Guinea Pig Not Eating/Drinking

[kamoe407]

Hello, over the past 2 days, I realized that my piggy was not eating or drinking and becoming more isolated and reclusive. He did not eat much at all yesterday and my dad and I just gave him some veggies we pureed and mixed with water through a syringe that he took willingly tonight. We're unable to get him to the vet before Christmas and would really appreciate any information or tips anyone has to help us care for him as best as we can. He has not had any habitat or food changes as of recently that would upset him or stress him out at all. I am desperate to keep him healthy and fed.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Please step in and syringe feed fibre rich food - veggies simply isn’t enough and won’t sustain his gut. He needs to be syringe fed either a herbivore recovery feed such as critical care, or in the absence of that, his normal pellets mashed up with water. You will need to weigh him daily for the duration of his illness (you can switch back to weekly weighing once he is over the illness) so you can gauge how much syringe feed he needs to stop his weight loss. In the event of total loss of appetite, you need to syringe feed 90ml into him in a 24 hour period - this could mean a few ml every couple of hours , depending on how much he will take at a time. his daily weight checks are you guide - if he loses weight, then you haven’t syringed enough times the day before.

He really needs to see a vet though. Syringe feeding is an emergency measure, but he needs a diagnosis and likely medication to deal with whatever is going on.

the guides below will help you

Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

 

[kamoe407]

Please step on and syringe feed fibre rich food - veggies simply isn’t enough and won’t sustain his gut. He needs to be syringe fed either a herbivore recovery feed such as critical care, or in the absence of that, his normal pellets mashed up with water. You will need to weigh him daily for the duration of his illness (you can switch back to weekly weighing once he is over the illness) so you can gauge how much syringe feed he needs to stop his weight loss. In the event of total loss of appetite, you need to syringe feed 90ml into him in a 24 hour period - this could mean a few ml every couple of days , depending on how much he will take at a time. his daily weight checks are you guide - if he loses weight, then you haven’t syringed enough times the day before.

He really needs to see a vet though. Syringe feeding is an emergency measure, but he needs a diagnosis and likely medication to deal with whatever is going on.

the guides below will help you

Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre

We don't have access to the critical care powder near us so I will attempt the mashed up pellets. We'll get him to the vet as soon as we can but for now, I'll do my best to make sure he eats and drinks enough. Thank you.

 

[Siikibam]

I would ring the vet and see when they can squeeze him in. As soon as possible (tomorrow) or the weekend or next Monday. Have a read of the guide below. And check the vet locator. I think in this case there’s no harm in ringing around other vets. I think you can get the critical care on Amazon.

Guinea Lynx :: GL's Vet List

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre

 

[Piggies&buns]

As he has total loss of appetite, he needs to see a vet within 24 hours. It depends hugely on what is wrong with him but some illnesses need immediate attention and medication