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Grunting/grinding noise from Blodwen?

PigglePuggle

PigglePuggle

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Blodwen is making a funny grunting/grinding noise, not constantly but when she tries to do her usual piggy noises it comes out as a grunty and grindy sound... I noticed she has been snoring too... she seems fine in herself and is eating and running around and we have the vet tomorrow evening but I wondered if this might be her dental problems recurring, or is it more likely to be respiratory?
When she arrived last November she needed a fair bit of dental surgery (6 back teeth filing and her jaw was misaligned) and she's been fine since but can dental problems present as a grunting grinding sound? The grunting sounds like a breathing thing but the grinding sounds like teeth... hopefully its not both!
 
PigglePuggle said:
Blodwen is making a funny grunting/grinding noise, not constantly but when she tries to do her usual piggy noises it comes out as a grunty and grindy sound... I noticed she has been snoring too... she seems fine in herself and is eating and running around and we have the vet tomorrow evening but I wondered if this might be her dental problems recurring, or is it more likely to be respiratory?
When she arrived last November she needed a fair bit of dental surgery (6 back teeth filing and her jaw was misaligned) and she's been fine since but can dental problems present as a grunting grinding sound? The grunting sounds like a breathing thing but the grinding sounds like teeth... hopefully its not both!
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Without hearing the sound and even then it wouldn't be easy for us to give you a reliable answer, as we can guess as much as you do based on what you are telling us. often it helps to locate the sound better by holding your ear on your guinea pig and check various areas to help find where the noise is coming from, but infrequent sounds, that is usually a futile exercise as piggies are very good at clamming up when feeling in the slightest stressed or out of their comfort zone.

You have already done what I would have recommended - have her vet checked but don't expect miracles if it is just something mild for the reasons mentioned above. Many a time I've been to the vets with suspected respiratory issues only with my piggy being symptom-free in clinic but starting again as soon as we arrived back home... :mal:
 
Wiebke said:
Without hearing the sound and even then it wouldn't be easy for us to give you a reliable answer, as we can guess as much as you do based on what you are telling us. often it helps to locate the sound better by holding your ear on your guinea pig and check various areas to help find where the noise is coming from, but infrequent sounds, that is usually a futile exercise as piggies are very good at clamming up when feeling in the slightest stressed or out of their comfort zone.

You have already done what I would have recommended - have her vet checked but don't expect miracles if it is just something mild for the reasons mentioned above. Many a time I've been to the vets with suspected respiratory issues only with my piggy being symptom-free in clinic but starting again as soon as we arrived back home... :mal:
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Yes Blodwen is the piggy that still freezes and "plays dead" if the hoomans do anything she doesnt like, she makes the grunty grindy sound while eating and talking to her friends but not when we pick her up unless we have plenty of coriander and her face is hidden in a hidey tube! I'll take her best friend Clover to the vet with her as they always have plenty to say to each other, maybe the vet can hear her before we open the carrier lid and she freezes and holds her breath :)
 
Hope Blodwen is ok, it’s probably worth getting her teeth checked out, although, I would have thought if it was her teeth you would have had problems before now x
 
Good luck at the vets with Blodwyn.
Fingers crossed she doesn't freeze up and look like she is perfectly fine the minute to vet looks at her!
 
Piggy daddy has taken her to the vet as he's paying for once, waiting for them to get home! She did her "playing dead" thing the minute we popped her in the carrier but once we popped her pal "big pig" Clover in she had lots to grunt about as Clover's bottom takes up quite a lot of space in a small pet carrier. The vet is only just over a mile away though... I'm chopping cucumber compensation snacks for when they get back!
 
Here's Blod back from the vet! So she has a URI but it seems mainly her throat, her chest is clear and her teeth are perfect. I think the vet was a bit shocked when he weighed her, 1150g and after her dental surgery last November she was only 790g! She has baytril for 10 days, rather a lot I think at 0.6mls per day, but she saw our regular piggy whispering vet Alessadro who mended Tallulah's abscess surgery wound so I trust his judgement :)
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PigglePuggle said:
Here's Blod back from the vet! So she has a URI but it seems mainly her throat, her chest is clear and her teeth are perfect. I think the vet was a bit shocked when he weighed her, 1150g and after her dental surgery last November she was only 790g! She has baytril for 10 days, rather a lot I think at 0.6mls per day, but she saw our regular piggy whispering vet Alessadro who mended Tallulah's abscess surgery wound so I trust his judgement :)
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Hope blodwen recovers soon however I've been told baytril is not a great antibiotic for uris x
 
Gem789 said:
Hope blodwen recovers soon however I've been told baytril is not a great antibiotic for uris x
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We'll see how she does, she'll be going back to the vet after the baytril or if she gets any worse. I'm just relieved its not her teeth again and she won't need more dental surgery, that was my main concern, but her teeth are still lovely 6 months post surgery.
She's still eating and running around like normal and she doesnt have a runny nose or runny eyes or any trouble breathing, just the funny grunting noise and a bit of snoring, the vet seemed happy it was just a sore throat type infection nothing too serious.
 
PigglePuggle said:
We'll see how she does, she'll be going back to the vet after the baytril or if she gets any worse. I'm just relieved its not her teeth again and she won't need more dental surgery, that was my main concern, but her teeth are still lovely 6 months post surgery.
She's still eating and running around like normal and she doesnt have a runny nose or runny eyes or any trouble breathing, just the funny grunting noise and a bit of snoring, the vet seemed happy it was just a sore throat type infection nothing too serious.
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I hope she gets better soon, it sounds like you've caught it early so hopefully the antibiotics do the trick x
 
SkyPipDotBernie said:
Get well soon Blodwen! Do you think any hay could have got stuck down her nasal passage?
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I did wonder if she had something stuck up her nose or in her throat the way she had her face stuck into the woven grass football toy stuffed with quite dusty but delicious dried dandelion and hay bits last weekend... so we asked the vet to check and he couldnt see anything stuck anywhere, just a bit of throat inflammation, so we'll go with that for now and see how we get on! She does really seem fine except for the grunting noise, though the vet did perhaps cast a few unflattering aspersions on her increased heft... I dont think she's fat though, she's just made up for being small and thin when her teeth were bad and she lived with that awful breeder without enough hay! Her diet is mostly hay, but she's cute and friendly enough to swipe a few extra veggies out of the other piggies dinners without them minding :)
 
She’s so gorgeous :love: what a great weight after all her teeth troubles bless her. Hope she feels better and stops grunting soon with the meds! x
 
If her chest is clear then perhaps a bit of steam will help? I have a small Omron nebuliser that I nebulise grunty pigs with using a bit of F10 antiseptic in water. Worth considering.
 
VickiA said:
If her chest is clear then perhaps a bit of steam will help? I have a small Omron nebuliser that I nebulise grunty pigs with using a bit of F10 antiseptic in water. Worth considering.
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That's a good idea, I only have a nebuliser that my old mum uses and she has COPD and permanent antibiotic resistent pneumonia so I will keep that well away from Blod- but maybe she can sit in a pet carrier in the bathroom while I have a shower with tea tree/eucalyptus shower gel!
 
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