• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

What to expect with an OAPiggie! :)

Status
Not open for further replies.
M

MemberX

Joined
Jul 6, 2007
Messages
17,315
Reaction score
11
Points
0
Hi All,

As you all know Maggie came to live with us 3 weeks ago nearly. She is eating, drinking no problem but I am a little concerned that she is sleeping a lot and not moving as much as my next oldest pigs Bupu, Esme and Goldmoon who are all 3 years old.

Maggie is 5 years old or there abouts which is 70 in Guinea Pig years or so I am told (14 birthdays a year) so is this right for an ol' girl? Nutty will be ready to go with her next Wednesday as it will be 6 weeks since his op and I am hoping that will liven her up a little!

Maggie is indoors to get used to us and the noise of our girls and seems ok in herself, but looks down in the dumps! She was much better last week! I think because she could see the pigs! I brought her in because in the run on Sunday she did run around and seemed to really tire herself out and was laying around for a hell of a long time. She wouldn't mix with the other nine sows and just sat in the corner. Poor love doesn't know how to react to her own kind seeing as she has never lived with them before.

So thats all I want to know really, is this normal behaviour for an Old aged piggy?

Thanks!

Louise
x
 
Captain Jack sleeps 90% of the time and he's 5 or 6 years old. He wakes up for food - that's about it! Bless. He's also a little hard of hearing and usually looks dead in the mornings, but he's sleeping and just doesn't hear me open the cage door... :)

I expect she's a bit unsettled by all the change - if she's eating ok and not losing weight then I guess time will do it!

Sophie
x
 
Beefy (who is 4) will run about for 2 minutes then suddenly decide to have a sleep and worries me constantly really don't think I will ever get used to his impromtue naps (which look like comas!)

She may liven up a bit with company but as sophie said change is unsettling so it may take a little while, you might find she adjusts better to male company than other ladies x)
 
Thanks guys. She does go into a deep sleep now and again! I'll get used to it haha! I did try her with Leia but she went for her! She doesn't poop much either. I just hope she is here long enough to enjoy her retirement. :)
 
Awww bless her. Have you checked her bottom? Very rarely sows can suffer from impaction too, Beefy has a bad case hence his name Bass bin Beefy and needs cleaning out twice a day. Don't think anyone would want to take that smelly job on so doubt he will ever get adopted, so even as he came in as a rescue pig I think he is here to stay, plus at his age another move would be unsettling, and I x) the comotose old fruit bat!

I hope she has a long and happy retirement :(|)
 
Poor Beefy, he sounds lovely! eah bum is all fine, have her out now and again but keep talking to her through the bars! I think she is past the stage of climbing the bars for a good old chi wag like Logan our youngest at 5 months does.

She's eating her veg but I am introducing it slowly to her as I am not sure she has had any recently. She was kept in a bad way, just left in a hutch with not many home comforts. So this is a huge change for her. :)
 
Oh bless her heart glad she is getting some tlc in her retirement years.

Beefy is very good about his cleaning out routing to be honest he is so loose down there he hardly notices very little muscle tone, glad your little lady does not have the same problem it is a smelly old job for both parties involved.:)>>> LOL
 
Oh bless her heart glad she is getting some tlc in her retirement years.

Beefy is very good about his cleaning out routing to be honest he is so loose down there he hardly notices very little muscle tone, glad your little lady does not have the same problem it is a smelly old job for both parties involved.:)>>> LOL
 
it could just be her temperament... Bertie (4 1/2 nearly) has always been a lazy pig... He sleeps like a baby for hours then eats drinks and sleeps some more and always has... Finlay just runs laps around the cage, popcorns and squeaks all the time and Bertie has to tell him off for disturbing the peace... Before that Rene would boss Bertie about and force him to run around and Bertie would find somewhere to hide whilst Rene went absolutely crazy... he used to sleep in the curtains or under the rug... Hilarious to see a paw stick out of the drapes or a lump in the sheep rug... and Rene zooming around from behind the furniture like a demented animal...:)):)):))

Havinf said that, Maggie may well perk up a bit with a friend...
 
it could just be her temperament... Bertie (4 1/2 nearly) has always been a lazy pig... He sleeps like a baby for hours then eats drinks and sleeps some more and always has... Finlay just runs laps around the cage, popcorns and squeaks all the time and Bertie has to tell him off for disturbing the peace... Before that Rene would boss Bertie about and force him to run around and Bertie would find somewhere to hide whilst Rene went absolutely crazy... he used to sleep in the curtains or under the rug... Hilarious to see a paw stick out of the drapes or a lump in the sheep rug... and Rene zooming around from behind the furniture like a demented animal...:)):)):))

Having said that, Maggie may well perk up a bit with a friend...
 
SunshineAndTwinkle said:
Thanks guys. She does go into a deep sleep now and again! I'll get used to it haha! I did try her with Leia but she went for her! She doesn't poop much either. I just hope she is here long enough to enjoy her retirement. :)
Click to expand...

Hi Louise, Every single day she has with you is a huge bonus. Bare cage, no hay, no water, no food, outside in all weathers. She never had a friend only a big rabbit up til a year ago. She may just be relaxing in her 5* luxury with you. I bet she has never even been able to lie down in comfort for such a long time. I know you are doing all that can be done for her, I think she is very content, knowing that she is loved to bits. x
 
Hi Louise
I have ony ever had elderly guinea pigs (boys, not girls). I've found them to be very lazy, but loveable creatures. Noggin who is 5 conducts almost his entire life from the comfort of his piggy basket. He has it positioned under his hay rack so he can eat in bed and drags his veg back to his basket. All his poos are done in it and he even lets me hoover his basket whilst he is still in it. My teenage son says that in his next life he is coming back as Noggin ! So I think you new piggy is probably just displaying what we call "Old Pig Syndrome" !
Rachel x
 
The sleeping is normal - all they want to do is have their regular food, sleep it off, have some cuddles and more food, and then drop off again... Preferably in the warmest, softest place possible!

Have you tried Maggie with just one of the girls? Did it not work out with Nutty?
 
Thanks guys,

Maggie will be living with Nutty next Wednesday as that is 6 weeks after his op. She has bucked up a little squeaking more and has settled in a lot. All my girls are in groups of 4,3 and 2 so didn't want to just try her with one so will wait for Nutty to be ready. :)

x
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top