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Head Tilt and Loss of Balance PLEASE HELP

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So one day i was going to get my guinea pig when all of a sudden he started flipping out. i didn't know what had happened, and so i held him to see what was wrong. I noticed that his head was tilting and his eyes where twitching and he tried to move his head back to normal, but it just kept going to the side. we got him a vet appointment immediately and the vet said it could be an inner ear infection (they looked in his ears but there was nothing) they suspected either an inner ear infection or something much worse, like a tumor in his little brain. he also has loss of balance so he cant really stand without moving around. He is eating and i am hydrating him with a syringe, and he was able to clean himself. I gave him a handful of lettuce and he ate that, but for now he is just resting.
I hope he can get better soon, but i need help, tell me if you need anymore info
Thank you
 
We are a mainly based UK site and it is 5.45am here and most members will either be asleep or waking up. I understand that you are anxious and worried about your piggy but you need to be patient. Your post will be seen.
 
User Name said:
and the vet did give him meds think its baytril
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OK, Baytril is an antibiotic which should help if it's an ear infection.
That is good.

How old is your guinea pig?
And what does he weigh?

You need to start weighing him regularly at the same time each day to keep track of his eating. This is the only way you can really be sure he is eating enough and not loosing weight.
You may need to offer some supplementary food via syringe for a few days, until the antibiotics start to work.
We have a guide for that here:

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre

Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
 
It would also help us if you could let us know where you are based so we can make recommendations that are relevant to your country and area.
 
Thank you so much! my guinea pig is about 2 years old i adopted him from our local shelter. i dont know his weight but i can possibly send a video
 
and i gave him some lettuce and he was able to eat that on his own, i also gave him some hay and he ate all of that i just had to pick him up and put him down next to his hay so he could eat
 
User Name said:
Thank you so much! my guinea pig is about 2 years old i adopted him from our local shelter. i dont know his weight but i can possibly send a video
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Please weigh your guinea pig weekly as a matter of routine, and weigh them daily while they are ill. As hay makes up the majority of their daily food intake and you can’t judge the amount they eat by eye, then regular weighing of your guinea pigs is the only way you can know they are eating enough. This is especially important during times of ill health. If your piggy is dropping weight while being ill, you must be syringe feeding your piggy and you won’t know if they are maintaining their weight and therefore whether you are syringe feeding enough unless you weigh them
 
Piggies&buns said:
Please weigh your guinea pig weekly as a matter of routine, and weigh them daily while they are ill. As hay makes up the majority of their daily food intake and you can’t judge the amount they eat by eye, then regular weighing of your guinea pigs is the only way you can know they are eating enough. This is especially important during times of ill health. If your piggy is dropping weight while being ill, you must be syringe feeding your piggy and you won’t know if they are maintaining their weight and therefore whether you are syringe feeding enough unless you weigh them
[/QUOTE
thank you so much
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User Name said:
so for syringe feeding can you use any dry pellets?
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You soak pellets in water to make them into a paste and then syringe them to your piggy. If you read the guides (the green links) that @Swissgreys added in at post #7 above, then it explains how and what to syringe feed.

Syringe feeding is necessary when a guinea pig is not eating enough for themselves. They need to eat lots of hay. A piece of lettuce here and there will not sustain a guinea pig. This is why weighing is essential as you won’t know if your piggy is eating enough hay without keeping a close eye on your guinea pigs weight
 
for the eating i soaked a couple of pellets in water to make them expand so then he can grab them easier ( I also did this when my other piggy lost his tooth)
should i continue doing this?
 
User Name said:
for the eating i soaked a couple of pellets in water to make them expand so then he can grab them easier ( I also did this when my other piggy lost his tooth)
should i continue doing this?
Click to expand...

If your guinea pig is not maintaining his weight himself and is not eating enough hay, then you need to step in with supplementary syringe feeding. This is not the same thing as letting them eat pellets themselves - supplementary syringe feeding is done when a piggy refuses to eat for themselves or is not eating enough hay for themselves . If your guinea pig is well enough that he is eating himself and, most importantly, eating enough which you can only tell by weighing your piggy regularly, then you may not have to syringe feed at this point
 
i have not seen him get out of his hut to feed, but he does eat when i show it to him
but if he does not eat when i show it to him, i should syringe feed him
but he is not eating by himself because he cant really walk, his world is kinda upside down because of this wobbling
 
Ok. Then I would start syringe feeding him using the mushed up pellets. You will need a 1ml syringe with the end cut off to be able to get the food out of it and into his mouth. Use the guides linked in above to help you.

Ensure he always has plenty of hay next to him so he can eat it without having to move.
 
hey all! i have one more question for you guys, he still has a bit of wobbliness but below his eyes are pale. what do you suspect? could it be a parasite
he also is puffed up but hes still eating and drinking
 
What do you mean he’s pale? Are you able to post a photo? How has his weight been - is he maintaining, losing or gaining? And is he puffed up when eating or all the time? I think perhaps another vet visit is due if you’re worried about him.
 
sorry i have not been on. Yes i took him to the vet, he has worms, but hes still very wobbly its not a brain tumor because he would be getting worse, but would he be anemic because of the loss of blood to the worms? hes eating and drinking and has figured out a way to clean himself, so I'm not that worried about him
i might be able to post a photo or video
 
At least you found out what was wrong. How is being treated? I didn’t know they could get worms.
 
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