eating less hay?

[piggiemummy03x]

booked in to see the vet tomorrow so i can continue to monitor symptoms however thought id write a post here to see if anyone could share some light!

so i believe my girl Luna isn’t eating as much hay as usual, everything else? no problem at all, veggies, treats, pellets not an issue, i just feel like I'm watching her consume a lesser amount of hay compared to normal! don’t get me wrong, she still is eating hay, i just feel like she’s suddenly sleeping a lot more and not getting up to eat as much as her sister. i weigh them every sunday, she has had no weight loss, i have weighed her today she is down 70g from sunday but i assumed this could be fluctuations especially because her sunday weigh in was already around 50g higher than normal. i am not worried about this drop if you look at her other way ins its a normal weight in her fluctuations.

could this be the start of a UTI? no other symptoms, she seems fine in herself, just wondering if anyone has experienced this before and what it was? cant go based off poos as her sister always has smaller poos so i cant tell the difference! i have given some fibreplex incase its an upset tummy, wondering if a dose of metacam could potentially help if it was the start of something but didn’t want to give too early incase it covered up other potential signs of whatever this could be? would love to hear everyones stance on this and like iv said will be going to vets tomorrow.

i do have an open pouch of recovery plus i didn’t know wether to 1. even use because its open and has been for months (clipped with a peg if this makes a difference?) 2. start yet as shes not actually lost any weight? am i being a bit hasty here? I'm petrified shes going to become really poorly and I'm just about to move out it couldn’t have come at a worser time! i also have pouches of dualcare however these are dated 10/2025 and again wasn’t sure if this was even safe to use anymore?

i dont know if I'm possibly getting myself at it, they are four now, to me this isnt old but i understand a pigs life span can be anywhere from 4-8 so could it be shes just slowing down a little and its only now I'm noticing?

thanks all, will obviously keep you updated and interested to hear your replies!

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.

I would actually monitor for another couple of days and see what happens - 50g up and then 70g down is different to just a sudden 70g drop which would be of concern.

The thing is weight loss can be a sign of any health issue, not just a UTI, but without any symptoms of anything and at this point (to me) the weight changes are inconclusive it’s possible a vet could struggle to find anything tomorrow - unless she suddenly shows symptoms or goes downhill today.

I would not use out of date products to be honest.

4 is the lower end of the upper life span. I certainly started seeing slowing down signs in my two eldest (one passing at 6 and the other at almost 7) and a gradual downward weight trend but it not through illness - just the common weighing less in older age.

 

[piggiemummy03x]

I’m sorry to hear this.

I would actually monitor for another couple of days and see what happens - 50g up and then 70g down is different to just a sudden 70g drop which would be of concern.

The thing is weight loss can be a sign of any health issue, not just a UTI, but without any symptoms of anything and at this point (to me) the weight changes are inconclusive it’s possible a vet could struggle to find anything tomorrow - unless she suddenly shows symptoms or goes downhill today.

I would not use out of date products to be honest.

4 is the lower end of the upper life span. I certainly started seeing slowing down signs in my two eldest (one passing at 6 and the other at almost 7) and a gradual downward weight trend but it not through illness - just the common weighing less in older age.

thanks for your response! so maybe best to cancel vets tomorrow then? i'm just really anxious about it i don’t want her to be in a worse place through leaving it but like iv said there aren’t any symptoms so i suppose your right the vet wont have much to go on!

i know it can be other illnesses, however i ruled out teeth problems as she can eat fine and i thought other illnesses would have symptoms..

i thought that the case, do you think the recovery plus will be okay thats still in date?

interesting, thanks alot!

 

[piggiemummy03x]

thanks for your response! so maybe best to cancel vets tomorrow then? i'm just really anxious about it i don’t want her to be in a worse place through leaving it but like iv said there aren’t any symptoms so i suppose your right the vet wont have much to go on!

i know it can be other illnesses, however i ruled out teeth problems as she can eat fine and i thought other illnesses would have symptoms..

i thought that the case, do you think the recovery plus will be okay thats still in date?

interesting, thanks alot!

so it could be me just noticing her slowing down a bit, i suppose the next few days will help me decide if there’s definitely something wrong!

 

[Piggies&buns]

You should get her seen if you feel that is best.
Her weight check in the morning is going to to provide important information on what is actually happening.

Anything which is either out of date or that has been opened longer than the timeline the packet says isn’t ideal to feed - nutrients would be depleted.
You can use just normal pellets (if you have them) and make a mush in an emergency

Other illnesses will have symptoms but the issue is that piggies can hide them and not all symptoms are consistent in the stages.

 

[piggiemummy03x]

You should get her seen if you feel that is best.
Her weight check in the morning is going to to provide important information on what is actually happening.

Anything which is either out of date or that has been opened longer than the timeline the packet says isn’t ideal to feed - nutrients would be depleted.
You can use just normal pellets (if you have them) and make a mush in an emergency

Other illnesses will have symptoms but the issue is that piggies can hide them and not all symptoms are consistent in the stages.

oh yes don’t worry i will do!
so is it anything more than 50g loss starts to flag?

yes i thought so, annoyingly the package doesn’t say ‘use by X amount once opened’ just ‘once made up’!

makes total sense!

 

[Piggies&buns]

oh yes don’t worry i will do!
so is it anything more than 50g loss starts to flag?

yes i thought so, annoyingly the package doesn’t say ‘use by X amount once opened’ just ‘once made up’!

makes total sense!

Oh that is annoying!
Generally and going by other brands, once opened the life would be 30 days.

Yes 50g triggers daily weight checks and preparation to step in. But it’s also starting weight to monitor when considering loss - a 1500g piggy can lose more without concern than a 700g piggy can - so also go by the guide of 10% loss of body weight is a cause for concern and start syringe feeding

 

[piggiemummy03x]

Oh that is annoying!
Generally and going by other brands, once opened the life would be 30 days.

Yes 50g triggers daily weight checks and preparation to step in. But it’s also starting weight to monitor when considering loss - a 1500g piggy can lose more without concern than a 700g piggy can - so also go by the guide of 10% loss of body weight is a cause for concern and start syringe feeding

thank you!