Fleas in cavies - Treatment?? Please help!!

[clotho]

I would appreciate a little guidance from someone more experienced than I am. My guinea pigs have these tiny black crawling insects on them. They did NOT have any outward signs other than a scratch here and there - NO major itching - NO hair loss - nothing. I decided they could be mites or lice, so I used ivermectin topically because I read it can kill lice as well as mites.

I have done 3 ivermectin treatments now (3rd one was yesterday) but I noticed my one cavy that was loaded with them 3 weeks ago now still has them, but nothing close to what she had before. Thus, the ivermectin has helped, but has not gotten rid of them completely.

Ly told me it sounded more like fleas. But don't fleas jump? These things do not jump - they are very tiny and almost look like bits of dirt on the cavy until they disappear and you realize they are moving!!!!

I plan to do another dose of ivermectin next weekend (because we had babies after the adults got their first dose and I want to make sure the babies get 3 doses in total). I also plan to give everyone a bath before doing the ivermectin but I am trying to decide what to bath them with. Do I use a kitten flea shampoo in case it's fleas? Do I use a human anti parasitic shampoo like Peter Gurney would recommend if it's fleas?

My other option is that it could be lice - so I'm thinking Advantage would work on lice and fleas? Is that correct? or is Revolution the better choice? At this point I"m thinking of bathing in some kind of flea shampoo and then using Advantage and ivermectin, but that seems like a lot at one time. Perhaps I should drop the ivermectin (since the adults have 3 doses and the babies have 2 doses already) and just try the flea bath and the Advantage?

Any suggestions would be welcome. If anyone has dealt with fleas in cavies before I'd appreciate knowing what product worked for you. Thanks!

 

[cavywhisperer]

I have no experience with fleas on piggies. But to me it sounds like those little insects that can live in the hay and sometimes jump over on guinea pigs and live in their fur - sorry, I only now the German name for it, and I didn't find any translation, but I am sure someone in the forum will now the correct term for it.

I would be very careful with bathing cavies as they can catch a cold very very easily. And they HATE water, I can assure you. I only tried once as an irresponsible kid, and will never do it again if I can avoid it.

Couldn't you see a vet and ask his advice? I would think, this is the safest way to find out what it is and to get the right treatment for it.

Best wishes to you and the piggies
from Berlin

 

[Malhablada]

I had great luck using revolution for mites - which isn't what's plaguing your piggies, since you can see them. Maybe you've got a resistant strain of running lice? Ivermectin cured one of my pigs of lice, but not the other. The lice actually got worse after. Maybe give Revolution a try before you try any kind of pesticide baths. There's a great dose calculator over on Guinea Lynx.

 

[daftscotslass]

Whatever you do, don't use insecticidal baths. You could end up with a dead piggy, pure and simple. How have you been dosing the ivermectin?

I would try out a course of Advantage, see Guinea Lynx :: Lice

 

[clotho]

I have been using the dosage given on this web site to give them the injectable ivermectin topically. I dosed them 7 days apart. The adults have had 3 doses now and the babies have had 2 doses.

As I said, whatever it is, the ivermectin has helped a lot - but not quite gotten rid of.

I am thinking Advantage is my next best course of action.

 

[masher]

I have no idea about treatment, sorry

I was hoping some one could tell me though, why giving an insecticidal bath can kill your piggy?!

Thanks in advance

 

[daftscotslass]

I have no idea about treatment, sorry

I was hoping some one could tell me though, why giving an insecticidal bath can kill your piggy?!

Thanks in advance

Insecticidal products often contain pyrethins, an ingredient found to cause severe skin irritation in guinea pigs, along with seizures and neurological damage in other species of rodent.

Not something I would want to use on my pigs!

 

[Choco-latte]

If it fleas, you will need to also treat the area they live in, or you will not get rid of them. I would suggest everytime you dose them to also clean their cage and bedding. Are they kept outside? I have never heard of the lice being black. My vet showed them to me and they were light colored.

Have you thought about taking them to the vet? Maybe if you call your vet he will advise you as to what is common to your area and help you with what you need.

 

[pignewton]

Im thinking fleas - try Revolution or kitten Advantage. Do not use a flea shampoo !!!!

 

[Savvy Cavy]

Im thinking fleas - try Revolution or kitten Advantage. Do not use a flea shampoo !!!!

Is kitten flea stuff safe on pigs?

 

[Terekins]

It is safe but you need to find the correct dosage. I don't think it is as much of a concern with Advantage, but Ivermectin needs to be given at a very specific dosage or you can really harm your pigs. When you buy it for kittens, you just apply the whole tube, but obviously you would use less with a little guinea pig.

 

[cavywhisperer]

ehm, maybe a stupid question, and I don't want to seem to insisting, but why don't you see a vet? He/she should be able to help you with the right treatment for the piggies, shouldn't he/she? ptimist:

 

[Ly&Pigs]

Do I use a kitten flea shampoo in case it's fleas? Do I use a human anti parasitic shampoo like Peter Gurney would recommend if it's fleas?

Don't trust everything Peter Gurney says. As Daft stated, do NOT use any type of kitten or even puppy flea shampoos as they contain deadly ingredients to pigs.

The only safe kitten flea treatment is Advantage. Do NOT use any other kitten flea product as they may contain pyrethrins or other dangerous/deadly ingredients.

Your best bet would be to consult a vet. Fleas are dark in color whereas lice are light in color. If you just treated the pigs and not their cage area or haven't found out where the fleas are coming from, you will end up with a recurring problem.

 

[Choco-latte]

Remember Fleas host off of Blood. Please see a vet! You will need to treat all your GP's and any area affected. ANd do not use anything over the counter. It could kill your GP and some stuff on the shelf does not work. See a Vet.

 

[clotho]

Thank you for all the advice. I appreciate it very much. Good news here; when I checked Cookie over today, I could not find a single live insect on her!!!! I did find some eggs right near her bottom, so I guess we're not quite done yet. The more I think about it, the more I agree it's probably a strain of lice that isn't quite being gotten rid of by the ivermectin. I bought Advantage and I am going to use that this weekend. The ivermectin is obviously working, but not totally. Don't worry - I won't use any flea shampoo at all. I may do the last dose of ivermectin as well, since I read you can use it at the same time as the Advantage. Hopefully that will solve the problem. Oh and don't worry - I will take my piggies to the vet when needed. However, I will try to resolve the problem on my own first.