My new Guinea Pigs and concerns

faithintheheart · Dec 31, 2011

hello , i have gotten two 3 month old piggies for christimas , Fleur and Quinn ( family named

) and im having some problems if some one could help id really appricate it ! so heres my novel :melodrama
d them together because the pet store said they were sisters... ( who knows if thats true :/). they are currently living in a large rubbermaid tub with no top while i am building them a 2x6 grid cage ( lots of room to popcorn !)
but lately they have been bickering ( nipping , sqealing , chasing away etc. ) its mainly been fleur whos been doing the argueing .. and when we got Quinn she had nip makes out of her ear :weepy: . so im wondering if they are trying to get dominace figured out or if they need to be seperated :weepy::weepy:.. which i would hate to do bc i cant go buy each of them another friend .

my other concern is Quinn ,he black and white pig with tinted red eyes ,is having some issues ( underweight , sneezing, labored breathing , discharge from nose and sometimes eyes , and she hasnt been very social like normal ) i am also curious to know if she looks a bit deformed ? like in bone structure ex: her face seems very thin and narrow .

my other piggy , Fleur, is shaking her head (itching her ears maybe) alot .

thank you for readin this and hopefully guys can help me out,

sincerely a very concerned new piggy owner :eye-poppi

suzilovespiggie · Dec 31, 2011

Hello and welcome to the forum. First off I would take your new pigs to a exotic vet, one who knows and handles guinea pigs. ASAP Quinn sounds like he is sick. From what you say here it describies an upper respiritory infection. He needs to be on antibiotics. URI are not something that can wait in a guinea pig. They can go down hill very quickly. It can be fatal. It is also very contagious.

Fleur could also be sick. She could have mites or an ear infection. Please do not wait and get both of your new babies into to see a vet.

It is good you are building a c & c. Part of their bickering is lack of space and the fact they dont feel good. A tub for both is just to small. When you have a bigger cage and they are both well you will see a big change in your girls.
Keep us posted on how it goes.

bpatters · Dec 31, 2011

Welcome to the forum. Suzi gave you good advice about getting them to the vet -- it's crucial to get the one who seems sick seen ASAP. Sorry about it being a holiday weekend -- that seems to happen with guinea pigs just like it does with kids! But I wouldn't wait until Monday.

But the thin, narrow face isn't anything to worry about. There seem to be several body types of guinea pigs. Most of them in this country are the more rounded faces that we're familiar with, and the ears sort of hang off the side of their heads. But one type common in South America has a more narrow face, and a lot of them down there have ears that stick straight up from their heads.

ChristieB · Dec 31, 2011

We had to take our new babies to the emergency vet to get looked over because I was worried about an URI. Luckilly that was not the case but it I read that it could get really bad really fast and I didn't need one of our babies passing away from me putting something off. I'd take them in right away. Even though it is a holiday, ER vets are open 24-7 when regular vets are not. They need to be on antibiotics right away. I'd get the grid cage done asap and get them out of the tub. The fact that they can't see and are in a tiny enclosed place is probably why they are fighting.

kirsty91 · Dec 31, 2011

Yeah I agree sounds like it could be a URI. Also just leave them be, they are trying to figure out dominance is all. Only separate them if there is blood otherwise it causes more stress because they have to start all over again with deciding who is boss. Also they might be fighting more because they don't have a large space yet, they might get along better once you finish their cage. good luck!

Zuidy · Dec 31, 2011

Not to make anybody frustrated with me, but I would definitely take them to a vet, especially the one whom seems sick. And, it sounds like the pigs are in the stage of sorting out who is dominate.

Roxymarie365 · Dec 31, 2011

I thought it would be helpful if Igave you these links: https://www.guinealynx.info/uri.html#top
https://www.guinealynx.info/parasites.html
Guinea Lynx is a very helpful site when it comes to medical problems/care. Good luck with your babies, I hope they get better!

faithintheheart · Dec 31, 2011

thanks guys! i was wondering if here are anyquetins i should ask the vet before takng them there ? i am only aware of one vet in the dallas texas area unfortunalty

i was wondering if any of this cold be lack of vitamin c because i have hd them less than a eek and i dint want t feed them a bnch of veggie bc of there sensiive dgestive systems till nextwek introducing them one at a time in smal amounts

faithintheheart · Dec 31, 2011

also soryabot thespelling issues ... mykeybard isnt working wel ( old laptop )

bpatters · Dec 31, 2011

Start feeding them veggies. They may not be getting enough vitamin C, but this problem is not a lack of vitamin C. Their digestive systems are not that delicate, and you should have no problem in giving them green things to eat.

I would see if I could get in touch with someone at Texas Rustlers Guinea Pig Rescue and ask them which vets they use in the Dallas area. You can also check at Guinea Pig Cages, Care, Shelters, Veterinarians - Guinea Pig Zone, and on the vet list at www.guinealynx.info.

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My new Guinea Pigs and concerns

faithintheheart

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suzilovespiggie

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