Even vet can't tell....

[Mishkapop]

What do you think, guys? Is the larger sow pictured here facing away from me pregnant?



Her name is Sigrun, or Siggy for short, and she's eating like a pig (scuse the pun) drinking quite noticeably as she has both a water bottle and a bowl so it's easier for me to keep track of it, she's suddenly become very moody towards her cagemate in the last few days, whereas she used to mother her very tenderly, to the point of pulling veggies out of the bowl and offering them to her and grooming little Waffles regularly. Now she won't share her bed with her, she rumblestruts around her and nips often... We actually had to seperate them over the weekend cos Waffles couldn't get any food :S

I took her to the vets this morning, and she said she couldn't feel anything and doesn't think she looks pregnant, but as anyone who has seen my other thread will understand, I am having doubts in my vets.... So what do you guys think?

PS: I didn't intentionally breed her, I have no boars and I would -never- do that. She would have come from the pet shop like it...

[schavarry]

I've never had a pregnant pig - but I acquired my 2 babies from my friend because she was sold a pregnant guinea pig from a pet store. It is REALLY difficult to tell if they are pregnant until about 2 weeks before they give birth from what I understand - this is only going off of my friend's situation and what I've seen in other posts. How long have you had the "pregnant" guinea pig? Their gestation period is something like 75 days so if it's been more than that she's obviously not pregnant but if you acquired her recently it's a possibility.

[Mishkapop]

We've had her three weeks. I started weighing her about 10 days ago, she's gained 62 grams. She's only 5 months old so it could just be piggy growing weight, but I don't know what's a normal weight gain for growing girls. She definately seems more heavy around the bum when I look at her. The picture above isn't a great shot, she's quite stretched out. When she's sat normally her bum area looks pretty big. Also, I noticed her nipples for the first time yesterday, which I couldn't see before. The thing is the vet said she couldn't feel any babies but then she had real trouble examining her. She got a second opinion but they couldn't make up their mind either. I'm supposed to be taking her back in a fortnight for a second look. I can't figure out whether she might be preggers or just chubby. She will clear out her veg bowl in a matter of minutes, completely, whereas the others go back and forth to it and graze. She just faceplants it and scoffs the lot...

[Paula]

Without an ultrasound you won't be able to tell if she's pregnant until she's further along.

What size is your cage? Her behavior sounds like pretty normal dominance behavior, not pregnancy behavior, and could be the result of a cage that's too small.

[Mishkapop]

It's a ferplast 100. A meter wide by 75 depth if I remember rightly. It just seems weird that she's acting like that now, she and waffles came as a pair, they were bonded before we brought them home, and got on beautifully till thursday...

[Paula]

Are they both around 5 months old?

edit - if I've Googled the right cage, it's under 6 square feet. That is not enough for two guinea pigs, especially when one or both are going through puberty. The minimum recommended space for two is 7.5 square feet, but 10 plus is recommended, especially if they are bickering. See www.guineapigcages.com for more info.

[Mishkapop]

Waffles is much younger, only 2 and a half approximately.

[Mishkapop]

Thanks for the info about cages, Paula. I thought the cage was 8 ft square but am now very concerned and have decided to build the biggest C&C I can manage. Just trying to source materials. It's a bit more difficult in the UK but I have family in America so attempting to call in some favours.

Popping up another photo of Siggy that's a bit clearer.

[Paula]

That's awesome news! My calculations may be off, math is not my strongest subject, but they will love a bigger cage! She doesn't look obviously pregnant to me, so hopefully she isn't. Fingers crossed.

[Mishkapop]

*rubs hands together* I used to work in theatre design, I'm a dab hand with tools and building, so given enough time and concentration I hope to create a piggy palace! Plus as we don't currently live in an apartment with a garden, my other half and I have settled to two options: 1) Move to a bigger place with a garden or 2) *which is the more likely given the area we live in* Move to a bigger place and build a special indoors piggy patch with grass and carefully selected edible plants growing in it >.>

[BlueButterfly]

I've had a pregnant pig before, and she doesn't look preggers at all. Guinea pigs are just naturally chubby animals. If you're worried about her being fat, give her more floor time. She looks perfectly healthy though. Biggest sign though, watch her water intake. towards the end of pregnancy, Harmony chugged down two bottles a day.

[Mishkapop]

I'm becoming increasingly concerned about Siggy. She's put another 50 grams since I last weighed her tuesday evening, her tummy feels kinda bulbous, I've felt the others to compare and she's definately more bulgy, her water bowl is now being emptied twice a day.... She's stopped being nasty to Waffles but she doesn't have much patience with her, if Waffles wants too much attention from her she buff her away and plod to their nest. And she's started biting me. Hard. Broke the skin yesterday. It was completely out of the blue, she was sat snuggled up with me and snapped. Same this morning, bit my arm hard enough I have a bruise, once again when I thought she was nicely chilled out.

I have another vets appointment booked on the 7th but to be honest, I am worrying... She's still pooping and peeing, she seems to be eating a LOT of her poops. And she's still faceplanting her food. I'm having to top up the pellets twice a day now instead of once. And the hayrack I filled in the morning was empty when I got home from work last night. I know piggies like their food, but this much?! I'm starting to worry about pregnancy again...

[foggycreekcavy]

Well, without reading back, when was the last possible time she was with a male? Count 72 days from then.

As for the biting, have you considered that she may have mites?

[Mishkapop]

I've had her for 3 and a half weeks now, so any time before that really... And she's been treated for mites etc. I did that the day she came home, I did with all of our piggies. Better to be safe than sorry.

[foggycreekcavy]

What did you use to treat for mites? Ivermectin requires three treatments, each a week apart.

You've only had her for 25 days. If she had gotten pregnant, say, the day before you got her, then she'd only be 26 days along.

[Mishkapop]

Drongal spot on, you treat once with it then top up every four weeks.

I know that for at least a week before we got her she was -definately- just with another female, our little Waffles, but any time before that, all it would have taken would be a mis-sexed piggie in the female pen...

Updated photo. That bulge on her side has popped up in the last week or so and is visible pretty much all the time.