Gritty calcium patches

[Eddie & Elvis]

Hi everyone, I'm looking for some advice on gritty calcium patches.

Recently (I think I found the first one around the Easter weekend) I've been find the occasional calcium patch on the vetbed that is a bit more gritty than the normal smooth/chalky ones. I don't see them that often, maybe once a week (though my sense of time isn't great), but they keep appearing just as I think they've stopped. Not all the calcium patches I see are gritty.

I've changed nothing in their diet so I'm not sure what has caused this. They get a higher calcium veg once a week, sometimes less then that, but since seeing these gritty patches I've given them no high calcium veg. I filter their water and they get just 6g of pellets each per day. Some of their pellets are science selective ones that are alfalfa based but since I've have 2 other kinds that are grass based mixed in as well I thought it wouldn't matter but maybe it does?

Is there anything I should change about their diet which will help get rid of the grittiness?
I don't know whether it's Eddie or Elvis or both of them that are producing the patches so is there a way to check? I've been thinking maybe I should separate to check but I don't want to split then up if I don't have to.
Does gritty calcium patches always mean bladder stones?
I'm worried about the possibility of stones as I've read can be harder to sort out with boars.

Thanks in advance

 

[Wiebke]

Hi everyone, I'm looking for some advice on gritty calcium patches.

Recently (I think I found the first one around the Easter weekend) I've been find the occasional calcium patch on the vetbed that is a bit more gritty than the normal smooth/chalky ones. I don't see them that often, maybe once a week (though my sense of time isn't great), but they keep appearing just as I think they've stopped. Not all the calcium patches I see are gritty.

I've changed nothing in their diet so I'm not sure what has caused this. They get a higher calcium veg once a week, sometimes less then that, but since seeing these gritty patches I've given them no high calcium veg. I filter their water and they get just 6g of pellets each per day. Some of their pellets are science selective ones that are alfalfa based but since I've have 2 other kinds that are grass based mixed in as well I thought it wouldn't matter but maybe it does?

Is there anything I should change about their diet which will help get rid of the grittiness?
I don't know whether it's Eddie or Elvis or both of them that are producing the patches so is there a way to check? I've been thinking maybe I should separate to check but I don't want to split then up if I don't have to.
Does gritty calcium patches always mean bladder stones?
I'm worried about the possibility of stones as I've read can be harder to sort out with boars.

Thanks in advance

Hi!

I would have your boy vet checked for potential sludge at your convenience during regular opening hours.

Please make sure that you filter the water - most of the calcium actually comes in the water and that you only give 1 tablespoon max per piggy per day; even no added calcium pellets have a higher calcium content than the same weight of kale, the highest calcium veg.

Unfortunately far too many people still see veg as the mainstay of a piggy diet and contentrate only on that, whereas grass hay and frehs growing grass (when in season, as it is high in vitamin C) should make around 80% of the daily food intake while a small amount of fresh herbs/green veg (ca. 15%) and pellets (ca. 5%) are only filling the the small gap traditionally filled by wild forage for trace elements and minerals that they cannot supply on a grass/hay only diet.

Please take the time to read our diet guide; you will find it helpful for the kind of practical and precise detail for working out any dietary changes. Please accept that these changes may take several weeks to process through the body and that a change in diet is not a quick fix.
Here is the link: Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

 

[Eddie & Elvis]

I would have your boy vet checked for potential sludge at your convenience during regular opening hours.

I don't know which of my 2 is producing these patches. What is the easiest way to work this out?

 

[Wiebke]

I don't know which of my 2 is producing these patches. What is the easiest way to work this out?

Putting in a separator in the cage...

 

[Eddie & Elvis]

Sorry, I've been so busy thinking about Eddie's other various problems that I forgot to update this thread.

After separating for a few hours I concluded it was Eddie doing the gritty wees so I will be mentioning this to the vet tomorrow as well.

I found no calcium patches at all where Elvis was and only one gritty one where Eddie was. Is a few hours enough to rule out Elvis having them too?