My guinea pig has what looks like a sore on his back left side just above his leg/hip. It is slightly smaller than the size of a dime. He is otherwise acting fine and eating well. It does not seem to really be bothering him although he scratches occasionally (although no more often than he ever has). Do we need to have this looked at by a vet or can we treat it with something topical at home, or should we just leave it be?
Good evening!
Sounds like little Charlie has a pressure sore.
I would recommend him being placed on antibiotics as this can get easily infected
I would not apply anything topical as they can be irritating and Charlie has the potential to lick the topical medication off which could be toxic to him
Gotcha
Unfortunately there are no antibiotics that you can get over the counter for the little guy
So I need to take him to the vet then
At the same time your vet can look at the area and make sure isn't look suspicious for anything else but a potential infection i.e. cancerous (whether benign or malignant)
Yes it would be best, how long has it been there
Any other questions I can answer for you?
sorry I have been trying to reply but the system is slow. The sore just came up out of seemingly nowhere last night
we were concerned that it might be mites but didn't seem to fit the profile
what causes pressure sores?
okay, the sooner the better, it sounds like a sore but at this time hasnt gotten worse to allow him to chew or itch, mites are always a possibility, another reason to have a vet evaluate it
not enough enrichment, smaller cage, substrate
how long have you had him?
hmmm Ok - they have a great diet (we have 2 of fresh veggies and hay) and a large cage and they are out all of the time - we have had them both almost a year. Charlie is the older of the two by a few months. He's probably just over a year old
okay, definately have him evaluated and placed on antibiotics, make sure you wash your hands as ringworm is not out of the question
Your vet will likely recommend a skin scrapping and fungal culture to make sure that it isnt anything else
well thank you very much for your help - this has been very helpful. Have a good night!
those 4 would be th
the majority of possibilities, infection, parasites (mites) fungal (ringworm) and cancer (benign or malignant)
no problem
so - pressure sore, mites, ringworm or cancer (God forbid) - thank you!
yes, with most if not all infection is always a possible secondary involvement
have a good night!
You too - thanks again!