One of my guinea pig poops are large and malformed and stinky

[dj_paige]

Recently, I have noticed that one of my guinea pis has droppings that are about 3-4 times larger than they used to be, and have no regular shape. These droppings also smell bad. I have not changed my animals diet in any way. Please advise how to fix this, if possible.

 

[fluffysal]

Bump

 

[Piggies&buns]

Please ensure you are feeding enough hay and carrying out the routine weight checks.
You may need to remove veg from their diet to allow the gut to settle and rebalance.
It would also be wise to see a vet.

Are your piggies male and potentially suffering from impaction?

 

[dj_paige]

My animals get plenty of hay, I put enough in the cage for 12+ hours, and it is never all gone the next time I feed them hay.

You are suggesting that for a certain period of time, their diet should be just hay and pellets? How long?

 

[Piggies&buns]

They won’t eat all the hay, they will forage through, pick out the best bits and leave the rest. This is why, if at all possible, topping up throughout the day can be a good thing. Obviously if you’re out 12 hours a day then you can’t do that!

Are you carrying out the routine weekly weight checks? These are the only way to monitor hay intake.
You need to switch to daily weight checks while there are health concerns as it enables you to step in with syringe feeding more promptly if needed.

Yes, that is what I am saying. Digestive issues can be caused by a gut imbalance (they can also be secondary to another issue). Going back to plenty of fibre and no veg can allow the gut to rebalance.
A few days off veg is usually all that is needed to right a mild digestive upset. If after a few days things have not corrected themselves then please see a vet as it can mean it is more than a mild upset.
Please don’t delay in seeing a vet if you are at all concerned though as it’s always possible it may not be a mild upset.

 

[dj_paige]

Thanks again. I can certainly provide hay more frequently. I can also remove veggies from their diet.

With regards to weighing the animals and potentially taking them to the doctor, my own current medical problems make that impossible for a few weeks. (Shoulder surgery, can't use one arm for 4-6 more weeks, can't pick them up, can't drive)

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks again. I can certainly provide hay more frequently. I can also remove veggies from their diet.

With regards to weighing the animals and potentially taking them to the doctor, my own current medical problems make that impossible for a few weeks. (Shoulder surgery, can't use one arm for 4-6 more weeks, can't pick them up, can't drive)

Is there somebody who can do the daily weighing for you and take them to the vet?

If being off veg doesn’t resolve a minor issue within a couple of days they will need to be seen by a vet this week - it’s not something that can wait 4-6 weeks.

If the poop turns to watery diarrhoea then it’s an emergency and they need to see a vet that day.

If they aren’t eating enough hay due to feeling unwell then significant weight loss can happen 24-48 hours and that is also an emergency, and would require an immediate vet check and round the clock syringe feeding.

The guides below explain further

Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Weight - Monitoring and Management

I hope you recover well from your surgery

 

[dj_paige]

Good news! After removing veggies from my guinea pigs' diet, the mis-shaped monster droppings have stopped! If there are no more today, I will add veggies into their diet one-by-one and see how things go.

Thank you for the advice!

 

[fluffysal]

Great news

 

[Piggies&buns]

Good news! After removing veggies from my guinea pigs' diet, the mis-shaped monster droppings have stopped! If there are no more today, I will add veggies into their diet one-by-one and see how things go.

Thank you for the advice!

That’s good news.

Be very careful. Introduce only small amounts and it is recommended to start with herbs as they are milder on the digestion