Sneezing Sneeze Attack - but just once a day!

[Helena29]

Hi all,

I'm a little bit concerned about my guinea pig Funky. He is about one year and one month old. He is an Abyssinian - long fur! For the last couple of weeks, once a day my guinea pig has these strange sneezing episodes. Up until today, I really thought it was nothing but now I'm starting to wonder. The good news is that I see no discharge, crust around the nose or eyes and he is eating his hay and pellets. He is interested in food. I think his energy level and temperature are OK. How can I tell if he has a temperature? So, he did feel warm to me today but it is also really cold outside so it might just have been my hands. Currently, his bedding has been paper (papertowel, newspaper, magazine, and white paper on top!). I clean his cage a few times a day. I have used towel/blanket in the past but that was before the sneezing started.

What bothers me is that I have had four guinea pigs and I've just never experienced this before. So, once a day my guinea pig has a "sneeze attack". It sounds as though something gets in his nose and it irritates him until he sneezes it out. I mean, that has happened to me in the past - just not every day for a couple of weeks! Today, was particularly bad - he sneezed close to 20 times. It's usually closer to 10 to 15. The episodes last from 5 minutes to a little over an hour and then he is completely fine. If he were really sick, wouldn't there be discharge? If he were really sick, wouldn't he be sneezing all day?

I have a couple of theories all of which are probably silly but ... What do you think is causing his sneezing? Should I be concerned? Is this normal for some piggies? Could this just be allergies? (Although, wouldn't allergies cause him to sneeze all day?)
1) I started using Tide Pods and it turns out, the smell is really strong. I keep my toilet paper in the same cupboard and my toilet paper smells like Tide Pods!! Strange, but I don't really mind. I do let my clothes hang to dry near his cage. Maybe the smell got to him?
2) I cut his fur ... maybe some tiny pieces of fur got into his nose? (But I don't cut his fur every day!)
3) He likes to run under the paper where his poop has crumbled and is dusty ... maybe that is causing his sneezing? (His poop dries pretty fast and tends to crumble!)
I know, I know - these theories are crazy. I just wish I knew what was causing the sneezing. I mean, 5 sneezes are normal ... but over 10?

February 10th is sort of his birthday. It's the day I brought him home with me one year ago. So, I really hope he is healthy and I can spoil him rotten!
Looking forward to hearing your feedback,
Helena

 

[Helena29]

Hi all,

Good news! I think I solved my mystery. Or, I hope I did. So, I just cleaned Funky's cage and his bowl had A LOT of hay dust. I just realized that I was at the bottom of my bag of Timothy Hay. Yesterday was my first day using a new bag and I didn't empty Funky's bowl. Could that explain the sneezing? My other guinea pig has a lighter bowl which he always turns on it's side. Sometimes, I even see it upside down. I'm constantly putting hay back into his bowl. But basically, the hay dust winds up all over his cage so I think that could explain why he isn't sneezing. I tend to forget to empty Funky's bowl because I don't have to empty my other piggies bowl. The dusty hay is removed when I clean his cage.

What do you all think? How often should I refill my piggies bowl with hay? How often should I throw out old hay and empty the bowl? How often do I need to wash the bowl? I'm going to make certain there is absolutely no hay dust in his bowl and see if he continues to sneeze. Gee, now I feel badly ... this was probably my fault. Sorry Pbatters, I don't know why I'm always looking for zebras or ... what's your expression about zebras and elephants?
I'm always making things more complicated than they really are. Sorry!

PS - Quick question: Funky has this bad habit of eating his bowl to tell me he is hungry (He is smart. He does know how to get my attention!). Could he injure his teeth eating the bowl? It makes a loud sound, not quite as bad as nails on a chalkboard, but close!
- Helena

 

[Soecara]

The hay dust certainly could have been the cause.

You should refill the bowl with hay as often as it needs to be refilled, top it up when it gets low. Guinea pigs need hay all the time, but not all piggies are the same so there isn't really a correct answer to how frequently you need to refill as it depends on your pig. I would empty the bowl completely once a day, personally would do this first thing in the morning. Wash the bowl when you do a full clean of the cage, strictly speaking you don't need to wash the bowl unless it is dirty.

What do you mean by eating his bowl? chewing on it? Could he injure his teeth doing this, yes. Is he likely to, no, not unless its edge is rough, he breaks a chunk off, or his teeth are otherwise already brittle or damaged.

 

[Helena29]

Thanks Soecara for the response!

 

[Helena29]

Hi all,

So, yesterday Funky didn't sneeze at all and today he is sneezing again. He sneezed about 5 times this morning, but is currently sleeping comfortably. It is really cold and windy where I live (wind 37 km, -16 but feels like -28!!). I can hear the wind blowing and see a Kleenex moving. I'm currently layered ... leggings + PJ bottoms, two t-shirts and a sweater. I suspect I need new windows, or insulation or something. I live in an apartment building so I can't make it any warmer than it is. There is a draft where his cage is but his cage is too big, so I can't move it. Can a cold draft actually make a guinea pig sick, like URI sick? How do I keep my piggie warm? Why isn't my other piggie sneezing too? I took Funky out of his cage and held him next to a very warm water bottle. I can't put the water bottle in his cage because he is scared of it and just runs away. If I put extra blanket in his cage, he just goes over it and doesn't stay under it so it's pretty useless. In addition to the draft, I also did laundry so that Alpine smell is near his cage ...