• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

Abdomen Pulsating

Status
Not open for further replies.
S

Stephanie Tang

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Apr 21, 2017
Messages
7
Reaction score
4
Points
140
Hello! I have a female guinea pig named Lily and she is about 5 months old. In the past few days I've noticed that her abdomen has been pulsating. I have attached a video to this post of it happening. It has been pretty constant, as a notice it pulsing when she's eating, when she's just laying down, etc. Her behavior has been normal, she has been eating, she is not bloated, and her poop has been alright, perhaps a little smaller and lighter colored than normal. She is fed pellets, timothy hay, Oxbow tablets, and occasional vegetables. (She had clumpy, soft poop a month ago so I've been slowly adding veggies back to her diet.)

Some background about her:
-Lily is recovering from ringworm. She has been ringworm free for about a week and I am still applying anti-fungal topical for the next week to ensure the ringworm is completely gone.
-Up until last week Lily was on an oral anti-fungal. There was a couple of days where she was very lethargic and not eating or pooping much and losing weight, so the vet suggested I stop the oral medication. After discontinuing it, she improved.
-The veterinarian proposed that Lily may have a low immune system, since she has been constantly having issues since I adopted her.
-Lily has another cage mate named Millie who is also about 5 months old. Millie has not had any issues the past few weeks.

Not sure if any of these things are related, but I hope someone can give me some input on what's going on and if I should see a veterinarian. Thanks!

 
Her breathing effort is quite pronounced giving the impression that her abdomen is pulsating.
There can be many reasons why this should be, so she definitely needs to see the vet as soon as possible to rule out problems such as chest infection or heart failure. Its good that she appears well.
 
I completely agree with the above. It certainly does look like she is making more of an effort than normal to breath. My advice would be to book her in with a vet as an emergency. Piggies can go downhill quite fast. Sending lots of healings vibes.
 
Sorry to hear your little one is poorly. That is actually her struggling to breathe. I agree that she does need to see a vet as soon as possible.
 
We had a pig at the rescue, Hero, who used to heave as he was breathing similarly to this, although in himself he was fine! After various vet visits and treatments it got no better or no worse although it seemed to improve on vetbed rather than shavings and in cooler conditions (but I see your piggy is on fleece anyway). There was no discharge from his nose etc, so the vet concluded it was something he would live with, he's been rehomed since and is doing well!
Still a good idea to get you piggy to the vets though :)
Good luck to you and your piggy! :)
 
I agree with the others- it looks like increased work of breathing/using accessory muscles to breathe, which can indicate some kind of respiratory distress- definitely worth a vet visit because respiratory illnesses can get serious quickly. All the best to you and your piggy and hope she makes a quick recovery!
 
Thank you so much everyone for your advice! I called the vet and they said to keep watching her in case of bloat or stomach issues and to come in if other symptoms develop. So far she's been herself, breathing is normal and is happily wheeking and pooping everywhere. Will give updates if anything changes!
 
UPDATE:

I observed her the next few days to see if the problem persisted. Within a few days, she was back to normal! Still not sure what was going on, but she's a normal and healthy pig again :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top