=( I think my guinea pig is a drug addict

[The Dumpling]

So I've had Dumpling for about 2 weeks now, and I'm guessing she's probably a little over a month old. I discovered that she was in the beginning of an upper respiratory illness, so I took her to the vet. The vet prescribed antibiotics, as well as this Vitamin C liquid. So here's the problem. Dumpling is foregoing her fresh fruit and veggies for the medicine. When I give her fresh veggies (broccoli, red bell pepper, cucumber, etc), she looks at it, then raises her head and keeps squeaking. When I give her the medicine, she clamps down and refuses to let the applicator go - she's nuts over this stuff. I'm guessing the antibiotics and the vitamin C must be really really sweet. Any advice? None of my other guinea pigs ever did this before. She'll be on the antibiotic for another week. I don't think there's too much harm for one more week, but it still bothers me.

 

[Teria]

I suggest you drip a few drops of the medicine onto the fruit and veggies.

 

[The Dumpling]

=) haha, yeah, I've considered it. She's quite strong-willed about it too - if I pet her before I've given her the medicine, she pushes my hand away or tries to nibble my fingers.

By the way, do young guinea pigs go through a nibbling phase? She's doing it more often - she's not doing it because she's mad, I think she's just tasting everything. And how long does this phase last? I don't want to encourage this, because she nibbled one of my friend's fingers a couple days ago and it broke skin.

 

[dagwellismypigy]

yeah pigs go through the nibbles lol.

 

[The Dumpling]

So this morning, I was feeding Dumpling her medication. I put her on this stool so that she stays still - if I put her on the floor, she starts running around and it's hard to get her attention. She knows this routine - whenever I put her there, it's because I'm about to give her all her antibiotics, vitamin C, etc. But this time, she was so eager, she overextended herself...and lost her balance and fell off the stool! Thank God I caught her in mid-air. The stool isn't too high - it's about 1 1/2 feet off the ground. She acted like it wasn't a big deal, and continued to insist on the medicine. But I almost had a heart attack.

 

[critterlover]

He he. Sugar addict more like it. I think there was a previous post where someone couldn't get their pig to take the antibiotics. So consider yourself lucky! Maybe if she's got such a sweet tooth, she'll want fruit more often?

 

[The Dumpling]

That's what I was hoping too, but she won't eat tangarine slices, apple slices...so bad! One of my co-workers suggested maybe canned peaches, but I'm not so sure - would that cause tooth decay because it's so sugary? I wouldn't give her a lot either, b/c I don't know the nutritional value, and fresh fruit would be better. What do y'all think if I gave it to her as a treat? Or apple sauce?

 

[dagwellismypigy]

if you could give home made apple sauce with no sugar i gues that would be ok, but sugar isn't easily digested by guinea pigs.Try putting the medicine on veggies and fruits. Or try to find a very very ripe fruit, that would be very sweet and might get your piggy back to veggies.

 

[critterlover]

but she won't eat tangarine slices, apple slices...so bad!...One of my co-workers suggested maybe canned peaches...fresh fruit would be better

Peaches are often canned with syrup (sugar-water), so that's definately no good. Although some peaches are canned with peach juice. I don't know if that's any better. Probably, like you said, fresh fruit is best.

Have you been to https://www.guinealynx.info/nutrition.html#fave? How about grapes, my pig likes those. Or maybe banana, that's really sweet too.

Someone said that if you give your pig the same food everyday, eventually, they will eat it. Just a thought.