guinea pig abscess

Question
Hi Pat,
I asked you a question earlier this week about my guinea pig, Sophia, who was attacked by a dog. You gave me some advice about feeding and when she may start to eat again on her own. Well now theres another issue that's come up. The dog bit the side of her face and it was very very swollen for a while, gradually the swelling went down but now it has turned into (what I believe to be) an abscess. I've done a lot of research online and learned that the best thing for me to do is flush the area with hydrogen peroxide and keep it from closing up. I took Sophia for an emergency vet appt last night and he tried to squeeze the area but nothing really happened, the puss inside is very firm- the vet actually doesn't think its puss inside, he thinks its the fat inside her cheek. I think he's wrong. I know guinea pigs tend to have puss that is the consistency of cottage cheese unlike dogs and cats where it's more liquidy. He put her on baytril and he wants us to keep flushing the area twice a day. He doesn't want to put her under and remove it after all the stress she's had the past few weeks especially now that she's finally getting stronger and improving. Should I get another opinion? Will the abscess go away on its own the way that he's making it sound? He wants me to come back in 1 week so he can see the progress. Maybe I'm imagining it, but her abscess does seem to look a bit smaller this morning than it did last night...what do you think??? Maybe I could send you a picture of it? Thank you!

Answer
I agree with your vet, I think it is indeed trauma from the injury and there is infection forming. As for the consistency of the drainage that depends on the type of cyst or abcess that it is.

The cottage cheese kind of drainage comes from a sebacious cyst, not an abcess. A sebacious cyst forms because the oil gland plugs up and cannot secrete the oily stuff that keeps the skin dry and supple. It builds up and forms a large cyst. A cyst by definition is simply a sac filled with liquid. The sebacious cyst will often open on its own and the inside secretions can be expressed out.

An abcess is caused by bacteria that forms when there is a break in the skin and causes pus. That's different than a cyst. A cyst is benign, an abcess is infectious and dangerous to her health. You probably are seeing an improvement in the size of the abcess as a result of the Baytril. It's starting to attack the bacteria in the lump.

I agree with him that doing surgery to drain this abcess would be too stressful for her under the circumstances. Flushing that wound daily will help to keep the bacteria inside the wound from growing and it will aid in her healing. Abcesses will sometimes heal on their own, but with the stress of the attack and bite her immune system is compromised and she will not heal quickly if at all without treatment.

So my answer is no, I don't think you need a second opinion. I think your vet is doing the right thing. Just be patient and give this time to heal with the aid of the antibiotic and the flushing.