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Another Dead Piggie This Morning

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Nessi

Nessi

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I'm not having much luck. I found my lovely Buster dead in his hutch this morning. it looked like it had some kind of bowel rupture or something as his rear end was mucky. could it have been 2 much grass? (He was fully grown but young)

Robson died a few weeks back , with no symptoms and I've had 2 sick piggies recently (very lethargic, not eating, drinking, pooing or weeing) that thankfully the vet fixed with 3 injections (luck I reckon as he didn't know what was wrong).

I'm worried now for my other piggies! Could there be something on the grass? something airborne or have I just been unlucky and the deaths unconnected?

Poor Ronnie is now on his own - breaks my heart. Will he accept a new mate?

Nessi
 
I am so sorry for your loss :( Unfortunately it could be one of many things & unless you have a post mortem examination you will not know for certain. How long do they go out on the grass for? Do any other animals have access to it like cats, dogs, hedgehogs etc? The best way to get Ronnie a new friend is to take him boar dating at a recommended rescue from our list if you are in the UK. Can you give a rough idea of your location please?
 
Poppy'sMum said:
I am so sorry for your loss :( Unfortunately it could be one of many things & unless you have a post mortem examination you will not know for certain. How long do they go out on the grass for? Do any other animals have access to it like cats, dogs, hedgehogs etc? The best way to get Ronnie a new friend is to take him boar dating at a recommended rescue from our list if you are in the UK. Can you give a rough idea of your location please?
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Hi. thanks for your reply. well, Buster was outside for a few hours yesterday but was new to grass and didn't eat much as spent quite a bit of time inside the house. others have been out for longer ....

I'm in Gloucestershire.
 
It is possible he got bloat if he wasn't used to grass but it's hard to say. Generally it's best to introduce new foods slowly & grass time needs a gradual build up, like half an hour every day for a week, then the next week maybe an hour at a time etc. How old was he? They couldn't have had access to any grass clippings could they? They can cause bloat, so if the grass has been mowed the clippings must be removed before they can go on the grass.
 
I'm so sorry for your loss. As Poppy'sMum said, it may be difficult to tell what happened as it could be one of a whole list of things.

I'm afraid I can't really suggest anything for certain, I can only echo what has already been said. If he wasn't used to grass then it could have been that he became bloated after eating too much too quickly. It is sometimes possible that if other animals have been out on the grass to go to the toilet, the grass soaks up the urine and this can prove poisonous to guineas. Again, if the grass was treated with any sort of fertilizer recently, then that could have poisoned him. Like I said it could be one of many things so please don't take my word for certain.

In terms of getting Ronnie a new friend, it is often best to leave the grieving pig for a short while to allow them to grieve and understand that their friend has passed. For instance, after losing my 7 year old sow, Bingo just a few weeks ago, I allowed her cagemate, Puzzle some time with Bingo still in the cage so that she realised that she was gone. I then kept an eye on Puzzle for the following week. It was not until about a week after that she started to perk up again, and that was when I took her to a guinea pig rescue to find a friend.
This thread might help you: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/looking-after-a-bereaved-piggy.109674/

If your other pigs are now fine after their injections at the vets then I would just suggest to keep a close eye on your other pigs for the time being and possibly just as a cautionary measure not letting them out on the grass for the next few days. It may not have been the grass that caused it, but it might be safer to keep your other piggies off it for a while, if you can. However if they take a turn for the worse then a vet visit would be necessary.

Unfortunately I can't give you a definite answer as to why you lost your precious Buster. The only way to know for certain would be to have a post mortem examination carried out, if that's what you wanted to do. I'm very sorry that this has happened.

If you have any other questions do feel free to ask anyone here.
 
I am so sorry for the loss of Buster. Big hugs x
 
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