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back> to recent cases
Darlene the Guinea
Pig with a Massive Abscess
 Darlene,
a 4 yr old female guinea pig, was very happy, she didn't think she'd a problem - but on her rear end there
was a great big lump. There was no pain or discharge, just a round
mass the size of a small apple on her rear end. Initially I suspected that it might
be a tumour and that surgical removal would be the most likely option.
Because of the great size of the lump she was treated with antibiotics and
anti-inflammatories for a week to eliminate infection before surgery and to
try to reduce the size of the mass. A week or so later I found that the skin
had become stretched and thin. I found that I could break through the skin
to an accumulation of pale lumpy material underneath. Darlene didn't seem
too concerned, so, without anaesthetic I proceeded to scoop out this strange
stuff that looked like a pile of corn on the cob! I assumed this to be dried
pus but, as yet, I couldn't exclude the possibility of there being a tumour
deep inside.
When I had removed about a half of the material the surrounding tissue began
to bleed significantly. I decided to stop excavating and to leave the
abscess to settle down for a few days with the owner's bravely flushing out
the cavity with diluted peroxide.
A week later the lump was much smaller and Darlene was still happily eating
and showing no signs of pain. I began excavating again and removed the rest
of the lumpy dried pus. A large hole remained and Darlene's owners continued
to flush out the cavity daily.
A week later the abscess was much improved - now just a hole in the skin
rather than a large raised growth.
Four weeks later the hole was closed and the skin looked as though it would
heal completely. However on close examination there were signs of tiny
pockets of pus in the scarred skin. We are now treating this infected skin
with a surface antiseptic. If it doesn't heal well then we will remove any
remaining diseased skin surgically.
Darlene has been well and eating throughout the treatment - quite
remarkable!
David Higginson MRCVS
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