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Had to take the girls to the vet

Dimite102245

Dimite102245

New Born Pup
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Last night I noticed one of my girls, Sprinkles, with an abnormal breathing. I thought she might just be tired so I dismissed it. Earlier today she was exhibiting more symptoms of an Upper Respiratory Infection, so I took her to the vet, and they said she has ringworm and they suspect she has a URI and I should bring my other girl, Cupcake, to them because they are contagious. They’ll have to be there for a few weeks for treatment. :no: :bye:
 
Can they not give you the meds to administer at home? That should be doable, I would speak to them about it.

Depending on their bedding, you will have to hot wash any fleece you use. Any hides made of wood will need to be soaked in a pet grade disinfectant. Any cardboard needs to be thrown away. And the cage itself needs cleaning with the disinfectant as well. We recommend F10 which is available on Amazon. You can get it concentrated (goes a loooong way) or one that’s already diluted.

You’ll have to be extra vigilant when it comes to hygiene due to the fact you can catch it off them. Have a read of the guide below.

I can’t remember where you got them from. If a pet shop you’re within your rights to go and ask that they pay for the vet costs. I believe you got them less than two weeks ago?
New guinea pigs: Sexing, vet checks&customer rights, URI, ringworm and parasites
 
Siikibam said:
Can they not give you the meds to administer at home? That should be doable, I would speak to them about it.

Depending on their bedding, you will have to hot wash any fleece you use. Any hides made of wood will need to be soaked in a pet grade disinfectant. Any cardboard needs to be thrown away. And the cage itself needs cleaning with the disinfectant as well. We recommend F10 which is available on Amazon. You can get it concentrated (goes a loooong way) or one that’s already diluted.

You’ll have to be extra vigilant when it comes to hygiene due to the fact you can catch it off them. Have a read of the guide below.

I can’t remember where you got them from. If a pet shop you’re within your rights to go and ask that they pay for the vet costs. I believe you got them less than two weeks ago?
New guinea pigs: Sexing, vet checks&customer rights, URI, ringworm and parasites
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I did ask about them giving me the meds, but they said it would be best if they just kept them there. I already replaced the fleece liner in their cage, and threw away the cardboard in their cage. I have some guinea pig cleaner on hand, and am almost done cleaning the cage. I unfortunately had to get them from a pet shop because I figured with my first time getting guinea pigs I might be better off getting them from a commercial shop. I got them one week ago and they said they would pay the vet costs because it is within one month of the purchase.
 
When they first came they didn’t exhibit any symptoms of a disease, it only started showing fairly recently.
By the way, I got to keep Cupcake here because the vet said she didn’t show any symptoms of those diseases.
 
What’s done is done. But its always best to get them from a rescue if at all possible. Even if it means you have a bit of a wait. Did you check they’re both sows?

How long will they stay there for and how are they treating them? Seems odd that they have to stay there but I guess go with what they say.

Make sure you keep receipts etc. They won’t always display signs that early. You were quite lucky that it was so soon. Since caught early hopefully they’ll be on the mend soon.
 
Another pet shop case 😔 sorry for the health issues you’re experiencing. Unfortunately all too common with pet shop piggies. The way they are bred and transported is far from ideal.
A few of my rescues we suspected to be originally pet shop bred, and we had a world of issues!
I agree with @Siikibam , at least they have a caring home now. Fingers crossed for you all. Hope they feel better soon.
 
Siikibam said:
What’s done is done. But its always best to get them from a rescue if at all possible. Even if it means you have a bit of a wait. Did you check they’re both sows?

How long will they stay there for and how are they treating them? Seems odd that they have to stay there but I guess go with what they say.

Make sure you keep receipts etc. They won’t always display signs that early. You were quite lucky that it was so soon. Since caught early hopefully they’ll be on the mend soon.
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I’ve kept all the receipts. Sprinkles will have to stay there for a few weeks.
 
Dimite102245 said:
I’ve kept all the receipts. Sprinkles will have to stay there for a few weeks.
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A few weeks? I’m sorry I know it’s not you. But there is no need to keep her there for that long at all. I would consider asking that they give you the meds and take home to treat. Or even get a second opinion. I just find that very peculiar. Did they say it’s because of the ringworm? So is cupcake going to stay there all that time as well?
 
Ringworm can be treated at home. I would not leave a piggy at the vets for such cases. A day or two is fine, but leaving her there for weeks? No. If she has URI as well, being there for weeks if she's not in the worse condition, I will still be hesitant.
 
Siikibam said:
A few weeks? I’m sorry I know it’s not you. But there is no need to keep her there for that long at all. I would consider asking that they give you the meds and take home to treat. Or even get a second opinion. I just find that very peculiar. Did they say it’s because of the ringworm? So is cupcake going to stay there all that time as well?
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They said she would have to stay there until the ringworm goes away, which will be a few weeks. Cupcake doesn’t have to stay as she is not showing any symptoms. Even if Sprinkles was staying with me, I can’t effectively separate them, and Cupcake would probably catch ringworm.
 
Siikibam said:
A few weeks? I’m sorry I know it’s not you. But there is no need to keep her there for that long at all. I would consider asking that they give you the meds and take home to treat. Or even get a second opinion. I just find that very peculiar. Did they say it’s because of the ringworm? So is cupcake going to stay there all that time as well?
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anyar.dris said:
Ringworm can be treated at home. I would not leave a piggy at the vets for such cases. A day or two is fine, but leaving her there for weeks? No. If she has URI as well, being there for weeks if she's not in the worse condition, I will still be hesitant.
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However, I will try asking them. They haven’t given me an official diagnosis yet, so anything I do now would be premature. I’ll update when they get in contact with me.
 
They shouldn’t be separated now, there’s no point. Cupcake has already been exposed to the spores. I would insist they keep her in for companionship. Medics separation can also cause issues with bonds.

I would call them tomorrow and ask what she’s being treated for. Like @anyar.dris says I wouldn’t leave a piggy there for ringworm nor URI. Not for weeks anyway. It’s up to you but they seem to be milking you for all you’re worth. Is the vet affiliated with the pet shop you got them from?
 
Siikibam said:
They shouldn’t be separated now, there’s no point. Cupcake has already been exposed to the spores. I would insist they keep her in for companionship. Medics separation can also cause issues with bonds.

I would call them tomorrow and ask what she’s being treated for. Like @anyar.dris says I wouldn’t leave a piggy there for ringworm nor URI. Not for weeks anyway. It’s up to you but they seem to be milking you for all you’re worth. Is the vet affiliated with the pet shop you got them from?
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Yes, it is affiliated. It’s their in-house vet.
 
Hmmm. I would take them to a vet of your choosing rather than let them keep her in. There’s no need. Have a look on the vet locator below and see which ones you can get the girls to as soon as possible next week. Try and get them back tomorrow.

Guinea Lynx :: GL's Vet List
 
I agree with the advice you’ve been given by the others. Having them separated and one staying away for weeks is not to a good idea at all. Being separated and alone causes stress which lowers the immune system. They should both be at home and receiving their treatment at home with you. Both URi and ringworm can be treated by yourself. You also would not need to keep them separate at home as both have already been exposed to the ringworm spores and the URI bacteria anyway. I also would be using an independent vet, not one as part of a pet shop that has given this advice - separating piggies is not a good idea.
When you put them both back together, you’ve got to do it on neutral territory for them to reestablish their bond. I think your piggies are young, so hopefully they will be ok and desperate to be back together, but sadly separating for medical grounds can break bonds and piggies then refuse to live together again. I would get your piggy back home from the vet, go to another vet straight away and get your piggies back together.

it’s done now, but because they are your first piggies makes it even more important to get them from a rescue centre because you can avoid bond issues, medical issues etc with rescue piggies when you are inexperienced.
 
I agree, them staying at the vets for something like that is just not needed. As they are legally your animals you can demand to have them back and still have them reimburse you for vet costs. Did you actually take them to the vet or to the pet shop you got them from? I'd be suspicious that the pet shop are going to try and treat themselves and not have them see their vet at all if they've said they have to stay with them for a few weeks.
 
Siikibam said:
Did you get your girls back? How did treatment go?
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I got Sprinkles back after she spent a week at the vet. She was definitely healthy when we got her. But 3 days later, she unexpectedly passed away overnight. 😫😢. Cupcake seemed really sad not having a cage mate, so we got a new guinea pig, and we named her Muffin!

P.S.
Sorry for not updating, I was just really shaken and taken by surprise from Sprinkles’s death.
 
Dimite102245 said:
I got Sprinkles back after she spent a week at the vet. She was definitely healthy when we got her. But 3 days later, she unexpectedly passed away overnight. 😫😢. Cupcake seemed really sad not having a cage mate, so we got a new guinea pig, and we named her Muffin!
P.S.
Sorry for not updating, I was just really shaken and taken by surprise from Sprinkles’s death.
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Just came across this thread. I'm so sorry for your loss💔x
 
I’m sorry for your loss. Was Sprinkles the one with ringworm? I would speak to the vets about what treatment she received in the time she was there.

You’re welcome to post in the rainbow section bridge. And we’d love to meet the new girl. I’m sorry for your loss once again.

ps I know it’s all fresh but I would find another vet and have both girls given the once over. Did you get the new girl from the same place?
 
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