Suddenly Mad For Pellets - Drinking More Than Normal

[Claire W]

I am putting this in the health and illness section although I'm not sure if this is the right place for it to be so please feel free to move it to the appropriate section if necessary.

Emma and Ellen are fed roughly 30g each of harringtons pellets per day. I must admit, that I do sometimes give them a few extra in the evenings if they have cleared their bowl.

But for the last week or so, they are both going mad for pellets and emptying their bowls by dinnertime and this is after they have eaten their morning veg and have tummy fulls of hay!

Emma is slightly worse than Ellen but I have noticed that Emma in particular is drinking more water than normal. Is this due to them eating their pellets in more of a rush or should I be concerned as Ellen is diabetic and Emma has IC and receiving a daily dose of metacam (I'm concerned about kidney problems)? Ellen's diabetes is under control and is more than likely in remission now as he excessive drinking has stopped and she hasn't had high levels of glucose in her urine for a while now, but I'm always keeping an eye on her behaviour in case she experiences problems again and as I lost a guinea pig to kidney failure, I'm also wary of that.

Also, can anyone shed any light to why they have suddenly developed this obsession for going mad for their pellets?

I am taking in to account that the weather is warming up but I'm just worrying due to the fact they both have health issues.

 

[Wiebke]

I am putting this in the health and illness section although I'm not sure if this is the right place for it to be so please feel free to move it to the appropriate section if necessary.

Emma and Ellen are fed roughly 30g each of harringtons pellets per day. I must admit, that I do sometimes give them a few extra in the evenings if they have cleared their bowl.

But for the last week or so, they are both going mad for pellets and emptying their bowls by dinnertime and this is after they have eaten their morning veg and have tummy fulls of hay!

Emma is slightly worse than Ellen but I have noticed that Emma in particular is drinking more water than normal. Is this due to them eating their pellets in more of a rush or should I be concerned as Ellen is diabetic and Emma has IC and receiving a daily dose of metacam (I'm concerned about kidney problems)? Ellen's diabetes is under control and is more than likely in remission now as he excessive drinking has stopped and she hasn't had high levels of glucose in her urine for a while now, but I'm always keeping an eye on her behaviour in case she experiences problems again and as I lost a guinea pig to kidney failure, I'm also wary of that.

Also, can anyone shed any light to why they have suddenly developed this obsession for going mad for their pellets?

I am taking in to account that the weather is warming up but I'm just worrying due to the fact they both have health issues.

The increased water intake is due to eating their pellets. We are also getting a rush of people worried about incresed drinking at the moment now that the weather is warming up, so you are not alone! I guess that the increased light levels can also stimulate their appetites?

 

[Claire W]

The increased water intake is due to eating their pellets. We are also getting a rush of people worried about incresed drinking at the moment now that the weather is warming up, so you are not alone! I guess that the increased light levels can also stimulate their appetites?

Thank you. I did wonder if the weather plus eating more pellets would contribute. What would you suggest in terms of pellets? Carry on giving them the 60g between them in the morning and not giving them anymore until late evening? I know that you give yours small handfuls throughout the day rather than just a bigger portion in one sitting

 

[Tinka]

I am putting this in the health and illness section although I'm not sure if this is the right place for it to be so please feel free to move it to the appropriate section if necessary.

Emma and Ellen are fed roughly 30g each of harringtons pellets per day. I must admit, that I do sometimes give them a few extra in the evenings if they have cleared their bowl.

But for the last week or so, they are both going mad for pellets and emptying their bowls by dinnertime and this is after they have eaten their morning veg and have tummy fulls of hay!

Emma is slightly worse than Ellen but I have noticed that Emma in particular is drinking more water than normal. Is this due to them eating their pellets in more of a rush or should I be concerned as Ellen is diabetic and Emma has IC and receiving a daily dose of metacam (I'm concerned about kidney problems)? Ellen's diabetes is under control and is more than likely in remission now as he excessive drinking has stopped and she hasn't had high levels of glucose in her urine for a while now, but I'm always keeping an eye on her behaviour in case she experiences problems again and as I lost a guinea pig to kidney failure, I'm also wary of that.

Also, can anyone shed any light to why they have suddenly developed this obsession for going mad for their pellets?

I am taking in to account that the weather is warming up but I'm just worrying due to the fact they both have health issues.

I had this issue a few weeks ago! It was so out of the blue. My two girls were emptying their water bottle. I'm still unsure what happened, but eventually they returned to their normal behavior. I swear sometimes pigs like to worry us on purpose. But watch out for increased activity. If they're being more active than usual, they could just be working up a thirst.

 

[Swissgreys]

I also think as the weather improves and we start to leave windows open, the atmosphere in most houses is suddenly a lot drier.

 

[Claire W]

Thank you both. Emma is currently doing the same thing as yesterday i.e pellet... water... pellet... water... pellet... water... I'm thinking of measuring out their pellets in the morning and then giving them their pellets little but often during the day instead of just the one sitting in the morning to stop Emma from scoffing them all in one go? It's also warm again here today so I have opened the window in their room.

It's meant to be getting colder again next week so I will see what happens then and just keep an eye on them in the meantime.

I'm just such an anxious mess and and this recent increase in thirst has worried me and I had finally stopped worrying

 

[Mkay611310315]

My Guinea pig has been peeing non stop. To the point I have to clean his cage out because it's soaked. He's been drinking more than normal as well.... He's still eating and acting normal
I adopted him so I'm unsure of his actual age & he's been to the vet before for other issues (URI)
I've looked online and this is a sign of diabetes?

 

[Claire W]

My Guinea pig has been peeing non stop. To the point I have to clean his cage out because it's soaked. He's been drinking more than normal as well.... He's still eating and acting normal
I adopted him so I'm unsure of his actual age & he's been to the vet before for other issues (URI)
I've looked online and this is a sign of diabetes?

Hello and welcome.

Excessive urination can be down to a number of things which only a vet can diagnose.

Yes, excessive drinking and urination can be a sign of diabetes but again, it can only be diagnosed by a vet.

First a urine sample should be tested for glucose. If there is glucose in the urine, this should be followed up by a blood test (usually a pin prick behind the ear) to test for the presence of glucose in the blood.

I advise that you see a vet as like I say, there could be many reasons x

 

[Freela]

My pigs go on and off pellets... they will have a couple weeks where they are ravenously emptying both bowls and then a couple of weeks where I am tossing out uneaten pellets every morning. I have never figured out the rhyme or reason for it! I would think that increased drinking would be due to the increased pellet intake... they are very dry!