Possible Pain/Illness?

[cavycrew]

Hi, I've posted here before and I really enjoy this forum. I came back here for advice on my piggy, Fred.

Last night, him and his cage mate were begging for food like always. Fred likes to grind his teeth against the cage. I sometimes do this thing where I poke my fingers/toes in the cage to see what they would do out of pure fun (they bite and lick). Well, I was going up to Fred to do it again, but I'm afraid I did it too fast. I either startled him with the sudden movement or I accidentally scratched his nose with my nail. Whatever it was, he quickly jerked away with a squeak of fear/pain and did an entire flip (or flips) off of his little mini guinea pig stairs (it is not that tall). Once on the floor, he was on his back, and he quickly went back on his legs and ran into his hiding place.

I felt so awful after this. He had a small minor scratch on his nose (it didn't bleed) and he seemed terrified after it. Of course, I will be more mindful after this as I was just being too carefree for my own good and accidentally scared/harmed my piggie.

Well, it's next day now. He didn't come out begging for food like he usually does, and I'm not even sure if he ate when the food came (he was in his hiding place as usual). I took away the hiding place to check him and now he's in a corner, all puffy and barely doing anything. His walking isn't abnormal, but he doesn't seem too active as of right now. He was eating last night, but today I'm not so sure.

Is this something to be concerned about? What should I do?

 

[Claire W]

Don’t blame yourself, these things happen but it sounds like you startled him and if he is puffy, not moving around as normal and not eating, I’d be inclined to have him checked over by a vet to make sure he didn’t hurt himself during the fall from the stairs

 

[eileen]

i would weight your guinea pig,start syringe feeding him,if he is in pain probably not eating as much as needed.also maybe take your piggie to he vet as @Claire W suggests.Dont feel guilty accidents happen.good luck ,hope all goes well.

 

[weepweeps]

I agree to a vet visit. Maybe he sprained something or pulled a muscle and needs some painkillers. Try not to feel too bad. It was an accident.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi, I've posted here before and I really enjoy this forum. I came back here for advice on my piggy, Fred.

Last night, him and his cage mate were begging for food like always. Fred likes to grind his teeth against the cage. I sometimes do this thing where I poke my fingers/toes in the cage to see what they would do out of pure fun (they bite and lick). Well, I was going up to Fred to do it again, but I'm afraid I did it too fast. I either startled him with the sudden movement or I accidentally scratched his nose with my nail. Whatever it was, he quickly jerked away with a squeak of fear/pain and did an entire flip (or flips) off of his little mini guinea pig stairs (it is not that tall). Once on the floor, he was on his back, and he quickly went back on his legs and ran into his hiding place.

I felt so awful after this. He had a small minor scratch on his nose (it didn't bleed) and he seemed terrified after it. Of course, I will be more mindful after this as I was just being too carefree for my own good and accidentally scared/harmed my piggie.

Well, it's next day now. He didn't come out begging for food like he usually does, and I'm not even sure if he ate when the food came (he was in his hiding place as usual). I took away the hiding place to check him and now he's in a corner, all puffy and barely doing anything. His walking isn't abnormal, but he doesn't seem too active as of right now. He was eating last night, but today I'm not so sure.

Is this something to be concerned about? What should I do?

Hi!

Just take a deep breath and calm down. Fred is fine and will recover from his scare just fine - as should you.

Try to avoid any sudden movements that could spook him as his prey animal instincts may take a few days to settle down but he will forgive you for the sake of a little treat the next time you interact at the bars.

Here is more information on how to work around triggering their prey animal instincts: Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering and Cuddling Tips

This link is part of our much wider practical how-to advice and in-depth information collection on a very wide range of topics, which you may hopefully find both helpful and interesting - and worth bookmarking for looking up: Comprehensive Owners' Practical and Supportive Information Collection