Gritty Deposits In Wee

[Amy Barton]

When spot cleaning Darcy last night I noticed very small patches of gritty deposits in her wee. This is the first time I’ve noticed and and I clean her every night so I’m
guessing it’s the first time it’s happned. She’s not otherwise acting normally and not showing any pain or discomfort. Is this something that needs an urgent vet check or should I wait a few days and see if it continues. Tomorrow I am going to buy a filter for the water. Is there any other ways I can reduce the amount of calcium she gets? She already gets a small amount of Timothy pellets and unlimited hay as well as her veg. (This isn’t the same as the normal powdery deposits I normally see)

 

[rome_italy]

it is not only an excess of calcium; it might be a wrong balance with other minerals, especially phosphorus. Few days ago my piggies ate a great amount of leaves of young wild chicory I found in the park; chicory is very rich of calcium, but I have not seen any white powder then. I find some white powder when they eat more vegs (salads, celery, peppers, etc). About the water (my piggies don't drink any) here supermarkets sell cheap bottles of water with an extremely low calcium (it is the water also recommended for preparing newborns' formula). There is a label on the bottle, you can check the number of "dry residual" ( the amount of all the minerals dissolved; hard waters have 700-1000mg/l and even more) and also the amount of calcium. For example the water I use for the kettle and the piggies (but they rarely drink some drops) has 2,5mg Calcium/l and 22 mg/l dry residual, which is extremely low, lower than any homemade filtered water. I don't know if in UK these bottles are available... here they are very cheap.
Anyway I don't think the water is the culprit of the gritty wee. I am noticing that also here in Italy gritty wee is found in piggies fed with too many pellets or too many vegs.
About the filters, be aware that there are different kinds of filters: I don't remember which, but there is a filter which releases much salt into the water and that is not good for us and for piggies.

 

[Wiebke]

When spot cleaning Darcy last night I noticed very small patches of gritty deposits in her wee. This is the first time I’ve noticed and and I clean her every night so I’m
guessing it’s the first time it’s happned. She’s not otherwise acting normally and not showing any pain or discomfort. Is this something that needs an urgent vet check or should I wait a few days and see if it continues. Tomorrow I am going to buy a filter for the water. Is there any other ways I can reduce the amount of calcium she gets? She already gets a small amount of Timothy pellets and unlimited hay as well as her veg. (This isn’t the same as the normal powdery deposits I normally see)

Hi! When you rub the calcium deposit, does it crumble or can you feel hard, sharp bits in it? If this is the case, then please see a vet to have the bladder checked for sludge.
If your girl has just a one-off occasional powdery calcium pee, then you need not worry. A spate of them over the matter of a few days can precede the onset of a urinary tract infection or cystitis.

I would strongly recommend to filter the water; it is not just calcium, but also excess minerals in the water that in my own experience contributes to these sludgier deposits that can also contribute to causing stones. I live in an area with high calcium and mineral content in the water.
Tips for a bladder piggy diet can be found in our diet guide: Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diet

 

[Amy Barton]

Thankyou for your help! It is quite gritty but there is not a lot of it. I am buying a filter jug tomorrow. I’ll keep an eye on her and book an appointment with the vet over the next few days (asap if she shows any other signs or there is more of it)

 

[Amy Barton]

it is not only an excess of calcium; it might be a wrong balance with other minerals, especially phosphorus. Few days ago my piggies ate a great amount of leaves of young wild chicory I found in the park; chicory is very rich of calcium, but I have not seen any white powder then. I find some white powder when they eat more vegs (salads, celery, peppers, etc). About the water (my piggies don't drink any) here supermarkets sell cheap bottles of water with an extremely low calcium (it is the water also recommended for preparing newborns' formula). There is a label on the bottle, you can check the number of "dry residual" ( the amount of all the minerals dissolved; hard waters have 700-1000mg/l and even more) and also the amount of calcium. For example the water I use for the kettle and the piggies (but they rarely drink some drops) has 2,5mg Calcium/l and 22 mg/l dry residual, which is extremely low, lower than any homemade filtered water. I don't know if in UK these bottles are available... here they are very cheap.
Anyway I don't think the water is the culprit of the gritty wee. I am noticing that also here in Italy gritty wee is found in piggies fed with too many pellets or too many vegs.
About the filters, be aware that there are different kinds of filters: I don't remember which, but there is a filter which releases much salt into the water and that is not good for us and for piggies.

Thankyou!

 

[Amy Barton]

I’ve just checked on Darcy and the deposits are no longer gritty they feel like the normal powdery ones I see I will attach a picture but as you will be able to see there isn’t really a lot of it.