Sick Frustrated with URI-like symptoms. Please help!

[Ajohnson]

Hello everyone! I'm currently very frustrated about recurring symptoms in my three guinea pigs. Sorry in advance for the long post.

I purchased two 4-week old male guinea pigs from a breeder back in January of this year. One was the runt of his litter and had persistent URIs and pneumonia. After 2 months and 4 different antibiotics, he died, and a necropsy revealed that he had some hemorrhaging around his heart. I got my other (healthy) pig checked out, just in case, and he was given a clean bill of health. I chalked it up to bad luck.

One month later, I bought two more male guinea pigs from the same breeder. We made sure that they were healthy and the picks of each litter. I brought them home, and after a week of separation, they were placed in the cage with my original pig (Biggie). It was at this point that all 3 of them developed some squeaky nasal breathing and slightly elevated amounts of sneezing. I got my two new pigs checked out by an exotic vet to ensure that no one was sick, and he said they were just fine. * Before anyone suggests that I see a new vet - this guy is the top-rated guinea savvy vet in Houston. I whole-heartedly trust him. *

I contacted the breeder about the issues, and she told me that none of her animals were sick. She also said not to keep taking them to the vet because of the stress it puts on them. She thought I was being paranoid - understandable after the first ordeal.

Now, my pigs eat, drink, and popcorn regularly, but they have stuffy noses and sneeze more than usual. They have a fleece-lined cage, eat oxbow food and hay, get regular vitamin c, fruits, and veggies, and play in their playpen on a regular basis. I'm about at my wits end, and I don't know what to do. The constant stress over them being potentially sick is exhausting.

Has anyone been through a similar situation? Am I just being paranoid because of the first incident? Should I rush them all to the vet AGAIN?

Any help or advice is GREATLY appreciated.

 

[pinky]

First of all, I wouldn't have gotten the others from the breeder once the first one died. I'd take them all in for a complete vet check to rule out a genetic problem or URI's in all of them. It could be some sort of problem due to inbreeding or they might have all caught what the first one had. The hemorrhaging around the heart really concerns me.

 

[bpatters]

Sorry you're having problems with your pigs.

It could be allergies, since they're not developing any more URI symptoms after this amount of time. Or they could have a low-grade infection that just hasn't yet developed into anything more serious. Which is not to say that it couldn't, and quickly, so if you decide not to do anything about it now, keep a very close eye on them and get them back to the vet if anything happens.

I'm curious as to who your top-rated guinea pig vet in Houston is, because from everything I know about vets in the area, the top exotic vet for small furry animals, including guinea pigs, is Dr. Natalie Antinoff at Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists. Of course, it will cost you an arm and a leg just to walk in there, and you can't make an appointment on your own, you have to be referred by a vet. But they'd get excellent treatment if you decide to go there.

My other suggestion is to ditto @pinky about not buying from that breeder again. In fact, we never recommend buying from breeders or from pet shops -- there are thousands of unwanted guinea pigs in the world who need a good loving home. In the end, all guinea pigs are much alike -- cute, endlessly entertaining, eating and pooping machines, and their pedigree doesn't matter.

Keep us posted on how your pigs are doing.