Question about Gas Bloat medicine

[GuineaPig Mom]

Hello,
So, I was thinking about taking him to a vet for a check of whether he has bloat or not, because I've been seeing a few signs of bloat in him (diarrhea, decreased stool production, and though its only my speculation, he was puffier around his rib cage).....
but I've recently taken my other piggie to the vet for arthritis, which came out to a $600, so if I can treat the bloat at home, I would like to.

I have a bottle of Infants' Gas Relief Drops (Simethicone) left over from a gas bloat of my other piggie last time, that was prescribed by my vet, so I was wondering if giving just half of the dose to my piggie would be fine. Just like how people take cold medicines even if they aren't sure if they have a cold won't do any harm to them, would giving gas bloat medicine to a guinea pig without being sure they have a gas bloat do harm to them?

 

[Little Ones]

When you say diarrhoea, do you mean literally runny poo or do you just mean softer poo? Runny diarrhoea is classed as a medical emergency in guinea pigs.
Personally, I’d take him to the vet and let them diagnose. With bloat, it’s not really around the rib cage that gets puffier, but the sides after the rib cage (it’s generally the intestines that fill with gas). I’d be worried you’re treating the wrong thing or making the situation worse. I know how it feels to spend so much on vet bills and then they still don’t stop rolling in either. But I wouldn’t chance it for the sake of what would be a £40/£50 appointment here in the UK. On the forum, we generally advise against home treating as problems can be made worse.

 

[GuineaPig Mom]

When you say diarrhoea, do you mean literally runny poo or do you just mean softer poo? Runny diarrhoea is classed as a medical emergency in guinea pigs.
Personally, I’d take him to the vet and let them diagnose. With bloat, it’s not really around the rib cage that gets puffier, but the sides after the rib cage (it’s generally the intestines that fill with gas). I’d be worried you’re treating the wrong thing or making the situation worse. I know how it feels to spend so much on vet bills and then they still don’t stop rolling in either. But I wouldn’t chance it for the sake of what would be a £40/£50 appointment here in the UK. On the forum, we generally advise against home treating as problems can be made worse.

I mean soft stool, if he had runny diarrhea I would've taken him to the vet immediately. Luckily, the stool is better now, and I'm still treating it with probiotics (benebac). If giving gas medicine when he may or may not have gas was harmful to him, I was planning on taking him to the vet. However, if it was unharmful, I wanted to try it out first, before taking him to the vet.
Thanks for the advice~

 

[Piggies&buns]

The correct medicine for confirmed bloat is prescription from a vet. Bloat can be fatal so if you suspect it, then you go immediately. Please don’t try to home treat at all.
Dont be tempted to give simethicone containing wind treatments for babies as this can make any gas worse as it gathers it into a big bubble which can make it much more painful.

 

[Jesse's pigs]

Bloat is an emergency in guinea pigs I’m afraid. You can get medication from the vet (mine prescribed a gut stimulant called Emeprid tho there will be others with the same benefit). And they would likely do some fast acting injections also to kickstart removing the bloat. Massaging the belly helps too.

I like to think I’m sorta knowledgeable now my little boy Steve has many episodes of it and had one massive one a little while back which if I hadn’t seeked a vet for he likely wouldn’t be here

The two xrays below were taken a DAY apart. That’s how quickly bloat can develop -note I’m not saying an X-ray will be taken to check if your piggy has it. I work at a clinic and my colleagues didn’t mind having a look (we were actually looking for bladder stones and noticed it)