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Spots' Medical Thread, was Piggy of 1 year old biting me

Spotakiss

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I have had spots for a year now and he has never bit me before but now he has started biting me just this past week. I feel bad every time i yell at him is there something i can do other then yell at him to try to get him to understand and stop


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CavyMama

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Re: Piggy of 1 year old biting me

Do not yell at your guinea pig! He does not understand what you are trying to tell him and all you are likely doing is making him afraid of you. What it WON'T do is get him to stop biting. What you need to do is find out WHY he is biting. He could have mites and if that's the case, it is likely painful when you hold him. A case of mites requires medication to get rid of them. He could be tasting you to see if you are food - especially if you were eating before you held him. He could be telling you to put him back in his case because he has to use the bathroom. It could be any number of reasons, none of which are solved by yelling at him.
 

bpatters

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Re: Piggy of 1 year old biting me

Is he biting hard, or just nibbling? If he's just nibbling, that's his way of exploring the world. He has no hands to pick things up, so he just has to see what they taste like. But if he's biting hard, then something is very wrong.

As [MENTION=12813]CavyMama[/MENTION] said, mites are a very common cause of guinea pigs biting, because the mites make it very painful for them to be handled. Is he scratching a lot?
 

Spotakiss

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Re: Piggy of 1 year old biting me

Is he biting hard, or just nibbling? If he's just nibbling, that's his way of exploring the world. He has no hands to pick things up, so he just has to see what they taste like. But if he's biting hard, then something is very wrong.

As [MENTION=12813]CavyMama[/MENTION] said, mites are a very common cause of guinea pigs biting, because the mites make it very painful for them to be handled. Is he scratching a lot?

I haven?t noticed any more scratching then he always does. He scratches occasionally but not excessively. I was petting him and as i pet him near his butt he turned around and bit and left a imprint of his teeth. He is my only piggy as my parents wont help me take care of him if i get another. Im currently looking for a job also. I haven?t been home too much in the last 3 weeks could that have anything to do with biting


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bpatters

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Re: Piggy of 1 year old biting me

Most pigs don't like to have their butts petted, but that's also often the place where mites set up housekeeping.

How much scratching does he usually do?
 

Spotakiss

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Re: Piggy of 1 year old biting me

Most pigs don't like to have their butts petted, but that's also often the place where mites set up housekeeping.

How much scratching does he usually do?

He scratches anywhere from 3-5 times a day and im almost always around him


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CavyMama

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Re: Piggy of 1 year old biting me

If you do take him to the vet and they offer to do a skin scraping (a common way to test for parasites), say no. They are painful for the pig and are often inconclusive even when mites are present. As [MENTION=13820]bpatters[/MENTION] said, you can always treat at home, just in case it's mites. There's no harm in that.
 

Spotakiss

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Best treatment for suspected mites

I can't find anything that can treat for mites but i heard of something that is used on caddle and i wanna try it but I don't know what its called or how to use it. Any help? He itches alot more then he used to so i think its time to try something


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bpatters

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Re: Best treatment for suspected mites

You already have a thread on this itching pig. Please don't start new threads when you've already got an active topic. I'm merging the threads. That will be the medical thread for your pig, and you can pick a title for it.
 

Spotakiss

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You already have a thread on this itching pig. Please don't start new threads when you've already got an active topic. I'm merging the threads. That will be the medical thread for your pig, and you can pick a title for it.

Thank you. I forgot I had that post. But he has stopped biting me occasionally he nibbles too hard but then i ignore him and he's started doing it softly and i stopped yelling at him and that helped incredibly


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bpatters

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In May, I gave you a link for how to treat for mites -- see post (broken link removed) above. The medication is pretty easy to find, and is available from Amazon if you can't find it locally.
 

Spotakiss

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So i just checked spots front teeth during his daily cuddle time and saw that one of his bottom teeth was chipped about and inch down but only half of the tooth is missing on the side but he doesn't look like he's in pain and he is still eating hay food and drinking water. Should i be concerned about it or just keep an eye on him?


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Spotakiss

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So ive been monitoring spots for a couple days and he is slowly eating less and less of his carrots and its the only vegetable he eats. Im really worried. Anything i should do or try? Is he dying or sick?


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Guinea Pig Papa

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So ive been monitoring spots for a couple days and he is slowly eating less and less of his carrots and its the only vegetable he eats. Im really worried. Anything i should do or try? Is he dying or sick?


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Have you been weighing Spots regularly? Perhaps he's getting tired of carrots, and too many carrots aren't good for him. They have plenty of natural sugar.

Is he drinking regularly? Is he eating his regular pellets and hay? Is he lethargic, or is he active?

I also see that he had teeth issues a few months ago. Have you check his incisors for irregularities?
 

Spotakiss

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Have you been weighing Spots regularly? Perhaps he's getting tired of carrots, and too many carrots aren't good for him. They have plenty of natural sugar.

Is he drinking regularly? Is he eating his regular pellets and hay? Is he lethargic, or is he active?

I also see that he had teeth issues a few months ago. Have you check his incisors for irregularities?

I don't weigh him regularly but he is drinking water and eating his food and hay normally. He is pretty lazy unless he is outta the cage which i try to do at least once a day. He has this wooden chew think that has different color pieces of wood and he has been chewing that alot more than usual.


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Spotakiss

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Have you been weighing Spots regularly? Perhaps he's getting tired of carrots, and too many carrots aren't good for him. They have plenty of natural sugar.

Is he drinking regularly? Is he eating his regular pellets and hay? Is he lethargic, or is he active?

I also see that he had teeth issues a few months ago. Have you check his incisors for irregularities?

I check his incisors everyday


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Guinea Pig Papa

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Excessive chewing can be a sign of pain. But first and foremost, you MUST weight Spots once a week. It's the very first, and often only, sign that something is wrong with your pig. They are prey animals and are extremely good at hiding injury or illness, oftentimes to the point that it's to late to do anything.

Get yourself a good digital kitchen scale that measures in grams, and start with that.
 

Spotakiss

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Excessive chewing can be a sign of pain. But first and foremost, you MUST weight Spots once a week. It's the very first, and often only, sign that something is wrong with your pig. They are prey animals and are extremely good at hiding injury or illness, oftentimes to the point that it's to late to do anything.

Get yourself a good digital kitchen scale that measures in grams, and start with that.

He just weighed in at 1132g


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