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Hierarchy change or actual problem?

Chaz

Chaz

Junior Guinea Pig
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I have 3 girls. Bandit used to be the biggest and Trixie was the smallest with Luna in the middle.
Over the last 2 weeks Trixie has got really big, and Bandit has got really small. I'm talking gaining and losing 200g in two weeks. It's like they've swapped places.
The vet cant find anything obvious wrong with Bandit, so they put her on antibiotics and pain meds just to cover any potential problems.
Could the hierarchy just have changed? Or is there someone properly wrong with my girl?
 
Chaz said:
I have 3 girls. Bandit used to be the biggest and Trixie was the smallest with Luna in the middle.
Over the last 2 weeks Trixie has got really big, and Bandit has got really small. I'm talking gaining and losing 200g in two weeks. It's like they've swapped places.
The vet cant find anything obvious wrong with Bandit, so they put her on antibiotics and pain meds just to cover any potential problems.
Could the hierarchy just have changed? Or is there someone properly wrong with my girl?
Click to expand...

Hi

A weight loss of 200g means that something is going on. Have your vets checked the back teeth for potential overgrowth?
Unless you notice distinct signs for actual bullying, it is more likely that Trixie is just hoovering up what Bandit is not eating.

Please step in with additional feeding support for Bandit outside the cage and switch from the normal once daily weigh-in to weighing daily at the same time in the feeding cycle (first in the morning is best day to day comparison).
If your piggies are on the overweight side, then the initial weight loss will a lot more than it would be with a piggy of normal weight. Keep in mind that hay makes over three quarters of what a piggy eats in a day; this is mainly what you need to replace with your support feeding - if your girl is still hungry, you can do that from a bowl or otherwise from a syringe if she has or is losing her appetite.

Please take the time to read these guide links here. They are very practical, step-by-step and contain all the little how-to tips for looking after ill piggies:

All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures - including how you can improvise and step in straight away

Weight - Monitoring and Management (including working out whether your piggies are over- or underweight for their individual size, i.e. feeling for the BMI)

Emergency and Crisis Care as well as Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment (in case things take a sudden turn for the worst)

All the best. Mystery weight loss is my least favourite symptom because so many different things can be behind it.
 
The vet did a full mot. Couldn't find anything. It could be bullying because there was some of that from both Trixie and Luna. She hasn't lost her appetite at all, that's the issue. The vet didn't say to start syringe feeding, but I have been taking her out and feeding her veg. I thought she had gained some weight, but yesterday she was the same as when I took her to the vets.
 
Wiebke has givrn you some great advice. I certainly second starting to syringe feed her now to try and help her put some weight back on.
I hope she's feeling better soon! 🤗
 
So she went up in weight by 40g, then lost it again. She's eating and drinking, but fluctuating in weight. The vet cant find anything and I'm not sure it's worth taking her back. I feel like I'm letting her down. I'm hand feeding her, making sure Trixie doesn't bully her...I'm just not sure what else to do.
 
She's gone down even more now. She's gone from 1000g to 800g, then after the vet visit, she's 750 down from 780. She's eating, it's just like it's not actually putting weight on her.
Her coats still shiny and she's still energetic.
And just as a little information, she's 4
 
Please step in and syringe feed a recovery feed or mushed pellets. Taking her out to give veg is not enough. Her hay intake is reduced for some reason and you need to replace that hay with fibre rich recovery feed.
I would suggest you take her back to the vet - something isn’t right
I hope you can get to the bottom of it and that she is ok
 
I'm just not sure what the vet is going to do. She said they didn't take bloods in guinea pigs because they had nothing to compare it to. She just said it could be an infection or pain. So we treated for both and she went up a bit, but now she's down again. But she is eating, that's the strange thing. She's eating and she's energetic, but not gaining weight. I have been syringe feeding, but she isn't gaining weight.
 
Chaz said:
I'm just not sure what the vet is going to do. She said they didn't take bloods in guinea pigs because they had nothing to compare it to. She just said it could be an infection or pain. So we treated for both and she went up a bit, but now she's down again. But she is eating, that's the strange thing. She's eating and she's energetic, but not gaining weight. I have been syringe feeding, but she isn't gaining weight.
Click to expand...

When syringe feeding it isn’t really about gaining weight, it is to stop further weight loss and keep the gut functioning.
Regaining lost weight takes a long time once they are eating properly again
 
She's going to the vets tomorrow.
 
It seems my scales were wrong. The vet says she's gone up in weight, and said just to monitor her. He said to do what I'm doing with the feeding, but I could cut down the veg to get her to eat more nuggets. He says that she might just be getting old, because she's thin.
Other than that, nothing wrong with her.
 
Chaz said:
It seems my scales were wrong. The vet says she's gone up in weight, and said just to monitor her. He said to do what I'm doing with the feeding, but I could cut down the veg to get her to eat more nuggets. He says that she might just be getting old, because she's thin.
Other than that, nothing wrong with her.
Click to expand...

I’m glad there’s nothing wrong with her.
You don’t have sent to encourage her to eat more nuggets - over feeding nuggets is unhealthy and could lead to health issues.
You always want to encourage higher hay intake given hay is the majority of their diet.
Nuggets are supplementary only, never a major part of their diet and actually the one thing they don’t need to be given.
 
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