Guinea Pig Cyst

Question
From the picture I saw on another person's question I'd say our guinea pig has subglottic cyst. He had a hole in his face, which had a kind of brown substance in it. I actually thought he'd somehow gotten poop on his face over night because it smeeled so bad and was brown in color. If this is caused by staph infections is it contagious? We have a 4 year old and we always wash our hands after holding our guinea pig, but 'm still concerned.

Answer
Yes, these cysts are caused by staph. Sometimes when the skin is broken that staph takes an opportunistic leap and causes this. Generally speaking any staph is contagious, but not as easily as you would think.  I've never seen any of my pigs catch anything as a result of this kind of abscess.

Because our animals are typically not over treated with antibiotics like humans are, they don't seem to have issues with MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureous). We've over treated infections in humans to the point that the bacteria mutates into a resistant state and we have a tough time killing it and in some cases we can't. In other words we've compromised our own immunity with our overzealous fear of germs.  Sort of shot ourselves in the foot to get rid of the ant on our shoe.

I've treated many of these over the years and never had any problem catching anything. With a properly working immunity system our bodies fight these things off with no problem. As you can see in the picture I always wear latex gloves then handling and treating the cyst. Plus I scrub with warm soapy water when the gloves come off. The secret is making it heal from the inside out.  If the wound closes over too soon it will fill up again and the whole process is started over.

You are taking the right precautions. If there is no drainage (as you've already learned you will smell it if it's still there) just good hand washing is sufficient. If the wound has not yet closed up as a precaution you can wrap the pig in a towel if your daughter wants to hold it, that way she won't come into direct contact with any of the pus. So don't be overly concerned about any of you catching anything from the pig. Good basic hygiene is enough.  

There's a simple rule of thumb that is taught in medical and nursing schools: The solution to pollution is dilution.  In other words wash, wash, wash. You don't need a special soap, use whatever you have and keep doing as you're doing.

If you want to scrub the cage the best and still least expensive treatment is household bleach. A weak solution of bleach water kills more bacteria than any product on the market. And it kills staph. If your pig's cysts is draining and the wound is still open I would flush it out daily using some Betadine and warm water. About a tablespoon of Betadine in a cup of water is more than enough.

A good thing to have is one of those 10cc syringes made for giving babies liquid medication such as Tylenol. Fill the syringe with the solution, put it into the hole in the face and give it a good squirt. Repeat this three or four times.  Flush it every day. That keeps the pus from building and the hole from closing until the tissues are healing from the inside.

You're on the right track mom. It's unfortunate the vet didn't see the other one for what it was, rather than an expensive tooth issue. These cysts are common, tooth abscesses are not.  But they're also easily treated at home if you are able to do it.

If you need any further help I'll be glad to try to walk you through it.