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5mth Old Male Piggy Having Diarrhea

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FitzPiggy

FitzPiggy

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To me, it looks excessive, but I'm not sure if it really is or not. I would say, before it was smeared on my couch O.O, it was possibly about an inch puddle of poo. He seems fine otherwise, operative word here seems. No changes in brand of guinea pig food, although, I'll admit he's been having quite a few carrots as that is his favorite treat. We have another piggy, that's a couple of months older, and he's just fine.

I'm very worried as the piggy with the diarrhea is the "replacement" companion for the healthy one. The first one had to be put to sleep due to a horrible seizure.

So I'm wondering if having too many carrots could have caused the diarrhea? What other signs of dehydration should we look for in a piggy? And what are some possibilities that could cause diarrhea?
 
Generally a sudden change in vegetables, or an excessive amount of vegetables, will cause soft stools, but a puddle of poo is not normal.

I would recommend taking him to the vet as soon as possible as he may require subcutaneous fluids to restore hydration, or antibiotics if the cause is parasitic. In the mean time, don't feed him any more vegetables as this may cause further upset, and make sure he has lots of hay and his usual amount of pellets.

Watch him very closely and make sure he is eating and drinking normally. If you notice that he is not eating/drinking as much as normal, you will need to syringe feed and water him to prevent gut stasis. Info on that here: http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html
 
I would cut out all veggies from his diet for a day or two. It tends to be the greens rather than carrots that would cause this. Make sure he's getting plenty of water & syringe feed him some if he doesn't appear to be drinking. An unlimited supply of hay is essential as this should account for 80% of his diet. A visit to the vet would be a best way to see what exactly is wrong if he is still having diarrhea tomorrow.
 
Thank you so much for the replies and advice. We're first time guinea pig owners, and they're really my 11 year old daughter's piggies, but we've all grown attached to them. So they're like the family pets.

@PiggieLove: Thank you for the link, I'm saving it to my favorites so I have it handy.

@Stewybus: Thank you for the tip. I'll definitely cut out his veggies tomorrow and Monday and see how that goes, as well as keep an eye out for him drinking water.

As I said earlier though, he seems fine for the most part. He is still very active, he loves loves to explore and play, and cuddles with you when he's being held, so he's still his usual self, at least for right now. And it has only been the one instance, and that was perhaps.. two hours ago now, and nothing like that since, in fact, it seems to be normal, but it has certainly put me on alert and wanted to know if I needed to look out for anything before going "crazy" (as my husband would say) and start taking it to the vet immediately. So I'll give him until tomorrow and see how he does.

Thank you thank you again! It has been extremely helpful!
 
@FitzPiggy: Don't worry, I'm one of those crazy people who will run my piggies to the vet at the slightest sign of illness or injury. As they say - I would rather be safe than sorry! If you think he is okay now, just keep an eye on him and don't feed him veggies for a few days. If he starts producing soft stools or puddles again, take him to the vet. Keep us posted :)
 
Just an update, the piggy that had the diarrhea is just fine. It only seemed to have been the one bout, and we laid off the veggies, and he was thankfully still drinking water, and definitely his hay :) He was popcorning the next day ^_^ I love it when they do that, it is just so danged cute!
 
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