Picky Eating, Unsure About Poo...

[Pippy & Daisy]

Hi guys, seems I can't go a week without worrying about some issue. This time I'm not sure if it's really an issue or I'm just too paranoid!

So I didn't give the girls dinner until about 2am last night as I've been up working. They both scoffed it down, no problems there. This morning, though, my mum put food in (about 7-7:30) and they weren't really interested. Pippy had a nibble but didn't scoff it down, but Daisy wasn't really interested at all. She did take a leaf of spinach but that was it until she got cucumber which she happily ate and even came to the bars to grab it so she's not off her food entirely. She's been eating hay as well without any difference than usual.

She's moving fine and seems her usual self, I checked her belly and it didn't feel hard (I'm not sure how hard it's supposed to feel? But it seemed fine I think), there was no hollow sound when I tapped it. She didn't seem to find it at all uncomfortable when I was massaging her belly. There were only a couple of poos in the bedroom where I assume she was all night (only because she went in when I went to bed and was in when my mum got up but I can't be sure obviously) so I don't know if that's a worry - there are other poos around but I can't tell whose are whose. Edit: As far as I can tell she is eating her caecals/cetotropes(sp?).

Is she just not hungry because she had dinner so late? I've been feeding them around that time lately since I've been working on assignments all night and haven't had them not worry with food in the morning which is why I'm worried this morning. I don't know if I'm overreacting since she's not completely off her food, she could just be being picky. I can't get her to the vet until late this afternoon - I could get mum to take her if it was necessary but even then it'd be a few hours - but I'm going to be worrying all day I think. Does my worrying sound silly or should I actually be worried?

Thanks - I don't know where i'd be without this forum

Update: I have seen one fresh poo from her. It seems normal in size, colour, everything. Just the one though so far, but she doesn't seem to be straining or in pain. She also tok some spinach from me I did hear a little rumble from her stomach just then though, is that a concern?

 

[Tinkoz]

If your at all concerned then a visit to the vets is your best option.
How ever if you weigh her daily at the sane time and keep a track of it that will help let you know if she is eating enough. Remember that they only eat when they want to my pigs get there food twice a day & fresh veg once a day the dried food often sits in there bowel sometimes for hours before tgey even give it a look, fresh veg is sometimes wooded down & again other times they investigate it then save it for later,
Hope everything is OK keep us informed of her progress

 

[helen105281]

If you are worried I would get her checked just for your peace of mind. I do find though that changing the routine slightly can affect their eating habits. It is ok to have some gut noise, a lot of the time it is no noise that you need to worry about, especially if it sounds hollow, but obviously noise can also indicate gas. Is she eating hay at all? How is she now?

 

[Kerrie74]

She said near the top "She's been eating hay as well without any difference than usual".

It is always best to take piggies to the vets if your in doubt about their health, they can go down hill so fast when they get ill.

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

Thanks guys. I took her to the vets this afternoon and he thinks she might have eaten something that didn't agree with her - most likely parsley from the garden that had been peed on by a bird or a possum. I'm always so obsessive about washing veggies from the shops but didn't even think to wash something from the garden where I know there are no pesticides, so I'm feeling a bit guilty!

She's doing a lot better now. Thankfully my mum ended up staying home today so was able to keep an eye on her. She didn't change much through the day - just picking at food and barely any poo. We took her out into the play pen so we could see if she was pooing and there were only a couple of pellets until about 5 when I got home and she'd done a fair few more. Took her to the vet after and she decided to let out all the poo she'd been holding in all day! It's very very soft and mushy at the moment, but the vet wasn't too concerned at the moment since he thinks it was something upsetting her tummy and once she's got it all out it'll be fine. I've been advised to cut down a bit on veggies so hopefully that'll get her poo back to normal. She's been munching on a big pile of hay and also a hay twist so she's off to a good start. I also gave her a few spinach leaves for being good. He said she's not at all bloated and her gut is moving just as it should.

I'm still worrying about her, but am so relieved to know it's not anything too serious! Pippy is very much missing having Daisy in the hutch with her so I'm going to put her back in again soon (she's currently in the playpen so I can keep an eye on her and make sure she's eating, pooing, etc).

With her poo, the vet said it should get better soon but I'm a little worried about dehydration - it's not liquid (there seems to be a bit of liquid but it's mostly just mushy poos) so I don't really think that's a worry yet but I'll definitely be keeping an eye on her tonight and will stay home tomorrow with her if she isn't well. Should I be giving her dry foods to help her poo get back to normal or watery veg to keep her hydrated? The vet didn't mention anything about dehydration so I'm thinking he doesn't think that's an issue in this case. Can't tell you how grateful I am to have a vet who knows so much about them (he's had training from the top exotic specialist in Sydney!) and also cares so much about how they're doing

 

[Kerrie74]

Sorry to hear she's under the weather but glad you took her to the vets.

As long as she's eating her pellets and hay and drinking plenty I think she'll be ok, if she's not drinking plenty you could always offer her some in a syringe.

I'm sure someone like @Wiebke will be along to advise you on this

 

[helen105281]

I would give her additional fluids as water or Dioralyte (if you have that in Australia). I would hold off all veg for at least 48 hours and encourage her to eat hay as much as possible. Here is our syringe feeding guide in case you need to supplement her. The links are UK based though.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/complete-syringe-feeding-guide.115359/

Also, do you have anything that vibrates like and electric toothbrush or a back cushion? Gentle massage or vibration can also help encourage poos.

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

I would give her additional fluids as water or Dioralyte (if you have that in Australia). I would hold off all veg for at least 48 hours and encourage her to eat hay as much as possible. Here is our syringe feeding guide in case you need to supplement her. The links are UK based though.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/complete-syringe-feeding-guide.115359/

Also, do you have anything that vibrates like and electric toothbrush or a back cushion? Gentle massage or vibration can also help encourage poos.

Thanks, Helen. I'll have a look for Dioralyte tomorrow. Do you think syringing water is too important to wait until the morning? I'm not too keen on disturbing her by getting her out again now that she's settled back into the hutch and is munching on hay. She's very active so I know she could drink from the water bottle herself but I'm not sure if they know when they need extra water. She doesn't look dehydrated at all but I know I'll be checking on her all night again. The vet also suggested some V8 juice, so I might give that a try tomorrow as well. I've seen a few poos that are much better looking - most are still really mushy but there were a couple that were pretty normal in size and shape so that seems to be an improvement. She's absolutely going to town on the hay, thank goodness.

I do have a massage cushion somewhere, so I'll have a look tomorrow for it! Thanks again

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

Just checked her again. Her poo is still like sludge but she is doing it quite a lot so she's not blocked. I also noticed just then that she seemed to be straining a bit when she pood. Is this normal when they've got gut problems? She wasn't squeaking in pain, but she was lifting up like she was really uncomfortable - it looked a bit like how she strained when she had her UTI but this was with poo. Surely she can't be constipated if her poo is that sludgy? I'm wondering if she's just uncomfortable, but I didn't notice her doing that earlier. I do still have some metacam for her but don't want to give it to her if I'm not sure she's in pain, plus medicine is really a two person job in this house and no one is up to help me. She's still eating hay and seems fine otherwise.

I'm so worried about her

 

[helen105281]

If they are sludgy I think ideally you need to start fluids as soon as you can. It is possible her tummy is sore so I would also give the Metacam though you may want to run that past your vet. The V8 juice I would give with caution as it is a lot of vegetables for her to ingest in one go and could make things worse. I think fibre is key here so hay, hay and more hay. Do you have any probiotics? that would help also. I am tagging @Glynis who is also in Australia and may know some appropriate brands. I think the main problem is that things aren't moving through as they should and her gut transit is affected and it will take a little while to get back to normal. If you are worried about vitamins, do you have any guinea pig vitamin supplements? if so you could give her that by syringe when she has her fluids (and once another pair of hands is around).

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

I gave her 1ml of water this morning and will give her some more this afternoon. She seems to be feeling better today! I did give in and let her have a couple of spinach leaves after she had some water as she was begging for them when she saw Pippy eating some! I'm going to have to take Pip out to eat tonight so Daisy doesn't see. She's been eating hay like there's no tomorrow and I think she had a nibble at the pellets so that's good, and now she's munching on a hay twist. I'm really happy with how she's doing. They've both been napping this morning so I had a look at where she was and her poo is already getting better! It looked fresh so I'm assuming it was hers. Still very soft but it actually looks like pellets now! I'm going to keep her off veg for at least today (might give her another little treat when I give her more water but don't want her pigging out on veg yet) just to make sure she keeps getting better. I'll skip the V8 juice, I think he was suggesting that more as a solution for if she wouldn't eat veg when she's feeling better but that's not a problem now!

I haven't got any probiotics but I might pick some up later today if I think she needs them, but I think the amount of hay she's been eating is doing her wonders. I have vitamin c for them but no other vitamins. Should I just crush some vitamin c and syringe with water? Usually I crush a tablet in with their food so I was just planning on leaving it until I start letting her have veg again but could try syringing it.

 

[helen105281]

Glad she is eating hay so well, that's great. Good that she took some water too, I would aim for about 5ml each sitting though if possible. Yes extra vitamin c would be a good idea as it will help her immune system while she is under the weather. Definitely syringe it though and not put in the water bottle.

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

Took her out just before and gave her another ml of water - had her back in before I saw your reply about 5ml, oops! I'm glad to get any into her though at the moment, she's not at all keen on the syringe so I think some is better than none at the moment. Might try and give her some more tonight, but she's doing really well so hopefully she's well and truly on the mend. She took one or two sips from the water bottle earlier. Haven't given vitamin c yet (forgot to give it when I was giving her water) but I will aim to tomorrow. They have the Oxbow cavy cuisine pellets so she is getting a little vitamin c if she's eating those but I'll still try and get more into her. And her poo looks almost perfect! They look a bit soft but are definitely pellets now, no mush! She did squeak when once when she did a poo so I was a bit concerned but she hasn't since that one. Gave her bum a bit of a wipe as it was quite messy and smelly so I'm sure she must feel better for that now. Have been trying to holding off veg but did give in again and gave her a couple more spinach leaves while she was out for a clean and a cuddle. She's still devouring hay and keeps asking for more veg - I feel so bad knowing how much she wants it and not giving it to her! But she's doing so well that I don't want to ruin it and give her more runny poo. Thanks so much for all your help

I ended up staying home with her today and I'm glad I did because I've been able to keep a really close eye on her and know that she hasn't been in pain or anything through the day. I told her she could have a treat once she was all better... seems she might've understood!

 

[helen105281]

It sounds like she is doing well.

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

She seems to be I just have another question (a bit of a graphic one)... Just before when I was checking on her, I heard her make a sound like a wet fart and was worried she'd had some diarrhoea, but I had a look and it was a regular looking pellet. She didn't strain or squeak. It looked perfectly normal to me... Is that sound just her body still sorting itself out? Or even just a fart? Didn't seem much of a concern to me but I'm obsessing about every little thing she does at the moment.

 

[helen105281]

Not sure to be honest but it does sound like a fart. Maybe the poo was a bit harder to pass than normal and she could have some gas.

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

Yeah, I was thinking something like that but just wanted to make sure. Thanks again Helen (and everyone else!), you've been a lifesaver!

 

[Pippy & Daisy]

Weighed Daisy today and she's lost quite a bit of weight - around 70g give or take. I was really concerned by this at first, but in saying that she did go almost two days with barely any veg and when she first starting pooing again and it was mush, there was a lot of it. They're all back to normal now. Am weighing her daily for the next few days just to make sure she's putting it back on again. I started easing her back on to veg again today - she had a little tray to herself this morning so I could make sure she was definitely eating (she scoffed it down!) and then her and Pip shared their big dinner (and possibly even some after dinner treats...)

I know losing significant amounts of weight can signal illness - but am I right in thinking that the weight loss is only due to them not eating? Probably a really stupid question but I just want to check because I wasn't surprised she'd lost weight due to me taking her off veg and am expecting her to have put some back on by tomorrow since she's able to eat normally again without issues, but I'll get her back to the vets if that doesn't seem right. I even watched them eat dinner and she scoffed it down like she hadn't eaten in a month and was then the one nagging for seconds. I didn't give her as much today as I usually would just because I didn't want to overwhelm her with food after not having much for a couple of days but tomorrow I think she'll be ready to go back to being fed as usual tomorrow. I know the advice is to hand feed if they've lost a lot of weight but she's eating absolutely anything I give her so I don't think hand feeding is necessary; I just want to make sure that her weight loss would be caused by not being given veggies.

 

[helen105281]

There are some illnesses that can make them lose weight like renal failure, tumours, bladder stones etc. I do think the weightloss here though is due to the upset stomach and loose poos plus the fact that she wasn't eating as much as normal. Hopefully she will start to gain weight now she is eating normally again. If she doesn't though it would be a good idea to get her checked out again. I also would keep an eye out for loose poos if she is having a lot of veg again as it really should be introduced slowly ideally.

 

[Wiebke]

Weighed Daisy today and she's lost quite a bit of weight - around 70g give or take. I was really concerned by this at first, but in saying that she did go almost two days with barely any veg and when she first starting pooing again and it was mush, there was a lot of it. They're all back to normal now. Am weighing her daily for the next few days just to make sure she's putting it back on again. I started easing her back on to veg again today - she had a little tray to herself this morning so I could make sure she was definitely eating (she scoffed it down!) and then her and Pip shared their big dinner (and possibly even some after dinner treats...)

I know losing significant amounts of weight can signal illness - but am I right in thinking that the weight loss is only due to them not eating? Probably a really stupid question but I just want to check because I wasn't surprised she'd lost weight due to me taking her off veg and am expecting her to have put some back on by tomorrow since she's able to eat normally again without issues, but I'll get her back to the vets if that doesn't seem right. I even watched them eat dinner and she scoffed it down like she hadn't eaten in a month and was then the one nagging for seconds. I didn't give her as much today as I usually would just because I didn't want to overwhelm her with food after not having much for a couple of days but tomorrow I think she'll be ready to go back to being fed as usual tomorrow. I know the advice is to hand feed if they've lost a lot of weight but she's eating absolutely anything I give her so I don't think hand feeding is necessary; I just want to make sure that her weight loss would be caused by not being given veggies.

It takes about 1-2 days for the food to pass through the guts when they are out of kilter, so the weight loss is reflecting what has not gone in.

Please wait with re-introducing fresh food for another 48 hours and then do it only slowly one by one to give the guts time to settle again. I find it best to start with a bit of fresh herbs.

It can take a few weeks for the guts to settle fully so you need to monitor carefully. Keep topping her up until she doesn't want any syringe feed and water anymore. As she is feeling better in herself, her intake should go up and she should also start eating by herself.

Offer her some mushed pellets in a bowl; if you wish, you can spice them up with a bit of readigrass to make them extra tasty.

Also have some rough brown cardboard or toilet/kitchen roll inners in the cage. Piggies seem to crave nutritionally poor rough fibre after a tummy upset or operation to help balance our the guts again.

She will recover her weight once she is well again; so don't worry about that!

It can well be that she is a bit gassy. Piggies can definitely fart quite impressively!