Hi all,
My Abyssinian, Ernie, has had crusty eyes for the past three weeks or so. Now, before you say I'm super neglectful and plain cruel, this isn't like eye-obscuring massive wads of discoloured gunk. It's a very, very small amount- kind of like a small amount of the "sleep" we get in our eyes in the morning. I've been wiping it away with a cotton pad and it usually takes around four-five days to come back. His appetite is fine, he still popcorns and runs around, and he doesn't look or behave like he's unwell.
Recently however I'm a little more concerned as I've noticed he is coughing slightly. Now both my guineas sneeze now and again- I think it's the fleece detergent, so I'm not sure if this is just normal for him or not. He's also drinking a lot of water- or at least I THINK he is. I say "think" because he's recently (last week) transitioned from being in an outdoor hutch to my bedroom in a CC cage, so I have no idea if he's drinking a huge amount of water or if this is what he drinks all the time. >.< On a similar note, he seems to be napping frequently- but again, I have no idea if this is regular for him or not. It's all very frustrating and worrying!
The vets are going to charge £21.70 PER Guinea Pig to check them over, so I have two main questions for you guys:
1. Do you think I should bite the bullet and send my little guy to the vets, and,
2. Do you think I should get both guinea pigs checked over? Are URI's likely to infect both guinea pigs?
Thanks in advance for any and all help.
EDIT.: The last part of my title, IE. "Possible URI", seems not to have been posted; my keyboard is a fail. >.< Apologies to any moderators who think the title needs edited.
My Abyssinian, Ernie, has had crusty eyes for the past three weeks or so. Now, before you say I'm super neglectful and plain cruel, this isn't like eye-obscuring massive wads of discoloured gunk. It's a very, very small amount- kind of like a small amount of the "sleep" we get in our eyes in the morning. I've been wiping it away with a cotton pad and it usually takes around four-five days to come back. His appetite is fine, he still popcorns and runs around, and he doesn't look or behave like he's unwell.
Recently however I'm a little more concerned as I've noticed he is coughing slightly. Now both my guineas sneeze now and again- I think it's the fleece detergent, so I'm not sure if this is just normal for him or not. He's also drinking a lot of water- or at least I THINK he is. I say "think" because he's recently (last week) transitioned from being in an outdoor hutch to my bedroom in a CC cage, so I have no idea if he's drinking a huge amount of water or if this is what he drinks all the time. >.< On a similar note, he seems to be napping frequently- but again, I have no idea if this is regular for him or not. It's all very frustrating and worrying!
The vets are going to charge £21.70 PER Guinea Pig to check them over, so I have two main questions for you guys:
1. Do you think I should bite the bullet and send my little guy to the vets, and,
2. Do you think I should get both guinea pigs checked over? Are URI's likely to infect both guinea pigs?
Thanks in advance for any and all help.
EDIT.: The last part of my title, IE. "Possible URI", seems not to have been posted; my keyboard is a fail. >.< Apologies to any moderators who think the title needs edited.