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Female guinea pig not eating?

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Daisypiggie1031

New Born Pup
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Arlington, texas
Hi! I have a 3 almost 4 year old female piggy and about 2 weeks ago she was perfectly fine eating and drinking normally but her water bottle broke so I bought a new one. Mind you this new water bottle was the exact same one as the last one. Same color, same company, same shape everything was the same but after two days I noticed her water level hadn’t gone down much and usually I have to fill her bottle up everyday because she drinks so much. I also then noticed there wasn’t much poops which led to me noticing she also wasn’t really eating. I freaked and this led to a trip to the vet where I was told her teeth are little long but not long enough to cause any issues. I was told to go on critical care and I also got sent home with a fecal test. That same day I got a new water bottle from the pet store and she started drinking right away and started eating as normal. I got really happy and relieved but two days later I notice she’s back to not drinking or eating or pooping and it has me very stressed. She also hasn’t pooped much they’re very small and soft. She’s alert and gets a little excited when I get the hay bag but when she goes to eat I mainly see her push the food around with her nose but not really eating it. I’ve started to give her Sherwood appetite restore and I also have Sherwood recovery food on the way. But what could cause her to be good and go back to how she was before? Any advice would be appreciated! Edit: while giving her the appetite restore I noticed her bottom jaw seemed kinda crooked? She’ll move it to the right for a second and then back to normal I couldn’t tell if it was just me seeing things but it kinda looked like she was eating on one side only I’ll try to insert a video (it only let me put a picture.) But that’s what it looks like then she moves it back to center.
 

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Daisypiggie1031 said:
Hi! I have a 3 almost 4 year old female piggy and about 2 weeks ago she was perfectly fine eating and drinking normally but her water bottle broke so I bought a new one. Mind you this new water bottle was the exact same one as the last one. Same color, same company, same shape everything was the same but after two days I noticed her water level hadn’t gone down much and usually I have to fill her bottle up everyday because she drinks so much. I also then noticed there wasn’t much poops which led to me noticing she also wasn’t really eating. I freaked and this led to a trip to the vet where I was told her teeth are little long but not long enough to cause any issues. I was told to go on critical care and I also got sent home with a fecal test. That same day I got a new water bottle from the pet store and she started drinking right away and started eating as normal. I got really happy and relieved but two days later I notice she’s back to not drinking or eating or pooping and it has me very stressed. She also hasn’t pooped much they’re very small and soft. She’s alert and gets a little excited when I get the hay bag but when she goes to eat I mainly see her push the food around with her nose but not really eating it. I’ve started to give her Sherwood appetite restore and I also have Sherwood recovery food on the way. But what could cause her to be good and go back to how she was before? Any advice would be appreciated! Edit: while giving her the appetite restore I noticed her bottom jaw seemed kinda crooked? She’ll move it to the right for a second and then back to normal I couldn’t tell if it was just me seeing things but it kinda looked like she was eating on one side only I’ll try to insert a video (it only let me put a picture.) But that’s what it looks like then she moves it back to center.
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Also id like to add the bottle I bought after hers broke does indeed dispense water I checked many times but she wouldn’t even try to drink from it so I assumed she just didn’t like it for whatever reason.
 
She will need to be seen again by a knowledgeable vet.
As hay is their main food intake, if she is not eating enough then you need to replace her lack of hay intake with sufficient syringe feeding. Please switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh her daily so you can ensure her weight is remaining stable and that you are giving enough syringe feed. Reduced poop means reduced food intake.

Which teeth looked a little long? If the vet meant the front ones, then that can indicate a problem with the back teeth. The front teeth are kept in check by a functioning set of molars. If something goes wrong with the molars, then a piggy will stop eating properly. This in turn means the back teeth then continue overgrow without the constant abrasion of hay. You can sometimes then see a problem with the front teeth start to show as piggy stops chewing properly. Their tongue can become trapped by overgrowing back teeth.

Where are you located? If you are in the UK, then the best vet for piggy dentals is in Northampton (Cat & Rabbit clinic) and people travel from all over the country to have the benefit of their expertise. Sadly not enough vets know enough about piggy teeth.
 
Piggies&buns said:
She will need to be seen again by a knowledgeable vet.
As hay is their main food intake, if she is not eating enough then you need to replace her lack of hay intake with sufficient syringe feeding. Please switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh her daily so you can ensure her weight is remaining stable and that you are giving enough syringe feed. Reduced poop means reduced food intake.

Which teeth looked a little long? If the vet meant the front ones, then that can indicate a problem with the back teeth. The front teeth are kept in check by a functioning set of molars. If something goes wrong with the molars, then a piggy will stop eating properly. This in turn means the back teeth then continue overgrow without the constant abrasion of hay. You can sometimes then see a problem with the front teeth start to show as piggy stops chewing properly. Their tongue can become trapped by overgrowing back teeth.

Where are you located? If you are in the UK, then the best vet for piggy dentals is in Northampton (Cat & Rabbit clinic) and people travel from all over the country to have the benefit of their expertise. Sadly not enough vets know enough about piggy teeth.
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Thank you for the advice! I’m actually not located at all in the Uk I’m in the states and I took her to a vet which was listed on another guinea pig website. The vet said the issue was with the back molar.
 
Siikibam said:
I’m glad you got her seen. What did the vet say was the course of action? Are you also offering her a fibre replacement as she’s not eating enough? Hope she starts improving soon.

PS please can you add your location to your profile 😊

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
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The vet said to feed her critical care and to send back the stool sample when I can. But just now I noticed she has diarrea and every vet near me is closed until Monday so I don’t know what to do until then. I’m very stressed out
 
Daisypiggie1031 said:
The vet said to feed her critical care and to send back the stool sample when I can. But just now I noticed she has diarrea and every vet near me is closed until Monday so I don’t know what to do until then. I’m very stressed out
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Hi!

Are you talking soft or runny poos?

Please continue to syringe feed fibrous critical care; aim for 60-90 ml in 24 hours but try to come as close as 40 ml at the very least. With a
piggy completely off their food, you are looking at feeding every 2 hours and if needed once during the night, if you struggle to get food in.
Please never just a squirt the contents of a syringe into the mouth; it can go down the wrong way or up into the nose blocking airways if you give more than a piggy can swallow. Always wait after about 0.3 ml (0.1 ml in the very weak or in babies) and give your piggy time to swallow if they are not actively feeding from the syringe.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide (includes a chapter on probiotics/'poo soup' support as well)


The diarrhea should hopefully firm up again with enough fibrous food coming into the gut.
Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
 
Wiebke said:
Hi!

Are you talking soft or runny poos?

Please continue to syringe feed fibrous critical care; aim for 60-90 ml in 24 hours but try to come as close as 40 ml at the very least. With a
piggy completely off their food, you are looking at feeding every 2 hours and if needed once during the night, if you struggle to get food in.
Please never just a squirt the contents of a syringe into the mouth; it can go down the wrong way or up into the nose blocking airways if you give more than a piggy can swallow. Always wait after about 0.3 ml (0.1 ml in the very weak or in babies) and give your piggy time to swallow if they are not actively feeding from the syringe.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide (includes a chapter on probiotics/'poo soup' support as well)


The diarrhea should hopefully firm up again with enough fibrous food coming into the gut.
Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Click to expand...
Honestly my guess is runny? I have two pictures one where I can’t figure out if it’s really liquidy poop or if she peed on top of poop and that’s why it looks like that and the other looks like straight up wet poop. I’ll insert a picture of both 5ADA70A4-169B-46F9-9C19-A88139F92750.webp32EC876D-49D5-44A1-B8AF-A0587DB59B5F.webp
 
Daisypiggie1031 said:
Honestly my guess is runny? I have two pictures one where I can’t figure out if it’s really liquidy poop or if she peed on top of poop and that’s why it looks like that and the other looks like straight up wet poop. I’ll insert a picture of both View attachment 174047View attachment 174048
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That doesn't look good and should frankly be seen by a vet. :(

Which country are you in? We are dealing with members and enquiries from quite literally all over the world. In the UK, we have got country-wide weekend cover and clinics that are open every day, especially in urban areas.
How to contact a vet out of hours
 
Wiebke said:
That doesn't look good and should frankly be seen by a vet. :(

Which country are you in? We are dealing with members and enquiries from quite literally all over the world. In the UK, we have got country-wide weekend cover and clinics that are open every day, especially in urban areas.
How to contact a vet out of hours
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I’m in Texas and every place is either closed on weekends or don’t have any spots until may
 
Daisypiggie1031 said:
I’m in Texas and every place is either closed on weekends or don’t have any spots until may
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Please follow the advice in the links in this thread re. diarrhea and support feeding in this thread. Fingers very firmly crossed!
 
How did your piggy fair overnight?
 
Siikibam said:
How did your piggy fair overnight?
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She’s doing okay, it was a little hard syringe feeding because she fights it. She drank a little water from the bowl on her own but other than that nothings changed. I cleaned her cage and put in new food but she just moves it with her nose that’s about it. I'm probably going to take her to get her teeth trimmed and so she can get checked again and hopefully they can give me a better answer on what’s happening with her. if her teeth are the problem they have to use anesthesia but I’m afraid since she’s been a little weak.
 
Daisypiggie1031 said:
She’s doing okay, it was a little hard syringe feeding because she fights it. She drank a little water from the bowl on her own but other than that nothings changed. I cleaned her cage and put in new food but she just moves it with her nose that’s about it. I'm probably going to take her to get her teeth trimmed and so she can get checked again and hopefully they can give me a better answer on what’s happening with her. if her teeth are the problem they have to use anesthesia but I’m afraid since she’s been a little weak.
Click to expand...
She seems alert her eyes are very open I just don’t know what to do
 
Try offering the feed on a spoon or in a bowl. But you have to be a little firm as she really needs it if she’s not eating enough. How’s her weight been the last couple of days? Has it been stable?
 
Have you been weighing her daily (once and at the same time) as advised previously? What has her weight been every day and has it been an upward, downward or level trend? 1.04lb works out at around 471g which is low for a three year old - even a petite one. You need to increase the amount you’re feeding her. The aim is to help her maintain. Feed her every two hours during the day and try and see if she will take at least 5ml at each sitting. Good luck, it’s tough but you can do it.

PS did the diarrhoea stop? Please also add your location to your profile so we don’t have to keep asking 🙂
 
I have a scale on the way because the one at my house isn’t working. As far as the diarrhea she just did this about 3 minutes ago. I have bene-bac a probiotic on hand that I can mix in with the critical care if you think that would help make the poops better. Any thoughts on what to give until tomorrow when vets are open?04E926E8-7118-4E8A-BD25-F42F7DCACC13.webpC17A40BD-189C-415D-8E8F-A6DC60D22094.webp
 
Also prior to the first diarrhea she had a few days ago I gave her Sherwood appetite restore which is a powder that I mix with water but it was mainly water not a slurry like critical care. I gave her that and the next day I realized there was diarrhea. Is there any chance that could’ve caused that to happen? Also I’ve heard really good things about the Sherwood recovery food but I am hesitant on giving it after what happened with the Sherwood appetite restore. Has anyone tried it themselves? Also she hasn’t had diarrhea since a few days ago until just now
 
Daisypiggie1031 said:
I have a scale on the way because the one at my house isn’t working. As far as the diarrhea she just did this about 3 minutes ago. I have bene-bac a probiotic on hand that I can mix in with the critical care if you think that would help make the poops better. Any thoughts on what to give until tomorrow when vets are open?View attachment 174132View attachment 174133
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Ps what the heck is that yellow stuff? It looks dried? 060893E4-6AD9-4561-8A1C-C2C0EB006C0A.webp
 
I’ve not heard of the sherwood recovery. Do give her the benebac, every two hours.

Please do try and get her an appointment as soon as possible. That diarrhoea is not good. Let us know how you get on.
 
It looks like she may have a few issues going on, and really does need to be seen by an experience guinea pig vet as soon as possible.
In the meantime you should keep feeding the critical care and bene bac and offering her lots of hay.
 
Are you able to get it brought forward? Maybe ask them to contact you if there’s a cancellation? And how much did she weigh the last time?
 
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