Poorly piggy - advice ?

Status
Not open for further replies.
libertychance

libertychance

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Sep 21, 2011
Messages
33
Reaction score
0
Points
120
Hello

All of a sudden my feisty pig with attitude seems poorly. She was fine yesterday but when I went to get her in from outside she was squeaking like mad and has been really subdued, lying down, shuffling (seems a bit lame?), and squeaking on and off. She is happy to be picked up when I normally struggle to catch her. She is eating, but is not as interested as usual. We think she's 4 and a half.

Does anyone have any advice? Should I go to the vet?

And I don't mean to be negative, but if the worst did happen, my other piggy will be on her own - do i need to rehome her or get another one for company?

Really appreciate any thoughts.... :(
 
I would suggest if in doubt a vets trip would be in order, sooner rather than later, they go downhill so quickly.

When you say she is squeakng, is this when peeing or pooing? She could have the start of a UTI and need AB's quickly to kick the infection into touch before it takes hold. I would put her in a clean dry washing up bowl and wait for her to wee, and take a sample in a syringe with you for testing to see if there is any blood present.

We wont think about the worst, i am sure this is a while off.

Please keep up updated, thinking of you xx
 
I think a vets visit might be worthwhile anything that puts a piggy of its food means something is wrong. Was she on grass outside?

Regards getting another piggy well thats upto you, personally i love my boys and i always pair them up or have them in small groups so no ones ever alone as piggies love company of their own kind :)
 
Yes she was outside in her run and fine all day. when i collect them i put a little sleeping bag for them to scoot into to carry them inside. normally she takes a while to get in but this time she crawled straight in. I'm not sure if she squeaks when weeing or pooing. i will get on to the vet. thankyou. anyone have any idea how much a consultation costs? I have never had to go to a vet before :(
 
Consultation visits range from vet to vet. Vets will often allow payment plans if money is an issue, always worth asking about.

Whereabouts do you live, someone on the forum may be able to recomend a cavy savy vet for you.. Hope your little girl is ok
 
I usually pay about £15 for a consultation, but each vet varies, please ensure it is an exotics vet though, a run of the mill vets will most probably be unlikely to diagnose a problem and prescribe the needed medications.

It would be worthwhile having her out for a while alone to ensure she is peeing and pooing and watching for any evidence of squeaking while doing so, you may need to be patient as they rarely perform on demand, but lots of watery veg should do the trick, a white towel will also be useful as you'll be able to detect any blood.

If you can give us your location we can recommend a cavy savvy vet to you?

x
 
Last edited:
Hope you manage to get to the vets and that your little one is ok. :)
 
Do you think she might have bloat from eating too much grass? I think its worthwhile seeing a vet to be safe. I pay £15 for first consulation then £10 thereafter and mines a cavy specialist but prices vary from place to place. I agree if you let us know where you are we might be able to help with a vet :)
 
thansk everyone I really appreciate it.

I am not sure whether it's from eating grass as they go out most days and we are useless at mowing the lawn so some days they eat tons, and we had only mowed on monday so less grass than usual!

We live in bromsgrove, Worcestershire. I was expecting £50+ for initial consultation at vets.

My husband is at home today looking after her, I'm at work, so will get onto vets if anyone can recommend one?
 
any change in normal behaviour is a vet trip. It depends on the vets and the area you live on how much you would pay to see the vet. For my general vets which they are all registered at, it cost me the other day for a consult and eye cream on crystal £20, compare to my dog which is twice that usually and they are a good vets that are very reasonable. If you seek a exotics vet it could cost you more, perhaps phone a few in your area and any that are near enough you could get to and ask how much it would be for a consult, then you will know roughly before you get to one. Ask them how many pigs they treat as well before taking the her along, you want one with at least a good basic knowledge if you have not got a specialist near you.

It could be a multiple number of problems, UTI, bloat, teeth issues - the vet will be able to examine and find out what it could be. But a point that I must stress, if this is bloat, time is of the essance.
 
thankyou again everyone.

I am calling the vet now.

I think my main concern was that because I couldn't put my finger on what was wrong, and that she is eating (albeit less than usual) I was worried I would be time-wasting.

But appreciate your advice and we will get her looked at.
 
its never a waste of time if any pet is not normal, they have the expertise and they can say if its something or nothing so its always worth getting checked out.
 
She definitely needs to see the vet, my local vets charge about £13 for a consultation and the vets where I help with a clinic it is £18. It is possible that she has eaten too much grass, does she look bloated at all and do her sides sound hollow when you tap them? I am off to the vets myself tonight with my own pig who I think has bloat (she hasn't been on grass).
 
I'm taking her tonight at 5.30. It could well be she's eaten too much she is a greedy little madam!
 
I knows theres quite a few people on here in your area so might be someone who can recommend a good vets to you :)
 
Good luck, let us know how she gets on, might still be an idea to take a wee sample with you for testing just in case, if you get one soon just pop it in the fridge. If she is prescribed Anti-biotic's ask your vets for some pro-biotics too, AB's are harsh on the guts and can put them off their food, so the pro-biotics help to restore the good bacteria in the gut and keep her happy.

It will be a good idea to weigh her daily aswell to monitor her weight, and if needed syringe feed, but we'll cross all that once you've seen the vet.

x
 
sport_billy said:
Any news?
Click to expand...

Hello, just got back. She's hurt her back and so she's had some painkillers and some drops for the next few days. I don't know how as they are always on a flat surface (they never figured out how to use the ramp in their hutch!) but as the vet was handling her it was obvious that's what the problem was. Poor thing. I'm glad I went and thanks for all your advice.

I have left her to hide and sleep now in peace :)
 
Aww poor little girl. Lucky she has pain relief and I hope she is soon well.
 
Hello everyone I am back :( My poor piggy is still not well. Her back appeared to improve and she picked up a little but she is still not herself. She is eating, but not at all interested in food, and she was such a greedy girl. she is very subdued, just sitting with her head down. I gave her a bath on sunday as all of a sudden her bottom was really dirty, and once she was wet I could see how much smaller she has become and in comparison to my other piggy. I have weighed her and she has lost 125g since being weighed at the vets last week. that seems a lot to me as she has gone from 800g to 675g in a week. any more advice people? I would be so grateful :(
 
That is a significant weight loss in a short time. Personally I would go back to the vets asap. Did you see a guinea-experienced vet or normal vet? I would use an exotics vet with experience in guineas for this. The dirty bottom is also a concern. I know you said her back was painful but was the vet sure it was a back injury & not pain inside? A guinea in pain can be reluctant to eat. What pain mediction did the vet give you for her?

With that weight loss I would want to start hand-feeding asap. See useful info here http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html. You can use your guinea's normal pellets to make a mash.

Best wishes for your guinea
 
I agree with Shiny any weight loss to that degree needs investigating, the fact shes not interested in food is a big warning sign to me. I would go back to the vets and get a second opinion as it really needs to be checked out properly. Feeding wise it won't hurt to hand feed her to make sure shes eating. you can mash pellets up with warm water and feed off a spoon if she will take them or syringe feed them if you haven't go critical care to hand. Hope you get this sorted
 
thanks both, my gut feeling was that she's not right. she is nibbling at dry food and some salad but whereas she was eating 24/7 she's now turning away from her favourite expesive salad and not even trying it. i think I will take her back. I too thought it was odd that her bottom was so dirty. OK sometimes her claws get poo on but I had to bath her she was so dirty and I thought it was odd. I am not sure if the vet was exotic specialist, but it did list exotic aminal (g-pigs) on the vet website (I have been to Clent Hills in Bromsgrove I believe they are reputable).
 
PS and we were given Metacam for pain relief. She is not flinching or anything if we touch her back now and the other pig has stopped nudging her back.
 
As shes been off colour and gone off food i would see a vet. Lots of people on here in your area who can advise a cavy savvy vet to see. Her bottom was probably dirty as shes not moving much if shes in discomfort, problem is piggies tend to hide pain. I think you need to see a vet asap, wouldn't hurt to syringe feed her as well till you can.
 
Please have her seen by a vet asap! Being wet at the end can point to a problem with the womb or the urinary system.

It is a good habit to weigh healthy piggies once weekly and ill ones daily to monitor their food intake - scales don't lie and you can react quickly to any weight loss.
http://www.guinealynx.info/weigh.html

Please hand/syringe feed any piggy that is not eating properly you can just mush up some pellets and cut off the narrow tip of syringe for feeding. Loss of appetite is always a very worrying sign and should be investigated immediately.
http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/pain.html
 
Hello all just to update everyone as you have been so kind and helpful, poor Galaxy is really not a very well girl. We took her back to the vet and they don't really know what is wrong with her although her back is still sore. But she was not eating and had lost so much weight. Thye gave her an injection to boost her appetite and we are syringe feeding her. The vet wanted to help her on her way today but I have asked for a day or two longer at home so that the children can say goodbye. I have never had a pet put to sleep before and I have very mixed feelings about it, but I'm at work (I had sent my husband back with her today) and so I said no she had to come home. I just feel so sad for her and also her little friend who she's been with forever. :(
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top