Constipation for female piggy

[Allisona]

Hi there! Just joined and I just adopted a friend for my girl Tulip, over a week ago, after she lost her bff a couple of months ago. I’ve named her new friend biscotti. Anyways I’m not sure if it’s the stress of living with a new pig but I noticed that tulip wasn’t as active today as usual. I picked her up and noticed mushy poop on her bum. I gave her some hay to snack on and she ate but when she went to poop I could tell she was straining and before I could see if there was anything she was eating whatever she could get. I had her separated for an hour to watch but no poops. I gave her a pea size of bene bac and mixed it in with the pellets. She’s never had this issue before. I’ve looked it up but there’s not much info for females. She’s also 1 1/2. Any help is appreciated. Thank you!

 

[Siikibam]

Guinea pigs can't be constipated. If her poo is soft then take her off veg (and grass) until at least 24 hours after her poo is back to normal. If it persists then you should take her to a vet for a check. How is her weight and is she squeaking in pain while toileting?

 

[Allisona]

She had a little bit of carrot tops last night but she hasn’t been eating as much veggies as usual since her and the new pig had pretty soft poops. In their first week together. No noises while trying to poop.

 

[Siikibam]

Cut them out entirely for now. What were you feeding them before?

 

[Allisona]

Before adopting Biscotti, tulip usually had almost daily mix of veggies: cilantro, cucumber, red leaf lettuce mostly. There’s always Timothy hay and pellets in the cage

 

[Piggies&buns]

Please cut down the pellets. They should never have constant access to pellets. Pellets should be limited to just one tablespoon per pig per day. The only food they should have constantly is hay.

Keep them off veg entirely until poops normalise. Then reintroduce veg slowly 24 hours after normal poops have returned. If the problem persists, then you need to see a vet

Switch from lifelong weekly weighing to daily weighing while there is this issue to ensure that they are eating enough hay

 

[Jimmie O'Chutt]

I agree hay should be 75 % of their feed to keep their gastrointestinal tract running smoothly. Palets should be given 20 gr per kg a day.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I agree hay should be 75 % of their feed to keep their gastrointestinal tract running smoothly. Palets should be given 20 gr per kg a day.

It’s not 20 grams per kilo. It’s one tablespoon of pellets regardless of their weight. One tablespoon of pellets actually equates to roughly around 6 grams of pellets (with a slight variation between brands)

 

[Lady Kelly]

Hay forms 80% of a piggies diet and is the most important to feed. If you have witnessed her straining you are not simply dealing with mushy poops from a gut imbalance and I would get to a vet to get her checked over

 

[Posyrose]

Hay forms 80% of a piggies diet and is the most important to feed. If you have witnessed her straining you are not simply dealing with mushy poops from a gut imbalance and I would get to a vet to get her checked over

 

[Allisona]

Just as an update she did just poop this
I’m waiting for the vet to open to call and to try and make an appt

 

[Siikibam]

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

 

[Allisona]

So the vet said that it looks like it is GI tract pain possible from the stress of having the New Guinea pig in her space. There was no signs of big bladder so that ruled out kidney stones. No blockage of poop, and she didn’t have any poop in the colon so she hasn’t been eating that much and is having diarrhea.

They have given me Meloxicam to give .75 twice daily, Trimethoprim with sulfadiazine or sulfamethoxazole to give .7 twice daily. Also they gave me a bag of critical care to give 60 ml daily.

They did say that giving her 1ml of vitamin c every couple of days on top of her medicine will be okay. And to keep giving her hay and pellets, but no veggies until after follow up.

Follow up appt is next Tuesday.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi there! Just joined and I just adopted a friend for my girl Tulip, over a week ago, after she lost her bff a couple of months ago. I’ve named her new friend biscotti. Anyways I’m not sure if it’s the stress of living with a new pig but I noticed that tulip wasn’t as active today as usual. I picked her up and noticed mushy poop on her bum. I gave her some hay to snack on and she ate but when she went to poop I could tell she was straining and before I could see if there was anything she was eating whatever she could get. I had her separated for an hour to watch but no poops. I gave her a pea size of bene bac and mixed it in with the pellets. She’s never had this issue before. I’ve looked it up but there’s not much info for females. She’s also 1 1/2. Any help is appreciated. Thank you!

Hi!

Guinea pigs don't suffer from constipation. If there is not much in the way of poos, it means that they haven't eaten and you need to step in with support feeding and switching from weighing once weekly to weighing daily at the same time.

Please have her vet checked to find out what the problem is as soon as you can get an appoitment, ideally within 24 hours. Lethargy and loss of appetite are signs that she is seriously not well.

Please take the time to read these guides here, which contain all the necessary information on what you need to do and look out for in the coming hours and days until any medication can kick in but be aware that the problem could also originate from the bladder or the reproductive tract (pain radiating) as the gut is tightly wrapped around these organs. Only a hands-on vet examination will tell.
Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating

All the best!

 

[Allisona]

Hi!

Guinea pigs don't suffer from constipation. If there is not much in the way of poos, it means that they haven't eaten and you need to step in with support feeding and switching from weighing once weekly to weighing daily at the same time.

Please have her vet checked to find out what the problem is as soon as you can get an appoitment, ideally within 24 hours. Lethargy and loss of appetite are signs that she is seriously not well.

Please take the time to read these guides here, which contain all the necessary information on what you need to do and look out for in the coming hours and days until any medication can kick in but be aware that the problem could also originate from the bladder or the reproductive tract (pain radiating) as the gut is tightly wrapped around these organs. Only a hands-on vet examination will tell.
Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating

All the best!

Hello! My update with the vet is in the above comment and we actually just got some solid poops from her so it looks like she’s doing great. Thank you for the help and the links

 

[Lady Kelly]

How knowledgeable is your vet when it comes to piggies? Stones can't be ruled out just because the bladder isn't enlarged. X-ray is usually the only way to rule them out but even then it's not 100% depending on size and location of the stone(s).

 

[Allisona]

How knowledgeable is your vet when it comes to piggies? Stones can't be ruled out just because the bladder isn't enlarged. X-ray is usually the only way to rule them out but even then it's not 100% depending on size and location of the stone(s).

This vet had a few positive reviews and was listed as a suggested vet for guinea pigs and she was able to get me in ASAP. I did speak to the rescue where I adopted Biscotti and they also said that tulip should’ve gotten an X-ray but agreed that there wasn’t concern now since she’s been given the right medication. It’s been 24 hours since she’s been given everything and poops are a better shape and there hasn’t been anymore blood.