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Is my new pig unwell (I really do not know)

  • Thread starter Thread starter ellboy
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ellboy

Hi guys, this is my first post and would really appreciate some help.
I bought two guinea pigs about 8 weeks ago. One of them has grown considerably and the other has not grown as much. The one that has grown less has started having very small,more moist (clay like) poos and when playing with him there seems to be a lot of hair coming out compared to larger one. I do not know wether this is coincidence or normal or what. Is there anything obvious that may need doing to help

Cheers for any help

Craig:^-
 
Hi Craig, welcome to the forum. :)

Have you been able to monitor the two pigs eating? Is the bigger pig allowing the smaller one access to the food bowl? What is their diet like (in terms of hay, brand of dried food and fresh fruits and veggies)?

Are you weighing them weekly? Weekly weight checks will help you get an accurate idea of how rapidly each guinea is gaining weight, and can alert you to problems at any time throughout the piggies' life.

The shedding of some hair is normal; some pigs shed a lot, some don't shed at all. Some skin problems can lead to excessive hair loss leading to bald patches, but is usually accompanied by lots of itching/scratching, and sometimes some scabbing on the skin.

Sorry for so many questions - sometimes those who reply initially have more to ask than the original poster. :))
 
I have not monitored them individually eating but the larger one does seen to want to stand on Elmo quite a lot. They feed on pets at home nuggets and pets at home hay. Fresh veg offered twice a day (variations of carrot, cucumber, romain lettuce and melon. We have noticed that Elmo (the possibly unwell guinea pig) has over the last two weeks stopped looking at us when held on chest and just wants to turn and face away .

We have not been weighing them.
 
Thanks for the extra info. It could be that the bigger pig is preventing Elmo eating. Not eating enough would also affect the poops in the way you mentioned, and could be related to the hair loss (some vitamin deficiencies can also lead to hair loss).

You could try putting two food bowls of dry food in, in different areas of the hutch/cage; this often helps in cases where an overly dominant pig is preventing other pigs accessing the food. Lots of hay as always, Elmo should be able to access that quite easily even though he is sharing with his friend. It's worth giving the fresh veggies to Elmo away from the other pig, to be sure he is eating some and getting the nutrients he needs to be healthy. A wider variety of veggies may also help, but only introduce one new food in small amounts at first to allow their digestive systems to get used to the new foods. Some more food ideas can be found here:
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=37030

Kitchen scales are good for weight checks. It is a useful habit to get into.
 
Weight comparison

Alcester, is that a comparison between the weight of the two guinea pigs or between Elmo's weight previous and current. As I have never weighed them before.
 
The previous weight and the current weight would have been ideal. Failing that a comparison of the two pigs would help.
Then you would have a reference point and and would have some idea if their weight is within normal limits for their age.
 
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