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Eyes/Non-crusty Little Bear's ouchie eye

Guinea Pig Papa

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Honestly, I dread every moment will be his last. I got fairly nervous when he wouldn't chew/take the meds and it just sat in mouth. To see my happy old man start being fearful is sad. I've spent so much money on them and love them so much that I don't want anything to them.

Boy, I know that feeling. Dreading that each issue might be the straw the broke the camels back. Being blind, I think Little Bear might spook easier than other pigs and for good reason. You said yourself it's only been 7 months and he's only starting to trust and feel comfortable, so it's easy to see why he spooked. Just give him plenty of love and cuddles, and I'm sure in a day or two he will settle down.
 

heftysmurf

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So scared dropping Smokey of fire surgery momentarily ��
 

4boipigs

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Boy, I know that feeling. Dreading that each issue might be the straw the broke the camels back. Being blind, I think Little Bear might spook easier than other pigs and for good reason. You said yourself it's only been 7 months and he's only starting to trust and feel comfortable, so it's easy to see why he spooked. Just give him plenty of love and cuddles, and I'm sure in a day or two he will settle down.

He's been better but he bolted while I was picking up their crap. I noticed Chico and Amigo, who I got from the animal shelter in July, are finally running up to me and will follow me from one side of the cage to the next when I'm near (they think I have food but don't). When Chico is awake or resting and he hears me, he wakes up and starts wheeking for me. I really think the only reason why Little Bear is displaying normal behavior (coming up to the bars for food and wheeking) is because Gimbly is such a fatty and taught him to do these things.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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If Gimbly taught him these things, that's a good thing. He's helping him be a normal pig.

This Sunday is Simon's one year anniversary with us. It's taken him that long to be comfortable, know the routines and interact with some degree of normalcy. Getting rid of his sinus infection didn't help, either, but I'm positive he's very happy in his new home now.
 

4boipigs

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If Gimbly taught him these things, that's a good thing. He's helping him be a normal pig.

Gimbly is a Very Good Boy. I'm grateful to have Texas Rustlers Guinea Pig Rescue near me. They took such great care of Gimbly, to the point where he knows his name if I call him. He is such a gentle and kind brother with Little Bear. They never fight or argue, and the most he does is get a little food aggressive and chase Little Bear away.

It's just so sad that it has to take them so long to get used to us or realize that things aren't scary anymore. I just can't imagine what kind of sad life Bruin and Little Bear had for the past six years (according to the vet). Same for Chico and Amigo, but at least they got sent to a shelter.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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I completely agree. It is sad to think of how they were treated before.

But look at it this way.

They have you now, and now they know love, kindness, and that they are treated with respect and adoration. And I'm sure they've probably forgotten their old lives and are fully focused on life with you now. They are happy, content pigs but they are still guinea pigs, still prey animals, and instinct will still kick in.
 

4boipigs

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Little Bear has had some loud, forceful sneezes today. Nothing else out of the ordinary.

I don't know if I mentioned it but the vet gave me 3 ideas for whats happening

Lowered immune system (age, past history, underweight)
An infection the meds aren't able to kill
CT scan to see if it's dental related

If the meds don't help I'll be going back of course. We're supposed to do the baytril 'until gone' per the bottle. We also have metacam.

I'm am ok w/ the CT scan, but they have to knock him out for it. And that of course makes me wary.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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I'm sure being left for dead in a box with his brother did him no favours.

When they knock him out for a CT scan, they literally just whiff him under with a bit of gas long enough to keep him still. It's no big deal, really. I'm sure you already knew that though. Being wary is understandable.
 

heftysmurf

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Good luck with the CT scan.
 

4boipigs

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20210531_185346.jpg

Doing CC once a day. All the pigs like it. The vet gave us anise flavor. I like Emeraid's consistency better but CC is easier to keep in a more solid form.
 

4boipigs

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Not much of a change in the stuffy nose/sneezing area for L Bear.

I did notice tonight when I was giving meds and petting him (which he rumbles about and probably hates)...his fur is a lot softer than he used to be. He has been a bit rough since I've had him but now he feels quite nice to touch!
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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Its your care that's gotten him this far. I'm sure he feels better now than he has in a very long time.
 

ItsaZoo

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Good care and nutritious food really improves their coat and overall health.
 

4boipigs

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After I changed their cage yesterday, I found this color pee (link to reddit pic: https://i.redd.it/h6rfrucj7m871.jpg). Is this something we need to return to the vet for? I have no idea who this came from. In addition, Gimbly (the younger pig from the rescue) has been having a wet chin. His teeth look fine and he eats/drinks okay.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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I would watch to make sure it either stops or doesn't change. Guinea pig pee oxidizes a colour similar to that, but I've never seen it fresh that colour. Could just be me.

As far as a wet chin, I would observe him closely to see how sloppy a drinker he is. I used to worry about it after all my boys dental issues, but I've come to find both Leo and Simon have wet chins occasionally too. It's because they are sloppy eaters and drinkers :)
 

bpatters

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Could also be due to something the pig ate. I'd keep an eye on it for sure.
 

4boipigs

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I haven't seen anything weird show up again in their pee.

I've been experimenting with letting Little Bear run around my room. My other boys don't enjoy being out of the cage, so I never bother with them. Little Bear is the opposite...he goes around sniffing everything so he gets a sense of where everything is. Then he starts running around the area he's mapped out and explores. He comes back to me and sniffs me the most. I don't really feel my guinea pigs 'love' me like a cat/dog do, but Little Bear seems to really recognize me when he's free and treats me like a safe zone.
 

4boipigs

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Little Bear's eye has been full of a lot of discharge lately to the point where it covers his eye. Looks like the normal white pig cleaning fluid which is usually there. Is there anything easier to wipe his face with aside from a damp cloth? He doesn't enjoy it. Maybe some pet eye wipes would help. There is sometimes a lot of dried junk at the corner I have to pick away, which he hates. Otherwise, the eye looks like it always has. I'm debating another vet visit, but the next step was to do a CT scan to see if there's something going on in his face.

I did notice he can move his eye. He just can't blink. I can't tell if I'm hurting him when I'm wiping around his eye.
 

4boipigs

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20210722_111644.jpg

His eye is looking bad again. We can go to the vet but idk, it seems like all we can do is dump eye drops in. I don't think he should have anestesia to remove it because he still has a lot of nasal discharge that could be something else. I'm having to wipe away a lot of crusty stuff daily. But he still acts fine and dandy.
 

4boipigs

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I just made an appt for him next Tuesday. I think I'm just going to ask them to quote me for everything that may need to be done. They wanted to do a CT scan and some other stuff. I'm scared of the price, but it needs to be done. Maybe his eye is just infected, or it could be something else. I don't like having to wipe all this junk off his eye all the time, and he doesn't like it either. Plus I don't know if it hurts him or not. I don't think he should be knocked out for eye removal because he still has all this nasal discharge. So we need to figure that out too.
 
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