[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Panacur, Worming and Chinchillas

[Ann Evans]

Dear Ginger and the GPDD Family,

Your vet is giving the correct dose of Panacur to treat an ongoing 
parasitic infection. Personally I would of added two doses of Ivermectin 
1.0%. I would of given one dose orally of 0.1 mL of the Ivermectin on 
day 1 and repeated it on day 10.  My reasoning is that if you are 
treating for parasites you should treat for the entire range of 
parasites. Ivermectin is not just for treating mange mites. It is used 
to treat internal parasites also. Carole gave a very good answer to your 
question. The fact that your piggy is still eating well and pooping up a 
load indicates that he is not suffering from gastric bloat or oral 
thrush which are two main causes of cavies loosing weight. Cystitis is 
another cause of piggys loosing weight. That is why I asked if your vet 
had done a urinalysis. It is very easy to collect urine. Just put your 
piggy in a clean plastic box, feed him lots of lettuce, cover the box 
with a towel so he feels secure but leave an opening for air and he will 
eventually pee. The urine then can be poured into a clean container, 
refrigerated and taken to the vet ASAP. The thing is if your piggys have 
not been routinely wormed with Panacur and Ivermectin from the age of 3 
months you may be facing a situation where damage has been done to an 
organ such as the pancreas or the liver. The Panacur your cavy is taking 
now will kill the parasites but not reverse the damage they caused. 
Hopefully you are just facing your first parasitic infection and there 
will be no damage. But this should be a wake up call to all GPDD members 
on the importance of routinely having your guinea pigs wormed every 3 
months with 0.1 mL of 1.0% Ivermectin and 0.4 mL of 2.5% Panacur. 
Chinchillas should also be routinely wormed every 3 months with 0.1 ml 
of a 1.0% Ivermectin and 0.2 mL with 2.5% Panacur. As the saying goes an 
ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Chinchillas are known for 
getting parasites in the blood stream that causes seizures. This is a 
perfect example of a negative fecal test being of no use. Parasites are 
not always in the gut. They have complex life cycles and not always 
found in the feces. We routinely worm our cats and dogs and cattle and 
sheep. Why do most people think that a cavy that has a digestive tract 
and diet very similar to a sheep does not have to be preventably wormed?



Cheers,

Ann and the Rescued Piggys of Piggyville, Tampa Florida USA.