[Gpdd] HEALTH V-shaped baldness

[Penny Charlesworth]

Hello Mikey,

I've just returned home from our holiday and have an overflowing Inbox to deal with so I'll start with your post. Got to start somewhere.

Your boars, Chico and Toby sound adorable and I do hope that your boyfriend will let you keep them. I didn't know that he was allergic to piggies as he seems to cope with the Winky Girls OK.

The V-shaped pattern in the coat is caused by the piggy trying to scratch at an irritation, either by reaching behind with his teeth or using his little back legs. The place where the V forms is as far as he can reach either way so the coat is worn away on both sides equally.

The problem could be mites or any other parasite in the coat. You will not see any mites because they burrow in the skin but with good eyesight or a magnifying lens you might see tiny bugs in the coat.

I would treat them both for mites anyway but first check that the rescue has not done this already as you need to wait 14 days between doses of Ivomec, which will clear these up.

Also give them both a bath in an anti parasite/fungus shampoo. I use Vet-Sect for this but I don't know what you have available in the Netherlands, apart from Gorgeous Guineas. If you can buy Vet-Sect, this is good for clearing up all kinds of skin problems and is very safe for piggies.

Congratulations to Guiny for being Pet of the Day.