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Is It Because He's Fat?

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Mums piggies

Mums piggies

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I have a rescue boar who is roughly 18 months to two years old. He lived inside for the first year we had him and was very active, until about 10 months when I noticed he didn't react to me touching his face and would have let me poke him in the eye without flinching! Both eyes were the same and I thought he had somehow gone blind! It didn't stop him getting around but after a while I noticed he was dragging his back legs behind him! I wondered if he'd become overweight as his sight prevented him from running around? I got him a two storey outdoor house and he seemed to perk up a bit and was using his back legs more, but still dragged them behind on and off. Now he seems to drag them more and I have to help him up the ramp, otherwise he just sits in one place, which means I have to wash him regularly as he sits in his own mess! Any thoughts? He has a good appetite!
 
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He needs seen by a vet, there's obviously something wrong that is affecting more than one part of him. dragging legs is not normal even for an overweight piggy and it shouldn't affect his senses either.

Have a look at our vet locator at the top of the page to find the nearest piggy savy vet to you, not all vets are as good with guinea pigs as they are technically classed as exotics so it's worth finding one that knows what they are doing.

If he can't see well and can't move around well then he will definitely avoid using the ramp as it'd be pretty scary for him. Any change in behaviour like those should mean a vet visit so please get your little guy looked at as soon as possible.

@helen105281 any other advice for this person?

@sport_billy could this be moved to the health and illness section so others can find it to advise...
 
EDIT : Just echoing the above post basically. I'd advise seeing a vet sooner than later!
 
It is clear that he is in discomfort from not being able to move around freely hence sitting in his own filth. The last pig I had that sat in her own filth had arthritis but also picked up UTI's from sitting in her urine so it is important that your piggy see's a vet to diagnose the underlying condition and to prevent any secondary conditions developing.
 
He needs a vet diagnosis, it could be something like a vitamin c deficiency or calcium crash but he needs a proper check by a vet to rule out anything else.
 
MerryPip said:
He needs seen by a vet, there's obviously something wrong that is affecting more than one part of him. dragging legs is not normal even for an overweight piggy and it shouldn't affect his senses either.

Have a look at our vet locator at the top of the page to find the nearest piggy savy vet to you, not all vets are as good with guinea pigs as they are technically classed as exotics so it's worth finding one that knows what they are doing.

If he can't see well and can't move around well then he will definitely avoid using the ramp as it'd be pretty scary for him. Any change in behaviour like those should mean a vet visit so please get your little guy looked at as soon as possible.

@helen105281 any other advice for this person?

@sport_billy could this be moved to the health and illness section so others can find it to advise...
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Thank you for all the advice, you've pretty much confirmed what I feared, off to the vets for George. Fingers crossed!
Mums piggies said:
I have a rescue boar who is roughly 18 months to two years old. He lived inside for the first year we had him and was very active, until about 10 months when I noticed he didn't react to me touching his face and would have let me poke him in the eye without flinching! Both eyes were the same and I thought he had somehow gone blind! It didn't stop him getting around but after a while I noticed he was dragging his back legs behind him! I wondered if he'd become overweight as his sight prevented him from running around? I got him a two storey outdoor house and he seemed to perk up a bit and was using his back legs more, but still dragged them behind on and off. Now he seems to drag them more and I have to help him up the ramp, otherwise he just sits in one place, which means I have to wash him regularly as he sits in his own mess! Any thoughts? He has a good appetite!
Click to expand...
 
Mums piggies said:
Thank you for all the advice, you've pretty much confirmed what I feared, off to the vets for George. Fingers crossed!
Click to expand...
It's not as bad as I thought! The vet thinks he has an under developed back end, maybe he was born with a defective pelvis or he just has little legs for his frame! He is not overweight but we're gonna thin him out a little whilst we build his legs up with regular exercise to get him going. He's had a pain injection in case he's in discomfort but other than that he's in good health! He is currently running (dragging) around the hallway with our new baby piggy who thinks George is great fun to climb on!
 
I'm glad you've got an answer. You will just need to make sure he keeps clean and tidy and doesn't end up sore if he sits where he pees....

Let us know how he gets on.
 
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