Not Eating Hay Or Drinking Water?

[Piggiesxoxo]

Hi! I'm a New Guinea pig owner. He's about two months and his name is Pumpkin. He was doing well the first month I had him (got him when he was 1 month old) and was popcorning, wheeking, and exploring. But now going into the second month I noticed he's not being so active. Is he bored? Should I get another Guinea pig? (It's my plan around Xmas!) Is his cage too small? He's just laying around a lot. He scratches himself quite often. Does he have an infection or rash? (He's an American shorthair I believe) He used to eat hay a good amount and now he's not. I switched his hay to horse hay from a barn. Is alfalfa and something else (I can't remember but it is with a b) it's a little brown too. Should I switch back to Timothy? It's a lot more expensive for me, but I don't care as long as Pumpkin is happy! He's not drinking water either. I switch his water every night so it's not stagnant or smelly or gross or anything. It's through a bottle. I'm really worried about him and I just want what's best for my BABY! If it makes a difference a couple weeks ago he had a slight eye injury from my dog knocking over the cage (it's higher now). The fur around his eye was missing and there was a bit of blood. Nothing else was hurting, and the actual eye isn't scratched. He acted fine for a week, and now this is happening. I don't know if he's related. I keep his toenails clipped. Please, abut helpful tips!

 

[Betsy]

If you guinea pig has stoped eating this is a sign something serious has happened take him to see a vet as a matter of urgency. Piggies need to eat constantly and hay should be at least 80% of their diet. If they don't eat them their system starts to shut down. You need to step in with syringe feeding ASAP. There is a complete syringe feeding guide on here but I can't link it as I am on my phone.

 

[Janice C]

As @Betsy says Please get your piggy seen by a Vet. They can’t survive very well without eating as the gut stops working. You also mention a fall? Was he checked by a Vet after this? Syringe feeding would keep his system working until you see the Vet but if he hasn’t eaten recently you need to find out why as a matter of urgency. When you see the Vet he’ll check his skin etc too for you. So many problems worrying you I’m afraid. Yes he could also be a bit lonely and you can find him a friend once his health problems have been addressed. Keep us posted about Vet.

 

[Piggiesxoxo]

Thank you for all your help! I woke up this morning with him nibbling on some hay. Do you think maybe he eats it but only when I'm not watching? I gave him more pellets and he started popcorning, that's really good. I think I might just watch him for another day or two and do some syringe feeding before I schedule him for an appointment.

 

[Janice C]

View attachment 72666 View attachment 72666 Thank you for all your help! I woke up this morning with him nibbling on some hay. Do you think maybe he eats it but only when I'm not watching? I gave him more pellets and he started popcorning, that's really good. I think I might just watch him for another day or two and do some syringe feeding before I schedule him for an appointment.

Have you watched him eating anything else? Is he sitting for a while eating his hay and the same with his pellets? Is he producing lots of poo.? They do tend to pass hundreds in a day!,

 

[Piggiesxoxo]

He is eating a carrot right now. He's working on his pellets (eaten anoutHe seems to have produced a good amount of poo so far, not a lot of water.

 

[Piggiesxoxo]

*Eaten about half

 

[Janice C]

*Eaten about half

That’s good! He was probably just getting settled in and has decided your Ok as an owner!

 

[Piggiesxoxo]

Thank you for all the help! I appreciate it. I am thinking of getting another Guinea pig....what cage size would you recommend for two cavys? I just want Pumpkin to not be lonely!

 

[Betsy]

Have a read of this it tells you all about cage sizes.

www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/cage-size-guide.120795/

 

[Piggiesxoxo]

Thank you!