Pregnant?

[Jjanec]

Hi everyone. I purchased two piggies 3 days ago. When i brought them i was told one was a bit chubby so to watch what she ate. I took her back today to ask advice and was told shes bloated and not to feed her for 2 days. Shes very happy in herself and eating fine.
I think she may be pregnant. What do you think?

 

[GPTV]

I'm no expert but she does have that lumpy look of possible pregnancy i think @Wiebke is clued up on pregnancies, i have tagged her in for you.
would you be able to put your approximate location, country, state or county in for ease of members giving more relevant advice, good veterinary practices to try etc. Go into the tool bar at the top & alter it if you can.

Also have a look in the pregnancy section, as experienced members look on there to help out with any problems that they can help with

OMG! please do not withhold food from her for two days, bloat & pregnancy have two completely different dietary requirements, please get her checked out by a cavy savvy vet, there are some recommended ones on here on the tool bar at the top.

If it was bloat she would sound hollow when gently tapping her middle & feel like a hot water bottle-kind of squishy, but solid all over. Fruit & veg could be withheld for a day or two & reintroduced slowly over time when she improves, feeding her only hay & nugget food.

With pregnancy the babies can probably be felt as ball type shapes & may be felt moving, all according as to how far gone she would be.
do you know how old she is? when was she separated from her siblings or parents?
Also veg can be given & nuggets should be reduced especially in the final stage of pregnancy or it will make the babies grow too large & quickly, which will cause more problems & complications

please dont poke around by her stomach too much yourself though as this could also harm the babies if she is pregnant

She has gorgeous colouring & markings

& to the forum by the way

 

[Wiebke]

Hi and welcome!

Firstly and foremost, you cannot starve a piggy, as the guts and then the body will start to close down pretty quickly. One of the most important things with any ill piggies is to keep the guts going no matter what!
Bloat is a serious, painful condition that needs to be seen by a vet as an emergency. Full blown bloat can kill. You can diagnose bloat by knocking gently on the belly; it should be tight and sound hollow where the bulge is. A piggy will also lose the appetite very quickly because of the pain. If you notice any of the symptoms, please see a vet as soon as you can. Take your girl off any fresh veg and weigh her daily at the same time.
Please do not use that place again for any kind of advice! Is it a shop or a breeder? We have got a piggy savvy vet locator for our UK members on the top bar.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/pages/guinea-pig-vet-locator/

It is MUCH more likely that your little girl is pregnant and most likely somewhere within the last 3 weeks of her 10 week pregnancy; that is when sows show. Please handle her gently and do not put any pressure on her belly.
Please open a thread in our pregnancy section for her, so you can get ongoing knowledgeable advice and support. We have got detailed guides at the top of the section that will hopefully answer any questions that you may have, but you are welcome to ask further questions that you may have at any time. We would be grateful if you added her age (if known); that can help to narrow down the birth window a bit more.
In case of a pregnancy, it is important that you limit her pellet intake to 40g in the last few weeks to make sure that any babies are an ideal size for birth and are not too big to cause trouble. You can also find further tips for a good diet and any extra needs in our pregnancy diet thread.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/pregnancy-guide.109375/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/pregnancy-diet.109377/

 

[Jjanec]

Hi. I've just got back from the emergency vet - they had a feel and said they are not sure as they cant feel any fetuses but that she could be early on. So, still not sure!

 

[Briony_S]

Wishing you luck! X

 

[Wiebke]

If you are lucky she is just greedy and a pudgy piggy. Sizes in youngsters can vary a lot. I am currently fostering three litter sisters for a sanctuary; one of the sisters is a lot bigger than the others.

We cannot diagnose a pregnancy or illness just via pictures, we can only advise and support you.

At least you can be relieved that she is not ill! Please read through our pregnancy guides and treat her as potentially pregnant until you know otherwise. The window for giving birth is basically from about 14 weeks old (4 weeks is the earliest she could have got pregnant) at the earliest to 10 weeks from the day you bought her at the latest. Realistically, you are likely not to have to wait for quite as long as the far end.

 

[Jjanec]

Thank you for the replies. Very very helpful info! Yes really hoping she is just a chubby piggy!

 

[Jessmacg]

Our vets didn't pick up our piggy pregnancy either and a week later she suddenly was huge so we took her back because we thought it would be bloat. Our vets did an ultrasound to make sure they knew what it was and it was quite a surprise to see two little heart beats on the screen, it's a shame we didn't get any picture printed out. She gave birth two weeks later so she was already quite far along, I am surprised they didn't pick up on it.

We have since moved to a more cavy savvy vet.

 

[Wiebke]

It isn't easy for vets to pick up on a pregnancy; the signs are often pretty subtle. Most vets are not that experienced with diagnosing piggy pregnancies in the first place - not even specialists.

Some pregnancies don't really show at all - I had a surprise baby that way from a newly rehomed sow. Her mum fooled both a very experienced rescue lady and me; but as the dad turned out to be a supposedly safe over 5 weeks post neutering op boar at the rescue, neither of us was expecting a pregnancy in the first place!

Basically, I wouldn't lose sleep over a potential pregnancy, but keep it in mind and keep alert. The best preparation is a good balanced diet.