Young one drinking loads of water

[Natasha3589]

Hi as you all know I've had concerns over nugget in the 3 weeks I've known him. He's roughly 11 weeks old and he's drinking loads of water. We have big rabbit type drinking bottles and I'd say the last two days he's got through around a 3rd of the bottle. I'm not sure if this is normal or not or whether I'm just noticing because chicken hardly drinks anything? I have a health check up on the 6th Oct for them both but do u think I should get him seen to before then? X

 

[Wiebke]

Hi as you all know I've had concerns over nugget in the 3 weeks I've known him. He's roughly 11 weeks old and he's drinking loads of water. We have big rabbit type drinking bottles and I'd say the last two days he's got through around a 3rd of the bottle. I'm not sure if this is normal or not or whether I'm just noticing because chicken hardly drinks anything? I have a health check up on the 6th Oct for them both but do you think I should get him seen to before then? X

Please have a read through this guide here. Water intake in guinea pigs can vary massively without a guinea pig being ill. If in doubt, have your little one vet checked.
All About Drinking And Bottles

 

[worried val of york]

Hi Natasha @Natasha3589
Have you checked if the water is going into your guinea pig and not just on the base of the cage. I had this problem when one of the guinea pigs was always messing around with his water dispenser and the base of the cage was wet through. Wiebke is a real expert on guinea pigs so I would follow her advice if necessary.
Val x

 

[Natasha3589]

Hi Natasha @Natasha3589
Have you checked if the water is going into your guinea pig and not just on the base of the cage. I had this problem when one of the guinea pigs was always messing around with his water dispenser and the base of the cage was wet through. Wiebke is a real expert on guinea pigs so I would follow her advice if necessary.
Val x

Thanks Val, there is a puddle where he's been "drinking" it! Problem solved lol hope u are well! X

 

[worried val of york]

Some guinea pigs are proper little tinkers when it comes to water bottles. I have quite a variety of bottles as some can be better than others. But some some can drip even without the guinea pig using them. I have Sippy large water bottle 600 cc) by Ferplast that is pretty good. I hope all goes well with your two young guinea pigs and you can relax and enjoy them.

 

[Little Piglets]

I switched to the glass bottles which seem to have better quality tips after a larger plastic one would leak out in an hour. Two bottles have a little stopper inside which shows water level at a glance. Other bottle has a different tip advertised as a "no-drip" tip which just has an extra insert the ball bearing rests in.

None of the 3 glass bottles drip. You do have to watch that over time, algae or food particles aren't clinging to the ball bearing (on all water bottles) or inside the metal tube as it'll stop the seal and allow leaking. Cheaper bottles can have irregular metal seams which the bearing will never seat against 100% perfectly.

If you buy a new bottle (glass is more expensive, but worth it in my opinion and less chance of chemicals being leached from the plastic) keep the receipt. Try it for a couple days. If it leaks, take it back and get another.

 

[PigglePuggle]

Some guinea pigs are proper little tinkers when it comes to water bottles. I have quite a variety of bottles as some can be better than others. But some some can drip even without the guinea pig using them. I have Sippy large water bottle 600 cc) by Ferplast that is pretty good. I hope all goes well with your two young guinea pigs and you can relax and enjoy them.

During the heatwave Theo deliberately vandalised his waterbottle spout with determined chewing and bending to make it into a shower he could wet his ears with, he's a clever piggy!