Guinea Pig & itching

Question
Our 6 month old short-haired male is scratching more than I think is normal.  He also has very bad dandruff and lots of flaking skin, especially over his back and rear-end area.  I brush him, but when I brush over his back, he goes crazy trying to chew whatever is in front of him as if he were chewing himself to scratch because it is so itchy.  There are no visible signs of parasites/lice, etc., and he is not losing hair or scratching until there is blood or sore areas visible.  Do pigs have dry/flaky skin commonly, or is this something that requires treatment?  Thank you!

Answer
Hi Carol,

Guinea pigs can suffer from sensitive/dry skin, but it is far more likely that the "dandruff" you notice is in fact tiny mites.

The best stuff to use to get rid of them is a remedy from www.gorgeousguineas.com called "Lice and Easy"; it's brilliant! It does a much better job of getting rid of mites than the stuff from pet shops, and will leave your guinea pigs smelling lovely. It is also gentler on the skin, which your boy will appreciate if he's got sores. They deliver quite quickly; so order today and they will receive your order and dispatch it ASAP; you should have it by Saturday if you live in the UK.

Does he feel hot to the touch, and sometimes fit after scratching? If so, he could have mange, and will need to be taken to the vet for a course of injections (most likely Ivermectin). A guinea pig can cope with fitting for a long period of time, but mange is eventually fatal if left untreated so if you think he might have it, pop to a specialist small animal or exotic pet vet.

Here's the instructions for bathing your piggy in Lice n Easy:

Guinea pigs do not like being bathed and it is always a tricky process; you will need someone else to help you.  The best thing to do is to find a large, clean bowl (like the one for washing up) and line it with a flannel. Get someone to hold your piggy in this bowl. Wet him with warm water (test it first) by either pouring it over him gently (not on his face!) or squeezing it over him them using another flannel. Rub in the required amount of shampoo being careful not to let your guinea pig lick himself (for this bit, you can take him out of the bowl and get your helper to hold them on a towel on their lap) and then wrap your guinea pig up in a towel (to keep him warm, and stop him licking) for five minutes. Then return him to the bowl and rinse away the shampoo; the mites should fall off too! Dry your guinea pig with a towel, and once he is just damp, you can finish off drying him with a hair dryer if you like (some piggies love this, some hate it). Give him a nice groom and pop him back in his cage (but only once he is clean and dry).

If he lives with any other piggies, they will need to be treated too. You will need to clean out the cage (and spray it with a general safe animal cleaning spray) before returning him to it, as some of the mites will be living in there too. Please do not use a bleach solution; there is a safe animal cleaning spray available from most pet shops and supermarkets that comes in a variety of fragrances, that doesn't leave behind any smells that could be harmful to your piggies. Make sure it has fully dried (you can wipe it off after a few minutes if the cage is plastic) before you put him back in. The mites should then be gone, but if it's a bad case (which it sounds like it is) he may need a second bath.

If you have any other questions ... just ask!

Best wishes,
Jenny.