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Born with no eyes.

W

Winnietheguinea

New Born Pup
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Hello!

I am hoping that someone may be able to help me? I have a baby Guinea Pig, born 4 days ago. Mum had 6, one sadly died. We noticed that Mum was head butting one away so after a period of time observing the decision was made to take baby away. Upon closer inspection we saw that baby has no eyes. I have now brought the baby home with me and am trying to hand rear.
Baby seems well in itself, is only really interested in milk. Toileting all looks fine and is regular.
I have been trying to research as to what has happened and how best to support the little one. Everything leads me to the subject of Lethal but not all boxes are ticked.
Baby has 4 front teeth, nothing seems to be missing.
Baby is honey coloured, mum is ginger and black. (I do not know the colour of Dad but I can find out, the Guinea pigs do not belong to me, I’m just trying to help baby)
Has anyone got any ideas or advice? I’d be ever so grateful.

Thank you!
 
Hi, I'm not an expert but one will be along soon. Guineas wean quickly so if you can get baby through the first couple of weeks he/she has a chance. There have been blind guineas on the forum before who are paired with a seeing companion whom they follow around! Mums only have two nipples so although they can support more than 2 babies at a time I suspect that with 6 she was forced into making a choice. Baby is not necessarily a 'lethal' esp as they are not white coloured. Sometimes things just happen and a 'runt' is born. Ideally you support feed while another older piggy looks after baby day to day but this isn't always possible. Well done you for giving baby a chance 💕
Linking in one of the forum guides here if you've not already found it...

https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk...pport-feeding-orphans-and-tiny-babies.159468/

Bear in mind that the forum does not promote or discuss intentional breeding (for just this sort of reason) and you'll get as much help as our collective knowledge can offer. Good luck! x
 
Thank you so much for your reply and the link which I’ll read through now.
The Guinea pigs are from my place of work (we get lots of animals needing new homes given to us) when they came in males and females were separated and subsequently a couple of females have given birth.
I was wondering about a companion but thought I should wait to find out what sex this one is? I’ve read they can have babies at a really young age so didn’t want to take any risks.
Thank you again for the reply.
 
Winnietheguinea said:
Thank you so much for your reply and the link which I’ll read through now.
The Guinea pigs are from my place of work (we get lots of animals needing new homes given to us) when they came in males and females were separated and subsequently a couple of females have given birth.
I was wondering about a companion but thought I should wait to find out what sex this one is? I’ve read they can have babies at a really young age so didn’t want to take any risks.
Thank you again for the reply.
Click to expand...

Boars can make babies from 3 weeks of age or 250g in weight, sows having their first at around 4-6 weeks. So at only four days old there is time before you need to worry about pregnancies but for such a tiny baby, not being alone is important
 
Winnietheguinea said:
Hello!

I am hoping that someone may be able to help me? I have a baby Guinea Pig, born 4 days ago. Mum had 6, one sadly died. We noticed that Mum was head butting one away so after a period of time observing the decision was made to take baby away. Upon closer inspection we saw that baby has no eyes. I have now brought the baby home with me and am trying to hand rear.
Baby seems well in itself, is only really interested in milk. Toileting all looks fine and is regular.
I have been trying to research as to what has happened and how best to support the little one. Everything leads me to the subject of Lethal but not all boxes are ticked.
Baby has 4 front teeth, nothing seems to be missing.
Baby is honey coloured, mum is ginger and black. (I do not know the colour of Dad but I can find out, the Guinea pigs do not belong to me, I’m just trying to help baby)
Has anyone got any ideas or advice? I’d be ever so grateful.

Thank you!
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome

Here are our detailed how-to tips and practical advice for looking after orphans: Hand rearing and support feeding orphans and tiny babies

Please do NOT feed cows milk and be extremely cautious that nothing is going down the wrong way, as that will be fatal. You can find lots of information on suitable foods and safe feeding options in the guide link above. Including how you replace the mother in turns of stimulating the digestive tract etc.

Do you have access to another sow or a gentle adult neutered boar who would be willing to look after the baby for company and socialisation? Many blind/eyeless piggies thrive with a carer sibling or companion.
Can I ask what kind of situation the mother is in. Is she still with a boar?
 
I know years ago I read a post somewhere about anophthalmic (no eyes) babies who were not lethals... they were brown in colour. They just had a random birth defect. In pics, they looked like perfectly normal guinea pigs, just with no eyes. It's just one of those things that can randomly happen. Fingers crossed he makes it through okay, the good news is that because guinea pigs have poor eyesight anyhow, being blind will not really negatively affect his life long-term.
 
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