Conditions Sam is Squeaking while Pooping

I was looking things up and this popped up, ammonia toxicity? It's thought. Yes I'm bored and my head is pounding so I love research and it calms me down. I just want to help because I think it's chemical issue. Because that wasn't normal.

Yeah, he really is the sweetest guinea pig. I had guinea pigs when I was little but not like him. He loves cuddling and laying on me for hours before and after he got sick. He likes to rest his chin on the inside of my elbow. It's not fair for him to get this sick when he is only 1.5 years old. Our dogs and chickens have drank the water for years and they are fine. I know guinea pigs are smaller. I'll see what the vet says about these other suggestions with lead and diabetes.

Shieme said:

Awesome. I just was trying. I don't think it's his thyroid. Thyroid problems would cause (in other animals) weight gain. The CC would help and he would gain, I believe. That test is NOT normal. I believe you are right, the vet is giving up and waiting for you to say the magic word, sleep. But I see that Sam is fighting. I see his eyes are clear and he feels your love which is helping him fight more.

chemisty is NOT normal. No yeast infection or other bacteria. I see normal metal but honestly lead poison is very sneaky. We have lead and copper in our bodies. Another thing concerns me is they are comparing guinea pig against a rabbit. Rabbits can eat thing guinea pigs cannot.

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Do you mean ammonia toxicity from potentially not changing the cage enough? I mean sometimes we let it go longer than we should (6 days instead of 4) but we change the fleece near the area they sleep and poop daily.

Shieme said:

I was looking things up and this popped up, ammonia toxicity? It's thought. Yes I'm bored and my head is pounding so I love research and it calms me down. I just want to help because I think it's chemical issue. Because that wasn't normal.

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Shieme said:

I don't think it's his thyroid. Thyroid problems would cause (in other animals) weight gain.

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Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) causes weight gain, but hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) causes weigh loss.

Honestly not sure. That popped up when I put all the symptoms from the lab results in my search. Since it came up I decided to put it down so you could ask your vet. Just drawing straws because like you said, he is 1.5 years old and he is a fighter. @pigmommy89, OMG you are correct! Thanks.

So the vet monitored him today and they didn't see him exhibiting any abnormal behavior. They say when he palpitates his stomach that he is still in pain and think he may be constipated based on his droppings. The vet said he would like to prescribe baytril. Does that sound ok? I know it is a strong antibiotic.

It will probably kill his appetite. Give him a probiotic an hour or so after every antibiotic dosage, and watch him like a hawk for any signs of gassiness or bloat.

Without reading back, is this an exotic vet? Because guinea pigs don't usually get constipated.

He said it is very rare but like constipation and that his poops were very dry inside and something is off balance. I think we will see how he does over the next couple days before giving him the antibiotic. He was in Bactrim for five days and that didn't seem to improve anything. Everything we read about baytril it is scary.

bpatters said:

It will probably kill his appetite. Give him a probiotic an hour or so after every antibiotic dosage, and watch him like a hawk for any signs of gassiness or bloat.

Without reading back, is this an exotic vet? Because guinea pigs don't usually get constipated.

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Also he is an exotic vet.

If these labs were from a human, I would say that he is likely in liver failure....several indicators for that. As an FYI, cavies rarely have diabetes.

Ok, what should we do then? The vet said those levels are normal given that he isn't eating as much. Should we not give him baytril or other medicine as that can be hard on their livers?

spy9doc said:

If these labs were from a human, I would say that he is likely in liver failure....several indicators for that. As an FYI, cavies rarely have diabetes.

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frotoandsam said:

Should we not give him baytril or other medicine as that can be hard on their livers?

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As I said, "if these labs were from a human.......". What concerns me the most is that his liver enzymes (AST and ALT) are sky high and in a human, that generally means hepatitis which is inflammation of the liver. Also his WBC count is elevated and his RBC count is low, as well as elevated bilirubin. I fail to understand how his labs can be considered "normal".

How does your Vet explain this?

He told us that these levels were elevated given that he isn't eating. I read even in humans high AST and ALT levels don't necessarily mean liver damage but may happen in response to sickness. I don't necessarily agree with the vet entirely but two vets are telling us that it is normal. I am moving soon so may take him to a different vet and transfer his records. I don't know what to do anymore. We aren't giving him the baytril yet because we don't want him to get worse...

spy9doc said:

As I said, "if these labs were from a human.......". What concerns me the most is that his liver enzymes (AST and ALT) are sky high and in a human, that generally means hepatitis which is inflammation of the liver. Also his WBC count is elevated and his RBC count is low, as well as elevated bilirubin. I fail to understand how his labs can be considered "normal".

How does your Vet explain this?

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I will be the first to say that your Vets probably know a great deal more about rodent pathology than I do. I am a human physician and can only theorize when it comes to cavies because physiology/pathology does not always translate across species.

About three years ago I had a shoulder surgery and was put on IV antibiotics for 4-6 weeks following the surgery. My liver enzymes rose to alarming levels....in the 500 range! In this case it was toxic hepatitis because I was not tolerating the medication. When the medication was discontinued, my levels returned to normal range.

So Sam has taken a turn for the worse. He has lost over 70 grams in 3 days. We talked to the vet and they really encouraged us to put him on baytril. We gave him a dose last night and this morning. Before that he was starting to have softer and bigger mushier poos. Now it seems he has diahrrea. From what I have read on other threads is that we should stop the baytril immediately now as he may be intolerant to it? We thought we would at least try it because he was really declining and didn't know what else to do.

You likely some difficult decisions ahead of you. The boys and I send wheeks and prayers for the best outcome for Sam.

Ditto @spy9doc.

If he were mine, I'd stop with the Baytril. The fact that he has diarrhea means he's not tolerating it at all.

I just went back and reviewed his labs and I'm still persuaded that his liver is failing. There are just too many signs. Baytril is an antibiotic and will do nothing for an inflamed liver. We're all tiptoeing around the topic, but I believe that Sam is dying.......and I think you feel that as well. I genuinely hope that I'm wrong, but the physician in me sees all the signs.

I have a great deal of empathy for your situation. I loved my Chester more than I could ever imagine loving a little furball. His health declined throughout the last year of his life. We decided that we would go to any length to keep him alive so long as his quality of life was good. We fed him Critical Care for the last six months and he was a real fighter to the end. Finally, his little body just gave out and he died peacefully in my arms. In retrospect, it would have been kinder to let him go at least two months earlier.

@spy9doc, I feel you are right. I posted before that those test showed failing liver and kidneys. I have been reading because I'm afraid of the finale update. Glad someone is brave enough to say that.

Thank you everyone for your responses. His poops have firmed up a little bit after taking him off baytril but now they are more in clumps.


He is grunting more while defecating and his eyes are crusty from lack of grooming. He has lost more weight (now down to 830grams), losing 10-25 grams a day now. Do you think we should syringe him water as well as critical care to prevent dehydration? Do you think we may want to try Flagyl just in case that could help? I'm assuming he may have some genetic disorder now or even if it was something else that now he has declined too much to bounce back...

We've questioned both exotic vets about the blood work and they still say that this is normal response given that he is under stress and not eating as much...

Unfortunately, I have been gone this weekend looking for housing around my new job and my boyfriend has been feeding Sam around the clock. I've tried to change my flight but it is very expensive. I get back Tuesday night and I hope he is able to hang in there through then. I don't mean to make him suffer while I am away but if we need to put him to sleep, I'd at least like to be there. It is almost a year since I have had him. He was a birthday present from my boyfriend last year and he has really helped me through a tough year at work and searching for jobs

I hate to ask it but we have called around and $96 is the cheapest to euthanize a guinea pig. Is this about the right price? We may take him to another exotic vet recommended by a friend when I get home to get one final opinion.