Olive coughs/chokes quite often when eating.

[Hannah_xx]

Hi all!

I’ve noticed for a while now that one of the pigs chokes/coughs sometimes when eating. Finally figured out that it’s little Olive, She seems to do it everyday whether it’s while eating hay or her vegetables. Sometimes she wipes her mouth once had a choke to help clear her throat.
Do you think it’s anything I should be immediately concerned about? Or just keep an eye on it? She’s acting completely fine otherwise!

 

[Siikibam]

I’m not entirely sure. How many times does she do it in a day? I would probably take her to be seen just for peace of mind.

 

[Hannah_xx]

I’m not entirely sure. How many times does she do it in a day? I would probably take her to be seen just for peace of mind.

Yes it’s an odd one isn’t it! I can’t say for sure how many times a day, but I’d say that I notice it quite often when I just top up/give them food. Not all the time when she eats but I’ve heard it enough times lately to make me think.. Hmmmm..

 

[VickiA]

I have 2 piggies who do this when eating - Evie in one cage and Holly in the other. Both are scoffers. They grab their food, try to scoff it down and get back to see if they can nick others' share of food.
I would only worry about it if I saw her regularly throwing her head around when eating (might indicate a dental issue) or if she was losing weight from not eating enough or if she was drooling or avoiding certain food types.

 

[Winniepeg]

My boy Benny used to cough/choke a lot when eating. Since feeding most of a meal by hand to my piggies the coughing is rare now. I think Benny was a scoffer and ate too quickly. It might be worth hand feeding for a day or two to see if Olive still does it. I hope all goes well

 

[Wiebke]

It is generally piggies eating too quickly; you have some habitual scoffers (often piggies where access to food was hotly contended because there wasn't much) and some greedy eaters that will do it occasionally.

Try to scatter feed veg and pellets all around the cage so they have pauses whenever they need to look for another morsel. That also helps to slow down the eating and has mostly done the trick for my own coughing scoffers.

See a vet if problems persist past any measures of yours. For this kind of coughing to be a symptom of heart disease, you would have to see other indicators, too; and you are reporting none.

 

[Hannah_xx]

Thank you for the replies.
Glad to hear of others experiences, which has made me think it more than likely is Olive scoffing her food too fast!
She’s the smallest pig due to malnourishment in her baby days, As the place I rescued her from (2years ago) ONLY feed them carrots.
And she’s the bottom of the pecking order, so although she definitely has plenty of food I recon she is just eating super quick incase the others eat it all!

I’ll keep an eye on her to make sure it’s nothing more.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for the replies.
Glad to hear of others experiences, which has made me think it more than likely is Olive scoffing her food too fast!
She’s the smallest pig due to malnourishment in her baby days, As the place I rescued her from (2years ago) ONLY feed them carrots.
And she’s the bottom of the pecking order, so although she definitely has plenty of food I recon she is just eating super quick incase the others eat it all!

I’ll keep an eye on her to make sure it’s nothing more.

Scoffing is much more common in piggies from a deprived background. If necessary hand feed her share outside the cage so she doesn't feel as pressured.

 

[Betsy]

I scatter feed veg after each pig has chosen what they want from the bowl but I give nuggets in a bowl and now that the nights are drawing in, my lot get a bowl of forage each morning sprinkled with Pro-C to help with their winter reserves as they are in an unheated garage. (They do have lots to keep them warm though).