Guinea pig constipated?

[Gillian101504]

I have a question about my guinea pig. He is ten months old about. He has a healthy diet of timothee hay and the normal pellet mix. He also sometimes has carrots cucumbers and lettuce. Not iceberg though since that’s bad. He also gets some exercise too. He is a boy and compared to my other boy guinea pig same age his butt kinda sags and is bigger. I know it’s not something big to worry about but he also has poop and you can see it in his butt and he does poop normally but it seems like he is holding it. Can a guinea pig get constipated? It’s not like he doesn’t drink and eat and he does poop but I just want to know if anyone else’s guinea pigs do this?

 

[Siikibam]

Guinea pigs can’t be constipated. Is it a lump of poos or just the occasional one that’s there? It may be he just has bigger gonads than your other one. They aren’t all the same size in that department.

 

[Claire W]

 

[Wiebke]

I have a question about my guinea pig. He is ten months old about. He has a healthy diet of timothee hay and the normal pellet mix. He also sometimes has carrots cucumbers and lettuce. Not iceberg though since that’s bad. He also gets some exercise too. He is a boy and compared to my other boy guinea pig same age his butt kinda sags and is bigger. I know it’s not something big to worry about but he also has poop and you can see it in his butt and he does poop normally but it seems like he is holding it. Can a guinea pig get constipated? It’s not like he doesn’t drink and eat and he does poop but I just want to know if anyone else’s guinea pigs do this?

Hi!

Are the poos well formed? Adult/older boars are often having one stuck, which is being pushed out when more follow. It's nothing to worry about if the poos are perfectly normal looking. Boar poos from un-neutered boars are often much longer than those of sows but I have seen this also in my neutered boars (who can also get impaction, if not as badly due to their much smaller contracted anal sac.

About 10% of boars go on to develop impaction as they get older and the muscles at the back weaken. Impaction is the inability to push out the caecotrophs; the poos that contain the not yet fully broken down fibre for a second run through the gut.
Impaction - How To Help Your Guinea Pig.

Guinea pigs don't suffer from constipation the way other species do. If pooing is difficult/painful, then there is in most cases a source of pain or pressure on the gut involved.

 

[waqark371]

Hi!

Are the poos well formed? Adult/older boars are often having one stuck, which is being pushed out when more follow. It's nothing to worry about if the poos are perfectly normal looking. Boar poos from un-neutered boars are often much longer than those of sows but I have seen this also in my neutered boars (who can also get impaction, if not as badly due to their much smaller contracted anal sac.

About 10% of boars go on to develop impaction as they get older and the muscles at the back weaken. Impaction is the inability to push out the caecotrophs; the poos that contain the not yet fully broken down fibre for a second run through the gut.
Impaction - How To Help Your Guinea Pig.

Guinea pigs don't suffer from constipation the way other species do. If pooing is difficult/painful, then there is in most cases a source of pain or pressure on the gut involved.

Hi Wiebke
Can you please tell if guinea pig poop clumped and stuck together is a sign of constipation or impaction? From my research, I have discovered that constipation is quite rare in guinea pigs but they may get constipated *links removed*

 

[weepweeps]

Hi. Piggies don’t get constipated.

1. They can have a normal looking poop sticking out of their bottoms. This comes out fine and is normal firmness and size.

2. If they have a slight tummy upset then their poops can become a bit soft and they can squash together a bit before they come out. If this is happening to your boar I’d take them off veg for a few days until their poops firm up a bit. Don’t give too much carrot as I find this makes for softer poops.

3. Impaction - this happens to older boars. I have had a boar in the past with this issue. They can poop normal poops fine but get a large plug of the softer caecotrophs. This needs to be pushed out very gently by the owner usually every day. Sometimes twice and it’s the worst smell I’ve ever smelt

 

[Siikibam]

It’s better if you start your own thread rather than ‘reopen’ an old one. The original poster hasn’t been on since 2020.

 

[VickiA]

Hi Wiebke
Can you please tell if guinea pig poop clumped and stuck together is a sign of constipation or impaction? From my research, I have discovered that constipation is quite rare in guinea pigs but they may get constipated *links removed*

Is this an enquiry about the health of your own pig? If so please open a new thread so that we can monitor the advice. If it’s purely an academic question for research for your own proposed blog or publication then I’m afraid you are unlikely to get a response as we are a group of volunteers and our priority will always be helping those in genuine need.