onefutui2e
Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
- Joined
- May 19, 2013
- Posts
- 227
- Joined
- May 19, 2013
- Messages
- 227
Hey all,
My girlfriend noticed that one of our guinea pigs has been eating really slow lately. So we took him out and weighed him. Over the course of 3 days, he lost 10% of his weight (peak of 54oz, now at 49oz) so obviously that puts us into alarm. His poops have also been incredibly wet, gross, and just really mushy.
I've started on the Critical Care (giving him about 1ml per hour) but I've been observing him and it looks like he still at least tries to eat some of his favorite foods (pepper, lavender, carrot, etc.) but it looks way more labored than normal. It's almost like he's having trouble chewing, and he makes that motion with his mouth/cheeks that he makes when he has too much food in his mouth...except I he doesn't have that much.
I have also observed him munching on a strand of hay, then pulling away from it and the strand's still there. When I take the strand and break it up into small pieces, he eats them no problem. Same thing with seed heads. If I give him a whole piece, he struggles to eat it, but if I rip off pieces of it he has no problem. When I give him lavender, it takes him a lot more time than usual to eat it. And I have to give it to him end first. Otherwise, he tries to pick it up from the middle, then drops it over and over again. When I give my guinea pigs more hay, he walks up to it and will try to nibble a few things. In other words, it seems like he's trying to eat, but something is bothering him and he can't??
His behavior otherwise hasn't really changed too much, except that he's spent more time hiding under a blanket in the corner than usual. His interactions with his roommate have largely remained unchanged, though I see that the roommate has been trying to take advantage (he's been the beta).
We had brought him to an exotic vet (the doctor had previously owned guinea pigs) last week and she said that his mouth looked fine.
So...a few questions.
1. Has anyone else ever observed this behavior with their guinea pigs?
2. I understand that guinea pigs need to have food in their systems, otherwise they risk GI stasis and die. To that end, I'm planning to continue supplementing him with Critical Care regularly. However, is there still a risk that he'll develop malocclusion since he might not be eating his hay?
3. I called my vet and the earliest time they have would be an appointment on Monday (today is Friday). What can I do to maximize the probability that he not only survives until then, but is still in position to be saved?
My girlfriend noticed that one of our guinea pigs has been eating really slow lately. So we took him out and weighed him. Over the course of 3 days, he lost 10% of his weight (peak of 54oz, now at 49oz) so obviously that puts us into alarm. His poops have also been incredibly wet, gross, and just really mushy.
I've started on the Critical Care (giving him about 1ml per hour) but I've been observing him and it looks like he still at least tries to eat some of his favorite foods (pepper, lavender, carrot, etc.) but it looks way more labored than normal. It's almost like he's having trouble chewing, and he makes that motion with his mouth/cheeks that he makes when he has too much food in his mouth...except I he doesn't have that much.
I have also observed him munching on a strand of hay, then pulling away from it and the strand's still there. When I take the strand and break it up into small pieces, he eats them no problem. Same thing with seed heads. If I give him a whole piece, he struggles to eat it, but if I rip off pieces of it he has no problem. When I give him lavender, it takes him a lot more time than usual to eat it. And I have to give it to him end first. Otherwise, he tries to pick it up from the middle, then drops it over and over again. When I give my guinea pigs more hay, he walks up to it and will try to nibble a few things. In other words, it seems like he's trying to eat, but something is bothering him and he can't??
His behavior otherwise hasn't really changed too much, except that he's spent more time hiding under a blanket in the corner than usual. His interactions with his roommate have largely remained unchanged, though I see that the roommate has been trying to take advantage (he's been the beta).
We had brought him to an exotic vet (the doctor had previously owned guinea pigs) last week and she said that his mouth looked fine.
So...a few questions.
1. Has anyone else ever observed this behavior with their guinea pigs?
2. I understand that guinea pigs need to have food in their systems, otherwise they risk GI stasis and die. To that end, I'm planning to continue supplementing him with Critical Care regularly. However, is there still a risk that he'll develop malocclusion since he might not be eating his hay?
3. I called my vet and the earliest time they have would be an appointment on Monday (today is Friday). What can I do to maximize the probability that he not only survives until then, but is still in position to be saved?