Rustic/blood Wee Stains?

[Keiko The Pig]

So recently I have noticed some rustic looking stains on the lighter coloured areas of my fleece, i know blood in urine is never a good thing so really need some advice. I never had these stains before adopting Milo from a reputable piggy rescue so my best bet is that they're from him, he's just over a month old and doesn't seem unhealthy or unhappy in the slightest. So far they both seem to be okay, eating, drinking, pop corning, making normal happy noises begging for food and veggies, wheeking loudly when I gave them a new toy during floor time today. I checked over Milo for any scratches to his rear as dom pig Keiko is hitting the 4 month hormone spike and he has mounted Milo recently but mounting is very rare and they get along quite well with Keiko going over to lay beside Milo when he wants to settle down so I don't think these could be coming from an external source.

 

[Veggies Galore]

Guinea Pig wee oxidises when exposed to air - so wee patches on bedding often look like a rusty brown . I'll see if I can find some pictures on old threads .

 

[Keiko The Pig]

Okay thank you. I also just realized I've been feeding red leaf lettuce as I ran out of romaine. Could this cause it? The boys love their lettuce

 

[Claire W]

I have just taken this from the guinea pig lynx website to help put your mind at rest:

Urine may be clear to cloudy in color. Calcium compounds in the urine cause this cloudiness. Normal urine is not grittyin texture. Dried urine may leave powdery white calcium compounds. Very young guinea pigs often have an orange or brown tint to their urine. Urine sometimes changes to an orange color on standing (this may be the oxidation of porphyrins in the urine).

You say your guinea pigs are only four months old. Rusty / orange urine is more typical from younger guinea pigs

 

[Keiko The Pig]

I have just taken this from the guinea pig lynx website to help put your mind at rest:

Urine may be clear to cloudy in color. Calcium compounds in the urine cause this cloudiness. Normal urine is [you]not gritty[/you]in texture. Dried urine may leave powdery white calcium compounds. Very young guinea pigs often have an orange or brown tint to their urine. Urine sometimes changes to an orange color on standing (this may be the oxidation of porphyrins in the urine).

You say your guinea pigs are only four months old. Rusty / orange urine is more typical from younger guinea pigs

I've had Keiko for 2-3 months and he has never produced any stains but Milo was actually only born March 29th so if it's normal for young pigs it's probably just his normal wee! Thank you

 

[Veggies Galore]

Okay thank you. I also just realized I've been feeding red leaf lettuce as I ran out of romaine. Could this cause it? The boys love their lettuce

Some foods can colour urine ( beetroot is a culprit ! ) Not sure about red leaf lettuce though.

 

[7squeakers.]

I would not think that red leaf lettuce would colour the urine. There is very little moisture in it. He would have to eat an awful lot! As PiggyOwner said, beetroot definitely can colour urine, and maybe carrots too, but piggies should not be allowed to eat enough carrots to colour the urine.

 

[Keiko The Pig]

They only get carrots once a week so it's not that! They haven't had any beetroot but seem fine in themselves. Hyper as ever my two boys so I guess it's just a young piggy thing