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Small poos but eating normally

string_pudding

New Born Pup
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Hello,

Wicket's poos have been getting smaller over the last week or so but he seems fine and is eating normally. He Hates being caught so it's been tricky to weigh him regularly (this changes starting today, sorry mate), but he looks healthy. Could this be the heat? Or is there something more sinister we should get him checked out for? I saw another post recommending that you stop feeding him greens for a while to up his fibre, I don't want to do this if it won't help as he does love his veg but is this something we should try?

Thanks!

Christine
 
Smaller poops indicate not enough food going in.
Hay is their main food source and you can’t judge hay intake by eye so it is not possible to know he is in fact eating enough. Weighing them is the only way to know they are getting enough hay and it does need to be done weekly as it is often the early warning sign of a problem starting.
You are going to need to weigh him daily from now on and step in with syringe feeding, particularly if his weight is dropping.
Stopping veg helps if there is a gut disturbance. Heat can cause a loss of appetite.

I’ll add in some links to useful guides below.

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
Weight - Monitoring and Management
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig Safely
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
 
Thanks for the advice. Weighing will definitely start tonight, just as soon as I've caught the sassy bug*** . Do you think we should be syringe feeding him regardless of weight changes?

Christine
 
Thanks for the advice. Weighing will definitely start tonight, just as soon as I've caught the sassy bug*** . Do you think we should be syringe feeding him regardless of weight changes?

Christine

Smaller poops suggest something is going on but without knowing his weights you can’t really judge what has been happening over the past week and how much too little he has been eating. I think I would weigh him, offer some top up syringe feeds and then weigh again tomorrow and see what is happening within the 24 hour period as that will give you a better idea of where to go next and how much he needs support feeding. It would be worth booking him in for a check up with the vet. It’s important you weigh at the same time each day so that you get the same time in the feeding cycle. You are going to see fluctuations in his weight.

Try herding him into a carrier in order to catch him.

If you could keep any updates to this same thread, then it enables us to help you with further support going forward relating to any weight changes etc and what to do next
If would also be good if you could add your general location to your profile as it means we can tailor our advice more easily.
 
Try herding him into a carrier in order to catch him.

He got wise to that after a few gos, now doesn't go into the carrier when we're near it. Will go in it when we're not there though (they have free reign of their room and the carriers are part of the furniture). We have our ways but I worry that it stresses him out, hence we don't do it as often as we should. But that's for another thread.

I will get on to all of the above today and give an update here. Thanks again for all the help.

Christine
 
Weigh in done! He's pretty small (size wise) se we were able to coax him to sit on the scales with some food. 860g tonight. Will report back tomorrow.
 

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About 1.75 yrs we think. He was a rescue with his half brother who's a little younger but twice as big! We think he was the runt of a litter but that doesn't stop him being boss pig.
 

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