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Is this normal?

hannahs26

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi,
I've done a search on here and can't find what I'm looking for, so thought it best to post a question.
Our two rescue girls who've been with us 10 months now, age 5 and 3, have never had strong smelling urine, and I'm aware that a sudden strong smell can be cause for concern.
We adopted 2 young sows yesterday, age estimated by rescue vet at 6 to 8 months, and their urine smells very strong. They have the same set up in terms of bedding and litter tray as the older pair, yet their urine leaves a very strong smell.
I'd usually not need to change the litter in my older girls side of the enclosure until 4 days or longer, just removing used or dirty hay and poop each day, but the young pair have been with us just 24 hours, and I've had to completely change and clean out their litter trays completely this evening, as the smell was very strong.
I'm wondering whether this is due to their age, or unknown previous diet, or something else? I use a layer of news paper, then wood pellet litter, then a layer of fleece on top in their littler trays under the hay rack.
They were checked by the vet at the rescue center, and said to be healthy, although I suspect it was only general check done, no bloods/urine checks.
Thanks :-)
 
Hi!

If they are clean and not dirty, I would have them vet checked for the presence of blood and protein in their urine ( a smelly urine is more often indicative of a cystitis, bacterial or sterile) and also have their reproductive tract looked at - smelly fluid coming from the anus can also be a symptom for an infection there.
 
Possibly with them being so new it could be a deliberate attempt to scent mark new territory and stake a claim, especially if they can smell your other girls? Whenever we have brought new piggies into the house (even visiting ones in another room!) I've noticed that my whole house just stinks of rodent pee, like there's a pee-off dominance battle going on! Piggle always wins, she can and does pee 2ft up the walls, and she has a very pungent grease gland...
But as @Wiebke says another vet check focused on the urine and bum and lady bits is a good idea :)
 
Possibly with them being so new it could be a deliberate attempt to scent mark new territory and stake a claim, especially if they can smell your other girls? Whenever we have brought new piggies into the house (even visiting ones in another room!) I've noticed that my whole house just stinks of rodent pee, like there's a pee-off dominance battle going on! Piggle always wins, she can and does pee 2ft up the walls, and she has a very pungent grease gland...
But as @Wiebke says another vet check focused on the urine and bum and lady bits is a good idea :)

Sorry, my sinuses are mostly narrowed/swollen in the wake of a decade of chronic sinusitis, so I am a bit handicapped in the smells department unless it is a full on boar testosterone cloud or a multiple sows in season gagging pheromone enveloping the whole piggy room.
 
Possibly with them being so new it could be a deliberate attempt to scent mark new territory and stake a claim, especially if they can smell your other girls? Whenever we have brought new piggies into the house (even visiting ones in another room!) I've noticed that my whole house just stinks of rodent pee, like there's a pee-off dominance battle going on! Piggle always wins, she can and does pee 2ft up the walls, and she has a very pungent grease gland...
But as @Wiebke says another vet check focused on the urine and bum and lady bits is a good idea :)
I wondered if it may be a marking type of thing... as they're not showing any signs of discomfort, and they've only just arrived, I think I'll see if the smell decreases over the next few days, to see if it's a territorial thing going on. If it doesn't, or if I see any worrying signs in the meantime, I'll get them in to see a vet. I'd rather not stress them unnecessarily if I can avoid it, as they've been through such a lot in the past week with being dumped, getting to know the rescue people, then getting to know us and our girls.
Thank you.
 
Sorry, my sinuses are mostly narrowed/swollen in the wake of a decade of chronic sinusitis, so I am a bit handicapped in the smells department unless it is a full on boar testosterone cloud or a multiple sows in season gagging pheromone enveloping the whole piggy room.
That sounds painful :-( My daughter suffers with sinusitis too, and often can't smell much... which can be a blessing for her at times like these ;-) But the pain can be horrid, so feel for you. Thanks for your vet advice - may see one in a few days if things don't start to smell better.
 
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