Is arnica good and safe for my guinea pig's inflammation or bruises?

Ibuprofen is definitely not my go-to for pain and inflammation in rodents, though they are much better at handling the gastrointestinal effects than dogs and cats. If possible I would have Bugsy examined by a vet, who will then be able to prescribe a more appropriate anti inflammatory drug such as meloxicam, which is known to be quite safe and effective in rodents and rabbits. They will also be able to look at the leg and try to determine why it is swollen - whether or not there is a traumatic cause or something else. Hope this makes sense.

Most of the oral meds are on prescription and should be discussed with your local veterinarian. Disinfection of the skin may be achieved at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Ibuprofen cannot be used in guinea pigs. Contact your veterinarian and request pain management for Daisy. This can be a NSAID such as Metacam or a more powerful medication, such as Buprenorphine, based on her symptoms.

Even though a picture would help to understand better the underlying cause, generally speaking this presentation could be due to a trauma or recurrence of the localized skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Bleeding must be stopped as soon as possible with gentle pressure. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Hi and thank you for the pics, While it is not possible to make a diagnosis based on pictures alone, they do show an inflamed area with lots of hemorrhages. What I'm missing is some background info such as her age, is she alone or with other GPs, where are the lesions on her body (difficult to tell from the pics) and are there several lesions or just one. An accurate diagnosis would require a good history, a physical examination and likely some lab tests such as skin scrapings and cultures. This can only be done in a vet clinic.

thanks for reaching out about Ms. Piggy. Do not place topical antibiotics such as neosporin on it as this can be toxic if ingested. Flour or baking soda can be used topically to help form a clot. Materials such as Quik Stop, used for bleeding toe nails is also caustic and will hurt/burn. If there is a mass there, a veterinary visit is needed as cysts or tumors are not uncommon on the ears. Good luck.

I am sorry to hear about your guinea pig! You are correct in that we don't normally prescribe Penicillin products in guinea pigs as they can kill the normal healthy bacteria in the GI tract leading to severe GI problems. I would recommend contacting your vet to see if they have other antibiotics available. In the US we most often use a drug called Baytril (enrofloxacin) or Tribrissen (trimethoprim sulfadiazine). Perhaps your vet does have other drug options available.