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I don’t think my guinea pig knows how to drink

Chloegkenny

Chloegkenny

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hello I have a 3 month old guinea pig named Kevin, I got him as a companion for my Earnie who sadly recently passed away, I noticed that Kevin doesn’t drink anything! There’s a bottle on his cage and a bowl of water and they’re always full, he sits in the bowl of water instead of drinking it. Do I have to teach him how to drink? My other previous pigs Norman and Earnie knew how to drink from the bottle so there wasn’t any problems. I keep refilling them even though he isn’t drinking anything and I water down his veggies so that he can get fluids from them.
 
Chloegkenny said:
Hello I have a 3 month old guinea pig named Kevin, I got him as a companion for my Earnie who sadly recently passed away, I noticed that Kevin doesn’t drink anything! There’s a bottle on his cage and a bowl of water and they’re always full, he sits in the bowl of water instead of drinking it. Do I have to teach him how to drink? My other previous pigs Norman and Earnie knew how to drink from the bottle so there wasn’t any problems. I keep refilling them even though he isn’t drinking anything and I water down his veggies so that he can get fluids from them.
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Hi! Some piggies won't drink at all except when they are really, really parched; they get all their fluid from the food. It is just how they are. Individual amounts vary massively.

More information about drinking in this guide here: All About Drinking And Bottles
 
My current piggies don't drink from the bottles as well (but I still put water bottles in their cage just in case they decide they want to drink from it). To make sure that they get fluids, they always have cucumber in bowls the whole day. Whether they eat it all or not, it doesn't matter. If they finish it all, they are thirsty. If not, then they are getting enough fluids. But during summer months and it's really hot, I make sure to have more than they usually have.
 
Maybe sit with your piggy and try to feed him the water in your lap? Do you have a water bottle that is placed too high? And like the others said some piggies don’t drink as much!
 
Hello (update).
I have started putting plastic ice cubes in kevs cage, as well as watered down veg, cucumber, bowl of water and bottle of water. He licks the condensation off the plastic ice cubes and eats all his veg so I don’t think he’s dehydrated even though His wee is a little dark x
 
I wouldn’t use a plastic ice cube. There is the risk of it being bitten. It may just be he’s getting enough water from his veg.
 
My pigs lick the condensation off the frozen lucozade bottle that I put in their hutch. They sniff it, know it's not food so they don't bite it.
 
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