For those of you who own Guinea Pigs!!

[bigsis7]

Ok, so I am pet sitting my friends gp and he has mange mites and possibly a fungal infection. She knew he was sick just not what he had. They are trying to find a home for him for two months and this should up about a month a go I think. He is in excrutionating pain and everytime he scratches himself he screams . He (his name is Smores) has two cuts next to his eye from scratching. Smores is terrified of being picked up (his owner holds him regularly, until a few weeks ago) and will scream at me ! I am contemplating what to do. There is no way I can keep him with my two ferrets already, but mange mites eventually cause death and his owners are not willing to treat it. What do you guys think I should do?

[Beka27]

oh no! poor lil guy! i don’t know anything about that. are you able to treat him and find him a new home, maybe via Craigslist? he needs treatment, or he needs to be humanely euthanised. it’s not fair to keep him alive if he’s in such pain.

[Deleted User]

My poor guys Tyson and Micky had mites … they are nasty …

Tyson and Micky went to the vets and were given a small injection each … cost me all of $40 Aussie dollars.

That poor piggie … his pain would be horrendeous.  Pigs can die from not treating mites  … What on earth is your friend thinking of (or not) for not taking piggie to the vet.

 

[Cassi&Charlie]

I can’t imagine…this is terrible. Can you treat him or is the treatment really expensive?

If he’s in that much agony something has to be done. Otherwise it’s neglect.

[bigsis7]

My mom won’t let me keep him in the house cause she thinks he’s “gross” and my friend doesn’t want to put him down. I emailed a few rescues to see if they could take him. That was about 3 days ago and only one has emailed back. My friends hates seeing him in pain, but doesn’t understand that it would probably be better to put him down cause she’s had to watch about 5 other guinea pigs die. It extremley sad to me and her to watch him in pain, but only I understand the full exctent of what Smores has.

[Deleted User]

OMG!  This is awful … the pig needs treating immediately … or he will die anyway from suffering.

Prolonging his pain is inhumane.

 

[Cassi&Charlie]

Well your doing the right thing trying to convince her of the severity of the situation. Hopefully she doesn’t get another guinea pig!

So there’s no way he can be taken to a vet?

Keep us updated pls.

[bunnytowne]

Well thats nice dump an ill piggie on you like that.   Poor thing.   Yes mites spread too.  Very fast.  You have to put whatever he has been near in a dryer on high heat for at least 10 minutes.  I think you can get them too.  If they are scabies mites.  And yes your pets can get them too. 

I am sure that you are already washing your hands and arms after feeding him etc.  Hot hot water too. If you have touched your shirt or him on your shirt change your shirt and put it in high heat in the dryer.

Oh gosh what a mess.   That poor piggie.  It is just not right.  If you can take him to the vet do.  If not perhaps take him to the humane society for humane euthenasia.  I just can’t imagine letting him go like that. Poor thing.  He can get infected too from the cuts where he has been scratching so furiously.  Has his fur fallen out in places?  I know you know he is miserable.  You are too from watching him scratch and cry in pain.  Can’t be easy to watch.

[bunnytowne]

IF it is mange mites you can’t get them but your pets can.  If it is scabies then all can get it.

[bigsis7]

Smores has a strain of mites that only guinea pigs can get. She didn’t dump him on me. I’m just pet sitting him cause they got their house cleaned with a lot of chemicals. I’m going to offer to pay for the medicine, but I’m not sure they want to got through the trouble of bleaching his cage and giving him medication if they’re just gonna give him away >:-(. I’ll keep you guys updated!

[kralspace]

oh the poor piggy! When I rescued Snowflake she looked terrible, too. Big red bald spots, flakey skin, scratching til she cried, bad diet, underweight, open sores on her feet and legs, it broke my heart. And blind and deaf to boot being a lethal. She looked like a pink body with scraps of hair here and there.

The vet said she had several skin problems going on, possibly mites, scabies, fungal, etc and since doing the skin scraping would be so painful for the poor girl, she suggested clipping her teeth so she could eat, a couple of weeks of good food and weekly baths using Selsun Blue shampoo. She felt this would clear up a good deal of the problems and then we could concentrate on what would be left. I also put the tiniest dot possible of Ivectum behind the ears after the baths.

I swear, after 3 weeks you wouldn’t have believed it to be the same animal. The scratching had stopped, the hair was coming in full and thick and she nearly doubled in weight. After 6 weeks she was one fluffy little creature and full of sass and it took so little to make her happy. Her leg sores healed but the skin was still tender so I kept soft towels and sheepskin blankets in her condo.

There was nothing so satisfying as seeing her sleeping on her blanket in the door of her box, snoring.

The shampoo was expensive, about $7, but it worked wonders on her skin problems. Between the shampoo and Ivectum (which I’ve always had around from having horses and cats) the vet didn’t have to do anything.

Wish you lived around here, I’d be glad to give you some.. ;-(

Kathy

[jerseygirl]

This is great kralspace! Would the shampoo work for the mange mites? Hope so. I don’t have advice to offer but hate to hear of this piggy in pain. Hope you can improve the situation Bigsis7.

[kralspace]

Trying to find those websites……

here’s one about mange mites and Ivectum
http://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html

here’s one about the shampoos and other remedies
http://www.guinealynx.info/antifungal_agents.html

this covers a lot of skin problems:
http://top100cavies.top-site-list.com/top100cavies-post-3966.html

I wish you the best of luck, please let us know how it goes, Kathy

[bigsis7]

Arg!!! Well my mom is dropping him off at their house today! I’m going to offer to give them some medicine and make it very clear, it’s the medicine and finding him a new home or putting him to sleep.

[Beka27]

again, that poor pig. i hate to see him go back to those people. let us know what happens, please.

[Ang]

im sorry to be a bugger but an animal in that much pain is ridiculous your friends are not looking out for the best interest of the animal. Your mom and you should drop it off at a humane society so that it can be in better place weather it be Rainbow Bridge or safe in someone elses loves home.

They should be turned in to the authorities for animal neglect. No one is going to adopt a piggy that has mange unless it was a rescue.

[GHbun]

My daughter’s guinea pig was just treated for mange mites. She suddently got in horrible shape and was scratching herself bloody, not eating. She looked awful. The first vet appointment was $157, which included an injection of Ivectun and a first dose of Revolution. I declined the skin scraping test since her symptoms were pretty obvious and the test is not always conclusive – and no need for additional expense. Week 2, a second vet visit cost $50 for a second dose of Ivectum. On weeks 3 and 5, I gave her the second and third doses of Revolution. We had to dismantle and bleach the cage. The vet said people could get it from animals. A bath in Aveeno powder helped with the itching. Yes, it was expensive, but within 9 hours of the first injection she was a whole new animal: happy, hungry, and healthier looking. I’ve never seen anything turn around so fast. This can be entirely curable, but if no one’s going to pay for the treatment, then the animal must be put down. The suffering is intolerable.

[kralspace]

Here’s the page with instructions on applying Ivermectin topically, that’s the way I treated Snowflake. I didn’t have any scales so I followed their instructions and got just the smallest dot I could to put behind her ears.

I bought it at Tractor Supply from the cattle section. The bottle was expensive, $35 I think, but I’ve used it for so many of the critters it’s more than paid for itself.

http://www.guinealynx.info/ivermectin_topical.html

photos and further instructions on dosing:

http://www.guinealynx.info/ivermectin_topical.html

If it is mange mites, you will see results within a day or two, it works fast! Just make sure and don’t overdo it and see a vet if you’re unsure. My vets are used to me treating my furbabies at home under their instruction and know I’ll bring them in quick if I’m unsure.

[bigsis7]

Thanks kralspace!! Well my mom didn’t drop him off today. She’s going to wait until tomorrow morning. I want to believe my friend will do the right thing, but he’s had this going on for a while and she didn’t research it, so I’m not sure she will. My mom thinks there are worse things than dying. Well duh!!! Dying for extreme pain that goes on forever!!! I have made progress with his socializing though in just 2-3 days!! Smores runs to the front of the cage when I open it now instead of from it. He won’t let me touch him though to examine him…. I’ll keep you guys updated!

[LittlePuffyTail]

That is terrible for her to knowingly let him suffer when there are solutions. Animals count on us to take care of them and it’s not fair to let them down.

[bigsis7]

Well my mom still hasn’t taken him over yet….And they haven’t called back yet. My mom and I think they were hoping that I would just decide to keep him. My friend didn’t leave any food or bedding either. So I’m still trying to convince my mom to let me cure him and then find him a home. I don’t think he’s ever had fruits or veggies in his short life cause now when I walk in the room he runs to the front of the cage demanding more veggies and fruits!! It’s so cute!!! And he’s becoming more social letting me pet him and S’mores trying to get out of the cage! I can’t pick him up yet though cause he won’t let me. I’ll keep you guys updated!!!

[kralspace]

I hope you get to keep him and take care of him until you can fnd a home. Mine don’t like being picked up either, but I drop a small baby blanket over them and pick them up in it and they snuggle right down and start chuckling and cooing. (probably saying FEED ME!)

[bigsis7]

Well I couldn’t convince my mom….So he went back “home” yesterday. I believe they will be taking him to a shelter soon. My friend’s mom said she wasn’t happy to have him back. Poor S’mores . I’ll keep you guys updated on what happens to him.

[kralspace]

that is so sad, bigsis, I know it’s hard on you to let him go. Maybe she will take him to the shelter quickly where they do whatever they can or put him to sleep. I wish you weren’t half way across the country or I’d take him from her.

You did your best, Kathy

[Beka27]

i am hoping he will get a better life…

and i’m really hoping these “people” decide that pets (ANY pets) are just not for them.

[GHbun]

It’s good to know you did right by him while he was in your care. We moms sometimes see things differently than our kids, and we have a different view of how much the family can handle. Let’s hope he gets to a shelter and has a chance at a better life, or a least a peaceful end. In case no one’s said it to your face, thanks for being a good pet sitter. I’d trust you with mine.

[bigsis7]

I just got off the phone with my friend. S’mores is dying. He’s laying on his side and not moving :'(. I’ll keep you guys pdated.

[jerseygirl]

I just hope it’s quick so he’s out of pain. I’m sorry it’s ended up this way Bigsis7

[kralspace]

Poor baby, it just makes me cry, may God take you quickly little one. thanks for all you did, bigsis, I’d trust you with my babies anytime.

[Beka27]

poor thing. i’m so glad he had a little bit of love at the end of his life, thanks to YOU!

[bigsis7]

Thank you guys for your support. I haven’t heard back from my friend yet. I did hear back from a rescue though wondering why she didn’t email them, why is she giving him up, etc. They said she could bring S’mores in if she likes. Thing is I don’t really want to email back saying “Oh she won’t be bringing him in, he’s dead.” I think I may just have to ignore this email….

[Beka27]

personally, i would not ignore the email. if the rescue cares enough to offer assistance and follow up with you, i think they deserve a reply back. you could tell them the truth. you were encouraging your friend to bring the sick animal in, she refused and he passed away due to her negligence. you are obviously not at fault in any way so there is no reason they would have to judge you. you’re the one who was mature and worried and trying to do the best for the poor lil guy. i’m sure they’ve seen it all…

[kralspace]

Beka’s right, I would take the time to let them know and just tell them the truth. You did all you could do. It’s not only considerate to let them know, but you’ve made a new contact and if you ever have to call them again they’ll know you’re for real.
Kathy

[bigsis7]

Alright I emailed the rescue back. S’mores died yesterday afternoon, so 24 hours of suffering. My friend said they think he choked on a paper towel that some how got in the cage (???). Is that a possibility? My guess is they didn’t want to face the facts that he was extremeley sick…

[kralspace]

Good for you letting the rescue know, bigsis. I’m so sorry to hear about Smores. I think you’re right, they didn’t want to own up to how sick the poor piggie was.

rumblestrut on, S’mores!

Kathy

[bigsis7]

Yeah because we brought him back on friday and he started dying on monday. His cage hadn’t been cleaned out for four days, cause his owner didn’t bring his bedding over, so she should have cleaned it and she would have noticed the paper towels. Also he shouldn’t be eating paper towels unless he’s really hungry, starving and I hope they bought more food after I brought him back over….

[Deleted User]

All I can say is god bless that little piggie … now he is in no more pain.

The responsibility of pets lies with the owners … regardless!  In this case, the owners did not accept their responsibilities.  I hope this is a lesson learnt for this family, however, saying that, I personally feel that they probably would not care less now that Smores has passed on.  One less little person to look after and feed.

My feelings are untoward these non-caring types of pet owners.

Anyways, i am not going to ramble on … I think I have made my feelings known.

Also god bless your little cotton sox BigSis … thank you for keeping us all here informed about Smores.

Dawn x

 

[bigsis7]

OK this was the sweet email that the lady at the shelter emailed back:
Dear Shayna,
You are a very good friend to S’mores and I think a very compassionate and good friend to animals in general. I feel very sad to hear about S’mores and I know you are also. Thank you for letting me know about this, and thank you for being such a good and kind friend to your friend and S’mores.
You are the best and did your best to help.
Stephanie

[Beka27]

aw that’s very kind!

she’s right, ya know… *hugs!*

[kralspace]

indeed!

(((soft bunny hugs and piggie weeps!)))

kathy

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

**HUGS** Bigsis

I know you tried your best and Smore’s has happy last days with you

I’m making a voodoo doll of your friend and her mother….

[Author]

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