Genitals Losing hair on butt- also seems a little swollen

[elinak9]

Hi.

My girl Ginger's butt gets dirty from time to time and today I washed her and noticed that she has lost her hair from where it gets dirty. The pee dries up and the hair is bulky and hard and when I washed her it came off in pieces. I use special shampoo for guinea pigs and wash it out very carefully.

I should mention that she gave birth to one baby 1 year and 3 months ago. No difference in behaviour, eats good, no weight loss, very active. I use fleece bedding.

Since I know that any kind of hair loss may indicate to some kind of a health problem I thought I'd post this thread here to ask for some advice- maybe anyone has had the same problem or I'm doing something wrong (my other piggy doesn't have this problem although she's more hairy down there). I can contact the vet in two days since it's weekend right now.

Here are the pictures of her butt. I'm sorry for the bad photos but since I'm alone I can't hold her better and take photos. Hopefully you can still understand.



Thanks!

 

[bpatters]

I can't quite tell, but is it on both sides, or just on one?

I'd keep the hair cut around her butt so the clumping doesn't happen. It can contribute to urinary tract infections, and that can contribute to bladder stones.

 

[elinak9]

It's mostly on one side, I have tried trimming the hair but I can't seem to get it short enough.

It seems like the hair grows back in some time but as soon as there's enough hair it gets dirty again and when I wash her butt, all the hair comes off in clumps again. I will contact the vet definitely on Monday just to be sure.

 

[bpatters]

If it weren't for the swelling, it could be a fungus.

But it shouldn't be getting dirty from her urine in that spot -- it's too far up on her hip for that. Unless she's laying on that side in a spot where she pees and poops. In that case, keeping her clean and cleaning the cage more frequently should clear it up.