Sebastian, your skin is weird.

[Isokeraunic]

Sebastian had a VERY successful vet visit yesterday.

It turns out that it was a sebaceous cyst, and the vet took a dental pick and some needles and was able to drain the cyst. It was rather gross, but among the crap that came out of it was a fully grown ruined quill. The black spots on his body the vet believes are moles, but there are more cysts that need to be taken care of. He gave me tools to do it. He thinks the cysts, as well as the tendency towards ingrown quills are genetic and a result of bad breeding.

In addition to all of this I saw some mites while he was examining the area. What's recommended for how to get rid of them? I'll be treating him as well as the rest of the hedgehogs in my herd.

Thank you so much for your help. I've already drained two additional cysts (also with ruined quills coming out of them. What's up with /that/, Sebastian?) This should seriously improve his quality of life and happiness now that I know what's hurting him.

He was really good for the vet. Didn't even ball up once. Just complained. He probably feels much better now.

[gracefulchaos01]

I'm so glad your little Sebastian is on the road to recovery and had such a successful vet visit.
For mites, revolution is recommended around here. It's topical and safe for hedgies. There is a great section here in the forums on it.

[Isokeraunic]

Originally Posted by gracefulchaos01

I'm so glad your little Sebastian is on the road to recovery and had such a successful vet visit.
For mites, revolution is recommended around here. It's topical and safe for hedgies. There is a great section here in the forums on it.

Thank you! I thought Revolution was what was recommended. I was thinking of getting Humilac for him after the Revolution treatment is through to try and get his skin less dandruffy in the long run.

[gracefulchaos01]

Indeed. My Sebastian also seems to be suffering from dandruff of late. So it will be oatmeal and coconut oil baths tonight for all. I figure if one is showing issues like that I may as well address the whole array before something gets out of hand.
With a cyst issue, external oil isn't really an option for you. But, if you don't already, you could add oil to his food and it may help with dry skin. I just started my kids on a higher fish diet to ensure they get good essential oils in their diet.

[Isokeraunic]

Originally Posted by gracefulchaos01

Indeed. My Sebastian also seems to be suffering from dandruff of late. So it will be oatmeal and coconut oil baths tonight for all. I figure if one is showing issues like that I may as well address the whole array before something gets out of hand.
With a cyst issue, external oil isn't really an option for you. But, if you don't already, you could add oil to his food and it may help with dry skin. I just started my kids on a higher fish diet to ensure they get good essential oils in their diet.

Oh! So no Humilac for Sebastian. Would adding Vitamin E to his diet be a good option then? A bit on his kibble?

[gracefulchaos01]

I have heard lots of people will add vitamin e or flax or even Olive oil to kibble and treats. I'm thinking about making frozen fruit treats with a bit of coconut oil in them. But for all I can get my kids to try different meats, getting them to try fruits is a different story.
But adding bits of necessary oils to their diets is a great way to enhance their skin quality.
I'm guessing Sebastians minor dandruff issue would be very much worse if I hadn't started adding oils in the past few months by adding oily fish to her diet.

[Isokeraunic]

Just wanted to update this to let you all know that his cyst has completely healed! In addition to that healing, his temperament has also much improved. I think the poor guy was in a lot of pain from that before, but now he's much better.

[shetland]

Wonderful news! Thank you for the update!!

[Isokeraunic]

It is wonderful! You're welcome. I never like leaving people in the dark about how things end up.

[gracefulchaos01]

That's great news!