Help urgently needed!

[Morecaviesthebetter]

*not my guinea pigs*
Hoping to adopt them but need help with assessing the situation**

Two guinea pigs, both believed to be female were housed with a male 74 or 75 days ago.
One guinea pig is very large, with bulges on both sides of her body. A separate issue but she has a patch with no fur so the owner believes she has mites...
Is she pregnant? Is it possible for her to be based on how long ago she was with a male? How far along? I assume she would be on day 74/75 which is quite late for a pregnancy. Could it be something else?

The only other possibility in terms of pregnancy is if she is housed with a male not a female- her companion guinea pig looks like this but I am having difficulty sexing them:
I will also attach a photo of the potentially pregnant guinea pig, the all black piggy via youtube link below

Please help! Hoping to pick them up and take to a vet tomorrow, that's as soon as is possible!

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

video of movements, looks more like breathing to me

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

photos of possibly pregnant piggy and a photo of the o

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Links posted but pending approval, I don't know how else to show pics, opinions needed asap!

 

[Bill & Ted]

Do be care careful who you buy from, this guinea pig could be pregnant, it could have mites/ringworm or ovarian cysts or be completely healthy. the trouble with buying from breeders/websites is people can lie just to get rid of the piggies they no longer want. Vet bills can be very costly running into thousands so be very careful and consider before taking them in

Here is our sexing guide it may help you Illustrated Sexing Guide

Otherwise you can try and post photos but we cannot always state what sex they are purely by eye

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Do be care careful who you buy from, this guinea pig could be pregnant, it could have mites/ringworm or ovarian cysts or be completely healthy. the trouble with buying from breeders/websites is people can lie just to get rid of the piggies they no longer want. vet bills can be very costly running into thousands so be very careful and consider before taking them in

Here is our sexing guide it may help you Illustrated Sexing Guide

Otherwise you can try and post photos but we cannot always state what sex they are purely by eye

They aren't from a breeder, they are for sale from a previously neglectful situation and we are set on adopting, regardless of risks to their health. That's exactly why they need help.

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Do be care careful who you buy from, this guinea pig could be pregnant, it could have mites/ringworm or ovarian cysts or be completely healthy. the trouble with buying from breeders/websites is people can lie just to get rid of the piggies they no longer want. Vet bills can be very costly running into thousands so be very careful and consider before taking them in

Here is our sexing guide it may help you Illustrated Sexing Guide

Otherwise you can try and post photos but we cannot always state what sex they are purely by eye

I figured out how to post images, one of the piggy in question and one of the piggy who we want to sex, guesses are honestly better than nothing right now

 

[Wiebke]

Links posted but pending approval, I don't know how else to show pics, opinions needed asap!

Hi

The latest a piggy can have babies after conception in my ca. 15 years of experience on this forum is 75 days but your sow is not looking highly pregnant to me - any babies would be carried in the belly in front of the legs and not in the pear-shaped bum end over the back legs (which is genetically determined and which looks perfectly normal for an adult sow to me)?

I would however consider a vet check re. general health and potential parasites in any new arrivals that have not undergone a quarantine while in a good welfare standard non-kill rescue if you have any concerns. Ovarian cysts in sows over 2-3 years are generally not an urgent issue at this stage; while most sows develop them at some point or other in their lives, the majority of them actually goes unnoticed and never causes any problems.
New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights
Importance Of Quarantine

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Hi

The latest a piggy can have babies after conception in my ca. 15 years of experience on this forum is 75 days but your sow is not looking highly pregnant to me - any babies would be carried in the belly in front of the legs and not in the pear-shaped bum end over the back legs (which is genetically determined), which looks perfectly normal for an adult sow to me?

I would however consider a vet check re. general health and potential parasites in any new arrivals that have not undergone a quarantine while in a good welfare standard non-kill rescue if you have any concerns. Ovarian cysts in sows over 2-3 years are generally not an urgent issue at this stage; while most sows develop them at some point or other in their lives, the majority of them actually goes unnoticed and never causes any problems.
New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights
Importance Of Quarantine

Thanks for your reply, she's supposedly 10 months, maybe just turned 11 months-
I'll attach a couple more pictures, there's more of a bump on one side of her, and supposedly the sellers vet believed she was pregnant upon inspection, but this vet was not an exotics vet and seems to know little about guinea pigs so I don't trust him honestly. My main concern is if she isn't pregnant then something else must be going on in her, but it's difficult to tell without seeing her in person. And if she is pregnant, I'm concerned she's over due. I've heard pregnancies in sows above 8 months can be dangerous
More images:
In my opinion, and I've had piggies before not I'm no expert, is that the bump on the right looks a lot like some kind of absess, rathwr than a baby bump. But I can't dismiss the possibility of a baby or two since she was supposedly with a boy 74 days ago or so. And I'd need to ensure the second piggy definitely isnt a boy too. I hope to have them picked up and taken to a vet tomorrow, but opinions now would be super helpful

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks for your reply, she's supposedly 10 months, maybe just turned 11 months-
I'll attach a couple more pictures, there's more of a bump on one side of her, and supposedly the sellers vet believed she was pregnant upon inspection, but this vet was not an exotics vet and seems to know little about guinea pigs so I don't trust him honestly. My main concern is if she isn't pregnant then something else must be going on in her, but it's difficult to tell without seeing her in person. And if she is pregnant, I'm concerned she's over due. I've heard pregnancies in sows above 8 months can be dangerous
More images:
In my opinion, and I've had piggies before not I'm no expert, is that the bump on the right looks a lot like some kind of absess, rathwr than a baby bump. But I can't dismiss the possibility of a baby or two since she was supposedly with a boy 74 days ago or so. And I'd need to ensure the second piggy definitely isnt a boy too. I hope to have them picked up and taken to a vet tomorrow, but opinions now would be super helpful

Thank for the better pictures; it is always more difficult with darker piggies on a relative dark background and the angle was out.

That bump on the right side doesn't look normal and should be checked. She is too young for ovarian cysts. If it was a baby, you could feel body parts right through the skin at this very, very latest stage.

We have got a sexing guide which teaches you where to look and what exactly to look and feel for so in the really gender divisive areas so you do not have to rely on people who should know but often sadly don't; and that can include vets not seeing lots of piggies and doing lots of piggy sexing. We do offer a second opinion service on here.
Here is the link. The gender difference in piggies of a that age (see adults) is quite pronounced since the testicles descend between 4-6 months of age. Illustrated Sexing Guide

 

[Wiebke]

Just re. pregnancy; here is our link to baby scan and x-ray pictures which give you a better idea of the size of babies in the latest stages: Pregnancy-x-ray-and-ultrasound-scan-pictures

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Thank for the better pictures; it is always more difficult with darker piggies on a relative dark background and the angle was out.

That bump on the right side doesn't look normal and should be checked. She is too young for ovarian cysts. If it was a baby, you could feel body parts right through the skin at this very, very latest stage.

We have got a sexing guide which teaches you where to look and what exactly to look and feel for so in the really gender divisive areas so you do not have to rely on people who should know but often sadly don't; and that can include vets not seeing lots of piggies and doing lots of piggy sexing. We do offer a second opinion service on here.
Here is the link. The gender difference in piggies of a that age (see adults) is quite pronounced since the testicles descend between 4-6 months of age. Illustrated Sexing Guide

I think it will be easier to tell once she's seen in person, pictures can be very deceiving. We'll hopefully have a better idea of what it is we're dealing with.
We will definitely be getting both of them checked by a knowledgeable vet ASAP. We don't have any other piggies right now so aren't too worried about taking them on, even with the possibility of mites etc.
The person selling them has good intentions and supposedly rescued them from an abusive situation, we don't know all the details but want to offer them a really good home and do what we can for them

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Just re. pregnancy; here is our link to baby scan and x-ray pictures which give you a better idea of the size of babies in the latest stages: Pregnancy-x-ray-and-ultrasound-scan-pictures

Thank you for all your help!

 

[Wiebke]

I think it will be easier to tell once she's seen in person, pictures can be very deceiving. We'll hopefully have a better idea of what it is we're dealing with.
We will definitely be getting both of them checked by a knowledgeable vet ASAP. We don't have any other piggies right now so aren't too worried about taking them on, even with the possibility of mites etc.
The person selling them has good intentions and supposedly rescued them from an abusive situation, we don't know all the details but want to offer them a really good home and do what we can for them

Thank you. They are very lucky to find a committed and determined owner.

We are here to give you ongoing moral support and plenty of practical care tips but what we cannot do remotely is replace a vet trip - nor (since our forum is UK based) are we allowed to. Legal regulations re. vet diagnosis and prescription-only medications are much tighter in this country. We do however have members from quite literally all over the world and will support them as best as we can in their individual situation.

All the best for the vet check.

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

My partner is picking them up now!
They'll be in separate enclosures until we can confirm the sex of the second piggy. If male, we'll get him neaturered and hopefully their bond will remain and they'll be able to be back together soon. Meanwhile they will be bar buddies, so not far from eachother. If they turn out to be female, we'll put them back together asap. Theres a chance the second piggy isnt a boy, but at the moment it's looking very possible. We'll see. They have lots of enrichment, lots of space, comfy hides... Basically a whole piggy palace.
We were delayed picking them up until today as the owner was able to get them to a vet yesterday and wanted to see what was going on. The vet felt her abdomen and claims she's pregnant but not due just yet.
So just to be on the safe side, we have baby proofed her enclosure.
As I mentioned before, we are told that she has a little hair loss and could have mites- so we'll check that out and figure out the cause asap. For now it's nice enclosures and good food...

Question though, how likely is it that two vets have felt her abdomen and said she's pregnant, and are wrong? Because this is the feedback from them, but they've not done an ultrasound or anything like that. They just claim they can feel babies in there. They don't seem to be very experienced with piggies, but I could be wrong, that's just the vibe I'm being given.

Any opinions welcome, we just want these piggies to be happy and well cared for.

 

[Wiebke]

My partner is picking them up now!
They'll be in separate enclosures until we can confirm the sex of the second piggy. If male, we'll get him neaturered and hopefully their bond will remain and they'll be able to be back together soon. Meanwhile they will be bar buddies, so not far from eachother. If they turn out to be female, we'll put them back together asap. Theres a chance the second piggy isnt a boy, but at the moment it's looking very possible. We'll see. They have lots of enrichment, lots of space, comfy hides... Basically a whole piggy palace.
We were delayed picking them up until today as the owner was able to get them to a vet yesterday and wanted to see what was going on. The vet felt her abdomen and claims she's pregnant but not due just yet.
So just to be on the safe side, we have baby proofed her enclosure.
As I mentioned before, we are told that she has a little hair loss and could have mites- so we'll check that out and figure out the cause asap. For now it's nice enclosures and good food...

Question though, how likely is it that two vets have felt her abdomen and said she's pregnant, and are wrong? Because this is the feedback from them, but they've not done an ultrasound or anything like that. They just claim they can feel babies in there. They don't seem to be very experienced with piggies, but I could be wrong, that's just the vibe I'm being given.

Any opinions welcome, we just want these piggies to be happy and well cared for.

We have seen our fair share of wrongly diagnosed pregnancies on here over the years... But if there is a prgnancy, then it must have happened either much later than you have been told or what the vets are feeling are internal organs.

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

We have seen our fair share of wrongly diagnosed pregnancies on here over the years... But if there is a prgnancy, then it must have happened either much later that you have been told or what the vets are feeling are internal organs.

So we ought to take her to an exotics vet asap for a proper diagnosis? I assume unless the vet is super experienced, the only way to be sure is an ultrasound? Soonest would probably be Monday

 

[Wiebke]

So we ought to take her to an exotics vet asap for a proper diagnosis? I assume unless the vet is super experienced, the only way to be sure is an ultrasound? Soonest would probably be Monday

Hi

As long as she is still eating normally and well in herself I would recommend to hold out for an exotics vet. This does not look like a pregnancy to me.

 

[Morecaviesthebetter]

Hi

As long as she is still eating normally and well in herself I would recommend to hold out for an exotics vet. This does not look like a pregnancy to me.

You were correct! This is a very late update, but soon after this conversation she was seen by an exotics vet who immediately suspected something was up with her, performed an ultrasound and believes she has ovarian cysts. It's very possible that she's older than we were told or that she simply developed them younger than most piggies would.
The vets reccomendation is that we arrange a spay soon to improve her quality of life. She assured us that they have had good success with this operation in small animals and that it would make her more comfortable in the long run.
We appreciate there is a risk with anaesthetic, but this piggy is very hormonal, and does seem uncomfortable. She has seemed to get even larger, so we agree with the vet's opinion. My partner was the one at the appointment so I'm uncertain, but I assume the spay will be just a removal of the ovaries?
Anyway, this will be booked in very soon, I just wanted any opinions on the situation, if the surgery sounds like a good choice, any tips on care before and after are welcome. I'm sure the vet will tell us what we need to know when we book it, but can't hurt to get other thoughts too!

She is a sweet girlie, we named her Ebony, Ebbie for short. She and her sister Juno get along brilliantly (despite Ebony's raging hormones and sass!) They like their food in separate bowls but come together to nap and even groom eachother. When they came to us they needed a nail trim pretty desperately, and they were very timid. But they are getting more confident, eating well, and enjoying zoomies (Juno especially).

Hopefully all goes well with Eb's treatment

 

[Wiebke]

You were correct! This is a very late update, but soon after this conversation she was seen by an exotics vet who immediately suspected something was up with her, performed an ultrasound and believes she has ovarian cysts. It's very possible that she's older than we were told or that she simply developed them younger than most piggies would.
The vets reccomendation is that we arrange a spay soon to improve her quality of life. She assured us that they have had good success with this operation in small animals and that it would make her more comfortable in the long run.
We appreciate there is a risk with anaesthetic, but this piggy is very hormonal, and does seem uncomfortable. She has seemed to get even larger, so we agree with the vet's opinion. My partner was the one at the appointment so I'm uncertain, but I assume the spay will be just a removal of the ovaries?
Anyway, this will be booked in very soon, I just wanted any opinions on the situation, if the surgery sounds like a good choice, any tips on care before and after are welcome. I'm sure the vet will tell us what we need to know when we book it, but can't hurt to get other thoughts too!

She is a sweet girlie, we named her Ebony, Ebbie for short. She and her sister Juno get along brilliantly (despite Ebony's raging hormones and sass!) They like their food in separate bowls but come together to nap and even groom eachother. When they came to us they needed a nail trim pretty desperately, and they were very timid. But they are getting more confident, eating well, and enjoying zoomies (Juno especially).

Hopefully all goes well with Eb's treatment

Hi

Thank you for the update. Diagnosing pregnancies is just not as easy as you'd think...

Hormonal ovarian cysts typically come up from 18 months onwards with the bulk manifesting between 2-4 years of age but in some cases they can happen earlier during teenage. It is always more difficult in piggies whose exact age you do not know.

A full spay (which means removal of the womb as well as the ovaries) from the belly is different to an ovariectomy (removal of the ovaries through slits in the back. The second operation is less invasive but a full spay may be preferable if there are indications that the womb could also be affected at some point or is already affected. You will have to enquire at the clinic or ask to speak to the vet for clarification and their reasoning behind it.

Personally, I prefer to leave my vets to the method they are most familiar and comfortable with, which reduces the risk of complications simply by them working faster and better so the piggy is under GA for less long.
My own operating vet prefers full spays but I have never lost a sow with him, even though I needed two emergency spays for very fast growing large fluid filled cysts and one spay for a womb going badly wrong in an already frail piggy (which also turned up some rather nasty looking ovarian cysts in the process, according to my vet).
The success rate very much depends on the vet and the recovery nursing team. If you have a vet who says that they are experienced with the operation, then I would go for it. Your girl will have a much easier and happier life.

Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)
Tips For Post-operative Care