I Need Help Identifying What Is Happening With My Piggy!

[Pou_Eve]

Hello, one of my guinea pigs named Pou (1 year old) is currently making these deep oinking noises which are sometimes softer and then louder, I think the noise is coming from her throat. She stops making the noises when I carry her but continues in her cage. She is lightly wheezing from her nose which I can only hear when I have her close to me and her eyes are a bit watery. There is no build-up in her nose and from what I see, nothing in her mouth. She is eating normally. I can not currently go to a vet because they are all closed.

I hope someone can help me identify what is going on with my piggy. Thank you!

 

[Wiebke]

Hello, one of my guinea pigs named Pou (1 year old) is currently making these deep oinking noises which are sometimes softer and then louder, I think the noise is coming from her throat. She stops making the noises when I carry her but continues in her cage. She is lightly wheezing from her nose which I can only hear when I have her close to me and her eyes are a bit watery. There is no build-up in her nose and from what I see, nothing in her mouth. She is eating normally. I can not currently go to a vet because they are all closed.

I hope someone can help me identify what is going on with my piggy. Thank you!

Hi and welcome

Please take a video with a clear audio pick up so we can hear it and also get an idea of the body language and situational context. Guinea pig language is much more complex than you would imagine. It is not as straight forward as one sound having just one interpretation. Your description is unfortunately far too vague.

Our forum (which is independent of social media and runs entirely on voluntary forum donations) does not have a suppored video upload, so you need to upload it on a public setting on a platform that does not require a membership sign-in (youtube is generally by) and then copy it across into your next forum post.

Thank you.

 

[Pou_Eve]

Hello here are 3 videos of my guinea pig. I took her out of the cage in case of any dust from the bedding I was using, I am using a humidifier, and I put her on a few warm towels because of what I read online. I want to separate my two guinea pigs in case what she has is contagious but both of them get anxious when they are away from each other.

Just audio
IMG 6002
She was a bit scared because I was following her and recording.

In this video, she is lying down in her igloo.
9b89a0c120eb496cbf38f73b90eff170

Thank you!

 

[Wiebke]

Hello here are 3 videos of my guinea pig. I took her out of the cage in case of any dust from the bedding I was using, I am using a humidifier, and I put her on a few warm towels because of what I read online. I want to separate my two guinea pigs in case what she has is contagious but both of them get anxious when they are away from each other.

Just audio
IMG 6002
She was a bit scared because I was following her and recording.

In this video, she is lying down in her igloo.
9b89a0c120eb496cbf38f73b90eff170

Thank you!

Hi

Thank you.

It sounds like a stuffy nose/congestion of the upper airways to me. If the sound doesn't disappear within a few hours (often with a big nose clearing sneeze), please have her vet checked after the turn of the year for a potential bacterial respiratory infection. The airways in guinea pigs are very narrow and small. They are also not much in the way of mouth breathers so every little bit of hay dust stuck in the nose can sound rather alarming for a little while. Have you recently opened a new bag of hay or have your piggies burrowed in some hay?

Please do not separate. Exposure has already happened and the stress from a separation will only lower the immune system further. There is also - secondarily - the potential of a sensitivity to hay or house dust (allergies in guinea pig are very rare) if persistent symptoms do not clear with antibiotics. Please do not treat on spec. Any persistent crackling or rasping is typical for an infection or sensitivity.
Because the need to breathe comes before the need to drink and only thirdly the need to eat, any guinea pig that is still eating and drinking, and lively is not yet very ill; loss of weight and appetite in combination with rasping/crackling breathing or clicking from the check is a sign of a serious respiratory infection.

If the symptoms are still there by tomorrow, then please switch from the normal once weekly weigh in on your normal kitchen scales to weighing daily first thing in the morning when the daily weight swing is at its lowest for best day to day comparison and step in with feeding and gentle watering support once the loss surpasses 50g/2 oz.

Here is more information on potential respiratory illness: New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights

Practical weighing and support feeding tips and advice (including how to improvise):
Weight - Monitoring and Management
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Some very helpful practical information in case your piggy deteriorates very suddenly over the holidays before you can get to a vet (just in case): Emergency and Crisis Care as well as Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment

All the best. Please try not panic. I have given you extra information for all scenarios because of the upcoming long weekend.

 

[Pou_Eve]

Okay, thank you so much! I will make sure to keep them together and if her symptoms worsen I will do the steps you have listed. I have not recently opened a new bag of hay and they have not burrowed in any way recently. I will make sure to read those articles as well. Also, should I keep the humidity on and leave them on towels?

 

[Wiebke]

Okay, thank you so much! I will make sure to keep them together and if her symptoms worsen I will do the steps you have listed. I have not recently opened a new bag of hay and they have not burrowed in any way recently. I will make sure to read those articles as well. Also, should I keep the humidity on and leave them on towels?

Please take them off towels and onto their normal bedding, whatever you are using.

You can check whether in increased humidity helps or not by placing a bowl of boiled water next to the cage and see whther that brings relief. Increased humidity can help but it can also make things worse so the bowl tester is a good way of finding that out.

The fact that you haven't started a new bag of hay makes it less likely to be a sensitivity to hay dust. It is usually more pronounced with freshly opened hay.

All the best. It is well past midnight here in the UK but you are hopefully provided with enough information to keep going now.

 

[Pou_Eve]

Alright will do. Again, thank you so much, and have a good night!