My guinea pig has fleas what do I do?

Question

I already know this was an accident , but I got a baby guinea pig at the monroe county fair on sunday and today me and my mom noticed we have gotten fleas on our arms and I looked at my guinea pig since we have no other animals and she has these miniscule maggot looking things on her crawling around. I assume they are flea eggs? What do I do to get rid of them?

Answer 1

Guinea pigs typically get mites or lice as opposed to fleas.  The mites are microscopic, however the lice look as you've described.  Here's a link to the site I visit that has excellent information for all things guinea pig:  http://www.guinealynx.info/parasites.htm...

Good luck.

Answer 2

Take that pig to the vet.  If it's crawling with little things it came from horrible conditions and probably has bigger issues than lice/mites.

Justified gave you good advice.    

The advice about combing, bathing, special sprays, over the counter powders are all WRONG.   You could even harm your pig by using toxic treatments or by not fully treating the lice/mites.  Pigs can have seizures from mite infestations.

Answer 3

That sounds more like lice than fleas.  Lice can be treated with topical Ivermectin, Revolution, or Advantage.  Never use products like powders, sprays, or shampoos.  Never use any over the counter product without consulting with your vet first.

While you can treat for parasites at home it would be best to take your new girl in for a vet visit.  She could be treated for parasites then, and have a wellness checkup to make sure she doesn't have any other health problems.

Answer 4

EEEEeeewwww!!!!  Get that thing to the Vet asap!!!

Answer 5

Just give it  a bath with flea powter or bring it to the vet

Answer 6

You have to go to the vet and get a special mild spray that you will have to reapply often. Do not use anything that is for cats and dogs, that could kill her. I had a rabbit get fleas once and called every vet in town until I found one that had the spray. It was under $10. Good luck!

Answer 7

Really, it doesn't sound like fleas. It sounds like lice, which doesn't surprise me considering you picked up the piggie at a fair.

You'll need to purchase some Advantage to kill the lice. Do not use any other over the counter flea medication or you risk severe illness or death to your piggie. Guinea pigs are very sensitive to all medications and you should only use medications that are approved for use with guinea pigs.

Since the poor piggie has lice, it probably has mites too. Mites are microscopic and cannot be seen with the naked eye. The treatment of choice is Ivermectin, which will not only kill the mites, but will also kill the lice too. If it were me, I'd have the piggie treated with Ivermectin & kill the lice and possible mites at the same time.

The piggie will need three treatments of Ivermectin, 7 days apart.

Answer 8

I had the same problem with my guniea pig, since i didn't want to go to the vet and spend ridiculous amount of money i try to see what i can do..

1) I gave my guniea pig a bath i used (squeaky shampoo) you can get it at petsmart for like 5 bucks and immediatly when i put the water little things just started dropping at of her fur.

2) Then i combed her with the flea comb

3) I would repeat the process a couple more times before i notice that her mite problems were gone.

But if you notice that after a couple baths it's not going away then you have no other choice then taking her tot he vet

Good Luck :)

Answer 9

Please look over http://www.guinealynx.info/parasites.htm... for proper ways to treat your guinea pig for parasites. Much of the advice you have been given is bad. Sprays and shampoos are pretty useless and often contain toxic ingredients.

Answer 10

I found on this on a reliable site, I hope the following helps:

     A flea comb can be helpful in finding fleas. Comb the guinea pig and then look for fleas or dark brown granules. These granules are called "flea dirt," which is actually the f***s of the flea, and is primarily digested blood. Along with the eggs, the female flea deposits a large amount of f***s, which will serve as food for the larvae when they hatch. The flea dirt will dissolve into a red color when moistened.