Help! My Guinea Pig Is Acting Unusual And I Don't Know What To Do.

[Shadow1995]

My guinea pig is about 4 years old and has started acting very unusual. She's usually really spunky and likes to yell at me about everything but as of yesterday she refused to move or make any kind of noise. Her breathing was irregular and even when I did something I knew would irritate her, trying to get something from her she still did nothing. She hasn't eaten much, isn't drinking, and spends what seems like all of her time sleeping when she would usually run around. She's also losing a lot of weight and I'm really concerned. Today I got some noise out of her when I went to take her out of her cage and finally managed to get her to eat some lettuce, but she's still not acting like herself. I know she's old by guinea pig standards, but she has never acted it so I don't know if she's just starting to show her age or if there's something wrong. Please help!

 

[Chief Guinea Pig]

Needs to be seen by a vet ASAP!

 

[Ruby Inferno]

Please take her to a cavy savvy vet as soon as possible. Use the vet locator at the top of the site if you don't know where to find one.

Unwell piggies go downhill very quickly. Until you take her to the vet, do what you can to encourage her to eat: https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/complete-hand-feeding-guide.115359/

Also read here, this is how to contact a vet out of hours: https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/how-to-contact-a-vet-out-of-hours.90842/

Best of luck! xx

 

[helen105281]

Sorry I missed this earlier. She definitely needs to see a vet as soon as possible.

 

[Shadow1995]

I took her in as suggested and it was a good thing I did, she has a respiratory infection. Thank you for the advice, it really helped, and she will hopefully be better soon.

 

[irene]

I took her in as suggested and it was a good thing I did, she has a respiratory infection. Thank you for the advice, it really helped, and she will hopefully be better soon.

so glad she's getting better, my little Cinnamon has a URI also and is on Baytril; but I don't have an exotic vet in my area so she's being treated by a general vet; always an issue around here

 

[irene]

I took her in as suggested and it was a good thing I did, she has a respiratory infection. Thank you for the advice, it really helped, and she will hopefully be better soon.

so glad she's getting better, my little Cinnamon has a URI also and is on Baytril; but I don't have an exotic vet in my area so she's being treated by a general vet; always an issue around here

 

[irene]

I took her in as suggested and it was a good thing I did, she has a respiratory infection. Thank you for the advice, it really helped, and she will hopefully be better soon.

so glad she's getting better, my little Cinnamon has a URI also and is on Baytril; but I don't have an exotic vet in my area so she's being treated by a general vet; always an issue around here

 

[Freela]

I'm glad you saw a vet and got started on treatment! These kinds of symptoms aren't age-related (and four isn't that old for a guinea pig even if they were) and are a lot more likely to be due to an acute illness that can get bad in a hurry if not treated. I hope your piggie is soon back to normal!

 

[Shadow1995]

Shadow (my piggy's name) is starting to show some of her spunkiness again, and although she has not started eating much as of yet she has only been on the antibiotic for 6 hours. I'm hoping her improvement continues at this pace.

 

[MerryPip]

Well done, I'm glad she's getting better now.

Piggies hide illness well so often the only sign is that they lose a bit of weight or look a little tired and lethargic. It would be good to keep a regular check and record of Shadow's weight so you know what's normal and if she is losing again. A little change is ok as it could just mean a full bladder or tummy but larger changes (definitely over 50g) definitely need checked out by a vet.

Just be aware that some antibiotics can knock their appetite a bit too so make sure she is eating enough and if she isn't eating you might need to help her by hand-feeding but try tempting her with her favourite foods to start with. Probiotics can be useful to help keep their guts moving whilst the antibiotics do their work. They are available online for from vets.