Hello, my guinea pig has a UTI and I took all the advice from the vet with medicine and stuff. I was wondering any ideas on how to keep him comfortable and warm while being sick. I have to syringe feed him water and he is just lazing around.
Hi
I hope that your piggy is picking up once he is feeling better in himself again.
Please don't force any water down; it can easily go down the wrong way if you syringe more than he can swallow.
It is usually more effective to encourage him to eat slightly more diuretic veg like cucumber, lettuce, fresh dandelion leaves to help flush the bladder, as long as he has access to fresh water. Be careful to not overdo it to the degree that he is getting diarrhea. You can stop once the acute symptoms have come down.
Has your vet given you metacam, which is not just an anti-inflammatory, but also a painkiller to help ease the discomfort especially in the first few days? What antibiotic is he on?
Please weigh him daily at the same time in the feeding cycle to monitor his food intake; step in with syringe feed top up if your boy is losing more than 50g; as much as he wants to take on 2-3 times a day or full syringe feeding if the antibiotic kills his appetite completely.
You can give a pinch of probiotics 1 hours the antibiotics to bolster the guts and some extra vitamin C to boost the immune system.
You can find all the relevant information and products in our syringe feeding guide:
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
Please bring your boys indoors and keep them warm, but not hot; but well out of drafts, cold and dampness (including especially the lawn).
All the best!