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Parasites Visible black jumping bug?

sarahczspots

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I was picking Chubs up from floor time tonight and noticed a tiny, yet visible black bug on my hand that I'm assuming hopped off of him. I tried to pinch it between my fingertip and arm to kill it and it jumped. It resembles a gnat but without the large wings. Is this a mite, flea, or lice? I automatically thought flea since it was visible. I'm not sure where he would've gotten it from since we don't have any other indoor animals though. He does seem a bit itchy, but I figured this was normal itchiness for guinea pigs (since he's my first and I have no comparison). And if it sounds like a bug you've dealt with, how did you treat it? I've seen lots on here about kitten advantage but I can't find the reference to it on guinealynx.

Thanks in advance for the advice!
 
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trexgorawrrrrr

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I'm not sure how to treat fleas, but it sounds like a flea. They're small, look black, jump, and move fast. How long have you had your pig, and where did it come from? I bet it got fleas from where ever it came.

This has a picture of a flea a little bit down on the page. Flea - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 

dReaa

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It sounds like fleas to me. You can treat them with kitten Advantage or Revolution. Here's the link of guinealynx's dosages: https://www.guinealynx.info/antiparasitics.html

Imidacloprid is the kitten Advantage and Selamectin is the Revolution.
Good Luck!
 

sarahczspots

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I got him from a friend of mine who's guinea pig had babies. I've had him for over three weeks now and didn't seen any signs until recently. Could he have gotten it from the hay? I'm going to look around town and see if I can kind the flea medications. Thanks guys.
 

KiwiCavyAdorer

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Does anyone have any experience about using Diatomaceous Earth on guinea pigs?

(I've used it for decades as an insecticide/ de-wormer/ insect barrier - horses, cattle, dogs, cats - since its harmless to mammals but lethal to anything with an exoskeleton. It feels like gritty talc and is quite hard to puff - tends to clump softly. Its totally natural.)
 

sarahczspots

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Would this work?
(broken link removed)
 

amcashes

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Would this work?
(broken link removed)

Oh no you don't want to use that! It can burn your piggy!!! You need to go to a cavy savvy vet! Make sure you don't use that stuff though.
 

sarahczspots

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Someone earlier on the forum recommended kitten Advantage and from everything I've read so far, any Advantage will work?
 

sarahczspots

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Thanks! It's beginning to look like he has lice and fleas. Luckily this treats both! Hoping I don't have lice now. Ugh. :/
 

foggycreekcavy

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Don't worry--you can't get guinea pig lice.
 

sarahczspots

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Yeah, the vet told me that tonight. He also said that guinea pigs have lice continually, but they're only prevalent when the pig is under a lot of stress or is really sick. He says that the pig doesn't groom himself enough during these two occurrences to keep the lice population down. Have any of you heard that before? I bought the kitten advantage for him and it's in the mail now. Yay!
 

sdpiggylvr

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He [the vet] also said that guinea pigs have lice continually, but they're only prevalent when the pig is under a lot of stress or is really sick. He says that the pig doesn't groom himself enough during these two occurrences to keep the lice population down.

This is news to me. Does any more medical-savvy cavy person agree with what this vet said? I am about 80% sure that is a false statement. If so, check for cavy-savvy vets in your area. It's important to first interview a vet. A misguided vet is the last thing you need, should a life-or-death situation arise.

Good luck!
 

Ly&Pigs

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Yeah, the vet told me that tonight. He also said that guinea pigs have lice continually, but they're only prevalent when the pig is under a lot of stress or is really sick.
Vet is wrong, that only happens with mites. Lice do not lay dormant in pigs.

He says that the pig doesn't groom himself enough during these two occurrences to keep the lice population down. Have any of you heard that before?
That doesn't have anything to do with it. Guinea pigs are pretty clean creatures.
 

lissie

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Your vet did not prescribed Advantage or Revolution? I don't know why you would still need to wait for the mail since you took your pig to the vet. Your vet should have given you the medication.
 

sarahczspots

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The vet only had the Advantage with the other crap in it, which I read is bad for him. Pretty good sign that he's probably not very good with the piggies. He actually told me not to treat him at all, but I went ahead and ordered the meds since I decided that I would've heard more about lice if they were so "normal for guinea pigs and rats." The odd thing is that he's an exotic pet vet...I guess he may pretend in order to attract more clients since we're in a college town where lots of people keep exotic pets.

The trip I took around my town today looking for Advantage was CRAZY. No one had it. The vet near my house had Revolution for an outrageous price. I decided that Advantage was more of a sure shot so I told him I was going to keep looking. Called two other vets, went to two pharmacies, looked online at the other three possible stores with websites, then went to a petstore in town called Woofville & Meowtown. They have lots of awesome stuff for cats and dogs, but when I asked about Advantage, the woman working looked at me as if I'd shot her. She claimed that it "melted the skin off of a puppy's neck" and directed me to her all natural flea and tick removal section. She claimed that the natural stuff wouldn't hurt my guinea pig, but she obviously was just spouting off information trying to make the sale. I looked at the choices in the brand she suggested, one was a shampoo and the other a spray, and tried to think of a good way to back out of there without offending her by saying that I was going to keep looking for the evil nuerotoxins (as she continually referred to them as) and found my excuse in that my friend that I was with wanted to buy something and forgot her wallet. We claimed we'd be back later. She's going to buy her dog something there tomorrow...

Sorry bout the extra long post. It was quite a day.
 

SquareWheels30

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Does anyone have any experience about using Diatomaceous Earth on guinea pigs?

Please do not use this on guinea pigs. It is small and sharp and if they ingest it, it will wreak havoc on their internal organs.

See this post that mentions Diatomaceous Earth on Guinea Lynx: https://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=59495

I hope I didn't hijack this thread or sound harsh. I just noticed that nobody had answered your question. I'm glad you asked it!
 
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KiwiCavyAdorer

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Thanks SquareWheels30!

all the scientific research I have unearthed todate consistently states its totally safe on mammals - all mammals - sounds like it needs a bit more research!

I've been looking on GL and here for any word on it so I thought I'd best ask.

Thanks so much for answering - I read the GL link, as I've understood DE it doesn't go through the intestinal wall, only travels the gastro-intestinal tract and is prevented from touching the wall tissue by virtue of the mucous membrane lining.

I'll go into it further as it interests me - but don't worry I don't have guinea pigs yet - I am just researching gp care to see if I could properly meet their needs while being the kind of carer that I'd choose to be.
 

SquareWheels30

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I think you'd make a great owner, I read your introduction post shortly after you wrote it and again just now, and I love your philosophy on animals, your cage idea, and the story of the beloved hamster you had as a child!

I think that your research is correct in that DE would not kill any mammal except if ingested in a huge, huge amount probably, and you're right that the intestines are lined so it's not 100% likely to do internal damage if it's simply nibbled on.

However, you do have to consider the extreme sensitivity of a guinea pig's stomach and digestive system. They are physically unable to vomit, so if they get an upset stomach, they will just simply stop eating which means they stop eliminating, which means their whole digestive system stops working, sometimes within as little time as 6 hours, though 12 hours, I think, without eating or pooping is when it becomes a life or death situation.

Before that point, you must start hand-feeding them (either pellet mush or Critical Care, a liquid rescue food) with a syringe, which they usually fight you on, until their digestive systems start running again.

Often times, even with hand feeding, they get too weak and/or lose too much weight and will still die. This sounds like an extreme unlikelihood, but it's not. So many things can cause them to get gas or an upset stomach and they just quit eating. They lose weight alarmingly fast too, so you don't have much time to save them.

They are one of the only animals I know of that will literally starve themselves to death because of upset tummy.

Again, I'm sorry if I sound harsh or anything, I don't know if you knew about their propensity to starve. I have some experience with this, unfortunately.

In closing, I'll repeat that I do think you'd make a good owner, you've already doing better than most people (myself included) who don't research enough about guinea pigs before taking them in. I researched some, but not for weeks, as you are doing. I am still a brand new owner compared to most people here and don't know near enough about these dear little creatures.
 

quechua601

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I had the same problem with my Pig. The fleas actually came in from a mouse that we had in the house. That said, fleas are outside and you (and anyone else in your home) can bring them in. They can jump from a wild rabbit, squirrel, etc and can eventually land on you. They do not live on human blood, so quite often they pose no problem for you. However, because you have a host (your poor pet piggy) they will breed quickly. My vet told me not to use kitten flea drops because they are too strong for a pig. Your piggy needs to be weighed in order to give the proper dosage. What I did was buy some spray from the petstore made for pigs and rabbits. I followed the directions on the bottle. In addition to that, I used warm soapy water and washed everything in her cage every other day to get rid of any flea eggs. After I was sure I got them all I stopped using the spray and washing out her cage that frequently. Because I did not want to leave the spray on her, I bathed her after the fleas were gone. Also, the fleas probably jumped out of her cage at some point and layed eggs on your carpet or wherever her cage is. I vacuumed daily for 2 weeks with a large flea collar for dogs in the vacuum bag so any fleas were killed when they were sucked up. '

Sorry for the long post and I hope this helps. It helped me.
 
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