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Question About Anal Sac Cleaning

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Mairi M

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I'm a new owner of two 16 month old adopted boars. I've never owned boars before. I've read a bit about impaction and the need to clean anal sacs. Is this something that should be done on a regular basis or is it best left alone and only done if I see they have a problem. I don't see problems yet and doubt they have ever had this procedure but want to know what to do for the best: wait and watch or regular clean? Is the method with Q tips a yes or a no? (I've read conflicting opinions). Thanks for any help. Just want to be prepared to do what I have to do should the need arise!
 
hi , good question, dificult to explain, but l will tell you how l do it

Pick up the boar, put your thumd and 1st finger around the bum , and feel for a lump of poo
l gentaly turn it with my fingers, whilst monerting,

you shold get an idea whether or not it is going to come out without any troble if it slowly starts to come
out without the need for oil and swabs .
"lf" itis reluctant to move, then use a swab with a little warm oil on it ,
the object is to try and get it lubrecated enough to come out without any discomfort to the pig.

if you have "any" problems at all, you vet, or vet nurse will happily do it for you.
 
Hi there,
I have a number of boars and I have only one that requires cleaning out because he's older. I would recommend checking their bits as part of your regular maintenance anyway.
 
There is an article on impaction in the latest issue of Guinea Pig Magazine, due out on Saturday.
 
Personally i would keep an eye on their bums as part of normal health checking. I wouldnt clean it out unless it needs done, and you can have a vet/nurse show you how to do it safely the first time around should you ever end up with an impacted boar :)
 
Thanks everyone for all the help! I will be looking out for the new issue of guinea pig magazine :-)
 
I went to the National Pet Show on Saturday and listened in to a guinea pig talk, there was a lot of emphasis on this lovely subject - I'm glad I have girl piggies, not boys! The advice seemed to be that this is nearly always a boar issue and you don't need to routinely check with sows - does that sound right?
 
Sometimes bits of hay/grass stalks get stuck. Or general yucky gunk builds up. Propping a piggy gently sitting up on year knee with his/her back against your tummy( have a towel on year lap) with one hand to support the pig you can use the thumb and forefinger of the other hand to gently open the anal sac and see if anything has clogged up in there! Or ask a competent helper to look for you. I use lint free cotton pads and luke warm water to clean down there if it is necessary,and pat dry with kitchen roll. Sometimes a bit of digging is needed and at this point year piggy might object and squeak, but if you are as gentle as possible the inspection won't be too stressful. We occasionally get piggies arrive at the rspca shelter who have been on totally inapropriate diets whose bottoms are in quite a state!
 
Love the names of your piggies Aunty C! I'm thinking I should at least check P&P's bottoms once even if it doesn't need to be a regular thing. I did adopt them and am not entirely clear how good or bad their diet was as I got them from someone on Gumtree who needed to rehome them. I've only had them with me for 2 weeks and 2 days and they are not particularly confident being handled but are making progress. The past 3 days I've managed to take each in turn on my lap for a small nibble of their favourite food. Each manages about 3 minutes then wants down. I'll wait till they are more confident of me before I perform such an intrusive health check on them. Poor wee things :-( Next thing will be nails....I'm hoping I can put that off another 2 weeks but I'll see how that goes. For now though I am bringer of tasty treats and I want to stay as only that for a little longer!
 
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