Need advice

[Maja17247]

Hi!
So yesterday I noticed unusual behaviour of my 2yo sow. She was barely moving, was sitting all "puffed up" in the corner, didnt eat much and looked bloated. Since I have 3 other guinea pigs, I didnt know if she was pooping so I separated her for a bit. She wasn't pooping or eating so I took her to the vet immediatelly. It was saturday, and vet that was on urgent care isn't specialized in exotic animals. She did initial check up (temp was normal, teeth are fine) and ultrasound. She concluded that my baby is constipated and gave me something to feed her with and pills for pain. Also she sceduled an appointment with an exotic vet for tomorrow (monday).

Since then she is pooping a bit but is obviously in a lot of pain. Also i noticed her bottom is soaking wet all the time and she smells really bad. Could that be connected to her being constipated?
Does anyone have any advice of anything else i could do for her? I know I'm seeing a vet tomorrow but I'm freaking out

 

[Claire W]

I am very sorry that your girl is poorly

Piggies don’t get constipated and rather become bloated which is a very painful condition that can be fatal if left untreated. What is the name of the medications you have been given? Hopefully a gut stimulant and pain killer

It’s good you have a vet appointment booked for tomorrow but if she can’t poo at all, her belly feels hard like a balloon, please see an out of hours vet as an emergency

Of course, she could not be bloated at all and have something else wrong. This is only a guess going from your description

Please have a read of the following link x

Emergency Resources and Critical Illness Care - Contents list and subforum link

Especially this one Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)

 

[weepweeps]

Also you say you were given something to feed her. Was that critical care food? I’d syringe feed her as much of that as you can and see the vet tomorrow. Good luck.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I agree with the advice you’ve been given above.

Guinea pigs do not get constipated.
Ensure you are weighing her every morning and syringe feeding a minimum of 60ml each day. Your weight checks are the guide to ensure you are getting enough into her each day.

In addition to the bloat guide that has been linked in by Claire, the following guides will also help you

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
Weight - Monitoring and Management

Best wishes for the appointment tomorrow

 

[harmonies]

yes sending good vibes hope your little guy gets better
sorry your going through this hang in there think positive hoping for good outcome

 

[Maja17247]

Also you say you were given something to feed her. Was that critical care food? I’d syringe feed her as much of that as you can and see the vet tomorrow. Good luck.

Thank you for your help! Yes i got critical care food (powder that i mix with water and i give her with syringe). I do that every couple of hours but its very difficult since she spits a lot of it out. She also started nibbling on hay more (vet adviced to not give her anything else besides hay). And i got pain killers (Thamal i think its called).
And also she has been pooping more but they are very wierdly shaped (like a tear).

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thank you for your help! Yes i got critical care food (powder that i mix with water and i give her with syringe). I do that every couple of hours but its very difficult since she spits a lot of it out. She also started nibbling on hay more (vet adviced to not give her anything else besides hay). And i got pain killers (Thamal i think its called).
And also she has been pooping more but they are very wierdly shaped (like a tear).

The tear shape signifies digestive issues.
Keep going with the syringe feeding.

 

[Maja17247]

Hi, i have an update.
Vet didn't find anything wrong with her. She analizied poop and urine (everything was fine). X-ray didn't show anything, blood test showed a little increase in calcium. We have been giving her meditacions for infection and pain this past week. And she improved so much, she is eating, being lively again etc
But today i noticed her urine is like bright red colour. Could it be because of medication? Or maybe red lettuce? (I have 3 other piggies and their urine is normal).
I'm scared it has something to do with her ovaries since she recently started living with 2 female piggies and I read they can develop cysts due to that.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Hi, i have an update.
Vet didn't find anything wrong with her. She analizied poop and urine (everything was fine). X-ray didn't show anything, blood test showed a little increase in calcium. We have been giving her meditacions for infection and pain this past week. And she improved so much, she is eating, being lively again etc
But today i noticed her urine is like bright red colour. Could it be because of medication? Or maybe red lettuce? (I have 3 other piggies and their urine is normal).
I'm scared it has something to do with her ovaries since she recently started living with 2 female piggies and I read they can develop cysts due to that.

It would be a good idea to return to the vet to have her checked out again. There could be a few reasons for red urine.

They don’t develop ovarian cysts just by living with other piggies.