Forgot to add.

Question
(same guinea pig http://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=67551&postdays=0&postorder=asc)

I forgot to add my guinea pig's genital area is also bleeding a little bit sometimes, just a little bit of blood because it seems it is too infected or so. It seems you should probably treat this with an anti-biotic, with an anti-biotic cream like neosporin, but I was told that using this with an anti-fungal cream counter-acts each other and the anti-fungal cream is not effective. How do I treat this?

Answer
Sitz baths need to be done daily. The idea is to cleanse the area and get the crusty scabs off the skin so the medication can reach the area it needs to. It would also benefit her for you to put some Betadine solution in the water, then soak her for about 15 min.

I use a small bowl and put warm water with just a small amount of the Iodine (Betadine solution) then sit her in the bowl and let her soak her bottom. My pigs will just sit quietly in the bowl of warm water/solution as though it's soothing and comfortable to them. They seem to enjoy it.

Betadine is an iodine solution and is what we use to clean wounds. A different form of it (Betadine Scrub)is used in surgery to cleanse skin prior to opening the patient. The Betadine soution is available at any drug store, feed store or many grocery stores. You need a very small amount (about 1 tsp per cup of water) to be effective as a soak.

After the soak you need to try to gently pull the softened scabs off. You want to apply the cream or ointment to clean dry skin. It's useless to apply it over a scabby sore. The medication won't get to the area that's needed. Her skin may bleed a bit when you remove the scabs but it's necessary that you get the medication on the affected skin, not the crust.

Use the antifungal cream for about three days, then switch to Neosporin. Don't use both at the same time, it's counterproductive. I've found that sows that get this type of thing seem to have reoccurances periodically, so you need to check her often and "nip it in the bud."

As for the hair growing back fuzzy that's normal. Many people who have chemotherapy and lost their hair will have it grow back curly. However, since it grows back nobody complains about the curl.

I hope this helps you. Please let me know if you need more assistance.