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My guinea pig won't eat or stand up

Gab221

Gab221

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So she hasn't eaten for the past few days and when she tries to move she only drags herself, although she can move all her legs. She ate a bit of food when I hand feed her but not a lot. I gave her some water with vitamin C and she drank a lot of it. I was at the vet and he only looked at her back feet (which she can move) and said she has lost a lot of weight and her temperature is low, even though he didn't check her temperature. She seems a bit cold but she is still warm. We tried warming her up by the fireplace since she enjoyed being there herself. The vet said that the only thing they can do is put her down. She seems to be a bit better since she stood up and walked but now she's back to dragging herself. I really don't wanna put her down and now the vet is closed for two days because of the holidays. Is there any hope?
 
I’m sorry you’re up against it at holiday time. I’m not sure what could be wrong but you need to step in with syringe feeding now, as she’s not eating. You can use mushed up pellets and give her on a spoon.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
I would try and find a vet schooled in guinea pigs, the one you went to doesn’t sound like they know much. But I’d say this is an emergency - are there any emergency out of hours vets hear you?
Is she still able to eat her hay and pellets?
 
I agree with @Siikibam
Most vets will have an emergency number on their answering machine when they’re closed.
Holding you in my thoughts
 
Please do syringe feed her - any piggy who stops eating needs immediate syringe feeding of fibre rich food - a recovery food such as critical care or in its absence, mushed up pellets - the guide which siikibam has linked, details how. It is essential that this is done immediately to keep her gut working. She will need to be syringe fed every few hours day and night.

I would also recommend that you see another vet as an emergency.

Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
 
There aren’t any guinea pig specialist near me or emergency vets, there was a vet at that place that cured a very deadly disease they once had but I guess she stopped working there. She looks very sick and skinny.
 
It sounds like she's very weak, as she's not eating! You need to get some food in, by syringe. Mush up the normal guinea pig nuggets, by putting boiling water over them and leave to cool. They can be mixed into a smooth mixture that you can then feed by syringe. Use a 1 ml syringe, with the end cut off. This needs to be done immediately. She will probably only take a little at a time, but you will need to feed little and often. Where about are you based?
 
Norway, my dads currently feeding her and she’s eating! But I still don’t know why she suddenly stopped eating. I hope she survives.
 
It’s great that she is eating - she needs to be support fed regularly throughout the day and night to give her some strength back and keep her system working. Ensure she has constant access to fresh hay and that it is kept near her so she can eat it without having to move. Why she stopped eating will only be known with a vet diagnosis.
 
Gab221 said:
Norway, my dads currently feeding her and she’s eating! But I still don’t know why she suddenly stopped eating. I hope she survives.
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Aww , me too!
Sending all the best hopes and piggie kisses , from pepper and the group C: 💗 💗 😊 😉😊😭
 
She’s eaten 3ml so far and she’s eager to get more 😂 I really do hope my baby gets better
 
She stopped eating at about 5 ml, we’re heating up the room right now. We will let her rest and try again. She has hay and pellets in her reach. The mix just turns out a bit watery but that’s probably okay since she probably needs liquids. Also since it’s a bit of a discomfort for her to try to chew big pieces.
 
Does anyone know what she might have? Since she started going to the fireplace to warm herself and eating not as much as usual. Then she didn’t even leave her cage anymore or eat at all and that’s when we took her to the vet today when they told us to put her down. I still hope we made the right decision not to put her down. I’m going to sleep soon, how often should I set the timers?
 
Gab221 said:
Does anyone know what she might have? Since she started going to the fireplace to warm herself and eating not as much as usual. Then she didn’t even leave her cage anymore or eat at all and that’s when we took her to the vet today when they told us to put her down. I still hope we made the right decision not to put her down. I’m going to sleep soon, how often should I set the timers?
Click to expand...

We couldn’t guess what is wrong with her, only a vet will be able to say.

She need to be fed every 2-3 hours. The guides that have been linked in above give details
 
Hello! Although I’m no vet, I have a pig who is also dragging his legs (I have an entire thread about it called “Clifford has a limp”) and it’s Due to VERY severe arthritis in both his back knee caps. Don’t put your piggie down yet until you know exactly what’s wrong. Hope this helped and hugs!
 
She is sleeping on her side and not eating that much
 
We fed her before we left but she looks really bad, we’re looking for any open vets
 
There weren’t any vets open at all we tried calling too but nothing. She finally pooped! She keeps having these sudden burst where she moves her legs and starts looking around. We’re at a store getting her some food.
 
Gab221 said:
There weren’t any vets open at all we tried calling too but nothing. She finally pooped! She keeps having these sudden burst where she moves her legs and starts looking around. We’re at a store getting her some food.
Click to expand...
Hope she's okay!
Poor piggie !
Sending lots of piggie hugs and kisses !
Hope she recovers!
💗 😭 💗 💔
 
She’s weak but she still has energy to resist eating😂 she’s eating small bits but also spitting out some.
 
Is she eating her hay and pellets at all?! I would put some near where she’s laying. But also make sure that you syringe feed every couple of hours, as I think you were advised in a previous post.
 
She won’t chew, she only takes liquid food that we blended, she’s twitching every now and then and I’m really worried for her since the vet said that she had no hope but she’s gotten better and worse at the same time, she was twitching a lot this morning and now she only twitches a bit if she’s a bit frightened. She won’t eat pellets only smell them and start twitching. She’s eating 5 ml and then she wont take any more for hours even if we try. We gave her blended bell peppers and cucumbers today. We also gave her blended melons which she ate as much as usual only 5 ml. I’m mostly disappointed in the vet not really doing anything. He said she’s paralyzed but she can clearly move all her legs just that she’s a bit weak and cold but we’re keeping the room warm. Should I post pictures or videos of when she twitches?
 
Do you have critical care as well? You can also feed her mushed pellets.
 
No I don’t but I can try making a homemade version.
 
I’m really mad at myself since we noticed it very late and she looks really bad and has lost a lot of weight and I don’t know if 5 ml an hour really does anything.
 
how often are you feeding her? 3-5ml is a good amount every 2-3 hours. Are you weighing her daily at the same time?
Also if you do a search for critical care you’ll see the recommendations. Whereabouts are you?
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
 
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All the best... going through similar at the moment as my pig wont eat... syringe feeding is not going well either.. we are back at the vets later..
 
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