Deaf guinea pig?

[jacquelinePIG]

My guinea pig, Honey, which is only about 2-3 months old, is deaf. ): I recently bought her today, just a couple of hours ago. I screamed in her ear, nothing. I clapped incredibly loud, nothing. Not even a flinch, or a twitch of her ears. I was just wondering if there are any things I should be aware about? I've got two other guinea pigs, one male called Casper, and one female called Peaches. All three get along just fine, but Casper is a horny son of a gun... But any who, they get along! For some reason Honey huddles up on the right top corner of the cage, no idea why. But thank goodness it means that she isn't blind. Again, is there anything I should be aware about? Her nose a bit pale, my mom says. She thinks that she's sick. Is that normal? Thanks! :)

[Haley0489]

You bought her? From a pet store?
If yes, then she probably is sick. Is she sneezing, eating, drinking, pooing? And you didn't quarantine her first? If she had mites and/or lice, all very common in pet store pigs, now your pigs have them too.

And you're housing a male with two females?! Are you trying to produce babies.

[jacquelinePIG]

Yes she is sneezing, eating, and pooing. I don't know about drinking though. My three guinea pigs don't even really drink enough water. Some do drink a lot and some don't, right? I doubt she has lice, cause then I would definitely have lice right now. OH MAN, I'M AN IDIOT!!! I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT THEIR BABIES WOULD BE DEAF TOO!!!!!

Originally Posted by Haley0489

You bought her? From a pet store?
If yes, then she probably is sick. Is she sneezing, eating, drinking, pooing? And you didn't quarantine her first? If she had mites and/or lice, all very common in pet store pigs, now your pigs have them too.

And you're housing a male with two females?! Are you trying to produce babies.

[jacquelinePIG]

We bought her from PetSmart.

[Haley0489]

Guinea pig lice is specific to guinea pigs, meaning you can't get it. If she's sneezing it's very likely she has a URI and needs medical treatment as soon as possible.
Guinea Lynx :: URI
Guinea Lynx :: Breeding
http://cavyspirit.com/breeding.htm

This site is very pro-rescue and anti-breeding. Have a look around and you'll see why.

[jacquelinePIG]

Okay well I have parent troubles and my mom isn't letting me take her to the vet, don't know why. So the best thing I can do is return her to PetSmart and they'll take care of the rest.. Won't they? I'm extremely angered by this situation on how I've found such a healthy looking guinea pig, and I find that Honey is ill. Although thank you for helping me on such short notice. Is there anything else I should be aware about?

[jacquelinePIG]

Well I'm checking on her right now. Clearly deaf, and clearly not blind. She doesn't seem to be itching. Maybe it was just me, but she doesn't seem to be sneezing at all. She likes to hide her face a lot, no clue why. She's not itching herself, her bone structures are fine...

[aqh88]

This site is entirely against breeding and purchasing guinea pigs from petstores or breeders. There are far too many homeless guinea pigs and the care of pigs in petstores and by most breeders is very poor. Most pigs from petstores have infections and/or parasites. This is a rescue oriented forum. For starters try looking through Index of / and then Guinea Lynx :: Reproduction.

2nd you should not get a guinea pig if you don't already have the money for vet bills. A vet fund is very important when you have pets. You never know what might come up. I've had bills up to $500 for pigs that were healthy when I got them. We don't want to go into the ones that weren't. If you get from a petstore (which you shouldn't in the first place) always expect to be treating for a respiratory illness and parasites. Parasites like lice or mites are so common many treat all new pigs whether there are symptoms or not. If you don't have at least $300 in a vet fund (personally I'd go $500 or more) or your parents aren't willing to pay at least that should the pig need medical care you should not be getting a guinea pig period.

The deafness, if the pig really is deaf, could be caused by an ear infection. The pig needs to be checked by a good exotics vet. Not the petsmart vets that are usually pretty crappy when it comes to guinea pigs. The bill should then be sent to the petstore and you may have to argue a little at this point but they should be made to pay for it. The new one should be quarantined from the others for several weeks before introductions. Also you should seperate the male and female IMMEDIATELY. No arguments. There is not reason to breed guinea pigs. There are too many out there and you are not passing on anything special by breeding yours. You don't even know the background of your pigs or their genetic history. It's irresponsible to breed these guinea pigs.

[Karsluma]

Could it be that she is very scared and not moving when you yell at her? Yelling at any animal can be scary.

I also made the mistake of buying my first pig from petsmart (and have since adopted 2 more from Craigslist), but I did take him to a vet the very first week - a routine vet bill for a pig is around $50.

Can I ask why you put her with the male? Do Casper and Peaches live together? Has peaches gotten pregnant? Maybe you should take Honey to a shelter where they will provide care for her. Taking her back to Petsmart will seal her fate :(

[jacquelinePIG]

Honey and Peaches try their best to avoid Casper, because the two little ladies here definitely know that Casper's 'excitement', level is extremely high. I've watched them for about over two hours yesterday, and every time Casper would try, 'coming up to them', they fly away! Which is good, because I mean, I wouldn't want them to be pregnant YET. I don't want Honey to be pregnant at all. As far as I can tell, Honey is never letting Casper touch her, so there's no worries about Honey getting pregnant. And Peaches is the skimpy type, who's startled at literally every movement. I even sighed as light as possible, and she scampered to her little hideout.

Ughhh, I am never getting a guinea pig from PetSmart. Ever.

Yes, I do have the money for the vet, (well at least my parents do), but they're very picky about spending their money. So whenever I DO spend money on them, my dad yells, and threatens me, saying that he'll throw them away. Literally. Not that I believe him, but recently her SERIOUSLY tossed my dog Summer's baby pugs into the cage and you could hear them yelping. Usually I'd have the strength to kick my dad, but I didn't. BUT ENOUGH OF THAT! Back to piggie business..

aqh88: Where do you think I could find their genetic history? Because if Peaches was pregnant or something, I would be incredibly surprised to find that her babies have long and coarse hair when they're over 3 weeks or so.

karsluma: Again, karsluma, Honey is deaf. But no worries, I make mistakes all the time because I don't really read right! I doubt that I would be able to take her to a shelter, because my mom loves her so much. Surprising, really, because my mom hasn't shown affection to an animal like that in ages.

Argghhh Honey keeps hiding her head under my arm, or she leaps onto my neck and hides under my hair. She'll do almost anything to hide her head! And whenever I pet her, she cries like mad. Is there anything I can do to stop this? Is it something to do with behavior, or is she hurt?? I don't really see any signs of illness, besides the fact that she's possible deaf, or like aqh88 said, could be a possible ear infection.

My cheap mom and I (no worries, it's a healthy joke.) are heading to the vet hopefully today. I will update as SOON as I get her checked. Thank you all very much for your answers, and I appreciate you all for helping my sweet Honey and I!

[VoodooJoint]

Originally Posted by jacquelinePIG

I wouldn't want them to be pregnant YET.

Why do you want them to be pregnant at all? What exactly is your purpose for wanting to breed them? Are you aware that the complication and death risk is very high with guinea pigs? Are you aware of the terrible animal overpopulation problem (yes, with guinea pigs too)? Did you know that over 2 million animals are euthanized every year simply because there aren't enough homes and that every animal you breed cases another animal somewhere to be euthanized?

Breeding is a serious endeavor and extremely irresponsible. I recommend you not breed at all and simply enjoy your pets. They are not toys that pop out cute little babies for you to enjoy. I suggest you read these threads
http://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/...ep-babies.html

Purposeful breeding results in stillborns and heartbroken owner
First litter one baby dies. Second litter all babies and mom die
One baby dead. Mom dead of toxemia
Lots of dead babies
Breeder dumps stud at a petstore once it is no longer useful
Bred GP is denied medical treatment all 4 babies die
Petco/Petsmart Breeder/Supplier Retires and Dumps His Herd of over 500 Guinea pigs
Rescued sow delivers one live, one dead, and dies of prolapsed uterus
Ughhh, I am never getting a guinea pig from PetSmart. Ever.

Originally Posted by jacquelinePIG

they're very picky about spending their money. So whenever I DO spend money on them, my dad yells, and threatens me, saying that he'll throw them away. Literally. Not that I believe him, but recently her SERIOUSLY tossed my dog Summer's baby pugs into the cage and you could hear them yelping.

Geez, you're breeding dogs too? Honestly, I'm losing all faith in humanity lately. Do animal breeders live somewhere where there are no animal shelters? How can you all miss the fact that there are thousands of dogs needing homes and being euthanized in your own backyards.

On top of that you seem to have a borderline animal abuser in the house. Why would you want to bring more animals into that household and risk their lives and safety. Please, look at the big picture going on! Consider more then yourself when making decisions.

Originally Posted by jacquelinePIG

aqh88: Where do you think I could find their genetic history?

You can't find out their genetic history. DO NOT breed these animals.

I almost forgot, here is a short video for you to watch. It's all about how wonderful breeding is PETA TV:Buy One, Get One Killed

[Ziggy&Herald]

You are being very irresponsible. Not only are you a BYB of Pugs, but now trying to do the same with pigs that you have no background on. Separate your pigs. It's probably too late now anyway and already have one litter on the way, most of which will probably die if not the mother as well. But now you have a pig, that you say was born deaf, that will produce babies of the same genetics deformities. Take your pig to the vet, have her ears checked, separate the male from the females and have your dog spayed.

On top of that you seem to have a borderline animal abuser in the house.

I don't think he is borderline really. If he is throwing puppies in any manner, in my eyes that is abuse!

[Jennicat]

Look. They are not going to avoid him and not get pregnant. They are going to go into heat, they are going to get pregnant, and then you're going to have TWO pregnant pigs, and possibly as many as 12+ babies. That you won't be able to get vet care. PLEASE separate them now.

[aqh88]

That's part of the problem you cannot find any genetic information or history on these animals. You don't know if they are inbred. You don't know if their carrying some disorder. You probably don't even know how to tell a roan (roan crossed with roan equals lethal whites which means blind, deaf, and usually dead babies). You could end up with some deformed babies, dead babies, or a dead mother. Then what would you do? Can you stay up all night handfeeding and paying for extensive vet care. What happens if the mother needs a csection? It's not uncommon and expensive. Can you run to the vet at 3am and spend a few hundred $ on surgery? Did you know that after about 8months of age dystocia is very common. That's when the cartilage holding the pubic bones stiffens so the bones cannot seperate and allow the babies out. A c section is then required to safe the life of the mother and pups. Yet breeding too young results in stunted mothers and pups, shortened lifespans of both, more complications, a higher chance for runts, stillborns, and especially oversized singletons. Do you know exactly how old all your pigs are? What day of what month were they born? Do you know a pigs heat cycle? That they could get pregnant at just 4 weeks old? There's a good chance your females are already pregnant. So do you know how long their gestation is and when the pups will be born so you can stay up and keep watch or are you planning to not sleep for a few weeks.... Are you aware that females come into heat immediately after having their pups and can get pregnant again? Your females will need to be in their own cage before they give birth which means your male will need another cagemate and you'll need 2 cages just for that. Then you will need space for the pups to be seperated at 3weeks old or the male babies could start getting the females pregnant including their mom. Bit more to this than throwing together 2 random pigs and expecting healthy babies isn't there. I found alot of this out first hand as a kid before I came to this site. I've seen alot of dead guinea pigs and buried alot of lost pups.

I cringe everytime I see a pregnancy thread because the outcome so frequently results in something bad. An oversized pup that's dead or an oversized pup that kills the mom cause it can't come out right. Runts, stillborns... It's a good pregnancy thread when the mother is still alive at the end and a great thread when the babies are too. There is no reason to risk these pigs lives to create more of the same when there are a few hundred just like them in shelters and rescues. Seperate your pigs. Build a male cage and a female cage and enjoy their company for the rest of their lives. Which without breeding should be at least 6years and sometimes 8+. With breeding you may not have them in 2months and you'll be very lucky if they make 4.

[jacquelinePIG]

*EDITED* you guys! Calm down! My dad is not a murderer of some kind, he is just a threatener. I'm taking the male one back!