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help with my baby pig please?

  • Thread starter Thread starter *Lucy*
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*Lucy*

hi i don't really know where else to go?

i brought a guinea pig a few weeks ago well about 9 now and she had babys 2 of the babies were perfectly fine and healthy then the last one to be born had no eyes at all :( i took her to the vets to be checked over at 3 hours old and the vet told me they thought that she would die within a few hours .. 8 weeks today that was and shes still going strong she has a tilt to the side but other than that shes perfect little thing she eats and drinks for England and is so friendly. the thing is I'm worried that she's not happy i hoped that having no eyes when she was born may make her more sensitive in other areas she doesnt bump into things or anything but my mum thinks its cruel and she has no quality of life which I'm not sure i agree with she seems really happy i just wondered if anyone else has had a baby pig with special needs and has advice for me to give her the best quality of life i can? i'll upload a picture of her ....

thanks for your help
 
Is your baby pig in with another pig for company?
do you keep your piggie indoors so that there is plenty of human interaction?

I think your little piggie can have a good quality of life with a bit of help.
 
HI and Welcome :)
I've never heard of this before....... if your little one is drinking, eating and not being bullied will it be ok if she stays with her mummy? cause it sounds like she must be taking very good care of her :)
I wish you all the best for you, the mummy and especially the little mini, i'm sure some of our more experienced people will be able to advise or help you :)
Meant to add she looks just like my girls when they were born, black and super cute xxxxx

Glynis, Velvet and Onyx x
 
CrawleyGuineaPigRescue said:
Is your baby pig in with another pig for company?
do you keep your piggie indoors so that there is plenty of human interaction?

I think your little piggie can have a good quality of life with a bit of help.
Click to expand...

indeed she's in with her mum .. her mum looks after her they get along so well and they live in my bedroom so i can keep an eye on her like i said shes such a little angel i love her so much i was devastated when i thought she would die i'm juts so worried i may not be helping her :o(
 
Hi Lucy,
I haven't got a special needs pig but have heard lots of people who have and if she is eating running around all her bodily functions are working etc I don't see why she can't be happy plenty of humans and other animals are blind and get on fine. You seem more than happy to take care of her and as long as you are happy to keep it up and accept that her special needs may cause a few more problems later on (may not) then she should be a happy pig. :)
 
she is beautiful and you sound like you are doing a fantastic job. she is certainly a little fighter. and lovely she gets on so well with her mummy. i think she will do fine with her mummy to look after her, and you aswell, and a familiar environment. she sounds really happy. :)
 
I will just add, to make sure you keep her cage layout the same each time you clean them out, she will learn this over time and know where things are. Dont worry if she doesnt run, I have a blind pig who just walks everywhere, I would weigh her now and do weekly weigh ins, just to keep an eye on her but from the photos she has a fantastic glossy coat.

Keep up the good work.
 
She's not likely to be unhappy. Vision is the most important sense to humans. I don't think this is true of guinea pigs: probably the most important would be scent, then hearing, then vision.

According to http://www.guinealynx.info/eyes.html, missing eyes may be associated with tooth and digestive problems.
 
By the sounds of things you are doing great with her and she does sound like she has a quality of life.

I agree about keeping the cage the same for her every time you clean it out. I'm pleased you have taken such good care of her and that she's living well. Poor baby, she's beautiful, give her a kiss from me.
 
Guinea pigs without eye can live a happy life.
 
She has a stunning glossy coat! I wish my piggies were that shiny! i am sure she is very content with you, and try and just enjoy her like a "normal" piggy!
 
Hi

What a beauiful piggie. If it helps, our dog is blind, she gets around very well still has mad moments and goes camping twice a year. Our vet tells us she gets around by smell. She is 18 though :)
 
she is gorgeous x) i just love black piggies super cute

she sounds like she's doing great eating drinking & mum & you taking care of her

i think they go more on scent as i switch all the lights off when i go to bed & they always find their food in the dark (unless they see better in the dark not sure)

i agree keep food & bottles where they are at clean out time & she'll be fine

give her a cuddle from me x>>
 
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No advice to offer but just to sat that she looks to be in very good health.

She is obvioulsy loved dearly and I hope she continutes to do ell and live a long and happy life with you xx
 
We took in a litter of 4 pigs with mum aged 4 days old. 2 of the litter had microthalmia, there is probably an eye there but is will be tiny and useless, one of the litter was rehomed with mum and the other normal sister, sadly the wee blind boy died at about 4 months old, he stopped growing and although we tried very hard to syringe feed him, tempt him with tasty 'mush' he finally passed away. I don't want to worry you, but make you aware this may be a possibility, the vet thought he may have a 'shunt' where the blood supply to the liver is abnormal- it is seen in puppies fairly regularly.
I think it was due to inbreeding and possibly the roan gene was involved.
THe blind sister, who was rehomed with mum is doing well, as far as I know and always first to the feed box, so hopefully your one will be fine.

S5030310.jpg

Blackberry, the wee boy who didn't make it.
 
Sounds like the wee one is doing fine and you are doing a sterling job with them all.
 
Sight is said to be the poorest sense guinea pigs have, so a guinea pig without sight can have a near-normal quality of life. I've not had a blind guinea myself (although I do have a deaf sow) but I have heard of how blind guineas cope, and it's very much about keeping things the same - don't rearrange things in the cage, and leave her with her mum so she has that company and 'guidance'.

As long as she's eating and happy to potter about in the cage, there's no reason to consider doing anything with her.

She's a very pretty girl.
 
I had a boar who was blind from birth, he was 5 years old when he died.
Some pigs with congenital defects may have a shortened life span, but still have a very good quality of life.
 
Hi Lucy.

Sounds like she is a lucky little girl to have 2 mums that care and love her so well :)
I used to have a boar called Mac who was blind and he was lovely, lived til he was 6 and never had any problems with him.

He lived with his friend Loui and used to follow him around all the time like a little chou-chou train! :))

I just made sure i kept the play pen and their cage the same all the time so it wouldn't confuse him. ;)
 
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