Not eating (AGAIN!) - Guinea Pig Cages, Care, Store, Photos of Guinea Pigs and More Forum!

**Rachy1412** · #1 04-19-06, 04:57 am

I came home from school to find Brownie sitting hunched up in the corner. His eyes are dull and he is all fluffled up. He won't eat and he won't move. I just weighed him and he has lost 2 ounces. He was fine yesterday, I don't see what is wrong with him! Maybe a URI? I've got a vet appointment for this evening, I am taking him and his two cagemates for mite treatments, hopefully the vet can determine what is wrong with him.

This is the second time he has stopped eating. The first time he lost 500grams and I had to force feed him for weeks! Should I force feed him now or wait to see what the vet says?

Thanks x

**WEAVER** · #2 04-19-06, 05:05 am

If he does not have a vet appointment until very late this afternoon and he is not eatting or drinking on his own than unfortunetly you are going to have to force feed him otherwise he is going to get to weak.

I know this must be hard on you and I am hoping that after seeing the vet Brownie will be feeling better real soon. I am keeping my fingers crossed and sending good thoughts your way.

**Rachy1412** · #3 04-19-06, 06:21 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by WEAVER

If he does not have a vet appointment until very late this afternoon and he is not eatting or drinking on his own than unfortunetly you are going to have to force feed him otherwise he is going to get to weak.

I know this must be hard on you and I am hoping that after seeing the vet Brownie will be feeling better real soon. I am keeping my fingers crossed and sending good thoughts your way.

Thanks Weaver and Gunnedah. I force fed him, it wasn't alot though, about 7mls. He would only chew if I stroked him..

I've never heard of either the vitamins or calcium. I tried giving him his favourite carrot and his other normal vegetables. Parsley or corriander didn't work, I also tried some grass and he doesn't want that. He did poop though after I force fed him! He looks so sad, yesterday he was popcorning and today he won't move.

The last time he did this was after he was neutered. The wound got infected and became severe, he then got bumble foot! I am thinking he may have a URI as when he breaths I can hear a clicking sound. If it is a URI do I need to treat ALL my piggies?

**Ly&Pigs** · #4 04-19-06, 12:34 pm

If it's a URI you won't have to treat the other pigs unless they become il too.
If you don't have some already, get some plain pedialyte and mix that in with either critical care or a pellet mash. Warm it slightly. I know you have been through this before so this is just a reminder. Also remember that pigs are very good at hiding illness so even the most subtle signs may require vet care. In your case the puffing up, the lethargy and the not eating are all signs of illness not to mention clicking when breathing.

**Rachy1412** · #5 04-19-06, 12:53 pm

We've been to the vets and he couldn't find anything wrong with him. He isn't clicking when he's breathing any more, I might have gotten the force feed down the wrong way. He is still lethargic but not puffed up anymore. The vet said that he has eaten something as he had green stuff in his mouth. (I gave him grass today.) But I just gave them dinner and he turned his nose up at it. What is pedialyte? I am going to keep force feeding him untill he eats again!

**Ly&Pigs** · #6 04-19-06, 12:56 pm

Pedialyte is used primarily for ill babies. It helps to restore their electrolyte balance. It can be found in the baby food section of any grocers.

**Rachy1412** · #7 04-19-06, 01:02 pm

Would we have that here in the UK?
I just typed it into google to see what it looked like and I found a link to this:
http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/HomemadeP.html

Is it any good? Most shops are shut now.

**LilSweety** · #8 04-19-06, 01:10 pm

Why are most shops shut down?
Isn't pedialyte only for babys? Is it ok for cavies?

**LBKK** · #9 04-19-06, 01:10 pm

I don't know if that is any good. Pedialyte is very low in sugar as sugar doesn't help that much....but I do not know enough to give you sound advice. Check out this site:

http://www.pedialyte.com/howpedialyt...advantages.cfm

I know you can go to the site map and order online for future but not sure if it's in the UK. You can always get some info as to exactly what it is and call your local drug store. All drug stores in Canada carry it and certain ones here are open 24 hours. Im sorry I can't be more helpful! Good luck!

**LBKK** · #10 04-19-06, 01:13 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by LilSweety

Why are most shops shut down?
Isn't pedialyte only for babys? Is it ok for cavies?

Pedialyte is technically made for babies that are dehydrated from the flu, diarrhea ?sp? etc. etc. However, it is made to re-establish the electrolytes in your body, which rehydrates you. From what I have heard on this site, you certainly can feed it to your guinea pigs to help with rehydration.

**Rachy1412** · #11 04-19-06, 01:18 pm

Its 8:20pm here, shops shut early on Wednesday. Thanks for the link LBKK. Do piggies ever just get a stomach upset? Maybe he ate a nasty bit of vegetable last night. The vet did say that he was not dehydrated though.

**Ly&Pigs** · #12 04-19-06, 01:25 pm

Get some in the morning. Don't make the homemade stuff. Pedialyte is perfectly fine for cavies. It helps keep them hydrated, especially if they aren't eating. Hydration from not eating can happen and may happen rather quickly so we advocate using pedialyte for a pellet mash or to make critical care with over using plain water. GL advocates the use of pedialyte so you know it's fine. That's where I learned it was safe.

**Jennicat** · #13 04-19-06, 01:47 pm

He's acting very much like my Hobo did when he went into GI stasis, Rachy. In addition to handfeeding him, try to keep a supply of interesting foods near him. Hobo finally ate some romaine when he would eat nothing else. I also used Pedialyte, and a product called simethecone (which is sold in the baby aisle) at the advice of my vet and rescue coordinator which is supposed to help with gas bubbles. Handfeeding him is definitely very important at this stage. I couldn't get him to eat Critical Care very easily, so I took just a dab of carrot baby food (plain, no sugar, just mushed up carrots) and mixed in with it to improve the flavor. That did seem to help him take it up. Good luck, keep feeding him!

**Rachy1412** · #14 04-19-06, 02:32 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by jennicat

He's acting very much like my Hobo did when he went into GI stasis, Rachy. In addition to handfeeding him, try to keep a supply of interesting foods near him. Hobo finally ate some romaine when he would eat nothing else. I also used Pedialyte, and a product called simethecone (which is sold in the baby aisle) at the advice of my vet and rescue coordinator which is supposed to help with gas bubbles. Handfeeding him is definitely very important at this stage. I couldn't get him to eat Critical Care very easily, so I took just a dab of carrot baby food (plain, no sugar, just mushed up carrots) and mixed in with it to improve the flavor. That did seem to help him take it up. Good luck, keep feeding him!

What exactly is stasis? I just went to see Brownie and he is laying down, his belly looks swollen and it makes a hollow noise when I tap on it. Do you think he has bloat? He pooped earlier so how can there be a blockage? The vet also felt his stomach and there was nothing wrong.

**Ly&Pigs** · #15 04-19-06, 03:01 pm

GI stasis in pigs is an intestinal slowdown that can cause food to lodge anywhere in the intestinal tract that can cause potential blockage. Symptoms include hunching up, small or no poo, lethargy, squeaking in pain.

If his tummy is swollen and it's sounding hollow it could be bloat which can be life threatening if left untreated.
Taken from GL:
BLOAT
If your guinea pig appears swollen and the stomach appears distended (a light tap on the side sounds hollow), see a vet immediately. Your guinea pig may have an intestinal blockage (torsion). This condition can be fatal if left untreated.

I am kicking myself because I overlooked this earlier. You need to get to a vet again and quickly.

**Jennicat** · #16 04-19-06, 03:19 pm

Ditto. To the best of my understanding, stasis and bloat are two seperate issues. Like Ly said, stasis is just the intestinal slowdown... with Hobo, he did not sound hollow. He dropped weight and seemed very thin. I'd definitely go to the vet, ASAP.

Also, is he making poops at all? If not, he may also have a blockage which may be contributing to his bloat.

**Rachy1412** · #17 04-19-06, 03:24 pm

I've only seen him poop once today. I tried force feeding him again but this time he won't even chew, it just dribbles out of his mouth.

He looks better than he did but still not his usual self. I don't know any 24hour emergency vets. My vets open at 9am, thats 10hours away. Surely my vet would have picked up on the bloat when we took him?!

**Jennicat** · #18 04-19-06, 03:30 pm

Is there an emergency vet you can get to, by any chance?

**Ly&Pigs** · #19 04-19-06, 03:32 pm

Quote:

Surely my vet would have picked up on the bloat when we took him?!

If he wasn't showing any signs of bloat at the time then probably not. If he's only pooped once today that's not good at all.

Try to find an emergency animal clinic because he may not make it until the morning. I really pray for you and he that he does, but with all the info you are giving us things aren't looking great at this point. You might even want to see if you can somehow get ahold of your vet at home and tell him this is an emergency.

**Rachy1412** · #20 04-20-06, 06:40 am

We took Brownie to the vets this morning and the vet said that it was not bloat. However he was struggling to stay alive so we had him put to sleep.

The vet doesn't know what was wrong with him and I don't want an autopsy done on him. It had been 5months since his neuter, maybe he never fully recovered. The girls don't seem to be worried that he isn't there at the moment, will they be ok?

R.I.P Brownie