evening all....what would cause a young guinea pig to lose weight? i have here a 4 month old boy who seems to have lost quite a bit of weight recently, he lives with his three brothers and they are all 3 times bigger than he is, he is too light to register his weight on my normal scales so shall be investing in some new kitchen scales on monday. he is eating fine his poops are fine, but his back bone is beginning to stick out and you can see physically he's losing condition? (he doesnt look as 'healthy' as the other three) any ideas before i toddle off to the vets on monday with him(gonna get him checked over any how incase its a teeth problem but as he's eating fine i cant see it being that?)
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thin guinea pig
- Thread starter Spishkey
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a) is he getting enough food next to his brothers?
b) are his teeth, mouth and throat OK?
c) are his guts in order?
d) is he wormed?
e) has he got diabetes, as he is obviously processing food?
b) are his teeth, mouth and throat OK?
c) are his guts in order?
d) is he wormed?
e) has he got diabetes, as he is obviously processing food?
i should imagine he is getting enough food, there is always hay/pellets left in the bowls (they are never empty!)
his front teeth look fine but shall get his back teeth checked on monday
if he's pooping fine, surely that must mean his guts are working fine
him and his brothers were wormed 2 months ago, how often should that be done?
how do you tell if a gp has diabetes? would this require blood testing?
thanks for the fast reply wiebke
his front teeth look fine but shall get his back teeth checked on monday
if he's pooping fine, surely that must mean his guts are working fine
him and his brothers were wormed 2 months ago, how often should that be done?
how do you tell if a gp has diabetes? would this require blood testing?
thanks for the fast reply wiebke
S
snuppins
I had 2 sisters from the same litter, one was always fat and the other had to be the runt since she remained tiny into adulthood. She was always the low man in the group, but she did eat with gusto. Over the span of a few weeks she lost weight and then in days declined and had to be put down. They though because of lymphoma because her lymphnodes were enlarged. Interestingly she had been seen by my vet the day before and her lymphnodes were normal. So I have no idea what happened, if it was cancer or what, but it happened so fast. Just be sure to be very aggressive about it now, rather than later.
It could be diabetes, teeth, worms like Wiebke mentioned. Could be hormonal/overactive thyroid. Maybe there is a problem with absorption of nutrients which could be worms or a deficiency of some type. It could be something more serious, but it seems like the little pigs that I've had have always had some type of abnormality and weren't as healthy.
It could be diabetes, teeth, worms like Wiebke mentioned. Could be hormonal/overactive thyroid. Maybe there is a problem with absorption of nutrients which could be worms or a deficiency of some type. It could be something more serious, but it seems like the little pigs that I've had have always had some type of abnormality and weren't as healthy.
If he is eating and pooping normaly, I'd rather expect some problem with the food absorption as well, rather than tooth trouble.
Diabetes testing is not as easy, since piggy urine is normally quite high in sugar so gets easily mistaken for diabetes. We had a thread about that not long ago. http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=41124&highlight=diabetes
I must admit that your poor boy is beyond my medical knowledge. I hope that some of the heavier guns may have more suggestions.
Diabetes testing is not as easy, since piggy urine is normally quite high in sugar so gets easily mistaken for diabetes. We had a thread about that not long ago. http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=41124&highlight=diabetes
I must admit that your poor boy is beyond my medical knowledge. I hope that some of the heavier guns may have more suggestions.
Hi spishkey
Assuming he is eating sufficient quantity of food, metabolic issues causing weightloss would include heart condition or thyroid problem....maybe because he is the runt, there is an underlying condition....
Alternatively he may not be getting his full ration of dried food because of teeth, infection, pain or because he has to wait until everyone else finishes....I have on two occasions had to remove the runt from the group at 4-6 months because they failed to thrive, got bullied and ended up on their own in a corner. Both runts are now a lovingly bonded pair
|)
Might be worth taking him out each day and giving him his own source of food to see how much he will eat and see if that makes a difference to his weight.
Assuming he is eating sufficient quantity of food, metabolic issues causing weightloss would include heart condition or thyroid problem....maybe because he is the runt, there is an underlying condition....
Alternatively he may not be getting his full ration of dried food because of teeth, infection, pain or because he has to wait until everyone else finishes....I have on two occasions had to remove the runt from the group at 4-6 months because they failed to thrive, got bullied and ended up on their own in a corner. Both runts are now a lovingly bonded pair
|)Might be worth taking him out each day and giving him his own source of food to see how much he will eat and see if that makes a difference to his weight.
Spishkey - did you read tattyruncy's thread on her guinea-pig who had lost weight? I wonder if he needs worming. Here's the thread:
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=40044
alcesterpigs
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I have yet to come across a pig of that age that needed worming.
A dental problem at that age is most likely to be a congenital abnormality.
Do not let the vet even suggest a general anaesthetic is necessary to look at his back teeth.
This is one time that an accurate set of scales is a must to determine the trend of his weight.
A dental problem at that age is most likely to be a congenital abnormality.
Do not let the vet even suggest a general anaesthetic is necessary to look at his back teeth.
This is one time that an accurate set of scales is a must to determine the trend of his weight.
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