piggy with potential UTI?

[cutiechess]

Hi everyone,
i have a 1 year old baby girl named chestnut whomst I'm a bit worried about right now. This night i heard her make a whiny noise while trying to pee and got a bit worried and then later on, my sister saw the same thing. i’ve been at uni all day so i haven’t been able to see her throughout the day but her behaviour is really healthy and the same loveliness. lately we ran out of lettuce and cucumber so she wasn’t able to get as much of that and was fed more carrots for two days. my sister and i are worried about her having a potential uti or bladder stones but she hasn’t made the same noise all night (however i don’t know if that means she’s not peeing). we’ve been feeding criti care and lots of cucumber and lettuce to give her extra water and she has been making a few chirping noises throughout the night.

i hope i didn’t drag this too long but i was wondering, should we be worried? we’re considering taking her to the vet but we don’t know if we are just being extremely paranoid and i’m unsure because going to the vet is a hectic experience for her. any and all help would be great please, I'm so terrified

thank you everyone so so much for the help <33

 

[Piggies&buns]

If you are at all concerned, then it is important you do see a vet. A vet is the only person who can say whether there is something medical going on.
Making sure you switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh daily while you have any health concerns as this will give you much better information on whether a piggy is eating enough hay. Hay is 80% of the daily food intake and when a piggy is feeling unwell, it is often the first thing they will reduce eating and therefore you see that reduction on the scales.

As a side note, if you run out of veggies, then please just feed extra hay. Hay is the most important part od the diet in any event. Please don’t feed extra carrots inadvertently thinking it makes up for other veggies. Carrots are too high in sugar so should only be a very occasional treat.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi everyone,
i have a 1 year old baby girl named chestnut whomst I'm a bit worried about right now. This night i heard her make a whiny noise while trying to pee and got a bit worried and then later on, my sister saw the same thing. i’ve been at uni all day so i haven’t been able to see her throughout the day but her behaviour is really healthy and the same loveliness. lately we ran out of lettuce and cucumber so she wasn’t able to get as much of that and was fed more carrots for two days. my sister and i are worried about her having a potential uti or bladder stones but she hasn’t made the same noise all night (however i don’t know if that means she’s not peeing). we’ve been feeding criti care and lots of cucumber and lettuce to give her extra water and she has been making a few chirping noises throughout the night.

i hope i didn’t drag this too long but i was wondering, should we be worried? we’re considering taking her to the vet but we don’t know if we are just being extremely paranoid and i’m unsure because going to the vet is a hectic experience for her. any and all help would be great please, I'm so terrified

thank you everyone so so much for the help <33

Hi

With urinary tract infections or cystitis, it usually takes several day for symptoms to be consistent but as you are unlikely to get an immediate appointment at your vets, that will mean that by the time they are seen, a diagnosis should be possible.

Please take the time to read our diet guide link below; a good general diet can help to minimise the risk of some preventable issues, promote general health and boost the average health life span from the bottom end to the upper half. It is one the top three most important things you can do for your guinea pigs apart from company of their own kind and enough cage space. A good diet will help to promote a stronger immune system and help your piggy fend off illnesses and bugs better. Weekly weigh-ins and body checks will help you spot slowly develping health issues in time before they become a very costly problem.
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
Weight - Monitoring and Management
Guinea pig body quirks - What is normal and what not?

Many people are sadly not aware that what piggies need to eat most by far is grass fibre (hay) for optimal gut and dental health - the digestive process with two runs through the gut to get the most out of the nutrious but tough fibre and the growth rate of the crucial grinding back teeth has evolved against the very abrasive silica in grass/hay, which makes at least three quarters of what a guinea pig eats in a day.
Please also be aware that many common veg in a piggy diet are actually not healthy for them. Carrots are for instance like feeding a bar of chocolate.
The one think you should make sure that you always have at home and in reserve is hay. Veg and pellets are not an issue if they run out for a day or so although it would be good if it didn't happen. Try to grow grass and/or fresh herbs in a windowsill box.

Here is the link to our complete new owners collection, which you may find very helpful as well as interesting. We have tried to keep our guides very practical and as precise and easy to follow as possible. You may want to bookmark the link, browse, read and re-read at need: Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides