We have been on holiday for a week and took our 2 female guinea pigs to boarding, they were at the same place earlier on in the year for 3 nights this time it was 9 nights. We picked them up this morning and noticed they are both not themselves, one of them is a bit off but still eating and the other one has gone skinny and hardly eating, she took a few bites of cucumber whilst sat on me just now but she was chewing it really slowly. They haven't been excited and wheaking when we go upto their room either. Just wondered if anyone else has had anything similar to this? Not sure if she's depressed or if anythings happened while she was there and hopefully will pick up a bit now she's back home.
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9 nights at boarding one pig not eating
- Thread starter sophx8
- Start date
Hi
HUGS
I am so sorry. It's the kind of nightmare you worry about as an owner but it is so much worse when you come home to the reality.
Please step in with full-on feeding and watering support asap and book a vet appointment first thing tomorrow morning so your girls can be seen as soon as possible. Weigh daily first thing in the morning on your kitchen scales for best da to day comparison.
These guides here are very practical and step by step to help you in this emergency:
This is our regular guide with all the tips, tricks, pictures and videos:
Our one-stop emergency advice and information collection:
I hope that these guides will help you support your poorly girl right now and through any medical treatment. Your feeding support is as crucial as any medical treatment.
My fingers are very firmly crossed!
Merab
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Just offering support
Thank you for the information! We took them to the vets this morning and he said they're dehydrated, one worse than the other. They've kept the worse one in overnight tonight and we have brought the other one home after he administered antibiotics and something for hydration he gave us oral antibiotics to give her too. Shes started eating lettuce under her hidey now so fingers crossed!
Please ensure that you replace the crucial hay intake, which makes over three quarters of the day food intake. Just nibbling on a piece of lettuce is not enough! The need to eat comes before the need to drink; if your piggies are severely dehdrated, this means that they haven't been eating for a while now. Unlike predatory pets, guinea pigs cannot afford to fast for very long.
Please feel around the ribcage for the BMI as to whether they are underweight or not and then take it from there. Watch their poo output: is it plentyful or all small, crumbly, hard pieces that reveal a stark lack of food?
The vet checked out their BMI and weight and said one was worse than the other so they've kept the one that's worse in. They sent the other home with me and she started eating the lettuce not long after she had been given her antibiotics and fluid Injection, she hasn't been eating anything recently so eating some lettuce is a good start in my opinion, we still have plenty of hay and nuggets in there for her, we haven't just given her veggies, she still has everything else she needs in her cage and we are monitoring her and what she's eating.Please ensure that you replace the crucial hay intake, which makes over three quarters of the day food intake. Just nibbling on a piece of lettuce is not enough! The need to eat comes before the need to drink; if your piggies are severely dehdrated, this means that they haven't been eating for a while now. Unlike predatory pets, guinea pigs cannot afford to fast for very long.
Please feel around the ribcage for the BMI as to whether they are underweight or not and then take it from there. Watch their poo output: is it plentyful or all small, crumbly, hard pieces that reveal a stark lack of food?
You can’t monitor hay intake by eye. You need to weigh them yourself each morning and step in with syringe feeding a recovery feed. While it’s good she has eaten some lettuce, the reality is that it isn’t what she needs and isn’t enough to keep gut function or weight on them. Any loss of hay intake means you must step in with syringe feeding
I hope they are ok
bethlauren21
Junior Guinea Pig
Really hope your piggies are ok, & I hope you've got in touch with the place they stayed at telling them what's happened and how poorly they are, that's really terrible!
Thank you! I did speak to her last night and she said they seemed okay and to keep her updated and then this morning I told her the vet had said they are dehydrated and she said they had a brown of water and bottle of water in the cage they were in. The vet did say it could be from an infection though, he said it doesn't mean they haven't been given water.
Had an update from the vet at 5pm saying the one thats staying in overnight wouldn't take anything from the syringe this morning but she's been on a drip all day and just taken some food from the syringe
Merab
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Holding you in my heart 
We lost the one that stayed at the vets, they phoned this morning and said she's not eaten and they wanted to do x rays and blood tests, so we asked if we can come in and try get her to eat because she knows us and they asked us to book a slot. Then half an hour before our slot they rang and said she had a turn for the worst and it's best to put her to sleep so we made the decision to do itHolding you in my heart
.They are just over a year old so we need one for the one we have at home as she seems lonely and depressed without her
. How soon should we look at getting another? Obviously it's very raw for us at the moment 
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We lost the one that stayed at the vets, they phoned this morning and said she's not eaten and they wanted to do x rays and blood tests, so we asked if we can come in and try get her to eat because she knows us and they asked us to book a slot. Then half an hour before our slot they rang and said she had a turn for the worst and it's best to put her to sleep so we made the decision to do it
They are just over a year old so we need one for the one we have at home as she seems lonely and depressed without her
I’m so sorry for your loss.
If a piggy is struggling to be alone, going into depression, not eating due to grief, then that is called acute pining and it means she needs a new friend immediately.
Any piggy not struggling (beyond normal grieving) can wait for a few weeks before getting a new friend.
Merab
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So very sorry for your loss.
Be gentle with yourself as you grieve.
Hugs
Be gentle with yourself as you grieve.
Hugs
Gem789
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I'm so sorry for your loss x
bethlauren21
Junior Guinea Pig
So so sorry. Thinking of you and your lone piggy xx
I am so very sorry for your loss.
Please make sure that the companion is eating enough hay and that their weight is stable. A piggy that is not eating enough or at all cannot afford to fast; they need hay/grass fibre based syringe feeding care. Your weaker girl sounded to me like she may have passed the line of no return by the time you got her home, unfortunately.
The loss of the companion can unfortunately lower the immune system in a piggy that has already got problems, so please check daily with a quick weigh-in on your normal cheap supermarket scales before the breakfast so you can step in with support care while there is still time.
But as long as a bereaved companion is still eating enough and their weight is stable, then you have ideally 1-4 weeks' time to sort something out.
We can help with sexing any new companions before they meet to ensure that there are no unplanned accidents.
Please be kind with yourself and try not to blame yourself too much.
Our grieving guide also contains tips for parents, links and material for children of different ages.
Please make sure that the companion is eating enough hay and that their weight is stable. A piggy that is not eating enough or at all cannot afford to fast; they need hay/grass fibre based syringe feeding care. Your weaker girl sounded to me like she may have passed the line of no return by the time you got her home, unfortunately.
The loss of the companion can unfortunately lower the immune system in a piggy that has already got problems, so please check daily with a quick weigh-in on your normal cheap supermarket scales before the breakfast so you can step in with support care while there is still time.
But as long as a bereaved companion is still eating enough and their weight is stable, then you have ideally 1-4 weeks' time to sort something out.
We can help with sexing any new companions before they meet to ensure that there are no unplanned accidents.
Please be kind with yourself and try not to blame yourself too much.
Our grieving guide also contains tips for parents, links and material for children of different ages.