Wed Jan 16, 2013 3:37 am


One of my girls had ringworm that developed as I was treating my 3 for mites. None of the other 2 had a fungal infection. My vet recommended we treat the ringworm with an anti-fungal shampoo which I applied about 2 days after the topical Revoultion application.

I shampooed her once every 3 days and began to see an improvement and hair regrowth after 1 week.

All the best with your herd.

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