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Impaction

Impaction is when they lose anal muscle strength usually in older boars and can’t push their poops out properly. You will find a plug of caecotrophs in the anal sac. It requires a vet check if it is the first time it has happened as it may not be impaction or it may be secondary to other health issues.
You may find hay etc in the area as it gets in there as they scent mark. That’s not impaction.

Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths
Impaction - How To Help Your Guinea Pig.
 
Piggies&buns said:
Impaction is when they lose anal muscle strength usually in older boars and can’t push their poops out properly. You will find a plug of caecotrophs in the anal sac. It requires a vet check if it is the first time it has happened as it may not be impaction or it may be secondary to other health issues.
You may find hay etc in the area as it gets in there as they scent mark. That’s not impaction.

Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths
Impaction - How To Help Your Guinea Pig.
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Oh I thought the weekly health check said something about me checking for impaction
 
nlkiser198343 said:
Oh I thought the weekly health check said something about me checking for impaction
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In a weekly check you are checking the anal sac is free of hay, stray hair and that the penis is clean It may need to be cleaned, but most boars keep themselves clean. I’ve never had to do anything with my boys.
I now pay closer attention to my 5 year old boars given their age and possibility of now age related issues occurring but even they are doing very well in keeping clean and no issues with impaction.

As i say, impaction is not the same thing. You can see a plug of faeces, enlarged anal sac etc with impaction. Then they need help cleaning it out and a vet check. It is something older boars can struggle with but by far not all will.
The guides I linked in explain.
 
nlkiser198343 said:
I don't have any animal shampoo ATM
. Yesterday I used a damp wet warm cloth to clean that area and their ears. Not in that order. Lol
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You don’t need shampoo - you don’t actually need to bathe them at all. The only time they should be bathed is if there is a medical need to do so.

You may also not need to actually wipe them with a cloth at all - they should be keeping themselves clean.
If they aren’t, particularly around the back end, then they do need to be cleaned and also a vet check to find out if there is a medical issue going on.
 
Oh ok I thought I was supposed to clean there ears 3 times a year. I don't really like giving animals baths anyway unless they really need it
 
nlkiser198343 said:
Oh ok I thought I was supposed to clean their ears 3 times a year. I don't really like giving animals baths anyway unless they really need it
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No you don’t. That’s quite an arbitrary number in any event.
You only need to step in with any cleaning if there is an actual or medical need to do so.

I have given one of my boys one bum bath in 5 years. He managed to cover himself in pee (or actually it could have been his cage mate, but either way he did smell!). It’s never happened again.
 
Hi

Impaction only affects about 10% of mainly older boars from 4 years onwards. You will notice large formless poo masses and a swelling of the area as the first sign if you ever have to deal with it (which you'll hopefully never have to!)

Please simply check the ears quickly weekly during your usual life-long once weekly body check and weigh-in on your kitchen scales. Most well cared piggies never have any problems with their ears; some breeds like can be a bit more prone to overproducing wax in one or both ears.
Please never treat ears on spec and see a vet for a suitable product only if there really is a problem; you can easily do permanent and totally unnecessary harm to your piggies. The ears are too sensitive an organ for home DIY treatment. :(
We see less than a handful of cases with a wax build-up in the outer ear in a year - that is how rare it actually is! Out of over 80 piggies over many years, I have only ever 3 piggies (all of them teddies) with a recurring ear wax problem in one ear.
 
Wiebke said:
Hi

Impaction only affects about 10% of mainly older boars from 4 years onwards. You will notice large formless poo masses and a swelling of the area as the first sign if you ever have to deal with it (which you'll hopefully never have to!)

Please simply check the ears quickly weekly during your usual life-long once weekly body check and weigh-in on your kitchen scales. Most well cared piggies never have any problems with their ears; some breeds like can be a bit more prone to overproducing wax in one or both ears.
Please never treat ears on spec and see a vet for a suitable product only if there really is a problem; you can easily do permanent and totally unnecessary harm to your piggies. The ears are too sensitive an organ for home DIY treatment. :(
We see less than a handful of cases with a wax build-up in the outer ear in a year - that is how rare it actually is! Out of over 80 piggies over many years, I have only ever 3 piggies (all of them teddies) with a recurring ear wax problem in one ear.
Click to expand...
Yeah I never went inside just wiped the outer ear but if there's no need to then I'll just look from now on.
 
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