I’m sorry to hear this.
Piggies do not catch colds. They get bacterial respiratory infections and these always require antibiotics to treat it. If he struggling to breathe then he urgently needs vet care.
I can appreciate it is difficult, but I’m afraid there isn’t anything else we can tell you from a treatment point or view as legally only a vet can diagnose and treat.
The only thing we can tell you to do is home care - switching from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weighing him each morning so you can monitor grass hay and syringe feed intake. You need to keep his weight stable each day.
Syringe feed needs to be a fibre rich recovery feed or mushed pellets.
While this home care is important, it isn’t medical treatment and it will not cure any illness.
A few things - they should not eat alfalfa hay. It is too high in calcium and not what is needed in their diet.
Tomato should not be fed - it’s too acidic.
They need a balanced veg proportion of their diet - coriander/cilantro, lettuce, bell pepper, cucumber are fine to be fed every day.
I’ve added guides below which explain everything further
I hope he is ok
1 Statement
2 Emergency assessment and accessing vets
- How urgent is my guinea pig's problem?
- Finding an emergency vet
- Seeing a vet not familiar with guinea pigs (including lists of safe and dangerous medications)
3 First Aid care and easily available products
- General 'always have at home' stuff and comfort measures for very ill guinea pigs
- Improvising support feed; recovery formulas...
1 Feed
- Important crisis management resources
- When is improvising necessary?
- Which food group am I replacing with my feeding support?
- How much and how often should I feed and water?
- What can I use that I have already got at home?
- Other possible easily available foods with their pros and cons
- How do I prep a syringe for rougher pellet fibre?
- What can I do without a syringe?
- The role of lukewarm water
2 Probiotics
- Probiotic products...
You need to contact and ideally see a vet at any time of the day or night as a potentially life or death emergency if your guinea pig has got these symptoms:
- Heavy or heaving breathing, this can include a visible effort with your piggy’s breathing (usually the abdomen sucking in and out showing they are using their abdominal muscles to breath) and any kind of open mouth breathing, these are signs of respiratory distress
- Seizures or loss of consciousness. For any fit which lasts more than around 2 minutes the vet should be called...
1 Weight and Weight Loss
- Why regular weight monitoring matters
- How weight changes over a lifetime
- How to weigh on your kitchen scales (with video)
- The weight loss rules
- How critical is the weight loss for my piggy?
- Possible causes for weight loss
2 Body Mass Index (BMI) or 'Heft'
- Why is understanding your piggy's weight so important?
- 'Average' weight vs. individual weight - the big trip up
- How to check for the BMI...
Introduction
1 Choosing the right place to medicate/feed your piggy
2 Guinea pig whispering and asserting your authority
3 Recovery products and emergency improvisation
4 Syringe recommendations
5 Weight monitoring: your biggest ally
6 Weight loss guidelines and when to step in with feeding
7 Syringe feeding amounts/frequency advice
8 Practical medication and syringing tips
9 Medicating and feeding cooperative guinea pigs (videos)
10 Medicating and feeding uncooperative guinea pigs (hold pictures and tips)
11 The line between life and...
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