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Injury Emergency: Bleeding nose

ThePiggieLover

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Hi,
My guinea pig is sneezing and her nose is bleeding. She wipes it with her paw occasionally. I can't see any hay or anything poking out of her nose and she won't let me clean it. I do not have access to a vet right now. Please let me know how I can help her at home. Blood comes out when she sneezes. It is not so constant and she is running around and eating and doing everything as normal as of now.
 

ThePiggieLover

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it seems there is only blood coming from one nostril. Again i don't see anything inside her nose and she is breathing fine.
 

Rosiethecutepig

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I'd say wipe it with a q-tip. Roll her up in a towel, burrito style, and have someone hold her.
 

bpatters

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I'd say do NOT wipe it with a q-tip. There may be hay stuck up in the nostril, and the q-tip will only push it further in.

My bet is on a hay poke. You need to see a vet who can look with a light and see if there's anything in the nostril. If there is, and it isn't removed promptly,an infection can easily develop.
 

Rosiethecutepig

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They can't get a vet now, [MENTION=13820]bpatters[/MENTION].
 

Rosiethecutepig

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Well, I will leave it to the experts. I have no experience in this matter.
I'll tag @Guinea Pig Papa. He's sure to know.
 

Rosiethecutepig

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[MENTION=35161]Guinea Pig Papa[/MENTION]
Sorry, that last post did not work.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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I have to agree with [MENTION=13820]bpatters[/MENTION]. The pig needed a vet when the injury was new. It was almost certainly a hard stalk of hay up her nose and if a piece gets caught in there infection will set in fairly quickly.

If you haven't gotten her to a vet up until now, [MENTION=45289]ThePiggieLover[/MENTION], now is the time. Get her in ASAP to have her looked at, regardless of whether the bleeding has since stopped.
 

ThePiggieLover

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Thank you for the help! She cleaned herself up on her own and the bleeding has stopped without any changes in her behavior. My closest exotic vet is quite far away and my piggies really don't like cars or the sounds of the big city. What are the signs of infection to watch for? I will watch closely and get her to the vet as soon as I see something off. I just would rather not stress her out with a long drive. Disclaimer: If you are reading this while trying to find answers on the internet if your piggie is bleeding from their nose please get them to the vet immediately
 

Smileandnod

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Thank you for the help! She cleaned herself up on her own and the bleeding has stopped without any changes in her behavior. My closest exotic vet is quite far away and my piggies really don't like cars or the sounds of the big city. What are the signs of infection to watch for? I will watch closely and get her to the vet as soon as I see something off. I just would rather not stress her out with a long drive. Disclaimer: If you are reading this while trying to find answers on the internet if your piggie is bleeding from their nose please get them to the vet immediately

A car ride will not stress your guinea pig as much as you think.

I had a guinea pig that needed to be driven over 4 hours to an exotics vet specialist at the University veterinary hospital in another state several times.

I made a 2x2 grid hospital cage for the ride and the hotel stay we usually had to plan for. It worked well.

Put them in a carrier with a bed and some hay. Your guinea pig will be fine. Travel is not an excuse to avoid vet care when needed.
 

4boipigs

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I agree that pigs in cars isn't stressful (compared to something like a cat who will cry and panic). My boys travel in a cat carrier with their bedding, some hay, and each other. All the boys always fall asleep during the car ride or they just eat. They also take naps during the vet visit. Just be sure to secure that carrier or keep a hand on it so they don't go tumbling if something happens.
 

ThePiggieLover

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Today she is sneezing out blood again. I took her to the vet last time and they said everything was fine. Again, she is acting fine and eating and everything but all the while she is periodically sneezing out blood. It doesn't seem to be enough for fatal blood loss but I'm still worried. It is odd because she couldn't have poked her nose with hay this time because I took out the hay to refill it. If anyone has heard of this happening before or knows what is going on. Please help. What do I do? She seems to have stopped sneezing now.
 

ThePiggieLover

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I feel it may be important to note that this particular piggie has had a sneezing problem since we got her at 1 month old. The vet said it was just allergies and nothing to worry about. Does anyone know of or have a piggie that has such severe allergies that their nose bleeds? She just sneezes out blood for a couple of minutes and then 15 minutes later she cleans everything up and acts as if nothing has happened. I DONT KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON.
 

bpatters

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Are you seeing an exotic vet? Small animal vets treat dogs and cats, not exotic pets.
 
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This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.

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