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Vision anyone else notice an eye color change over time? (not due to injury/illness)

Kieri

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one of my guinea pigs, obcy, was born with ruby eyes that appeared blue at various angles. as she's gotten older, the ruby has disappeared and only the blue coloration seems to appear. she doesn't have cataracts, has never had an eye injury, and her vision is intact.

anyone else notice this with their ruby pigs?
 

stray hares

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Is Obcy a roan piggy? I ask this because roan piggies often have ruby-blue eyes and in mice, various mutations in the MITF gene (a gene part of the melanogenesis pathway) can manifest in a number of different ways, including a roan-like coat, but also roan-like coats and other features that develop as the mice age. There's been some suggested that a MITF mutation is responsible for the roan coat pattern in cavies, so the fact that you're seeing eye changes in Obcy might indicate she has something going on with her melanogenesis pathway, and maybe the MITF gene.

Ruby eyes are my favourite colour of piggy eyes though. So pretty, and different depending on the light.
 

Kieri

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i'm not sure! here are a few photos of her! i'm going to look into the genes you're talking about, it sounds really interesting.

pgg.jpgcxv.pnglkjl.jpg

in the third picture, she's the smaller piggy to the right n.n the pig she's next to has black eyes, you can kinda see the subtle ruby sheen in obcys eye!!

i shined a light in her eyes the other day and the red is definitely gone at this point. they were red/blue for about 6 years and now they appear blue/black! the fur around her eyes has changed color as well. she used to have a white ring around each eye, they appear a little more grey now.
 
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Kieri

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here's how red her eyes were the first year of her life. the blue started showing up as she matured.

234.jpg

how her eyes look now:
njk.jpg

man she looks like such an old lady compared to photos from 7 years ago ):
 
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Guinea Pig Papa

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As much as we love them, it's heartbreaking to watch them get old. I have pictures of both Pooper and Sly, as babies and as 6 and almost 7 year olds, and while you can tell they are obviously the same pig the age is very, very apparent in both of them.

The changes in their little bodies once they pass the age of 5 are very apparent, as well. Their tummies sort of droop, like pot bellied pigs. And they get so bony along their spines and in their hip areas. Holding Sly in the last year or so of his life was like cuddling a little old man. It hurt my heart.
 

Kieri

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yup, 5 and on was when changes started.

it's hard to watch, i cant imagine my life without my girls at this point. elliot got a little skinny and has stayed skinny; no health issues though. she is still extremely mischievous and noisy, so the vet thinks the loss in weight is just old age. obcy has developed health issues; sensitive bladder, arthritis, sensitive foot pads due to her bladder issues and diminished mobility.

i was watching old videos of them and its sad how fast and young they were back then. ):
 
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