Fatty eye or something else?

[Simona22]

Hello,

Yesterday evening I have noticed my boar has got something underneath his eye. During the day I was feeding him by hand and there was nothing there so literally few hours later it appeared. Magritte is slightly bigger than an average weight male guinea pig... 100g to be precise... I know that is my fault, and I have been trying to slightly reduce fresh food intake & pellets. I do give a little bit of apple only once in two weeks. Cage is cleaned fully twice a week & spot cleaned daily. They're both allowed to roam freely when I or my partner is home. Does it look like a fatty eye or could it be something different?
Thank you

 

[Piggies&buns]

Only a hands on diagnosis by a vet will be able to tell you if there is anything wrong with his eye.

Do be aware that there really isnt an average weight for a Male piggy - how do you know he is 100g over? Heft (piggy bmi) is by far the best gauge of whether a guinea pig a good size not weight - their weights can vary widely - their weight can be within a wide range and would be considered fine provided their heft is ok for themselves! Put your hand around their chest, if you can feel a nice layer of fat over the ribs but can still feel the ribs then that is a good size for the pig in question. If you can’t feel the ribs at all, then there may be a weight issue but you should not do anything to change the diet without consulting a vet.

A guinea pig requires unlimited hay as the bulk of their diet. On top of that they can have around one cup of veg per day and that can include leafy veg, herbs and bell pepper and cucumber. Carrot and apple should be regarded as a treat and not featured in their regular diet. They can then have just one tablespoon of pellets per day.

 

[Simona22]

Only a hands on diagnosis by a vet will be able to tell you if there is anything wrong with his eye.

Do be aware that there really isnt an average weight for a Male piggy - how do you know he is 100g over? Heft (piggy bmi) is by far the best gauge of whether a guinea pig a good size not weight - their weights can vary widely - their weight can be within a wide range and would be considered fine provided their heft is ok for themselves! Put your hand around their chest, if you can feel a nice layer of fat over the ribs but can still feel the ribs then that is a good size for the pig in question. If you can’t feel the ribs at all, then there may be a weight issue but you should not do anything to change the diet without consulting a vet.

A guinea pig requires unlimited hay as the bulk of their diet. On top of that they can have around one cup of veg per day and that can include leafy veg, herbs and bell pepper and cucumber. Carrot and apple should be regarded as a treat and not featured in their regular diet. They can then have just one tablespoon of pellets per day.

Thank you for your reply. Of course, a visit to the vet is necessary I just wanted to get some opinions just to put my mind at ease and not stress too much whilst waiting for vet appointment.
They do receive unlimited hay in their cage and there's plenty In the box which I keep in the living room whilst they are roaming around

Only one tablespoon of pellets? That is very different to the feeding guidelines. Usually on the bag it says depending on weight to give around 30-40g...

 

[Piggies&buns]

Yes, just one tablespoon of pellets Per pig per day. I really don’t ever go by what the package says
Overfeeding pellets greatly increases the amount of calcium which piggies are consuming and too much calcium can create health problems.
One tablespoon of the pellets I feed my piggies amounts to just 6g.

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for your reply. Of course, a visit to the vet is necessary I just wanted to get some opinions just to put my mind at ease and not stress too much whilst waiting for vet appointment.
They do receive unlimited hay in their cage and there's plenty In the box which I keep in the living room whilst they are roaming around

Only one tablespoon of pellets? That is very different to the feeding guidelines. Usually on the bag it says depending on weight to give around 30-40g...

The bags tell you what they want to tell you!
Fact is that that even the lowest calcium pellets still contain more calcium than the veg highest in it.
Fact is that even timothy hay based pellets still are mostly empty filler and have a much lower percentage to crucial fibre than you would expect.
Fact is that pellets soften in contact with saliva, so they are not contributing to grinding the constantly growing crucial back teeth down, which have evolved against the very abrasive silica in grass and hay and are some of the fastest growing of all rodent teeth.
Because pellets are more calorific than hay (empty fillers...), it means that your piggy is eating disproportionally less hay than they eat pellets. And that can have long term consquences in terms of a higher risk of ending up with dental problems (not an area that features on a vet's curriculum), impacts on the gut microbiome and ultimately contributes to a short life span. The difference can make 1-2 years in a normal healthy life span and the difference between your piggy being more likely to reach the bottom or the top of the average life span of about 5-7 years.

A guinea pig should eat in a day: 80% in hay (mainstay of the diet), ca 15% in mainly green veg and herbs and 5% (ca. 1 tablespoon or less) in pellets. The closer you feed your piggies to the diet they have evolved on and the less on any processed foods, the better.
Have a read of our very comprehensive, practical and detailed diet; you should find it interesting!
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets


As to the eye: what you are seeing is either a bit of the conunctive or one of the glands that surround the eye. Please have your piggy vet checked for a conjunctivitis or for an infection with chlamydia.