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Enlarged fluid filled dewlap

RaineJ

RaineJ

New Born Pup
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Aug 19, 2023
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This might be a bit of a long post I apologise in advance.

I’ve got a male DEW guinea pig (not sure of his age, possibly around 2) who has had a few issues over the last couple of months but in the last few days it’s gotten really concerning.

Tofu has something i’ve never seen or heard of before in a guinea pig. Over the last maybe month or so he’s experienced weight loss, and I assumed it was just because of the cold and so i increased his daily vegetables to a little more than a cup a day and added extra pellets each day but to no avail. He had a couple issues with pooping, for a few days he was producing teardrop shaped poops, but they went away after I added another type of hay to his diet.

About a week ago he started to rapidly gain weight however I could see and feel his spine and hips, his stomach seemed to be the only thing that was fatter. And then in the last couple of days his dewlap has blown up, it sags down to the floor and feels like it’s filled with fluids. He’s had possible early signs of impaction as well as his ears are turning grey/blue around the edges.

I’m aware that this is probably quite a complicated illness and that he may not make it, but if there’s a chance the vet can help him I’ll take it.

So my questions are, Has anyone seen an illness like tofu’s in the past and is there any kind of treatment? And does anyone know of any good, cheaper vets in Sydney Australia?
 
Hello and welcome to the forum. I’m sorry Tofu is so unwell.

I would get him seen as soon as possible. You sound like a caring owner and you are feeling like something complicated is going on. You know tofu the best.

Now obviously I’m not a vet and I’m definitely not saying this is what Tofu has but years ago I had a piggy who developed something like this. He was over 7. He had been unwell for a little while then his neck area ballooned over a day or two. Unfortunately he had heart failure and the kindest thing to do was to not let him wake up from the anaesthetic. 😢

Also I had another piggy last year have a tooth root abscess. That was on one side of his jaw and that ballooned to 4cm! He’s fine now.

So you need to get him seen by a vet to get the correct diagnosis and treatment. Good luck. Keep us posted.
 
weepweeps said:
Hello and welcome to the forum. I’m sorry Tofu is so unwell.

I would get him seen as soon as possible. You sound like a caring owner and you are feeling like something complicated is going on. You know tofu the best.

Now obviously I’m not a vet and I’m definitely not saying this is what Tofu has but years ago I had a piggy who developed something like this. He was over 7. He had been unwell for a little while then his neck area ballooned over a day or two. Unfortunately he had heart failure and the kindest thing to do was to not let him wake up from the anaesthetic. 😢

Also I had another piggy last year have a tooth root abscess. That was on one side of his jaw and that ballooned to 4cm! He’s fine now.

So you need to get him seen by a vet to get the correct diagnosis and treatment. Good luck. Keep us posted.
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I think it’s probably what your older piggy had, unfortunately this afternoon he’s rapidly declined and he’s not really able to move. But I was wondering if I should seperate him from his brother during this or keep them together, my other guinea pig seemed a little stressed and upset while he was with him.
 
I’m so sorry to hear this. Usually you just keep them together so their friend understands what’s happening. But if his friend is getting stressed maybe I’d separate. There’s no right answer.

I wouldn’t want Tofu to suffer so if you could get him to a vet that might be best. But again there’s no right thing to do as passing peacefully at home in his familiar surroundings is lovely. Sending you a hug. I’m sorry.
 
I was about to come on here and just let everyone know he passed away a few hours ago and thank everyone for the replies while I fed his brother dinner, but when I went down to get him I found him in almost the exact same state Tofu was. He’s on his side twitching. I’ve wrapped him in a towel and am sitting with him but I can’t understand why this has happened. Tofu had been exhibiting different symptoms for a while before he passed but his brother, bean, has been perfectly healthy he’s had absolutely no issues, this morning he was running squeaking eating and pooping as normal, could this be in reaction to Tofu’s death or possibly some sort of infection that they both had?
 
Oh no I’m so sorry for you. How awful. I’ve no idea what is wrong with Bean. I don’t know if the death of a cage mate can cause a piggy to pass. If you think there’s hope for Bean then try and get them seen as soon as possible. 😢
 
I am so sorry you are going through this. It could be Tofu had an infection If Bean could have caught it. It would be best to get him to a vet for treatment.
 
Oh my goodness how horrible I'm so so sorry 😭
I would get Bean to the vet if you can. Best of luck, I hope and pray he gets better 🤞❤️
 
Unfortunately he died within an hour of me finding him. I have no idea what happened since he was perfectly fine when I left him, and then only a few hours later he passed away. It’s been a difficult day but thank you to everyone for the advice and good luck wishes. <3
 
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