guinea pig catch 22? gut stasis and overgrown molars

[violentintrospection]

hello! my guinea pig (around 5yrs old, M) was diagnosed with gut stasis and overgrown molars.

vet said it’s best to fix his gut problem first before trimming his teeth because putting him under anesthesia w/ a failing gut might cause him not to wake up at all.

but i recently watched saskia’s video:

she says gut stasis is usually a symptom of a bigger problem, not the actual problem.

MY QUESTION: what if his overgrown molars are what’s causing the gut stasis? he can’t eat bc of his teeth. at the same time, we can’t trim his teeth without undergoing anesthesia bc that might kill him. but THEN, if his teeth wont get fixed, he won’t be able to eat on his own.

feels like a catch 22!

anyone have experiences like this? for reference my piggie is on:
- simethicone
- metoclopromide
- meloxicam
- benebac + digest plus probiotics
- oxbow critical care force feed 10ml every 2hrs

he’s eating very tiny bits of veggies and drinking water on his own but does not eat hay. his poops are wet squishy and smelly. we’re both from the philippines

thank you!

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.

Stasis is the gut slowing down fully or partially. This is a very serious issue which has to be corrected before he is strong enough to undergo dental work.
You are right, with won’t be able to eat without his teeth being done but with lots of syringe feeding, you will get and keep his gut working, and make him strong enough to undergo anaesthetic.

You need to weigh him every morning so you can ensure he is getting enough syringe feed to keep his weight stable each day.
Your vet will need to decide when he is able to undergo the dental surgery.

I hope he is ok

Wiebke's Guide to Tummy Trouble
Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)

Weight Monitoring and Management
Weight and Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support

All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

 

[AliceS]

Hi - can I ask how you got on? my piggie is also on syrigne feeding to prevent gut statis, and pain/motility meds, and the vet said today his teeth are getting a bit long. Was there anything that could be done about your one's teeth?

 

[Piggies&buns]

Hi - can I ask how you got on? my piggie is also on syrigne feeding to prevent gut statis, and pain/motility meds, and the vet said today his teeth are getting a bit long. Was there anything that could be done about your one's teeth?

Teeth which are over growing would need to be filed down but the cause is over growing should also be checked - your boys teeth would not have overgrown just in the time you have been syringing him so if he has over growing teeth then there is probably something else going on predating when he showed signs the other day (ie some source of pain inside the mouth like spurs or an abscess for example causing him pain and could mean he hasn’t been eating properly for a while).

 

[violentintrospection]

hello!

ill put it in bullets so its easier to read!
- my guinea pig (around 5yrs old, M) was diagnosed with gut stasis and overgrown molars a full month ago
- had his his overgrown incisors + molars trimmed on April 8 2025 (under gas anesthesia)
- he has no signs of abscess or infection
- eating some veggies but not hay
- poops are ok, sometimes healthy sometimes clumped
- xrays show that gas bubbles in his stomach have significantly reduced

any tips to encourage him to eat hay? he shows no interest in it AT ALL and its driving me crazy, but he loves critical care. my vet says to wean him off CC and not syringe feed him in the morning. he says its possible that he’s becoming dependent on it and waits for me to feed him rather than eat food himself. but i always feel like I'm starving him by waiting it out

i encouraged him to eat veggies by poking it around his mouth and cutting them into strips. slowly he ate them again. i tried to do that with hay, but he just stares at it. i also tried to put CC in a bowl and smear some on hay but he really just sniffs and licks at it but ultimately leaves it alone after a few hours.

anyone have experience with this? for reference my piggie is on
- simethicone 2x a day
- digest plus probiotics
- syringe fed 60-70ml critical care every day (but vet says to lessen it, so its down to 40-50ml)
- he weighs around 570g

thank you so much!

 

[violentintrospection]

Hi - can I ask how you got on? my piggie is also on syrigne feeding to prevent gut statis, and pain/motility meds, and the vet said today his teeth are getting a bit long. Was there anything that could be done about your one's teeth?

hi! sorry i saw this late hows your piggie?

we ultimately needed to trim his incisors and molars! if it’s just incisors, there’s no need to be sedated but for molars yes. the vet said gas anesthesia is the safest especially for piggies with gut problems. we had to make sure though that he wasnt in gut stasis anymore and was pooping and being fed regularly, even if his poops were not the best

the procedure just took 30mins to 1h or so but i really felt like i was going to go insane in the waiting room. my piggie was fine after and there wasnt any signs of infection! he prescribed enrofoloxacin and meloxicam, along w simethicone and syringe feeding of critical care.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Your vet has given you the wrong advice about cutting down the syringe feed and that piggy is waiting for you to feed him
A piggy who can eat, will eat. If he is still not able to eat hay and is only slowing nibbling on veggies, then that can suggest there is still something wrong in his mouth. Either the issue wasn’t properly corrected or the teeth were filed too short for example. Also, if he doesn’t eat hay then his teeth are going to continue to grow and then overgrow again.
You cannot and must not cut down syringe feed until he is eating enough hay by himself and eating enough to maintain his weight.
If you stop feeding him and he isn’t eating then you are risking him going back into stasis.

Your piggy weighs such a tiny amount, that he cannot afford to lose any so you must not feed less and must not stop syringe feeding.

Are you weighing him every morning? It’s important you do so so that you can be sure you are feeding him enough so he doesn’t lose weight

(I have merged your original thread with your new thread. We do ask that members have one thread per topic and continue to keep everything on this one thread so all background is together. You can find your thread again by clicking on the three lines on the top left and pressing ‘your threads’).

 

[violentintrospection]

Thank you for everyones advice! My piggie is back to the usual 60ml and over daily amount for critical care.

Just want to ask how long usually does the molars begin to be overgrown again? He had his molars trimmed on April 8 and his incisors just this Tuesday (May 6). The vet said his molars are a little grown but not anything too serious yet. She says since I had that trimmed a month ago that they’re still alright.

My piggie is still not eating hay. I accidentally got his top incisors knocked out bc I looked away while he was on the table (and I feel so extremely guilty about this all the time ) I think he’s a little in pain so he’s on pain meds too. But he paws at his mouth sometimes. Is that the incisor or the molars that’s bothering him?

Basically: How long does molars start to overgrow if they don’t eat hay?

Thank you!

 

[violentintrospection]

Bumping this up!

 

[Piggies&buns]

I think teeth grow something like a little over 1mm a week.
I know that some piggies can need dental work done every 4-6 weeks, sometimes less, so I’d your piggy hadn’t eaten any hay in a month then you might be looking at them needing to be done again soon.
You would need to have the discussion with your vet

 

[violentintrospection]

hello everyone. i feel very burnt out and frustrated bc i’ve been syringe feeding my guinea pig around 60ml everyday for five months + regular check up visits + constant meds and he’s still not eating hay on his own.

u can read my old threads for more info but here’s a quick rundown:
- he’s had gut and dental problems since mar 23
- he’s currently on simethicone + metoclopramide + digestplus + benebac
- he’s had multiple dental works to trim his incisors and molars
- currently, his poops are more or less alright (a lot better than his old clumped ones)
- 5-6yrs old male

he weighs 470g. he’s so thin, it’s driving me insane. the vet says that there’s really nothing wrong in his xrays, he just needs to be fed more after all that work and gut issues. but i have been consistently feeding him 60ml everyday for months. his weight fluctuates from 480g to 530g. recently, though, i switched his food from oxbow CC (there’s no stock left in the philippines as of now) to joy & fiber green support. the latter one is a lot finer and powdery than the oxbow one, which made me suspect it wasn’t as “filling” as oxbow cc?

i fed him a full 65ml meal this day and his weight is still at 470g. is this because of his age and gaining weight is really slow? there’s no stock left on oxbow but i’ll try burgess excel, which looks more clumpy than powdery at least.

i’m terrified of losing him. my savings are depleted and i don’t know what to do, how to make him eat. does anyone have any techniques to make a guinea pig eat hay on their own? again, i’ve gone on multiple check ups and gone to different vets and aside from recovering gut problems, he’s fine. what else do i have to do?

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m so sorry to hear this.

His weight is critically low.
He is at an age where he is highly unlikely to gain weight and certainly not get back to a more ‘normal’ weight.
It’s much harder for older piggies to gain weight like that.

You should weigh him only once every morning before the first feed of the day. You cannot weigh him at the end of the day as all you are doing is weighing a full tummy which doesn’t give you accurate information

I’ve never heard of the joy and fiber feed so I cannot comment on it at all.

I would have thought that if he was going to be able to eat by himself again that he would have done so by now. Without eating hay for himself then he is going to need dental work every few weeks as his teeth will continue to overgrow and it’s whether that is sustainable and fair on him, or even safe with his low weight.

Do you feel he still has a quality of life given he cannot eat anything independently and is at such a low weight?

I have merged your new thread with the original one so that everything is together