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Guinea Pig Not Drinking

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Liz47

Liz47

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi,

As some of you may be aware Arnie was neutered on wednesday. He was given Baytril which we were told to give for 5 days just in case as he was swollen. He has been doing fine, eating, pooing/weeing and acting like normal, however since wednesday he has drank very little, if anything on most days. I have been giving him water through a syringe along side his Baytril and Metacam and he drank some from his bottle yesterday so I thought he had started again however today he hasn't drank anything again. He isn't very willing to swallow the water from a syringe either and I have put a little bowl in his cage too but he's not drinking from that or his bottle. Any ideas as to why? His wee has also got a lot darker in colour as of yesterday, is this an indicator of something else or could it be because he's not drinking? I have also been giving him a pre-biotic made by Beapher, can't quite remember the name, as read this is advised when giving Baytril and noticed his poo's have been very small since yesterday.

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I know piggies pee can sometimes have an orange/rusty tinge to it but that doesn't look right to me... maybe someone a bit more experienced can help. Really not sure if that's blood or not. I think maybe dropping off a urine sample to the vets to have it tested..
 
Thank you. It is more rusty brown in colour when fresh before it's soaked in, but don't know what colour it would normally be on puppy pads. Should've switched his cage from fitch to puppy pads before his neuter to see if there was any change really but didn't think!
 
Yea I would ask vet as it looks as if it's blood to bed urine. As far as not drinking try to increase watery veggies like lettuce and cucumber
 
I think you need to get him seen by the vet as that looks like blood in his were to my untrained eye. Keep on giving him water in syringe as you have done and encourage him to eat watery veg as @Cookies&Glitter has said or veg washed and dripping in water to increase his fluid intake.
@helen105281 is there anything more that can be done until he's seen by the vet?
 
Thank you both, I have been soaking his veg in his water but he has been off a lot of veg since his brother died so I still don't think he is getting a lot of water. I have been reading that blood in urine dries in spots or as a clear outline around the urine patch, and not in a uniform shape like all his has been, so hopefully there's a chance it could not be blood? He is on Metacam still anyway from his neuter so this will help in case he is in pain if it is a bladder infection and will take him to the vets if it continues into tomorrow.
 
It could either be very strong wee or there could be blood. I was going to suggest pain relief but as he is on that already there is not much else I can suggest until you see the vet. I would try to give fluids by syringe if you can.
 
helen105281 said:
It could either be very strong wee or there could be blood. I was going to suggest pain relief but as he is on that already there is not much else I can suggest until you see the vet. I would try to give fluids by syringe if you can.
Click to expand...

Thank you. If it is a UTI, which antibiotic is best? As he is already on Baytril. He isn't squeaking when weeing or straining, but still concerned about him. It's been a very worrying few weeks after the awful time with his brothers illness and now the stress of Arnie's neuter so I can adopt a sow.
 
Just a quick update, I think we are over the not drinking episode! I moved his water bottle from the back of the cage to the front as it was hard to change the water when having to reach down the back of his cage (it was placed round the back as one of my free range rabbits used to chew the plastic when it was in his reach but he's since been bonded and moved upstairs). I thought he would know where it was after 'showing' him but today I moved him right in front of it and he drank a fair bit and has been back since. I also took everything out his cage except the puppy pads and waited to see him wee to check for straining etc and it came out a pale yellow-y colour and he didn't seem pained/struggling and then it dried dark orange! The pic was taken about 5 mins after he did it, but now it is as dark as the pic in my first post so hopefully it is just the colour it goes on the pads! He is also eating more pellets/veggies :)

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Most piggies wee is a creamy, off white colour - does look like there's an improvement there.
Just monitor his food intake for a bit longer whilst on Baytril as it can cause loss of appetite.
 
I saw your piggy is on meloxicam. According to my vet, meloxicam occasionally colours urine and it's very noticeable on a puppy pad. Fortunately, she warned me in advance, so I didn't worry. When it's fresh, the pee looks bright yellow, lemon-ish colour, and when it dries on a puppy pad, looks exactly like the pee stain of your pig. But I have to say I am not sure if this is a property of this particular brand of meloxicam I was prescribed (meloxydil by Bayer, labelled for dogs).

Again according to my vet, it's a good idea to give piggies on antibiotics and NSAIDs more water, watery veggies and diuretic veggies, just to help prevent any kidney damage in the long run. I follow the advice by giving ProC probiotic, which my pigs adore, and celery, dandelions, lettuce...
 
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