littlepigs116
New Born Pup
Hello all!
I recently rescued two young guinea pigs (6 months old) after they were given up by a family that seemingly became disinterested in them (who would have known that prey animals wouldn’t be overly fond of being picked up by young children?!). We have had them for over a week and they have been just fine and settled well, however earlier I heard a loud ruckus and went into the living room to find that Gizmo had a nasty bite on his ear, I’ll attach a photo of the bite to this post, but it runs from the centre of his ear almost to his head and there was cartilage visible and it was so bad you could definitely stick something all the way through!
This was the first sign of fighting I’ve seen, but it was so loud and the bite was so nasty I’ve separated them and created a side by side cage so that they are able to socialise but not get at each other! However I’ve noticed that since having the bite Gizmo has been tilting his head to the same side as the bite.
I know a head tilt can be very serious and so I’m rather concerned, however prior to the bite he displayed no signs of a head tilt or loss of balance. He was also checked out by our vet shortly after we took them in and he was given a clean bill of health.
I have cleaned the wound with a saline solution and plan to continue to do so. I plan on taking Gizmo to the vet just incase tomorrow, but I’m wondering if it is possible the tilt is to do with the pain the wound is likely causing him? I’m extremely worried about the tilt as I’m aware of how serious they can be and we recently lost one of our beloved piggies and so I can’t bear the thought of having to go through the stress again!
I’m hoping for the best but prepared for the worst and just wanted to reach out incase anyone else has ever had a similar experience? I’m mainly hoping for some peace of mind until I can get Gizmo to a vet!
Many thanks!
I recently rescued two young guinea pigs (6 months old) after they were given up by a family that seemingly became disinterested in them (who would have known that prey animals wouldn’t be overly fond of being picked up by young children?!). We have had them for over a week and they have been just fine and settled well, however earlier I heard a loud ruckus and went into the living room to find that Gizmo had a nasty bite on his ear, I’ll attach a photo of the bite to this post, but it runs from the centre of his ear almost to his head and there was cartilage visible and it was so bad you could definitely stick something all the way through!
This was the first sign of fighting I’ve seen, but it was so loud and the bite was so nasty I’ve separated them and created a side by side cage so that they are able to socialise but not get at each other! However I’ve noticed that since having the bite Gizmo has been tilting his head to the same side as the bite.
I know a head tilt can be very serious and so I’m rather concerned, however prior to the bite he displayed no signs of a head tilt or loss of balance. He was also checked out by our vet shortly after we took them in and he was given a clean bill of health.
I have cleaned the wound with a saline solution and plan to continue to do so. I plan on taking Gizmo to the vet just incase tomorrow, but I’m wondering if it is possible the tilt is to do with the pain the wound is likely causing him? I’m extremely worried about the tilt as I’m aware of how serious they can be and we recently lost one of our beloved piggies and so I can’t bear the thought of having to go through the stress again!
I’m hoping for the best but prepared for the worst and just wanted to reach out incase anyone else has ever had a similar experience? I’m mainly hoping for some peace of mind until I can get Gizmo to a vet!
Many thanks!
Head tilts usually happen when a piggy has sight problems. If they’re fighting to the point of bleeding you may have to separate them while still keeping them near each other. However, I think that when guineas are moved to a new house they might try to establish dominance again? I’m not sure though, definitely not an expert.
