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Don't know what to do

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linzee

New Born Pup
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Guinea pig aged 2.5 years has been losing weight for a few weeks. Vet said his molars are overgrown so had them trimmed under general anaesthetic. That was 10 days ago. We've been feeding him science selective recovery since then and he's still losing weight.

Just been back to the vets who said he's not ill enough to be PTS but can only really suggest continuing with the recovery food. He clearly needs more care than I am able to give him (I can't spoon feed him 4 times a day for an indefinite amount of time, the rest of my life - kids and work - doesn't allow for it). I've tried to contact some rescues and everywhere seems full. What do I do? Please no judgment, I had no idea guinea pigs could require this level of care.
 
It's alright so dont feel guilty for not expecting this amount of work. You can hold onto him for a bit longer. Then decide wether to unadopt him or not. It is a choice that will take a while to make. If you choose to unadopt him still, maybe find someone willing to adopt. Some places to look are: the forum, the strret via poster, pet shops and adoption centers. The RSPCA almost always have spaces and extra advice! Good luck with your decision! 👍
 
Thanks. The concern is that we don't have time, as he's still losing weight. How would I use the forum to find someone who would adopt him?
 
I’m so sorry to hear of your situation. You won’t receive any judgement on this forum, only support.
Recovery from dental work can take time. Was he being given pain relief post surgery? Have you access to fresh dog pee free grass? If so, try giving him handfuls as often they can manage grass.
Is the vet knowledgeable about dentals? Unfortunately vets aren’t given much training on dentals and can sometimes make things worse if they expect piggy teeth to be like rabbit teeth.
Syringe feeding a poorly piggy can be very draining and syringing enough to maintain weight when they aren’t eating anything else for themselves can need to be done every couple of hours - sometimes this simply isn’t feasible despite every best effort.

The only safe way to find him a new home is to surrender to a rescue centre. I assume you explained the severity of the situation to them?
We would never recommend rehoming elsewhere.
Some members of the forum have taken on piggies who have needed to be rehomed
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/forums/guinea-pigs-looking-for-homes.19/
 
It maybe worth contacting TEAS,specialist sanctuary dealing with guinea pig teeth problems,with access to a very good vet who are very outstanding knowledge of guinea pig dentals.
 
Ask around on a post and find someone who tells you they'd be willing to adopt if theyre in the area.

Edit:
I now see that its probably an unreliable idea to ask around on the frum. Sorry for the false info!
 
eileen said:
It maybe worth contacting TEAS,specialist sanctuary dealing with guinea pig teeth problems,with access to a very good vet who are very outstanding knowledge of guinea pig dentals.
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Thanks. I am going to call them tomorrow.
 
Ahh. I am in same boat. 10 days post op here as well and my pig was doing great then not then good and now down hill again. I think teeth are bad again but I’m like HOW! At only 10 days when she was eating hay with the exception of a day and a half and just recently. It’s so hard. I am in US though so no access to same places as you all. I hope things look up for you. It’s so hard to watch them struggle and at the same time it’s rough on us as well. Emotionally and physically draining. Take care ❤️
 
I have found a lady at an animal sanctuary who will take him in. She sounds lovely. I know that if he's going to get better he stands a much better chance with her than with me, but I still feel awful about it. I'm not sure my husband is very happy about it but I really think if he stays with us he'll just continue to decline.
 
I'm sorry you have had to make such a tough decision. Please don't feel guilty. You did what you thought was best for him and you did it with love and care. Sending love and healing vibes to your little boy. Take care 💕
 
Thanks. It still leaves me with a separate decision to make about our other (healthy) boy but at least the decision has been made about the poorly one.
 
linzee said:
Thanks. It still leaves me with a separate decision to make about our other (healthy) boy but at least the decision has been made about the poorly one.
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Can his companion go too, it would be a great shame to split them up, Debbie at TEAS is very experienced with guinea pig teeth problems, she looked after my Ted through part of lockdown so he could be near the best dental piggie vet in the county
 
linzee said:
Yes I think we are sorted, just need to confirm arrangements with the rescue. (I was going to let you know I promise!)
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I would’ve appreciated you letting me know, as I’d already spent time talking to the trustees of the charity, to see if we would’ve been in a position to offer a place for your guinea pig and his friend. Taking on a guinea pig with health issues is costly to the charity and we would never go ahead without ensuring we were in a financial position to offer this help.

Wishing you and your guinea pig all the best.
 
linzee said:
Yes I think we are sorted, just need to confirm arrangements with the rescue. (I was going to let you know I promise!)
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Please do try and make sure they can go together as it would be a shame to split a bonded pair.
Also it is worth knowing that pretty much anyone in the UK can call themselves a rescue, so please make doubly sure that the person he is going to can really offer the care he needs long term. Is the rescue you are using on the list at the top of this page? Did they also offer to take his companion?
Naturally the list above is not exhaustive, but it is definetly a very good place to start, and given his dental issues it would be important to know that the rescue has access to an experienced dental vet and the funds to use this as often as needed (like Debbie at TEAS)
 
Debbie at TEAS and the amazing local dental vets she has access to would be the place to go in my opinion. Good luck.
 
Without knowing more about the guinea pig , I’m unable to say whether we could take him. I would always take the companion piggy too, if we were offering a place to one with dental, or other health issues. TEAS has been impacted severely by the pandemic and our finances are at the lowest they’ve ever been. I can never make a snap decision as to whether we take on a guinea pig, without getting the clinical notes sent to Simon, as I need to be sure we can afford to access the treatment they need.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
I would’ve appreciated you letting me know, as I’d already spent time talking to the trustees of the charity, to see if we would’ve been in a position to offer a place for your guinea pig and his friend. Taking on a guinea pig with health issues is costly to the charity and we would never go ahead without ensuring we were in a financial position to offer this help.

Wishing you and your guinea pig all the best.
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Sorry I meant I was going to let you know as soon as I had confirmation from the other rescue. I promise I would have messaged you within the next couple of hours. I do appreciate you taking the time to reply to my messages and look into whether there would be space.

Piggy is now at the rescue. It's on the list linked to above, and we are very confident he will get very good care there. Our other pig has stayed with us as both we and the owner of the rescue think it was not a good bond and sick pig was basically being bullied.

Thank you all for your help and advice, I appreciate it.
 
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