• DONATIONS NOW OPEN! TGPF relies on donations to run. If you'd like to donate towards running costs you can find out more HERE
  • Fresh grass and lawn tips to avoid springtime deaths Click here for details
  • 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

Boris Is Starting To Look Skinny

Status
Not open for further replies.
LydiaMinx

LydiaMinx

Teenage Guinea Pig
Joined
Aug 25, 2012
Messages
884
Reaction score
603
Points
500
Location
South East England
I'm not sure whether I'm being paranoid here, or if this is normal for pigs as they get older, but Boris is starting to look rather bony.

I've been weighing him regularly since he developed a lump on his face - he started at 1100g before his lump removal, and went down to 1000g after it was removed and has remained at that weight since (that was about 2.5 months ago). His pelvis has been looking quite prominent in the past few days, when he sits down it's very noticeable. I weighed him to see what his weight was and he's hovering about 980g, so a little bit down from his new normal weight.

He had slightly soft poo yesterday as my dad has been sneaking him way to much veg, so I've held off on the veg and just given lots of hay. He's fine in himself, could this just be age? He's coming up to 4 and a half, so I assumed natural weight loss and muscle wastage is natural, as it is with other species.

Is this worth taking him to the vet about, or should I give him a few more days to get back up to his normal weight?

Thank you guys :)
 
LydiaMinx said:
I'm not sure whether I'm being paranoid here, or if this is normal for pigs as they get older, but Boris is starting to look rather bony.

I've been weighing him regularly since he developed a lump on his face - he started at 1100g before his lump removal, and went down to 1000g after it was removed and has remained at that weight since (that was about 2.5 months ago). His pelvis has been looking quite prominent in the past few days, when he sits down it's very noticeable. I weighed him to see what his weight was and he's hovering about 980g, so a little bit down from his new normal weight.

He had slightly soft poo yesterday as my dad has been sneaking him way to much veg, so I've held off on the veg and just given lots of hay. He's fine in himself, could this just be age? He's coming up to 4 and a half, so I assumed natural weight loss and muscle wastage is natural, as it is with other species.

Is this worth taking him to the vet about, or should I give him a few more days to get back up to his normal weight?

Thank you guys :)
Click to expand...

Guinea pigs are becoming a bit more bony as they get older. Most noticeable are hips and shoulder bones, but if you feel around his ribs, they should still be just noticeable, but not prominent.

His overall weight is perfectly acceptable.
 
My Emma is also around 4 years old and is becoming bonier around her shoulders despite not losing much weight.

I'm just putting it down to the aging process after I stupidly rushed my old girl, Eliza to the vets a few years ago after she became bony around her shoulders and after a weigh in, she hadn't lost weight and my vet said she was perfectly healthy for her age and it was just the aging process.

Of course, if in doubt, have him checked out by your vet
 
Yup, bony shoulders and bums are the thing in my older girlies, too. It's just a sad fact of aging.
 
Pigs do get bonier through the hips and shoulders as they age due to loss of muscle mass associated with aging. Sundae just turned 6 and is definitely bonier in her shoulders and hips than she was at a younger age. I don't remember noticing this before age 5 or older in my pigs, though. As he has just had surgery, he may well not be back to his usual weight yet (Sundae had a lot of problems with dental/abscesses around 3 years of age and certainly was bonier during that period due to decreased intake, but she did eventually bulk back up to her pre-illness weight. It took quite some time, though.)
 
Freela said:
Pigs do get bonier through the hips and shoulders as they age due to loss of muscle mass associated with aging. Sundae just turned 6 and is definitely bonier in her shoulders and hips than she was at a younger age. I don't remember noticing this before age 5 or older in my pigs, though. As he has just had surgery, he may well not be back to his usual weight yet (Sundae had a lot of problems with dental/abscesses around 3 years of age and certainly was bonier during that period due to decreased intake, but she did eventually bulk back up to her pre-illness weight. It took quite some time, though.)
Click to expand...

All of your response have made me feel less antsy about it, thank you all! And it does seem to be taking a long time for him to regain that weight - he still eats like a horse mind you :love:
 
So I weighed Boris again today, and he's now hovering around 950/60g :( He's eating exactly the same amounts as usual, his appetite is fine and he's his cheerful self - I don't get why he's slimming down?! Perhaps a vet visit :(
 
Do you weigh him at the same time each day say in the morning before he has breakfast? I just ask as piggy weights can fluctuate massively during the day as I recently found out.

But I see know harm in a vet visit if you are concerned if only for peace of mind x
 
Claire W said:
Do you weigh him at the same time each day say in the morning before he has breakfast? I just ask as piggy weights can fluctuate massively during the day as I recently found out.

But I see know harm in a vet visit if you are concerned if only for peace of mind x
Click to expand...

I've been doing it in the afternoon which in retrospect seems daft! I just did it and it is more in his range - maybe I've been catching him after a big poo unload :doh:
 
LydiaMinx said:
I've been doing it in the afternoon which in retrospect seems daft! I just did it and it is more in his range - maybe I've been catching him after a big poo unload :doh:
Click to expand...

I'm glad you have discovered the problem :) I use to weigh my pigs at various times during the day on a daily basis and their weight could often fluctuate anywhere up to 50g either way so I now weigh them on a Wednesday in the morning before their breakfast which gives more of an accurate reading x
 
Claire W said:
I'm glad you have discovered the problem :) I use to weigh my pigs at various times during the day on a daily basis and their weight could often fluctuate anywhere up to 50g either way so I now weigh them on a Wednesday in the morning before their breakfast which gives more of an accurate reading x
Click to expand...

I don't think that's the entire problem to be honest, probably partially, but he is definitely creeping down in weight. I'm hoping it's actually from increased floor time recently, I'm feeding him more just in case and seeing how he goes. He's doing everything he normally would so it literally is just the change in weight that has me worried :(

So typical though, as I'm considering taking Boris to the vet for this, Badger starts having dental issues again - they must plan this! :mal:
 
LydiaMinx said:
I don't think that's the entire problem to be honest, probably partially, but he is definitely creeping down in weight. I'm hoping it's actually from increased floor time recently, I'm feeding him more just in case and seeing how he goes. He's doing everything he normally would so it literally is just the change in weight that has me worried :(

So typical though, as I'm considering taking Boris to the vet for this, Badger starts having dental issues again - they must plan this! :mal:
Click to expand...

Emma recently went through a phase of gradual weight loss but she has stabilised again now.

I am keeping my fingers crossed for both Boris and Badger.
 
Claire W said:
Emma recently went through a phase of gradual weight loss but she has stabilised again now.

I am keeping my fingers crossed for both Boris and Badger.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much Claire, it means a lot :) Just got back from the vets with Badger and it seems he just had a bit of hay or food trapped, as the vet said his teeth seemed fine to him. He said he could only see about 70% of his mouth (as it was full of food) but what he could see all looked good. He hasn't gaped or anything today either, so I'm hoping it was a bit of something caught.

A huge relief, but still going to keep a close eye on the pair of them!
 
LydiaMinx said:
Thank you so much Claire, it means a lot :) Just got back from the vets with Badger and it seems he just had a bit of hay or food trapped, as the vet said his teeth seemed fine to him. He said he could only see about 70% of his mouth (as it was full of food) but what he could see all looked good. He hasn't gaped or anything today either, so I'm hoping it was a bit of something caught.

A huge relief, but still going to keep a close eye on the pair of them!
Click to expand...

That is a relief x
 
At his age it is possible he is in discomfort due to arthritis, it might be worth asking your vet if a very low daily dose of dog Metacam might help as an anti-inflammatory, as pain impacts on their eating :)
 
Poppy'sMum said:
At his age it is possible he is in discomfort due to arthritis, it might be worth asking your vet if a very low daily dose of dog Metacam might help as an anti-inflammatory, as pain impacts on their eating :)
Click to expand...

I will definitely ask about this, however his appetite is still extremely healthy which is what is puzzling me the most. I've weighed him today and he is now 920g, but still with a hearty appetite and bouncing about like usual. He is drinking a fair amount though - he was at his bottle for close to 5 minutes a few nights ago - and this is all ringing bells for diabetes! So he is going to the vets on Friday to see if there's anything going on. I'm going to ask for full bloods, x-rays, etc.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top