Expert: Alison Gartery - 8/2/2009

Question
Hi my guinea pigs have been scratching a lot recently. I checked there skin and there's no scabs or anything else like that. It just seems very irritated. How should I treat them?

Answer
Hello,
If it is mites or lice there wouldn't be nay scabs if it had just developed, check through their fur carefully to see if you can see anything.
To treat this and stop the guineas being so irritated you can either...
1. buy a spray from your local pet shop and follow the directions on the back of the spray.
2. Buy a insecticidal shampoo from your local pet shop and wash your guineas, the first wash will only wash the live lice/mites so 2 or 3days later your will need to wash them thoroughly again.
Make sure that before trying any of these methods you clean and disinfect the cage so once the guineas are clean it can't spread again. Make sure you don't get any spray or shampoo in your guineas eyes by covering its head with your hand.
I hope this helps
Alex