As above, guinea pigs do not get constipated.
If your piggy is not pooping then he is poorly and needs to see a vet.
A piggy with bloat needs veg removed from the diet. You also need to syringe feed a recovery feed to replace the loss in hay intake.
Not pooping means he isn’t eating enough and the system can go into stasis (which is an emergency) Bloated tummies can feel hard and sound hollow when tapped. It is an urgent situation. You need to switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh him every morning so that you can monitor food intake and you must step in and syringe feed him a recovery feed or mushed pellets as the emergency alternative if you don’t have recovery feed. You feed as much as is necessary to keep his weight stable every morning and that is anywhere from 60-90ml per day depending on the severity is the illness. A very poorly piggy may only manage 40-60ml but that is bare minimum just to keep them alive.
The other possibility given the terminology ‘backed up’ is that the vet means your piggy has impaction. This is when they are not able to clear the poop out their anal sac. You must do it for him - depending on the severity of the case (ie whether he is still able to get some poops out or not), you could need to clear him a few times a day. This can happen when the anal muscles lose strength when they age. Not enough fibre in the diet can also cause them to find it harder to get the poop out. If left uncleared, it can cause infection.
I’ve added various guides below: our emergency guide, syringe feeding guides and digestive disorder guide. I’ve also added our impaction guide.
1 Statement
2 Emergency assessment and accessing vets
- How urgent is my guinea pig's problem?
- Finding an emergency vet
- Seeing a vet not familiar with guinea pigs (including lists of safe and dangerous medications)
3 First Aid care and easily available products
- General 'always have at home' stuff and comfort measures for very ill guinea pigs
- Improvising support feed; recovery formulas...
1 Feed
- Important crisis management resources
- When is improvising necessary?
- Which food group am I replacing with my feeding support?
- How much and how often should I feed and water?
- What can I use that I have already got at home?
- Other possible easily available foods with their pros and cons
- How do I prep a syringe for rougher pellet fibre?
- What can I do without a syringe?
- The role of lukewarm water
2 Probiotics
- Probiotic products...
1 Weight and Weight Loss
- Why regular weight monitoring matters
- How weight changes over a lifetime
- How to weigh on your kitchen scales (with video)
- The weight loss rules
- How critical is the weight loss for my piggy?
- Possible causes for weight loss
2 Body Mass Index (BMI) or 'Heft'
- Why is understanding your piggy's weight so important?
- 'Average' weight vs. individual weight - the big trip up
- How to check for the BMI
3 The...
Introduction
1 Choosing the right place to medicate/feed your piggy
2 Guinea pig whispering and asserting your authority
3 Recovery products and emergency improvisation
4 Syringe recommendations
5 Weight monitoring: your biggest ally
6 Weight loss guidelines and when to step in with feeding
7 Syringe feeding amounts/frequency advice
8 Practical medication and syringing tips
9 Medicating and feeding cooperative guinea pigs (videos)
10 Medicating and feeding uncooperative guinea pigs (hold pictures and tips)
11 The line between life and...
This guide explains bloat and digestive issues
1 Not eating (anorexia) and the importance of syringe feeding fibre
2 Soft poos and runny diarrhea
3 Acute bloat (severe dysbiosis) - blockage - twisted gut - persistent milder bloating
4 GI stasis (no gut movement)
Severe runny diarrhea, bloat, blockage or a twisted gut, GI stasis and excessive salivating in guinea pigs that are not eating are absolute life and death emergencies that need to be seen ASAP by an out-of-hours vet at any time of the day or night or that should be seen by a vet as soon as you can get an appointment outside the UK...
This guide explains impaction
1 What is impaction?
- Potential causes
- Why the need for a vet check
- Diet advice
2 Impaction care videos
- How to check for impaction
- How to remove impaction
- Before and after impaction care
3 An impaction carer's practical experiences and tips
- Diagnosing an impaction (description)
- Treating impaction in the short term
- Treating...
I have moved this post out of your food related thread so that it can receive dedicated health and illness support in the correct forum section.