Conditions Is this normal for poop?

[inthesestones]

So I know there are a lot of topics on guinea pig poop and I've been through most of them and I can't find the answer to what I'm looking for.

My boy (he's about seven months old, I've had him since February) has been having weird poops for a couple of months now. He gets Oxford Western Timothy hay and his pellets are Vitakraft Sunseed Vita Prima. He gets a good amount of lettuce and veggies in the evenings with as much variety as the picky eater will eat. When the poo started getting really odd within the past couple of weeks I added vitamin C and also the Oxbow Digestive Support tablets to his diet. Both of which he loves and you'd think were the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Now onto the poops. *facepalm*

They're relatively small in size (maybe about 1cm in length). The thing is -- when they dry out, they don't keep their shape but rather dry completely flat. If I press on the fresh ones, I can flatten them out and it sounds like a little puff of air escapes from them. When they're flattened out, yeowsers is there a stink. I just cleaned out his anus with mineral oil in case it was impaction.

The poops themselves are a dark greenish/brownish color. When I split one open, it's a bit watery in the center but the outside is solid, just with a bit of a wet cast to it. I added a picture to the thread just to explain what it looks like.

His behavior is fine. Actually, since I've started giving him the digestive support tablets he's been bouncing around like a nut. He eats fine, he drinks just fine. He wheeks when I open the fridge and begs for food and hay. He's sociable as all get out and loves nibbling on me at every opportunity. I'm just worried because from what I've read their poop is one of the big things to watch out for. And since I'm a first time mommy to the little guy, I'm a bit more worried than usual.

Thanks in advance!

 

[bpatters]

Two things I can suggest. One, Vitakraft isn't a very good food. It's primarily alfalfa, and he's too old for that. It's also got a ton of sweet stuff in it, and too much sugar upsets the balance of bacteria in a pig's digestive tract. So the pellets could be causing his porblem. He needs a plain timothy pellet -- no colored bits, no corn or wheat middlings. KMS Hayloft makes very good ones (you have to buy online), and Oxbow and Sweet Meadow Farms also make good ones, although some pigs excrete excess calcium in the urine when eating Oxbow or SMF. He only needs 1/8 cup of pellets per day.

Second, he may be getting too many veggies. The first thing you do when a pig has soft poops is cut back on the veggies and see if it clears up.

I'd try another pellet and cut way back on his veggies and see if things improve. If they don't, or if they get worse, I'd say a vet visit would be in order.

Welcome to the forum, by the way. And we need to see a picture of this little guy.

 

[inthesestones]

He does get about 1/8 cup of pellets -- though he is certainly not happy about /that/ let me tell you. I'll take a look at the couple of brands you suggested. The one I have him on now doesn't have a lot of colored bits and actually I usually pick them out before I give him anything. It was recommended to me by the pet store I got him from (actual pet store. Not pet smart or those sorts *shudder*) and I know she's been feeding the stuff to him and the piggies she owns herself. So I went by her recommendation.

I'll withhold veggies (though he's glaring at me from his pen on the floor). For the time being until I can get the better pellets. Up the amount of hay and decrease pellets?

Also finally got the profile pic uploaded but here's a couple pics of Arthur. I fell in love with him at first sight, especially his white marking on the top of his head. (He's King Arthur when he's good -- Arthur Lancelot when he's in biiiiiig trouble. Which is usually often. >.>) And thanks for the welcome. I'd been lurking for a while but finally decided it was time I popped out of lurking!