General Lice Treatment- using Advantage

[leigh24]

Hi everyone! First of all, this is my first post and I could not figure out how to post in the Veterinary/Medical Section... but I can post in every other section so my apologies for not posting in the right section! So here's the problem: I know there are tons of resources on here about dealing with lice in cavies. However, many of the popular ones are from years ago and I wanted to clear a few things up. I am almost positive my two guinea pigs have lice- there appear to be nits/eggs on the hair and when I part the hair, I can see a few tiny bugs moving around. From what I’ve read, using Advantage topically is the best and most effective way to get rid of lice. Is Advantage still the best for lice? If so, what type should I buy, and is there any type of Advantage I should avoid due to harmful ingredients?

 

[Soecara]

No, unfortunately advantage hasn't been a recommended treatment for many years now. The reason for this is they changed their formula when they switch to manufacturing Advantage II and some of the new ingredients are not safe for guinea pigs. As they discontinued manufacturing of the old Advantage formula there is no more of the guinea pigs safe original formula.

The only safe treatments for lice in guinea pigs are Revolution and Ivermectin. Revolution works through a single application, but as you live in the US you would need to see a vet for them to prescribe it as it is not available over the counter in the US. Ivermectin can be bought easily over the counter, but you need to repeat applications once a week for 3 to 4 weeks, also ivermectin does come in several different strengths. The easiest kind to get your hands on will come in bottles much larger than you will ever need for guinea pigs, this is the pour-on for cattle with 0.5% or 5mg/mL of Ivermectin.

Here is a thread that contains some more information: https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/threads/111160-How-to-treat-for-mites-and-lice

 

[bpatters]

Ditto @Soecara.

 

[leigh24]

Sounds good! I bought the ivermectin that was suggested in the thread. Thank you for the help!