Medical Care: Could this be blood in the cage?

[MomtoO&O]

I just found this in my girls' cage and I am worried that it is blood. Both are pregnant. Does this look like blood to any of you?

I fed them blueberries, though I didn't think they touched them. I suppose it could be a smashed blueberry?

When sows are getting ready to deliver, do they have a "bloody show"? If so, I wonder if that's what this is?

Sorry if the image is too big.

[NicholsS10]

It looks like blood to me, and if they are bleeding like that and are pregnant they should be taken to a cavy savvy vet as soon as possible.

How far along are they?

[MomtoO&O]

It's 10:45pm where I'm at...I can't get to a vet until tomorrow morning at the earliest. So, this is a very bad sign?

I really don't know exactly how far a long they are. I adopted them on March 24th and found out they were pregnant about 3 weeks later. One of them appears to be very close to delivery.

[theresaj]

Oh my, it sure does look like blood. :O

[MomtoO&O]

But, is that normal in delivery? Or, only in a pregnancy gone awry?

[PiggieMamaKelly]

I have no experience with piggy pregnancy. Hoping it's a normal part of labor and sending good thoughts.

[MomtoO&O]

Thank you. I am calling E.V.A.H. in the morning. The red spot has stayed pretty magenta-like, and I assume blood would turn brown. Yet, I can't think of anything else it could be (I smashed a blueberry on the fleece just to check, doesn't look anything like this stain.)

I'm trying not to worry...both girls are eating, drinking, walking around like nothing is going on. I'm trying to stay far away from their cage and keep the lights low so if one is in labor she feels safe.

[PiggieMamaKelly]

You can try posting on Guinealynx too. There are a lot of people there with lots of medical knowledge and experience. Seems like blood would be normal right before birth but I have no idea.

Maybe you are going to be a grand-pig-ma tonight.

[MomtoO&O]

Good idea! I will do that. It would be great to have the babies here; I sure hope that's it.

I just went and had a peak...Ophelia looks like she's having contractions. Or, she's super upset at Olive. I would like to take Olive out of the cage if Ophelia is in labor, but I think me doing so would cause such a disturbance that Ophelia's labor could be harmed.

[Skeetersmom]

How did she do? That doesn't really look like blood to me. Especially if it stayed that bright color. It looked more like the blueberries to me. They are all different colors depending on whether they are ripe or not. Not positive though. How is she doing?

[Peggysu]

Best wishes. You and your girl are in my thoughts!

[Amsley246]

When they go into labor, there should be very little blood. The most you should see is a few drops around the cage. The labor and delivery shouldn't be long either, so if she didnt deliver the babies yet, she could be in trouble. I read you couldn't get a hold of the vet but I'd bring her in first thing in the morning and keep a very close eye on her over night! Good luck to you!

[MomtoO&O]

I stayed up with the girls until about 2am; it was very uneventful. This morning, however, I woke up to find a baby that didn't make it hidden in a pigloo. I am pretty sure the baby was Olive's because she no longer looks pregnant, yet Ophelia does. I'm taking them both to the vet as soon as I can.

[4piggers]

Originally Posted by MomtoO&O

I stayed up with the girls until about 2am; it was very uneventful. This morning, however, I woke up to find a baby that didn't make it hidden in a pigloo. I am pretty sure the baby was Olive's because she no longer looks pregnant, yet Ophelia does. I'm taking them both to the vet as soon as I can.

Awe...Im sorry. Sounds like she wasnt able to get the baby out in ample time. Could have been what the blood was from.

Olive looks ok though? No more bleeding? On a plus note, Im glad she is ok.

[MomtoO&O]

She does look okay. We're seeing the vet at 11am.

It's interesting to me that the baby wasn't covered in a sack and the placenta must have been eaten. Makes me think the baby wasn't born dead.

I wish I could have done something.

[Amsley246]

So sorry to hear that! Yes the mother eats the sack after the baby is born. It supposed to help stimulate them to start producing milk. Poor thing, wishing her a speedy recovery!

[4piggers]

Originally Posted by MomtoO&O

She does look okay. We're seeing the vet at 11am.

It's interesting to me that the baby wasn't covered in a sack and the placenta must have been eaten. Makes me think the baby wasn't born dead.

I wish I could have done something.

Like the other poster stated, the mother does eat the placenta, for milk production. They will do this whether the baby is alive or not. Its an instinct thing. And honestly sometimes they dont realize the baby is still born until the sack is gone.

Like many occasions there just isnt anything you can do. Its nature at its worst. Whether you stayed up another hour or not. So dont beat yourself up about this.

Just rest assured your Olive made it through the birth. Hugs to you.

[MomtoO&O]

We just returned from the vet. As expected, the baby was Olive's because she is no longer pregnant. Ophelia has begun to separate, so it shouldn't be much long before she delivers.

[PiggieMamaKelly]

Sorry to hear about the baby. Glad mama is doing alright.

[Skeetersmom]

Originally Posted by PiggieMamaKelly

Sorry to hear about the baby. Glad mama is doing alright. And hopefully there aren't any more babies stuck in there.

I would think the vet would have been able to tell her that. I'm glad Olive is doing ok. Sorry about the baby though.