Female guinea pig having issues

[AnnaMC24]

So I have a female guinea pig and I noticed this morning (May 18th) she had long, clumpy, smelly soft poop in her cage and it was the same all day. I had her checked a few days ago and the vet said she was normal and told me to fed her alfalfa hay instead of Timothy hay since she’s only about 12 weeks old. She was eating the hay for a few days then stopped so I went back to Timothy hay yesterday and she was eating again. Could her stomach just be upset or should I have her see a vet. She’s drinking water but not eating as much hay as she normally does. When she’s vocal she sounds very strained and croaked.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Guinea pigs of that age do not need alfalfa. It isn’t a grass hay and is too high in calcium to be in their diet after they are weaned.
Ensure you only feed a grass hay such as timothy or orchard hay.

Take her off of all can veg until her poops go back normal and then for a further 24 hours after.

Switch from the routine lifelong weekly weight checks and instead weigh her daily for the time being. Weighing them is the only way to know they are eating enough hay. If she isn’t eating enough hay and is feeling poorly , then you may need to step in and syringe feed her if she loses weight.

Please do see a knowledgeable vet if she is appearing to be unwell now. See a vet urgently if she deteriorates significantly.

The guides below offer further information

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Weight - Monitoring and Management

 

[AnnaMC24]

I am also noticing that when she goes poop she starts to sort of arch her back and she just looks strained. I want to take her in tomorrow cause she looks uncomfortable when she goes to the bathroom

 

[Piggies&buns]

Definitely a good idea to get a vet check.

Do with the daily weight checks today so you can monitor her food intake immediately.

Does she have a companion?

 

[AnnaMC24]

Yes but I just got her and I didn’t want to put them in the same cage until the other one got acquainted with her new space

 

[Piggies&buns]

Yes but I just got her and I didn’t want to put them in the same cage until the other one got acquainted with her new space

Please carry out the correct bonding procedure immediately in neutral territory - don’t ever just put a new piggy directly into the cage of another piggy. Guinea pigs under 16 weeks of age must never be kept by themselves. Young piggies have high social needs and are desperate to belong. They settle in and relax much better with a friend.

The guide below shows the exact way to carry out a bonding. It must be done on neutral territory. You put them in a bonding pen and leave them for several hours to get to know each other. You then clean down the cage they are to live in and then move them to the new cage. Don’t separate them after the meeting unless the bonding fails. They will then be in a process of establishing their relationship for the next two weeks

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics

 

[AnnaMC24]

Okay thank you for the info. I did put them together for a brief time in a play pen and my one piggie(the one having the issues) seemed a little feisty with her so I took them out. Their cages are right next to each other tho and they do seem to communicate through the cages. I definitely plan on trying to bond them again and will follow the correct steps

 

[Piggies&buns]

Okay thank you for the info. I did put them together for a brief time in a play pen and my one piggie(the one having the issues) seemed a little feisty with her so I took them out. Their cages are right next to each other tho and they do seem to communicate through the cages. I definitely plan on trying to bond them again and will follow the correct steps

They will need to carry out certain behaviours to get to know each other. If it’s normal dominance then it isn’t a reason to separate them - you will hear squeaking, see mounting, chasing etc, that is entirely normal. If you separate them after putting them together, that is stressful for them and you interrupt their processes and they have to start all over again. They will have to be together for many hours to even start to form a rough hierarchy (one being dominant and one the submissive). That is a process which continues for a further two weeks before it is fully established

Definitely get her checked by a vet and carry out the bonding properly.

Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

 

[AnnaMC24]

They will need to carry out certain behaviours to get to know each other. If it’s normal dominance then it isn’t a reason to separate them - you will hear squeaking, see mounting, chasing etc, that is entirely normal. If you separate them after putting them together, that is stressful for them and you interrupt their processes and they have to start all over again. They will have to be together for many hours to even start to form a rough hierarchy (one being dominant and one the submissive). That is a process which continues for a further two weeks before it is fully established

Definitely get her checked by a vet and carry out the bonding properly.

Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

They will need to carry out certain behaviours to get to know each other. If it’s normal dominance then it isn’t a reason to separate them - you will hear squeaking, see mounting, chasing etc, that is entirely normal. If you separate them after putting them together, that is stressful for them and you interrupt their processes and they have to start all over again. They will have to be together for many hours to even start to form a rough hierarchy (one being dominant and one the submissive). That is a process which continues for a further two weeks before it is fully established

Definitely get her checked by a vet and carry out the bonding properly.

Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

Okay thanks. I just was worried that one would get hurt.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Okay thanks. I just was worried that one would get hurt.

In a successful bonding, they will be absolutely fine

Do check they are both definitely sows before you put them together.
You are much less likely to see the injury causing full on fights in sows with a failed bond - usually if a bond fails with boars a full on fight is something which does occur. However, it is important that you know what is normal behaviour as what is the sign of a failed bonding. As I said though you can’t interrupt the process once you’ve started it if it is just normal dominance behaviours.