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Post by moejoe68 on Apr 25, 2011 11:55:04 GMT
We are new to the guinea pig world. We have brought home a pair of pigs and have fallen in love. one pig, scooter has more than doubled his size in the last 3 wks and is a handful  . Baby on the other hand is not doing so good. after they had been home about a week we noticed a lump, small one, on babies side. soon after it was gone but a bald patch was there. the hair is now regrowing but she is not. she was eating her hay fine and drinking, oranges were supplied daily and she loves them. today her little ears are cold, she is not wanting to move about much and showed no interest in her fresh hay this morning. also when we first brought her home she was doing some itching. not constant but occasionally she would scratch. i am currently waiting on two calls back from vets. our vet here in town is more of a dog cat horse cow pig (farm pig that is) vet and not sure if they will know much about my pig. we so love our baby, she was very docile and extremely easy to handle right off the bat and bubbled non stop while getting her lovies every day. any ideas that i can head the vets in the right direction with?  |
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Post by twistedsymphony on Apr 25, 2011 17:19:24 GMT
you say the words, bald patch and itching, that says mites to me which is quite common. It can get rather serious but if you are quick then it should be fine, they will need a spot on of xeno, which is to guinea pigs as frontline is to cats. You will be able to get that from the vets. My two have been terrible with them, but that sorts them right out. www.guinealynx.info/mites.html for more info x good luck. Good luck. |
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Post by kellyb on Apr 25, 2011 18:38:55 GMT
Just wondering about her diet? Do they get pellets along with their hay? I don't at all want to sound harsh, but am just hoping I can give you some helpful information. You also said they get oranges daily - they can be quite acidic and can cause mouth sores etc. From what I've read, oranges should be an occassional treat, but not a main dietary staple.
Typically I give my pigs lots of cheap veggies and save the fruit for occassional treats - maybe once a week, they'll get a slice of apple or an orange slice. Some great (inexpensive) veggies are parsley, cilantro, romaine lettuce, baby carrots, kale, spinach, green pepper... if you give a good range of different veg everyday, they will get their vitamin C and it shouldn't cause mouth sores or tummy upset. Twice a day, my girls each get about a large handful of (good quality, vitamin C already added) guinea pig pellets, a handful of something green and leafy, either a slice of green pepper or a few sprigs of fresh parsley or cilantro, and a baby carrot in the morning and usually a leaf of lettuce each, and a large amount of hay. This has been working very well for my girls and it's very affordable.
You say the baby doesn't seem to be eating now, is it possible she has some sores in her mouth? And I agree with twistedsymphony, bald patch, itching, it does sound like it could be mites. How bad is the itching? My girls always have a good scratch now and then - kinda like how a dog will sctrach once in a while, but they never go at themselves relentlessly or look uncomfortable.
Keep us posted. Hopefully your vet will have something to help... get well soon little piggy.
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Post by moejoe68 on Apr 25, 2011 20:52:59 GMT
well, we went to vet and im not sure what all he will find but poor baby is there for a couple days. i think it was more than just a mite problem. when i picked her up today she was cold and squeaky. appears to be a respiratory problem. crossing fingers......does not look very good at this point. they are starting iv fluids, antibiotics and putting her on oxygen in a incubator....... we miss our baby and hopefully she will be home soon.
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Post by Kayleigh on Apr 25, 2011 20:55:10 GMT
The itching and bald patches could be mites, is her coat dull and rough feeling? I would get her treated as soon as you can. As Kelly has mentioned giving oranges daily can cause mouth sores which may prevent her from eating. Guinea pigs should get between 30 - 45 grams of good quality guinea pig pellets a day along side unlimited amounts of either meadow, timothy or orchard hay. They should also get a nice selection of fresh fruits and veggies to keep their diet varied.
Just to be on the safe side i would strongly suggest getting her checked out by a vet.
Just a small note, you say Scooter is male and Baby is female, They should NOT be housed togeather as she will fall pregnant and if shes unwell this could be fatal.
Let us know how Baby is doing.
Kayleigh
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Post by Kayleigh on Apr 25, 2011 20:58:57 GMT
well, we went to vet and im not sure what all he will find but poor baby is there for a couple days. i think it was more than just a mite problem. when i picked her up today she was cold and squeaky. appears to be a respiratory problem. crossing fingers......does not look very good at this point. they are starting iv fluids, antibiotics and putting her on oxygen in a incubator....... we miss our baby and hopefully she will be home soon. It seems we posted yet minutes apart. Im glad she is getting treated and i hope she pulls through, Shes in the best hands. Keep us updated with her progress. Kayleigh |
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Post by moejoe68 on Apr 25, 2011 21:03:15 GMT
ive been trying all the veggies you listed......mine are not taking to the greens very well...they want nothing at all to do with a carrot. have not yet tried the cilantro and apple and will soon but the spinach, romain and green peppers were no go's. i think maybe because they came from pet store they are just not used to the new foods. they also get a guinea pig deluxe pellet feed. as for the other stuff ive tried them a few days each, one at a time so that if somebody gets the poos or does not take to it i know which leafy it is thats done it. so far with the oranges they seem to only eat it if they need it, some days i will pull it out in the morning and they will have not touched it, other times they will have it devoured down to the peel. if i could get them on something more of a variety i would feel better and im sure they would be much more interested.
i will just keep offering, i think scooter (which is very curious about his surroundings) will with time and constant offering, take up to the other foods as well. oh and yes, they get all the timothy they want and can eat and that seems to be what gets them the most excited right now......or did anyway before baby went off everything.
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Post by Orlaith on Apr 26, 2011 9:28:27 GMT
I hope that Baby is okay. Keep trying with the veggies. My lot are very fussy about new foods but after two or three tries they tuck in as though they'd been eating them all their lives  |
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Post by moejoe68 on Apr 26, 2011 13:17:56 GMT
i have some sad news. at about midnight my time last night......baby passed. the vet talked to me this morning, they actually took her home with them to keep her monitored in her little incubator. she was in distress at around 11 p.m. and he put her back on oxygen....but it did not help. even though we have only had her 3 wks im actually pretty upset ..........thx for all the thoughts for our baby girl.
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Post by Kayleigh on Apr 26, 2011 16:55:04 GMT
Im so sorry for your loss. You done everything you could have.
RIP Baby!!
Kayleigh
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Post by Orlaith on Apr 27, 2011 13:45:48 GMT
I'm really sorry to hear about Baby. RIP little pig.
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