Guinea Pig Lump under Chin neck area

Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 7:50 am

I tried to split this post from the post you were writing on. Your initial post was:

I have a 5 and a half year old piggie. This morning I noticed a lump under his chin. I don't know if it was there before, but it definitely grew a lot over night. I read about other pigs with the same problem in this thread. Being Saturday I can't even get a normal vet, and there is no exotic vet around here. Should I give him antibiotics? And in what dose?

I wrote:
We can't provide advice that should come from a veterinarian who can examine your guinea pig. Provide supportive care and see a vet asap.
www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html

cucuzel · Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 7:58 am

I was planning to give him the antibiotic that I saw mentioned earlier in the thread, at least until Monday when I can see a vet. I'm worried that the lump might grow a lot until then since it appeared over night. Also I'm pretty sure it's an infection, a tumor wouldn't grow at such an accelerated rate.

Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 8:10 am

I think your analysis is correct.

cucuzel · Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 8:52 am

I was planning to give him doxycycline. I noticed it's broad spectrum and it case it kills his appetite I have Critical care. I was just looking for help with the dosage. The pharmacist told me to dissolve the content of the capsules in 4 ml of water and give him 2 ml of that. I'm just worried about overdosing. His behaviour hasn't changed, he's eating well but has recently started to drop weight. He's now at 800 g. He used to weigh 1050 g. Should i supplement with Critical care?

bpatters · Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 11:22 am

The throat area is a likely place for cervical lymphadenitis. If the lump gets large enough, it may burst, and CL is highly contagious.

I'm not sure an oral antibiotic will do much for it as long as it's whole. Guinea pig pus is very thick and cheesy, and antibiotics don't penetrate will. A vet would lance it at the very least, and possibly remove it entirely, and then give an antibiotic.

Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 2:00 pm

There are lots of links to antibiotic doses and how to calculate doses. Find someone who knows how to do this if you do not and you are resolved to give an antibiotic.
antibiotics.html
calculate_dose.html

cucuzel · Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 2:21 pm

I forgot to mention something. I believe the infection is related to a dental issue. His breath smells putrid and his front teeth are yellowish. Is it possible that a dental infection cause this?

bpatters · Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 3:00 pm

Yes, it's possible. And in that case you'll need a really effective antibiotic to get to the root of it. I'm guessing a vet would give chloramphenicol, but that's only a guess.

cucuzel · Post » Sat Aug 19, 2017 3:13 pm

That's what I was planning to give him. But al veterinary pharmacies were closed and the human pharmacies don't have it anymore, it's been taken off the market. So I gave him doxycycline. I figured it wouls at least slow down the infection until Monday when a vet could give me chloramphenicol.

cucuzel · Post » Mon Aug 28, 2017 4:28 am

Quick update.
I took my piggie to the vet, he has been on antibiotics for a week. They also drained the pus several times. It was an abcess after all. I am feeding him Critical Care, he still has difficulty eating. The vet said he might have pricked himself with a bit of hay and it gor infected. His throat might still be tender, hence the difficulty in eating. He had lost a lot of weight, today's weighing showed an increase of 30 g. I'm concerned about the tissue that holds the abcess, the vet told me that normally they would perform surgery to remove it, but they don't feel comfortable with such a small animal, also he's 5 and a half years old. Would a complete course of antibiotics be enough to make sure the abcess doesn't come back? He has been through a lot of pain and discomfort, I hope it's not been in vain...

Post » Mon Aug 28, 2017 7:36 am

This is the kind of abscess that would be flushed once or twice a day by you at home using a warm sterile saline solution to keep moving out the accumulation of new pus. Your vet would have put in a drain (this is a tube to keep things open) to aid in flushing.

If your guinea pig is in pain, I would also get pain medication.

https://www.guinealynx.info/abscess.html
https://www.guinealynx.info/pain.html

Talishan · Post » Mon Aug 28, 2017 10:13 am

Ditto Lynx.

Yes, these can clear entirely with antibiotics alone. It's not ideal -- ideally, you'd want the abscess removed and the root cause definitively identified -- but an extended antibiotic course (a month or more) can in some cases completely clear it.

"Pulsing" an ab can also sometimes work -- i.e., two weeks on, one week off; three weeks on, one week off, etc., for an extended period of time.

Stay the course and keep going. Hopefully the ab does the job for him!