Guinea pig not eating.

[HopEsmEnola13]

My 2 year old girl called Esme has not been eating that much for about 2 weeks. We took her to the vets 10 days ago but they didn't know what was wrong with her. They said that her teeth and bladder were fine. They also said that her intestines seemed fine. They did say that she was too light. She weighed 740g this morning and 790g 2 weeks ago. The vets gave me pain relief and emergency food. I have been givimg it to her like the vets say for 10 day but she seems to be getting worse. She now does not want to move, drink or eat that much. I think that she does poo but her poos are pretty small. We are taking her back to the vets on Thursday but I dont expect them to know anything. They are not an exotic or a small animals vet because there are none in the country that I live in (Iceland). I want to go buy some fiberplex today but I dont know if it is okay for her to eat. We had another pig die from gut stasis 2 months ago and I feel like Esme has the same thing. Does anyone know what I should do to save Esme? And does someone know how to prevent from this happening again. Thank you.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.
Weight loss with no obvious cause is such a difficult thing to deal with. All you can do is get as much syringe feed into her as you can each day.

You need to make sure you are syringe feeding enough to keep her weight stable each day. Small thin poops indicate not enough food intake.
If weight continues to go down while being syringe fed then she needs more feed each day - 60mls is the amount you aim for in each 24 hour period but much more can be needed (up to around 90ml). However in a very poorly piggy with no appetite they can really struggle and in that event you aim for 40ml as the minimum amount to keep your function.

Fibreplex is fine. It isn’t a food, it is a probiotic which can help settle the gut.
Has your piggy been given any gut stimulating medications?

The guides below explains further

Thread 'Weight and Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support'

Jun 20, 2024

1 Weight and Weight Loss
- Why regular weight monitoring matters
- How weight changes over a lifetime
- How to weigh on your kitchen scales (with video)
- The weight loss rules
- How critical is the weight loss for my piggy?
- Possible causes for weight loss
2 Body Mass Index (BMI) or 'Heft'
- Why is understanding your piggy's weight so important?
- 'Average' weight vs. individual weight - the big trip up
- How to check for the BMI
3 The...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Health & Illness Support Corner

• 

Thread 'All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures'

Mar 9, 2022

Introduction
1 Choosing the right place to medicate/feed your piggy
2 Guinea pig whispering and asserting your authority
3 Recovery products and emergency improvisation
4 Syringe recommendations
5 Weight monitoring: your biggest ally
6 Weight loss guidelines and when to step in with feeding
7 Syringe feeding amounts/frequency advice
8 Practical medication and syringing tips
9 Medicating and feeding cooperative guinea pigs (videos)
10 Medicating and feeding uncooperative guinea pigs (hold pictures and tips)
11 The line between life and...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 0
• Forum: Health & Illness Support Corner

• 
• 

 

[HopEsmEnola13]

I’m sorry to hear this.
Weight loss with no obvious cause is such a difficult thing to deal with. All you can do is get as much syringe feed into her as you can each day.

You need to make sure you are syringe feeding enough to keep her weight stable each day. Small thin poops indicate not enough food intake.
If weight continues to go down while being syringe fed then she needs more feed each day - 60mls is the amount you aim for in each 24 hour period but much more can be needed (up to around 90ml). However in a very poorly piggy with no appetite they can really struggle and in that event you aim for 40ml as the minimum amount to keep your function.

Fibreplex is fine. It isn’t a food, it is a probiotic which can help settle the gut.
Has your piggy been given any gut stimulating medications?

The guides below explains further

Thread 'Weight and Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support'

Jun 20, 2024

1 Weight and Weight Loss
- Why regular weight monitoring matters
- How weight changes over a lifetime
- How to weigh on your kitchen scales (with video)
- The weight loss rules
- How critical is the weight loss for my piggy?
- Possible causes for weight loss
2 Body Mass Index (BMI) or 'Heft'
- Why is understanding your piggy's weight so important?
- 'Average' weight vs. individual weight - the big trip up
- How to check for the BMI
3 The...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Health & Illness Support Corner

• 

Thread 'All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures'

Mar 9, 2022

Introduction
1 Choosing the right place to medicate/feed your piggy
2 Guinea pig whispering and asserting your authority
3 Recovery products and emergency improvisation
4 Syringe recommendations
5 Weight monitoring: your biggest ally
6 Weight loss guidelines and when to step in with feeding
7 Syringe feeding amounts/frequency advice
8 Practical medication and syringing tips
9 Medicating and feeding cooperative guinea pigs (videos)
10 Medicating and feeding uncooperative guinea pigs (hold pictures and tips)
11 The line between life and...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 0
• Forum: Health & Illness Support Corner

• 
• 

Thank you for replying. I have not given her any gut stimulating médecins because the vets did not give me any. Should I give some?

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thank you for replying. I have not given her any gut stimulating médecins because the vets did not give me any. Should I give some?

It would need to be prescribed by a vet.
If she is not improving and is in fact getting worse, it would be a good idea for you to return to the vet for further checks.

 

[HopEsmEnola13]

It would need to be prescribed by a vet.
If she is not improving and is in fact getting worse, it would be a good idea for you to return to the vet for further checks.

Ok thank you.
You said that I should ideally feed her 60ml of food per day. My vets only told me to feed her 1 table spoon of water with 1 table spoon Emeraid food. They also told me to not stuff her too much. I am sure that you are right but I am wondering why they said that.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Ok thank you.
You said that I should ideally feed her 60ml of food per day. My vets only told me to feed her 1 table spoon of water with 1 table spoon Emeraid food. They also told me to not stuff her too much. I am sure that you are right but I am wondering why they said that.

Yes 60ml is the daily amount to aim for but it could be as much as 90ml which is needed.
40ml is the basic survival amount for a critically ill piggy.
The syringe feeding guide I linked in explains more about quantities, but ultimately it’s the daily weight checks that are you guide - if a piggy continues to lose weight daily then they need to be fed more.

You’ve said they aren’t small animal vets so it’s likely they aren’t experienced in the major ways that piggies guts differ from dogs or cats.
Piggies are not like dogs or cats - piggies cannot go without food for any length of time; they cannot fast at all. If a piggy is well enough to eat they will eat so when they stop eating you know they are rather poorly.
Their are designed to constantly have fibre going through their system and without it their gut can shut down (GI stasis).
You need to feed as much as she will take at each sitting and the less she takes as each sitting, the more sittings you need to do. You could need to feed her every two hours throughout the day to get enough into her to stop her from losing weight.
It’s not a case that feeding her will stop her from wanting to eat for herself. It’s the opposite with piggies - you must feed her until she feels well enough to eat for herself, however long that takes.

 

[HopEsmEnola13]

Yes 60ml is the daily amount to aim for but it could be as much as 90ml which is needed.
40ml is the basic survival amount for a critically ill piggy.
The syringe feeding guide I linked in explains more about quantities, but ultimately it’s the daily weight checks that are you guide - if a piggy continues to lose weight daily then they need to be fed more.

You’ve said they aren’t small animal vets so it’s likely they aren’t experienced in the major ways that piggies guts differ from dogs or cats.
Piggies are not like dogs or cats - piggies cannot go without food for any length of time; they cannot fast at all. If a piggy is well enough to eat they will eat so when they stop eating you know they are rather poorly.
Their are designed to constantly have fibre going through their system and without it their gut can shut down (GI stasis).
You need to feed as much as she will take at each sitting and the less she takes as each sitting, the more sittings you need to do. You could need to feed her every two hours throughout the day to get enough into her to stop her from losing weight.
It’s not a case that feeding her will stop her from wanting to eat for herself. It’s the opposite with piggies - you must feed her until she feels well enough to eat for herself, however long that takes.

Thank you so much!