Guinea pig only eating hay & harder veg!

[Daniross95]

Good afternoon,

I have a bit of a strange case. I have had guinea pigs the last 6 years & sadly two passed, one from a respiratory infection and the other from bladder / kidney issues, so I am aware of what the signs look like for each.

Our guinea pig now (a rescue lone male who's been alone his whole life!) has been absolutely fine until the last few days. Weirdly, he is only eating hay, and vegetables which are a harder texture, like celery and bell pepper. He'll also happily eat critical care without needing to syringe it.

As I mentioned before, I've seen symptoms of illness before and they've always done the opposite - eat their veg but not hay! We are monitoring his weight and he is currently on 1240g. We've checked his teeth (as much as we can) and they look fine (I'm aware it's hard to see the back) but he always eats hay and has plenty of chews!

We have checked his ears and his body for lumps and bumps and nothing. It's rather odd. He also is drinking fine.

Does anyone know what this could be? He's turning 5 in September. I'm just so stumped by this! Could this be vitamin C deficiency related?

I know to get an answer we will need to go to his registered vets but just intrigued if anyone has heard or knows what could be causing it!

Thanks,
Dani (& Bumble!)

 

[Piggies&buns]

It is highly unlikely to be anything to do with a vit c deficiency.
He may just have got fed up of certain other veggies.
As long as he is eating hay and maintaining his weight then I wouldn’t be concerned and wouldn’t think this is illness related but you obviously need to keep an eye. As you say it’s the opposite scenario to that of a dental issue for example

 

[Daniross95]

It is highly unlikely to be anything to do with a vit c deficiency.
He may just have got fed up of certain other veggies.
As long as he is eating hay and maintaining his weight then I wouldn’t be concerned and wouldn’t think this is illness related but you obviously need to keep an eye. As you say it’s the opposite scenario to that of a dental issue for example

Thanks for the reply! I wonder if it's something to do with getting older? I'll try some new veggies with him! Luckily he's still having bell pepper okay!

 

[Wiebke]

Good afternoon,

I have a bit of a strange case. I have had guinea pigs the last 6 years & sadly two passed, one from a respiratory infection and the other from bladder / kidney issues, so I am aware of what the signs look like for each.

Our guinea pig now (a rescue lone male who's been alone his whole life!) has been absolutely fine until the last few days. Weirdly, he is only eating hay, and vegetables which are a harder texture, like celery and bell pepper. He'll also happily eat critical care without needing to syringe it.

As I mentioned before, I've seen symptoms of illness before and they've always done the opposite - eat their veg but not hay! We are monitoring his weight and he is currently on 1240g. We've checked his teeth (as much as we can) and they look fine (I'm aware it's hard to see the back) but he always eats hay and has plenty of chews!

We have checked his ears and his body for lumps and bumps and nothing. It's rather odd. He also is drinking fine.

Does anyone know what this could be? He's turning 5 in September. I'm just so stumped by this! Could this be vitamin C deficiency related?

I know to get an answer we will need to go to his registered vets but just intrigued if anyone has heard or knows what could be causing it!

Thanks,
Dani (& Bumble!)

Older piggies can become more picky but since he is still eating hay and peppers nd holding his weight, vitamin C deficiency is not going to happen - in coming up to 20 years of existence, we haven't had a single case of scurvy in piggies that would not eat fresh food for any length of time since most foods that guinea pigs eat actually contain vitamin C. See whether a little fresh grass (growing green grass is high in vitamin C), fresh herbs or readigrass still go down if you struggle with your concerns.
Keep in mind that fresh veg/forage, pellets/dry forage and any treats all together essentially count as a single food group because they replace the supplementary role that wild forage used to have in the grass based diet that guinea pigs have evolved on. So if just one small part is falling by the wayside this is not a big problem.

You may find this guide here helpful in understanding some basic connections when health monitoring. This will hopefully help to allay some fears.
Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support

 

[Daniross95]

Older piggies can become more picky but since he is still eating hay and peppers nd holding his weight, vitamin C deficiency is not going to happen - in coming up to 20 years of existence, we haven't had a single case of scurvy in piggies that would not eat fresh food for any length of time since most foods that guinea pigs eat actually contain vitamin C. See whether a little fresh grass (growing green grass is high in vitamin C), fresh herbs or readigrass still go down if you struggle with your concerns.
Keep in mind that fresh veg/forage, pellets/dry forage and any treats all together essentially count as a single food group because they replace the supplementary role that wild forage used to have in the grass based diet that guinea pigs have evolved on. So if just one small part is falling by the wayside this is not a big problem.

You may find this guide here helpful in understanding some basic connections when health monitoring. This will hopefully help to allay some fears.
Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support

Thank you! It must be him being picky but so strange as he's been such a big eater since we had him (2 years) so it's strange that he's suddenly gone off romaine lettuce, parsley, cucumber, mints etc! Has eaten rosemary today which he usually doesn't! Very odd!

So conscious and mindful of them getting ill and detoriating so fast , like we had with our two boys before and historically the vet we have hasn't been the most knowledgeable so can always rely on the forum to help in time of need and advice!

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you! It must be him being picky but so strange as he's been such a big eater since we had him (2 years) so it's strange that he's suddenly gone off romaine lettuce, parsley, cucumber, mints etc! Has eaten rosemary today which he usually doesn't! Very odd!

So conscious and mindful of them getting ill and detoriating so fast , like we had with our two boys before and historically the vet we have hasn't been the most knowledgeable so can always rely on the forum to help in time of need and advice!

Just keep an eye on him but please don't hover incessantly and see a vet if there is a weight loss as defined in the weight loss guide or other symptoms. Right now, there is just nothing that a vet really can get their teeth into.

 

[Daniross95]

Update for you all: we bought him different pellets as he still wasn't eating pellets even though he's had the same brand for two years!

He is now eating these pellets happily. Find it so odd that he randomly went off them? Can anyone explain why?

We have noticed he sometimes just randomly squeaks to himself. It doesn't sound like squeaks in pain and doesn't align to when he wees or poos.. but that's also very random and can't work out why!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Update for you all: we bought him different pellets as he still wasn't eating pellets even though he's had the same brand for two years!

He is now eating these pellets happily. Find it so odd that he randomly went off them? Can anyone explain why?

We have noticed he sometimes just randomly squeaks to himself. It doesn't sound like squeaks in pain and doesn't align to when he wees or poos.. but that's also very random and can't work out why!

Perhaps he just got fed up of them
As pellets aren’t needed at all, I wouldn’t worry too much if he goes off them.

 

[Wiebke]

Update for you all: we bought him different pellets as he still wasn't eating pellets even though he's had the same brand for two years!

He is now eating these pellets happily. Find it so odd that he randomly went off them? Can anyone explain why?

We have noticed he sometimes just randomly squeaks to himself. It doesn't sound like squeaks in pain and doesn't align to when he wees or poos.. but that's also very random and can't work out why!

Hi

Are you weighing him daily to ensure that his weight and food intake is stable?

 

[Daniross95]

Hi

Are you weighing him daily to ensure that his weight and food intake is stable?

Yes he's been sitting around 1200-1240 consistently for the past 5-7 days

 

[Wiebke]

Yes he's been sitting around 1200-1240 consistently for the past 5-7 days

Thank you. So it is just pickiness but not a major impact on his overall appetite with a downward trend as it would be with a slowly developing pain issue.

 

[Ramia]

Mine went off pellets as well. Stripe used to eat Oxbow when I had him alone. He loved them. Then I got Chez, and Chez didn't like them. Stripe then stopped eating them, too. I would always throw them away during spot cleaning. I got a different brand approved by my vet and they munch them a little now. But they never finish them. They eat all their hay and veg, though, and they're growing. So I'm not too worried. But I am glad they give the pellets a little munch here and there.