[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Abscess

[DebJonSara at aol.com]

As you know, I have been ill and unable to care properly for my piggies for  
a while. My daughter is over from England for a week, so today weighed 
everyone  and clipped some claws, plus giving everyone a "once over" - she has done 
part  of an "Animal 
Management" course at college.
 
Panic stations - Scarecrow, who was adopted by the same people who adopted  
recently- departed Chestnut then returned to me when they moved away, has the  
most enormous lump on the right side of her neck. When I say enormous, it is  
about the same size as her head. I feel like a shamefully negligent slave. 
About  a week ago I spent an hour sitting in their run and feeding them leaves, 
but  I didn't pick up everyone and cuddle them, only some (including favourite, 
 Soulage, of course). I didn't pick up Scarecrow, and she is long haired, so 
the  lump amazingly doesn't show when you look at her - it is completely 
hidden by  hair. She is running around and eating as usual. She has lost about 17g 
in  weight since last weighed in June, but then most of them have - I think 
the heat  has made them less active and maybe reduced their appetites? My 
daughter thinks  the abscess must weigh something though, which means her body 
weight has maybe  gone down more.
 
I've looked it up in my books, and it seems pretty likely that this is a  
"cervical lymphadenitis", and as such, needs to be lanced and drained. At this  
point I remind you that I live in rural North West France and have not located 
a  vet who really seems to understand guinea pigs. I have taken 3 sick piggies 
to 2  different vets here, and they have all ended their days having needles 
stuck  into them, food and water syringed into them, long, stressful car 
journeys  imposed on them and generally experiencing more pain and terror in their 
last  few days with me than in the whole of their lives.
 
Soulage had an abscess about 18 months ago - nowhere near as big, and  on her 
side. I posted on here about it, and took her to the vet. The vet gave me  
antibiotics for her to take by mouth, which she duly took in banana, although  
general advice on the Net seemed to be against antibiotics for abscesses. The  
vet also gave me an iodine wash, with which the abscess was to be washed 3 
times  a day, diluted in warm water. We were supposed to go back if the abscess 
didn't  go away. In the meantime, I tried squeezing it, and did get a lot of 
cheesy  cream stuff out, cleaning the hole afterwards each time with the iodine  
solution. I didn't actually lance it - with the bathing, a hole appeared on 
its  own, so I squeezed out the contents through that. Eventually I could 
squeeze no  more out, so I left it but monitored it. I noticed the lump gradually 
returned,  but within a tough "shell" that Soulage's skin seemed to form round 
it. It  didn't seem to be bothering her at all, and after about 9 months I was 
able  to pick off a hardish lump of dried beige gunge from it which was 
almost on the  surface, kind of scab like but softer. Soulage still has a bump 
there, but it is  not botherng her.
 
Scarecrow's lump is about 3 times bigger, and in a much more irritating  
place. I've noticed she is lying only on her left side - of course, the lump  
would prevent her lying on her right side. If I had a piggie savvy vet I would  be 
there now, but I don't. The better of the 2 vets, who treated Scruff  
unsuccessfully for bloat back in November, is 40 minutes' drive away, and we  have a 
heatwave here at present. I don't know if she has ever lanced a guinea  pig's 
abscess. A French Internet site about guinea pigs and rabbits, owned by  vets, 
says a guinea pig must be anaesthetised before an abscess is lanced.
 
My books say Scarecrow must be isolated because the pus from an abscess is  
highly poisonous to other piggies. Sorry, I can't do that to her. She has 
always  been with others. I separated Scruff when she was ill. It stressed her 
terribly.  At present nothing is coming from the abscess.
 
I need to hear from people whose piggies have had huge abscesses under  their 
chins / between neck and front leg. Would I be totally insane to attempt  to 
lance this thing myself?? I do have some insulin syringes, or some with  
bigger holes in the needles. Might the regular bathing help? I am very reluctant  
to squeeze because of the position, and also the size. Should I leave it whilst 
 it's not bothering Scarecrow? Any vets out there with technical advice I 
could  pass on to my better vets here? 
 
What would you all do in my situation? Obviously the abscess should never  
have been allowed to have got this big, and it would not if I had been handling  
and weighing my piggies regularly as usual. But what's done is done, this is 
the  problem I have now. What can I do to save Scarecrow? Scruff was also one 
of the  adopted out and returned piggies - if Scarecrow dies, that will be 3 
of the 6  that have died within the year, and I feel as though they should 
never have  trusted me with them. Quite apart from which, she is a lovely little 
piggie. She  has always been the lightest, but like Soulage is full of 
personality. I really  don't want to lose her - what can I do???
 
Condolences to all who have recently lost piggies, and to those suffering  
the after effects of Hurricane Katrina.
 
Debbie