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Not eating regular pellets?

  • Thread starter Thread starter A.Kwan
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A.Kwan

My guinea pig is around 4-5 years old, and since she was a baby she has been eating Hagen Guinea Pig pellets. For the last few days, she hasn't really touched them. She still seems active and will eat hay and vegetables. I know seeing a vet is the best way to find out what's wrong, but it's simply too expensive for a kid my age "). I have tried crushing my pellets, but I can't seem to make it into a paste that will go through the syringe. Any suggestions?
 
Hi

Just a couple of suggestions

1./ She may be bored with the same old pellets, would you like to eat the same thing year in and year out. Try a different make or even a flake type of food for a change, just make sure it does not contain any colourants Wag is a good one, Gurty Guinea is a bad one.

2./ She may have a bit of oral thrush which is making eating pellets painfull. Daktarin from the Chemist is good for that.

Re syringe feeding, you may find it easier to put the pelletsin a bowl and then add some warm water and then mash them up when they go soft. You will need a 1ml syringe and then if you cut the tip off you will find it easier to load the syringe as the hole is now larger.

Regards
 
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Do you think she might just be full of hay and veggies and just not really want the pellets? Does she normally eat lots of pellets or just a small amount? My guinea pigs will often leave their pellets if they've had lots of hay and veggies.
 
In many parts of the world (among those, Sweden, where I live) pellets are not considered necessary. As long as she is active and eat her veggies and hay I wouldn't worry. She may just not like the pellets...

If she becomes withdrawn, stops eating altogether or seems unwell in any way you will have to take her to a vet. It's part of your responsibility as a pet owner.
 
She can either have gone off her pellets or it can indicate the bedinning of tooth trouble with molars (back teeth) overgrowing.

I would recommend to try another brand of good quality pellets or muesli first. You are obviously not from Britain but haven't given your country, so I cannot recommend an alternative variety.

Try and see if she is eating by trying to get a mild antifungal/antibacterial mouth gel from the pharmacy; you (or your mum) will have to say that it is for one of you. They are usually available over the counter without prescription. If she perks up with that, it can indicate a mouth rush or tooth trouble.

Please weigh her daily on the kitchen scales (as you should with all guinea pigs that are not 100%) and write down her weight to monitor her food intake. The weight can vary about 30g/1 oz; you are looking for a constant downward trend.

Make also sure that she has plenty of good quality timothy hay and is eating it. Ideally, it should make up to 80% of her daily food intake. That will help best to grind her teeth down and keep the guts moving.
 
Wiebke said:
She can either have gone off her pellets or it can indicate the bedinning of tooth trouble with molars (back teeth) overgrowing.

I would recommend to try another brand of good quality pellets or muesli first. You are obviously not from Britain but haven't given your country, so I cannot recommend an alternative variety.

Try and see if she is eating by trying to get a mild antifungal/antibacterial mouth gel from the pharmacy; you (or your mum) will have to say that it is for one of you. They are usually available over the counter without prescription. If she perks up with that, it can indicate a mouth rush or tooth trouble.

Please weigh her daily on the kitchen scales (as you should with all guinea pigs that are not 100%) and write down her weight to monitor her food intake. The weight can vary about 30g/1 oz; you are looking for a constant downward trend.

Make also sure that she has plenty of good quality timothy hay and is eating it. Ideally, it should make up to 80% of her daily food intake. That will help best to grind her teeth down and keep the guts moving.
Click to expand...

I am from Canada, do you know of any good brands to try from here?
As for the mouth gel, is it safe? If it is do you know any brands specifically? Can Daktarin Oral Gel work?
Thanks alot for your help.
 
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Normally she eats quite a bit, for awhile I didn't give her much hay as I didn't know it was good for her. It was mostly pellets and veggies.
 
Daktarin oral get does work. And sadly, I don't know any Canadian brands, but I will send a personal message to a Canadian forum member to come and post on here.

Unfortunately, new members can only pm after they have posted over 50 times.

How is your girl doing?
 
Hi and welcome to the forum :) Sorry you've been having piggy troubles.

I don't know of any specific brand in Canada (I live in the US) but Oxbow Cavy Cuisine is an international product and I hear it's good.

This is what the product looks like:
http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/products/animal/detail?object=1582

These are the places in Canada that distribute this product:
http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/contact/canada

I hope your guinea pig will be alright. Sorry I have no other advice. Good luck. xx
 
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Wiebke said:
Daktarin oral get does work. And sadly, I don't know any Canadian brands, but I will send a personal message to a Canadian forum member to come and post on here.

Unfortunately, new members can only pm after they have posted over 50 times.

How is your girl doing?
Click to expand...

She is better than before, her stools (poops) are more regular in shape and are also more frequent. She will still not eat pellets, at least I don't think she has touched them. Do you know the average weight of an Adult guinea pig?

I don't think her problem can be constipation or gas, so it might be teeth. I have been trying to give her harder veggies (such as cucumbers) to see if she'll eat them. As for the Daktarin, any specific instructions on how to use it?

Lastly I appreciate all the help, thanks to you specifically, and the rest of the people as a whole.
 
It probably not this but thought id put it anyway, have * looked inside the piggies mouth?

My piggy had snapped a tooth which is why she wudnt eat her pellets.
 
I have been able to contact some people from Canada.

They recommend mostly Oxbow Cavy Cuisine which is now sold in PetsMart and GlobalRyans, if that helps you.

Otherwise 8in1 Ecotrician Organic Blend or Carefresh Complete seem to have a good combination of timothy/alfalfa based pellets with a low salt content.

Here are a couple of link for Canadian chain stores to help you find products:
http://customer-support.petsmart.com/canada/
http://www.petacular.com/
 
Thanks!

Thank you to everyone who has replied on this thread. My piggy is now healthy again. Perhaps the heat here in Toronto put her off her diet.
 
I am glad that your piggy is doing fine! The heatwave you have been experiencing is hard on guinea pigs as they can tolerate only a certain smallish range of temperatures well.
 
Wiebke said:
I am glad that your piggy is doing fine! The heatwave you have been experiencing is hard on guinea pigs as they can tolerate only a certain smallish range of temperatures well.
Click to expand...

Yes I have realized that recently, and am now trying to maintain the temperature in my home. Thanks for your help Wiebke. :)
 
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