Infection Guinea pig poop..

What are you feeding your pigs?

Could you describe your current diet for you guinea? Most chain pet stores only feed cheaper pellets and bulk hay that is def. not the freshest. Also, I know the petsmarts near where I live feed freeze dried veggies from their reptile supplies once a morning. It could possibly be because of the difference in diet. Like I said, if you could post what they eat and how often we could probably help you a bit more. Or at least ease your mind on what you are feeding them. Lol

they get pellets, timothy hay, and veggies (red bell pepper, carrots, romaine lettuce, and broccoli) every day, and occasionally a little apple..
they always have pellets and timothy hay. I haven't started regulating the pellets because they aren't full grown yet.

I noticed when mine have eaten a lot of veggies, like kale or even grass, their poo is black. Not so much veg., then greenish.

Broccoli shouldn't be fed more than once or twice a week in small amounts, as it's gassy.
Red bell pepper is too sweet to feed daily, and carrots are high in both vitamin A & sugars. Please read the nutrition chart for more variety: https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...y-nutrition-charts-poisonous-plants-list.html

What kind of pellets are you feeding, and how much? Adult pigs should only get 2 tablespoons of a high quality grass hay based pellets daily.

HannibalLecter said:

Broccoli shouldn't be fed more than once or twice a week in small amounts, as it's gassy.
Red bell pepper is too sweet to feed daily, and carrots are high in both vitamin A & sugars. Please read the nutrition chart for more variety: https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...y-nutrition-charts-poisonous-plants-list.html

What kind of pellets are you feeding, and how much? Adult pigs should only get 2 tablespoons of a high quality grass hay based pellets daily.

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they get the broccoli and bell pepper because it's high in vitamin C. and they've been sneezing since I got them and the vet said it was okay. and they don't just get one kind.. i chop them all up into like a salad. I also don't give them a lot of vegetables every day because they're still young. I forgot what the pellets are called.. i transferred them into a plastic container. but i just keep their bowl full because they aren't full grown yet. they're only a coupleish months old right now. Also their poop as been this way since I got them... so i highly doubt it has anything to do with the vegetables

1/8-1/4 of a yellow or green bell pepper is fine to feed daily & it covers their whole vitamin C requirements, but the red is too sweet.
Only feed one cup of vegetables daily, and keep broccoli as an occasional treat. If you feed too much pellets and vegetables, they won't eat enough hay which is the most important part of their diet. It's what keeps their gut moving & teeth ground down.

If they've been sneezing a lot, they need to see an exotics vet.
Guinea pigs don't get colds, they get upper respiratory infections which is lethal without care. Extra vitamin C won't cure it.

s.green11 said:

they get the broccoli and bell pepper because it's high in vitamin C. and they've been sneezing since I got them and the vet said it was okay. and they don't just get one kind.. i chop them all up into like a salad. I also don't give them a lot of vegetables every day because they're still young. I forgot what the pellets are called.. i transferred them into a plastic container. but i just keep their bowl full because they aren't full grown yet. they're only a coupleish months old right now. Also their poop as been this way since I got them... so i highly doubt it has anything to do with the vegetables

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My pigs' poop has a much darker shade as well. I don't think it's anything to be too concerned about. I feed mine Oxbow pellets, KMS hay and endive/bell pepper/cilantro daily. All of these things are forum-approved, so I don't think I'm doing anything wrong!

I would still take a look at the nutrition chart. It's very, very helpful. Yellow bell peppers and green peppers are actually the highest in Vitamin C and they don't have as much sugar as red ones. I would switch to those. And you really do want to cut down on the broccoli, as it's not safe for pigs to be gassy.

I would find out what kind of pellets you are in fact feeding them. There are a lot of brands out there and they are definitely not all created equal.

Good luck!

Some pigs can tolerate broccoli in small amounts more often. It depends on what the pig is used to.

BernieAndBert said:

My pigs' poop has a much darker shade as well. I don't think it's anything to be too concerned about. I feed mine Oxbow pellets, KMS hay and endive/bell pepper/cilantro daily. All of these things are forum-approved, so I don't think I'm doing anything wrong!

I would still take a look at the nutrition chart. It's very, very helpful. Yellow bell peppers and green peppers are actually the highest in Vitamin C and they don't have as much sugar as red ones. I would switch to those. And you really do want to cut down on the broccoli, as it's not safe for pigs to be gassy.

I would find out what kind of pellets you are in fact feeding them. There are a lot of brands out there and they are definitely not all created equal.

Good luck!

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I don't give them a lot of broccoli ... maybe 1-2 little trees off the big thing of it and i chop it down small and mix it with the carrots and peppers, and other stuff. they don't seem to be gassy to me and they love it. but i'll definitely check out some other choices and between the two of them they get maybe 1/2 a cup of veggies. They're both just over a pound. so i try not to give them too much because i don't want to make them sick

HannibalLecter said:

1/8-1/4 of a yellow or green bell pepper is fine to feed daily & it covers their whole vitamin C requirements, but the red is too sweet.
Only feed one cup of vegetables daily, and keep broccoli as an occasional treat. If you feed too much pellets and vegetables, they won't eat enough hay which is the most important part of their diet. It's what keeps their gut moving & teeth ground down.

If they've been sneezing a lot, they need to see an exotics vet.
Guinea pigs don't get colds, they get upper respiratory infections which is lethal without care. Extra vitamin C won't cure it.

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I'll definitely look into the other colored peppers. I don't worry about the hay vs. the pellets.. i fill up their bowl only because they're still growing.. and they eat thier hay like crazy. I have a tube thing they can chew on and i fell that up with hay.. and when they've eaten it all i go to the bag they get super excited because they know the bag is the hay. as for the sneezing .. i've taken them in to 2 different vets and they seem to be just fine. I had them on the carefresh bedding dust free and they were sneezing, then i had them on aspen wood shavings.. and now their on fleece... i've been listening to them and sometimes they make a sound that almost sounds like a hiccup. I'm taking in samples of their poo to the vet this week to make sure we got the Giardia taken care of and i'll be sure to ask the vet again about the sneezing.

if no one knows.. i did get my piggies from PetCo... so i've been finding problem after problem, I won't make the petstore mistake again but at least my guinea pigs will be well taken care of.

I don't think the poop needs to be tested, just try to avoid gassy veggies for a while & see if it makes a difference.
Some sneezing & a rare hiccup is normal, but if you feel like it's excessive then definitely bring them in.
You can also try to shake the hay out well before feeding it, if it's caused by dust.

HannibalLecter said:

I don't think the poop needs to be tested, just try to avoid gassy veggies for a while & see if it makes a difference.
Some sneezing & a rare hiccup is normal, but if you feel like it's excessive then definitely bring them in.
You can also try to shake the hay out well before feeding it, if it's caused by dust.

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their poo actually does need to be tested.. they had an internal parasite.. and i want to make sure it's been gone

HannibalLecter said:

I don't think the poop needs to be tested, just try to avoid gassy veggies for a while & see if it makes a difference.
Some sneezing & a rare hiccup is normal, but if you feel like it's excessive then definitely bring them in.
You can also try to shake the hay out well before feeding it, if it's caused by dust.

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I have seen other people say this as well, but I am a big worry wort about everything. How often would occasional sneezing be before you would think its a URI?

bguardguy said:

I have seen other people say this as well, but I am a big worry wort about everything. How often would occasional sneezing be before you would think its a URI?

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How are your guineas now? Were they on antibiotics for the giardia? If they were it's possible you need a probiotic to restore the ph and flora to their gut. Guinea pigs are very sensitive and it's possible all the stress on their intestines that they may need a probiotic. Good luck.

L