Resources

Cages:

Guinea pigs do not need multi-level homes and they are actually dangerous for guinea pigs due to their weak spine. They require ample space to be able to popcorn, roam, and forage. These 

are examples of not approved cages. 

Pellets:

Guinea pigs should be fed plain pellets, not pellets with extra additvies or colorful pieces. The colorful pieces are full of sugar and other junk that guinea pigs can't process. 

These are a few examples of not approved guinea pig pellets. 

Ringworm: Ringworm is fairly common in guinea pigs so don't freak out! It is a fungus that often presents on the outside and inside of the ears, around the eyes and on the nose. Though it can appear anywhere on their

body it is most often discovered in those areas. It is the same as Athlete's foot in humans. Ringworm most often does not require veterinary assitance and simple over the counter creams and shampoos can clear it up.

It is highly contagious however, so wash your hands after touching the guinea pig and wear an apron of some sort to prevent spores form clinging to your clothing. 

Where do they get it from? They can get it from another infected guinea pig but it can also develop in a guinea pig that has not had any recent interactions with other animals at all. They simply carry the spores with

them and in times of stress or a diminshed immune system, the fungus can get the overhand. This sometimes happens in a cage with two animals living together. Only one will get the fungus and the other animal

remains totally unaffected (the same goes for lice and mites).

How do you treat it? Any anti dandruff shampoo like Head and Shoulders, Nizoral etc. Though if the infestation is bad, we recommend buying Davis Miconazole shampoo on Amazon. Any over the counter medicated

athlete's foot cream. 

    Shampoo: first of all, wash the guinea pig with the medicated anti dandruff shampoo. Put a small towel in the sink to prevent slipping and use lukewarm water. Lather them up real good and let the shampoo sit for

2 minutes then rinse. You must wash the face and ears. Make sure to pay special attention to the affected areas and rub the shampoo into the skin. Most guinea pigs do not like to be bathed but this is something that

needs to be done. After you towel dry the guinea pig really well, you must blow dry them. Never put a wet or damp guinea pig back in its cage. It will take a long time before they dry by themselves. They will catch a cold

and get sick. Do this once a week for 3 weeks. 

    Cream: Apply the cream directly on the affected area and make sure you really press the cream into the skin where the fungus is located. Do this 2 times a day for 3 weeks.

Do I need to treat my other guinea pigs? If they are not showing signs of the fungus then there are obviously no spots to put a cream. However, you do want to shampoo them with the anti dandruff medicated

shampoo to make sure they stay healthy. You should only do that once or twice in the 3 weeks it takes to treat an infected guinea pig. 

Do I need to disinfect the cage? I have found that treatment of the individual animal(s) is enough. Though it is never hurts to disinfect a cage. We use Simple Green spray cleaner. Let it soak for a few minutes and rinse off really well.

 

Spaying and neutering- Do guinea pigs need to be spayed or neutered? Unlike cats, dogs, and even rabbits, guinea pigs don't have to be sterilized unless there is a good reason to do so. Surgery of any kind can be dangerous

for these creatures, as they do not respond well to anesthesia. On the other hand, breeding guinea pigs is never a good idea as they can be prolific breeders. Moms can also battle to give birth, which makes it even riskier. 

When they are spayed or neutered, it is usually an elective surgery to avoid any unwanted babies and the risk that come with giving birth. However, there are other ways to prevent pregnancy that don't require any surgery. If 

you want to find out more about ways to prevent breeding, speak to your vet. Besides preventing them from having babies, one reason that people assume they should sterilize their guinea pig is to prevent problems such 

as spraying or fighting. Unlike other pets, there are no behavior changes that happen when they are not sterilized. This means that you don't have to spay or neuter guinea pigs at a certain age as you would with a cat or 

dog. Spaying and neutering is now a well-known and accepted practice to prevent both health and behavioral issues in dogs, cats, and even rabbits. It's a little more complicated when it comes to guinea pigs though. 

Sugery of any kind in guinea pigs is still considered fairly risky. It's important for us, as owners, to address every surgery with consideration of dangers and benefits when spaying and neutering your guinea pig.

Is it necessary to spay/neuter guinea pigs? Guinea pigs don't need to be routinely spayed or neutered unless there is an underlying reason- the most obvious being to prevent pregnancy. It is largely an elective procedure

so a male and female can live together. Because it takes time for live sperm to die and work its way out of the system, wait at least 1 month before letting the male and female interact. Some vets recommend 6 or even

up to 8 weeks to be 100% sure the female won't still wind up pregnant. While de-sexing other animals usually has a positive effect on behavior, guinea pigs are the exception. Neutering a gentlepig will make him no less

aggressive (or passionate) and will not change his behavior toward other males or females. If he doesn't like his fellow roomies now, neutering won't change this. With all this being said, it is worth noting that for 

particularly well-endowed fellas, neutering may decrease the chance of impaction later in life. It may also reduce waxy scent gland build-up(a dab of coconut oil is a more affordable solution).

Spay the female or neuter the male? Spaying a female guinea pig is usually considered more risky than neutering a male because it is more invasive. Not only does it require more time under anesthesia, but it involves

making an incision through the abdomen and removing the ladypig's internal organs. Some exotic vets are now recommending an ovariectomy with flank incisions, where only the ovaries are removed. However, is she 

already has ovarian cysts (common in sows over 3 years old), a full spay is usually still needed to prevent future uterine tumors. 

While neutering a male guinea pig is generally considered safer, removing the female sex organs means she won't get ovarian cysts or uterine cysts in the future (an obvious health benefit). Guinea pigs who develop 

problems with the reproductive organs may need to be spayed regardless. Signs to watch for include hair loss on either side of the belly, a sensitive abdomen, prolonged moodiness, mammary tumors, crusty nipples,

and incontinence/discharge.

Considerations before surgery- guinea pigs are more susceptible to anesthesia reactions, stress, and infections. Medications used before, during and after surgery can decrease appetite for grass hay, which is essential

for digestion, making it even more challenging to prevent GI stasis. Guinea pigs cannot maintain their core body temperature well during surgery; the large surface area to volume ratios of small rodents increases this risk. 

An experienced exotic vet should monitor a guinea pig's temperature, along with other vitals, during and after surgery. For the first few days after recovery, you may need to keep the room warmer than usual, and syringe-

feed around the clock. 

Questions to ask the vet- an exotic vet is absolutely essential when it comes to spaying or neutering your guinea pig. The vast majority of veterinary practices that treat dogs and cats aren't experienced in exotic 

medicine. A successful surgery, and your pet's life, can depend on identifying an excellent exotic vet. Start by asking local rescues which doc they use to treat their rodents. The Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians

also has a handy search tool by ZIPcode. Once you find a vet to perform the procedure, be prepared to ask plenty of questions beforehand. How many guinea pigs have you spayed/neutered? What is your success rate?

How do you address complications? Do you require the guinea pig to fast before surgery (guinea pigs do not need to fast like cats and dogs)? What type of anesthesia do you use? How do you handle pain control? 

Do you use antibiotics post-op? If so, which ones?

Every guinea pig and situation is different. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to spaying or neutering your guinea pig. Talk with your exotic vet about the pros and cons of removing the sex organs for 

prevention, after symptoms of a health issue are present, or not at all. 

Credit to: Small Pet Select

 

Calcified Bulla Syndrome (CBS)- not all of these symptoms have to be present for the syndrome to be diagnosed. One or two of the symptoms are often enough to creata a suspicion and a simple head x-ray will confirm

the diagnosis. The more symptoms your guinea pig identifies with the higher chance the animal will be a special needs patient. Frequestn and Chronic Upper Respiratory Infections AND pneumonia (seemingly antibiotic

resistant), runny nose (one or both nostrils), leaky eye (one or both eyes), drooping lips on one side, missing blink reflex (usually one eye), ulcerated eye, head tilt, partial or full paralysis of the 

tongue making swallowing impossible, holding the head up high, head bobbing (some pigs do this to sense their way around and the bobbing stops when your pig is eating, proving it's not

neurological), blindness in one or both eyes, deafness in one or both ears (do the clap test right behind your pig so they cannot see you do it), vertigo, wobbling, going in circles, sneezing,

ear twitches, weak bite strength (often characterized by the inability to put food in the mouth despiter trying), falling over, molar issues - recurring dental work, loose stool from recurring 

antibiotic use including permanent damage.

Cause- it appears likely that the cause is untreated URI's or URI's not treated on time. A lot of babies, for instance purchased from one of the big name pet stores, suffer from URI that do not

always get immediate treatment or receive treatment when it is too late. Owners may think the URI symptoms are an allergy for instance.The nose, throat, and ears are all connected and in 

an animal that does not receive timely antibiotic treatment, the bacteria that causes CBS are free to travel and make their way to the middle ear to settle in the Bulla. Once there, antibiotics

will not be able to reach and the bulla responds to the invaders by creating a wall of calcium that is very easy to make out on an x-ray. 

How does this affect the infected guinea pig?- These symptoms happen because the antibiotics are never quite able to kill the bacteria as they hide in the bulla where they multiply and 

circulate freely through the nose and throat area. I believe that this is why we see an antibiotic work for just a few months at most before a URI returns. The raging infection will

attack the ears mimicking an ear infections. I say mimicking because a key symptom of a "real" ear infection is not present, the smelly pus coming from the ear and a head tilt is missing. 

Also, a "regular" ear infection usually will respond to medication, CBS does not. The calcium build up in the ear can cause a head tilt. Some tilts more severe than others. These cause

vertigo in some cases where the animal looses balance, sways, goes in circles and falls over. This is often misdiagnosed as a nuerological issue. They often learn to live with these symptoms

so the severity may decrease over time. Sometimes an animal is observed wobbling its head in an up and down manner or side to side and also holding its head up high. This is caused by 

blindness and deafness and the pig's attempt to compensate and cope with the disability. 

Eating~ in extremely severe cases, the facial nerve on the side the head is tilting towards becomes affected and this causes dry eye as the blink reflex is no longer there. An inability to eat

properly as it would appear that the jaw muscle is also affected. hay is lekly the first thing the pig will stop eating as the jaw strength needed to grind the rough hay has been absent. The 

pig will likely gravitate to softer foods and will have a hard time chewing food and steadily lose weight. Is he just chewing endlessly or swallowing the food and dipping down for the second

bite fairly fast? 

What can you do to fix this? As of right now, there is no cure. The best thing we can do is to support the symptoms when they appear. Antibiotics if the URI is bad or pneumonia develops. 

Credit to: Saskia at the Los Angeles Guinea Pig Rescue