3 Guinea Pigs Died In Two Weeks. What Could The Cause Be?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Sophdon

New Born Pup
Joined
Mar 4, 2017
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Points
25
Hi there, I'm new to this forum and looking for advise. I have 15 Guinea pigs. They are free running in a purpose built shed. Two weeks ago the daddy of our babies died, he had become poorly over a few days, loosing his fur and loosing weight, I had made him a vet appointment for my day off but unfortunalty died the day of his appointment. He was living with his sons (4 little boys, 12 weeks old.) I cleaned the cage really well, disinfecting it all. This afternoon I went in to feed the piggies and one baby was dead and another laying on his side unable to get up, we cuddled him in a blanket to keep warm and decided to take him to the vet but unfortunaly passed away before we got there. I'm now worried about the two remaining. What could be causing their death? The babies have seems well until today.

In the shed the boys are on the top shelf which is the same height as the windows. Could a draft cause this? I've now put blankets up at the windows to try to prevent anymore draft.

The girls who live on the floor all seem fine.

Please don't judge. But advise would be much appreciated. I'm so worried we are going to loose some more of our beloved piggies.
 
Hello and welcome to the forum.

I'm so sorry that you have lost 3 piggies all so quickly. Unfortunately I wouldn't like to speculate as to the cause of death, however I would recommend getting the other piggies checked over by a vet to ensure they are in good health. I am very sorry for your losses.

As we have members from all over the world, we find it very helpful if you please added your country and county, so we can adapt any advice accordingly. Please click on your username on the top bar, then go to personal details and scroll down to location. In the same section you can also upload your avatar, that is the picture that appears with every post you make. Thank you!
 
Hi there, I'm new to this forum and looking for advise. I have 15 Guinea pigs. They are free running in a purpose built shed. Two weeks ago the daddy of our babies died, he had become poorly over a few days, loosing his fur and loosing weight, I had made him a vet appointment for my day off but unfortunalty died the day of his appointment. He was living with his sons (4 little boys, 12 weeks old.) I cleaned the cage really well, disinfecting it all. This afternoon I went in to feed the piggies and one baby was dead and another laying on his side unable to get up, we cuddled him in a blanket to keep warm and decided to take him to the vet but unfortunaly passed away before we got there. I'm now worried about the two remaining. What could be causing their death? The babies have seems well until today.

In the shed the boys are on the top shelf which is the same height as the windows. Could a draft cause this? I've now put blankets up at the windows to try to prevent anymore draft.

The girls who live on the floor all seem fine.

Please don't judge. But advise would be much appreciated. I'm so worried we are going to loose some more of our beloved piggies.
The causes of death in multiple piggies are likely to be due to some type of infection. Alternatively a toxin of some sort, although you would expect the smaller baby boars to be affected most. Finally environmental factors, cold, heat, humidity, but this is least likely in this situation. An infection is most likely so get your other piggies checked asap.
 
I would agree about getting them checked, at least then you know what you are up against.
We don't judge anyone in this friendly forum. Silly
Hope you get to the bottom of this virus etc.
Massive hugs coming your way, it must be terrible to lose piggies & not know why.
 
No judgement, it's hard to know some times. May I ask how old your daddy boar was? I wonder if it's possible that he had a deformity, such as a heart condition or some other 'ticking time bomb' type anomally that he passed on to his babies? May I ask if he has sired babies before, and if they all thrived? Not asking in order to judge, but wondering if genetics are playing a part.

May I also ask how long you have had your piggies in this set up? I ask because if you have kept them like this for over a year they have already been through the changes of the seasons, humidity and temperature without issues then I wouldn't have thought that their environment would be the major factor, unless something has developed over time within the shed, such as a fungal/mould or damp issue. These are not always easy to spot.

My guess would be on something contagious, sadly. Possibilities include viruses, infections etc, but I also would like to ask if you have any wild animals visiting your garden, or if there is any sign of rodent damage to your shed? Contaminated grass or urine/droppings from rats or mice may harbour bacteria or parasites that your pigs perhaps could have picked up.
It's good to check on the shed for draughts, as you say. Draughts can increase the likelihood of illness, but I wonder if that's not the case if you have had this set-up for some time without issues.

If possible it may be worth considering trying to house them indoors temporarily in order for the temperature to stay constant (which is likely to be of help to any who are falling ill, and for those that may require treatment), plus you are perhaps more likely to pick up on any early signs, such as sneezing, changes in behaviour, listlessness, signs of pain, a change in eating habits or anything else which doesn't seem quite right.

If you cannot temporarily bring them all inside then it would be worth investing in a pen or cage for quarantine purposes to isolate any from the moment you suspect that they/it is ill.

Getting them all checked out with a vet is a very sensible precaution. I wonder if it would be easier to book a vet to make a home visit?

Sadly when a piggy starts to lose weight it becomes an urgent matter and such a piggy cannot afford to wait a few days. Again this is not judgement at all, many people don't realise how urgent the situation is, and in an ideal world we would all be able to drop our other commitments and go straight down the vets. I know it can be hard to do, but sadly losing weight is very often an emergency situation. When a guinea pig stops eating their guts can slow right down or even stop completely. This can actually be deadly very quickly, not through starvation, but because the guts can actually shut down, causing a downward spiral of bloat and other issues.

The loss of fur may indicate mites or a fungal infection, amongst other things. A mite infestation can get bad quite quickly on a guinea pig, and if left untreated can cause death through blood loss and infection. babies succumb faster. Mites are in piggies in low levels and are generally not an issue at all, but stress (either emotional physical) can cause a drop in the immune system which allows the mites to breed out of control. If mites have been a factor it may mean that there was another issue, possibly a health issue to start with, and the mites just being a secondary factor in the guinea pigs's death. The good news is that mites are unlikely to spread to the others, especially if they are healthy and happy. The other good news is that mites are usually easily dealt with by a course of ivermectin injections from the vet. Mites would need to be diagnosed by the vet though in the first place, as I say there are several causes of hair-loss.

I really think it is worth keeping your vets appointment and discussing all of this. It may also be worth, if you still are able to, taking along the body of one of the pigs for post-mortem.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top