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Choked on her hay?~

Mistymoutainfairy

New Born Pup
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Hello i am super new to this forum. A very sad thing happened this morning. I have a routine with my pigs. I wake up, use the restroom, then turn on the light in the living room where they are located. as i soon as i do that i say "good morning girls" and by then they are both normally wicking for there morning veggies, pea chips and hay rack refill. I first noticed that they were super quiet and a lot of there parsley wasn't eaten and then i go to get there bowl i noticed my sweet girl Dumplin laying on her side by her hay rack eyes glassed over not seeming to breathe. I run and wake up my husband and he confirmed my worst fear she had passed in the night. Through my tears and sobs i asked what had happened. He flips her over and found a puffy piece of Timothy hay in her mouth. This was Oxbow Timothy Hay. Was this just a freak accident or something that happens often with pigs? How can i do better to prevent this in the future? Thank you so much for your time. Any advice is appreciated.
 
I went down to find one of our rescue boys in his forever sleep and he too had hay in his mouth. I personally don't think it's choking but that he had a heart attack while eating. Sadly he was only two years old x
 
I went down to find one of our rescue boys in his forever sleep and he too had hay in his mouth. I personally don't think it's choking but that he had a heart attack while eating. Sadly he was only two years old x
My girl was less then a year.. :c
 
I would imagine seems as they are constantly eating hay, that it was probably a sudden heart attack whilst they were eating
 
Hello i am super new to this forum. A very sad thing happened this morning. I have a routine with my pigs. I wake up, use the restroom, then turn on the light in the living room where they are located. as i soon as i do that i say "good morning girls" and by then they are both normally wicking for there morning veggies, pea chips and hay rack refill. I first noticed that they were super quiet and a lot of there parsley wasn't eaten and then i go to get there bowl i noticed my sweet girl Dumplin laying on her side by her hay rack eyes glassed over not seeming to breathe. I run and wake up my husband and he confirmed my worst fear she had passed in the night. Through my tears and sobs i asked what had happened. He flips her over and found a puffy piece of Timothy hay in her mouth. This was Oxbow Timothy Hay. Was this just a freak accident or something that happens often with pigs? How can i do better to prevent this in the future? Thank you so much for your time. Any advice is appreciated.

Hi and welcome

I am very sorry for your loss!

Guinea pigs experiencing a sudden heart attack out of the blue are often found with food in their mouths.
The same happened to my Tanni, who I found in the morning collapsed on hay with some of it still sticking out of her mouth; I have lost others to strokes or sudden acute heart failure, even at a very young age.
One rescue piggy reserved for me for adoption sadly died from a sudden heart attack while eating her dinner veg at the rescue; like yours, she wasn't even a year old and left a litter of babies thankfully around weaning age.

It is sadly not at all uncommon; but it can happen at any age right out of the blue and there is nothing you do can to prevent it or even be aware that there could be an issue! These seemingly healthy piggies live with a genetic time bomb in their heart that can go off at any time. :(

You may find these two guides here helpful in the coming days and weeks:
Looking After a Bereaved Guinea Pig
Human Bereavement: Grieving, Coping and Support Links for Guinea Pig Owners and Their Children
 
Welcome to the forum and so sorry for your loss.. what a shock for you x
 
I am so sorry for your loss. It's always a shock to find a piggy passed away like this but rest assured it wasn't from choking on the hay. Unfortunately an underlying heart problem can strike at any time and any age and there is nothing you could have done to pick up on this or prevent it
 
Welcome to the forum
So sorry for your loss, sending you hugs x
Sleep tight little lady x
 
I'm really sorry for your loss. :( I want to echo what the others have said- this likely wasn't a choking death, but a death from other sudden causes (i.e. a heart attack or stroke, which can sadly occur even in young pigs.) Pigs often have food in their mouths because they are constant grazers and take a long time to chew. Again, so sorry for your loss. That must have been such an awful shock!
 
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