Hair in my girls eye

[Winniethepiggy]

Hi,
My female guinea pig has a hair in her eye and it wont budge. Its been in there about a week now and at first i thought she would get it out by grooming but hasnt. We have tried cooled down boiled water and dropped some in her eye to see of itll make it come out but didnt. I dont want to mess with her eye as it seems to be getting irritated. I'm not sure what to do as the last time i went to my vets, they said i should always have a phone or video consultation before hand to see if its that important to come into the vets for and have an appointment however I'm not sure what they are meant to do over a phone call and i dont want to leave it much longer as i dont want her eye to get even more irritated. And right now i cant take her to an emergency vets as I'm not sure if its an emergency and have no transportation. She seems fine in herself and is eating and drinking and runs about. I just dont want her eye to get infected.

Thank you

 

[Piggies&buns]

I would call the vet. There is nothing they can do over the phone so they should agree to a consultation.

Eye issues are considered urgent so it should not be left.

 

[leaf]

I'd definitely call your vet and explain the situation and ask for advice. They'll just need to know that you need an appointment and what for.

 

[Winniethepiggy]

They arent open today so ill try tomorrow

 

[Wheekallweek]

Give your vets a call tomorrow and see what they say

 

[Wiebke]

They arent open today so ill try tomorrow

All the best.

Hair can occasionally get into an eye but it does generally not cause an eye infection as it is not particularly scratchy, compared to hay or grass seed; it remains an irritation however and should be removed. It's not an emergency.

Short hair can often fetch up in in the front corner when it is washed out with watery fluid (which is produced to take care of any irritation in the eye) if you are lucky - in this case you can gently pull it out; otherwise it usually ends up under a lid. Long hair can be trickier to remove and is more likely to end up under a lid.

Since removing stuff from under the lid is generally a two person job and your vet will want check for any damage to
the eye surface, it is better to see a vet for a stuck hair. If left, it can in the longer term cause a surface infection if you are unlucky.

 

[Merab]

Hope the vet trip goes well