rough patches

Question
QUESTION: Hi.  I have a female guinea pig, mosty likely under 1 year.  She is very pregnant for the third time in 6 months (due to a pet store).  I noticed a little something near her eye, which seems to have shrunk. A few weeks ago she had what looked like a scab on her foot, but that is gone. She has a crust by her nose, a small patch of crust or rough skin on her side, and it looks as though her vulva is developing a crust also.  The nose does seems to come and go, and I only today noticed the other two areas, as we have not been handling her due to her condition. This morning she lost a tiny patch of hair on her belly. My question is this: Is it possible that the stress of repeated back-to-back pregnancies, coupled with being separated from her mate for 1 week (he was just nuetered to avaoid another pregnancy) could cause this?  To be honest, I cannot afford to go to the vet again.  I just paid over $200US last week for the neutering, and I am a stay at home mom of two children.  She does
not seem cranky or in pain, and she is eating and drinking. She actually seems anxious to be held, and tries to climb out when we open the cage. Please help!

ANSWER: Hi Janet,

She's probably eager to come out for cuddles as her crusts are probably quite sore! This has almost certainly been caused by the stress of the pregnancies, or from the conditions in the pet store. Even though you have had the male neutered, please do not put him back in with her until she has had the babies and the boys have been moved to a separate cage or rehomed. He will continuously try to mate with her, and whilst she cannot conceive whilst pregnant (or now he's neutered) this will cause her undue stress. You need to keep her calm and happy to ensure she won't reject her babies.

Feed her her favourite foods, get her out for extra cuddles, and try feeding her fresh parsley - this is medicinal. Make sure she is eating plenty of veggies high in vitamin c like brocolli and carrots, as these will help her heal faster.

As she is pregnant, a vet probably wouldn't prescribe anything anyway. I'd highly recommend www.gorgeousguineas.com - the postage will take a little longer as you're in the US but they do cater for international customers. They make aromatherapy products for guinea pigs, including a range especially for pregnant sows - you should be able to find a lotion or shampoo that will help your girl.

Hope this helps and if you have any other questions, just ask!

Jenny.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Just to follow up on two things...when can the male babies impregnant her?  I was told to keep them with her for 3-3 1/2 weeks.  I was also told that Rex (my newly neutered male) could be in the cage and would help her.  I think they are both lonely, and I was looking forward to putting them back together tomorrow, following the vet's orders of a one week separation post-op.
Thanks again Jenny!

Answer
Hi again Janet,

The male babies reach sexual maturity at between 3 and 4 weeks of age, so remove them as soon as they are weaned. If you decide to put him back in with her, keep an eye on Rex to make sure he doesn't squash the babies; he is neutured but he may still try to mate with the female babies, and perform dominance rituals with the males.

How are your girl's sores?

Best wishes,
Jenny.