Guinea Pig Drinking A Lot Of Water

[Rachael Taylor]

For the past week I've noticed my 10 month old guinea pig Annie drinking a lot of water. I filled up her water bottle at around 8:00am this morning and when I got home, around 3:45pm, she had drank around half of her water. The bottle is 177ml and it's now down to 90ml. She seems to constantly be at the water bottle. She's quite small compare to my other guinea pigs, weighing 836g. There is no chance of her being pregnant as the male she lives with is fixed. Would this be something to do with her kidneys?

 

[Beans&Toast]

Are you definitely sure the bottle isn't leaking? or maybe she's not getting enough out that's why she's constantly at it? Could she be too hot?

If not, drinking large amounts of water could be kidney related or it could be a dental issue.

Toast has had dental issues on and off for months now and had them trimmed down 3 times. Every time she's in the early stages of it she will be at the water bottle constantly, thats how I know now if her teeth are starting to overgrow before any other signs appear. It's almost like a soothing action when her teeth are bothering her.

Does she manage to eat her hay/veg/nuggets okay? Any funny chewing or chewing to the side?

 

[Wiebke]

For the past week I've noticed my 10 month old guinea pig Annie drinking a lot of water. I filled up her water bottle at around 8:00am this morning and when I got home, around 3:45pm, she had drank around half of her water. The bottle is 177ml and it's now down to 90ml. She seems to constantly be at the water bottle. She's quite small compare to my other guinea pigs, weighing 836g. There is no chance of her being pregnant as the male she lives with is fixed. Would this be something to do with her kidneys?

Hi!
- please check first and foremost that the bottle is not leaking or that the nozzle is partially blocked
- have any environmental factors changed lately, like indoors heating/dry air; air conditioning, heat waves etc. They can all trigger increased short term drinking.
- the amount the water in a group bottle is going down is not worrying in itself; but if you are very worried about the change, have your girl checked out for a urinary tract infection, kidney issues or mild diabetes that can be controlled via diet.

 

[Rachael Taylor]

Are you definitely sure the bottle isn't leaking? or maybe she's not getting enough out that's why she's constantly at it? Could she be too hot?

If not, drinking large amounts of water could be kidney related or it could be a dental issue.

Toast has had dental issues on and off for months now and had them trimmed down 3 times. Every time she's in the early stages of it she will be at the water bottle constantly, thats how I know now if her teeth are starting to overgrow before any other signs appear. It's almost like a soothing action when her teeth are bothering her.

Does she manage to eat her hay/veg/nuggets okay? Any funny chewing or chewing to the side?

We had two really hot days on the weekend, but since then it's been quite cold. I keep them indoors during bad weather so she shouldn't be feeling too hot or cold. The water bottle doesn't appear to be leaking. My other guinea pigs don't drink very much at all and the water used to barely go down, but now Annie is just constantly at the water bottle. She's eating her veggies and hay fine and is still as energetic as usual. I took her to the vet around a month ago to treat mange and the vet said that her teeth were perfect, so I don't think it's a dental problem.

 

[Wiebke]

We had two really hot days on the weekend, but since then it's been quite cold. I keep them indoors during bad weather so she shouldn't be feeling too hot or cold. The water bottle doesn't appear to be leaking. My other guinea pigs don't drink very much at all and the water used to barely go down, but now Annie is just constantly at the water bottle. She's eating her veggies and hay fine and is still as energetic as usual. I took her to the vet around a month ago to treat mange and the vet said that her teeth were perfect, so I don't think it's a dental problem.

It is important to check the obvious things first... Changes in water intake can have lots of reasons, but if it is sudden, marked and prolonged, then a vet trip is indicated.