sick baby piggy :(

[mackie]

ADVICE

hi, i have 2 guinea pigs. their names are giblet (8 months old) and lumi (2-3 months old). giblet is an abyssinian guinea pig, and lumi is an american guinea pig. i had another guinea, gus gus, who was also an american guinea pig. i noticed that gus gus was wheezing(almost like he was losing his voice when he tried to squeak at me. his breathing was absolutely fine) and he was coughing and sneezing every once in a while (maybe 5-6 times a day). he was active, no change in appetite, no weight loss, and his feces looked perfectly fine. but he suddenly died. my other guinea pig, lumi, has started doing the same thing (wheezing/coughing) recently. he doesn’t have any discharge or other signs of sickness. i am unable to afford to take him to the vet, and i’m seeking advice for his condition. i thought it was uri (pneumonia) but he does not have any other indicators of the disease. just wheezing/coughing. i bought gus gus and lumi from the same petsmart at the same time. i thought it may be allergies (they use pine bedding) or a sore throat or something. i’m very concerned about lumi because gus gus just died from the same symptoms. giblet is much bigger than lumi and they also share a water bottle. could it be from giblet hogging the water, causing lumi to be dehydrated? i feed them solely timothy hay (i was giving them pellets, but they didn’t want to eat it) lumi seems okay besides the wheezing. i did research, but all that came up was pneumonia. he doesn’t have the main signs of it, and i can’t find any other explanation for it. please if you have any tips or advice, i would really appreciate it.

the red one is giblet
the brown one was gus gus
the white one is lumi

 

[Piggies&buns]

Your piggy does need to see a vet. It could be irritation caused by bedding or other irritants in the room, but without a hands on vet check you can’t know whether it might be something else that does require treatment. We aren’t vets and cannot tell you what is wrong with him. A vet is the only person who can listen to the chest, make a diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment.
Is there somebody who can help you with the vet fees?

 

[mackie]

Your piggy does need to see a vet. It could be irritation caused by bedding or other irritants in the room, but without a hands on vet check you can’t know whether it might be something else that does require treatment. We aren’t vets and cannot tell you what is wrong with him. A vet is the only person who can listen to the chest, make a diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment.
Is there somebody who can help you with the vet fees?

thank you for your response! i do know that a veterinarian can confirm a diagnosis, and prescribe the appointment treatment for these symptoms. though i was seeking *advice* or *tips* (e.g. possible diseases or infections, ways to make him more comfortable physically and socially, hyper allergenic supplies such as bedding/food to help prevent any possible allergies, similar personal experiences that may help my situation, etc.) although i very well could resort to google or pet sites to find these answers, i prefer and find it more helpful to ask experienced piggy owners for their personal opinions, tips, or advice

 

[Piggies&buns]

Guinea pigs rarely get allergies. Sensitivities to bedding can happen ie dust from shavings so switching to fleece bedding can help, ensuring hay is dust extracted can help. However, neither of those things will do anything if it is a URI so looking into sensitivities never comes first. Having a vet check a medical angle and starting any treatment needs to be the first thing, with changing beddings etc coming after if a URI is ruled out.

 

[VeeAngel]

I've read that pine shavings can be very irritating to piggy lungs (and also my allergies - I used them for about 3 days after adopting my boys). Fleece bedding is much easier to keep clean, and there are lots of youtube videos on how to make cage liners yourself. (I started with just a thick layer of old towels, with fleece layer on top).
But agreed that a vet visit is in order. Even if the irritation started with shavings, the resulting infection would require antibiotics to clear.
How long have you had them? Petsmart will provide vet treatment, but only within a short window after purchase. There is also small pet insurance in the US, which is very affordable (around $25/year/piggy), and might be worth looking into if the other option is no vet treatment.

 

[tabelmabel]

Vet visit definitely - especially as this pig is very recently bereaved on top of the other symptoms. Dont hold off; pigs tend not to be able to recover by themselves. The sooner you go, the better.

 

[mackie]

yes ma’am! i thank you for the input, though as i stated before, the vet IS vital for confirming a diagnosis. gp’s are COMMONLY associated with these symtoms due to having fragile immune symptoms, causing them to be susceptible to allergies. thus me asking for hyper allergenic alternatives (regarding specifically the bedding i use) from the piggy community there are no other possible indicators associating my pig’s symptoms to uri other than periodic sneezing/wheezing sounds. his breathing is not labored, he does not seem under physical stress (though gp’s tend to hide their symptoms) i originally thought (emphasis on THOUGHT) that he was suffering from uri. due to him not having the common indicators of uri,(i.e lethargy, loss of appetite, discharge, fecal change) it is unlikely. his symptoms likely point to allergies or dehydration. the only thing that concerns me is the sneezing, although gp’s can do this in a change of environment (bedding), and his wheezy squeak. he has only sneezed one time (thankfully) and has only made wheezy sounds a couple times (only tonight) i gave him a lot of water & it seemed to help him. i’m only asking for advice or tips regarding the care of my sweet boy. referring to what you had voiced regarding to the “looking into sensitivities never comes first”... yes, i assure you, it is absolutely necessary to eliminate all possible causes so that the condition does not worsen during the time it takes me to find the money to pay possible veterinarian bills.

 

[mackie]

I've read that pine shavings can be very irritating to piggy lungs (and also my allergies - I used them for about 3 days after adopting my boys). Fleece bedding is much easier to keep clean, and there are lots of youtube videos on how to make cage liners yourself. (I started with just a thick layer of old towels, with fleece layer on top).
But agreed that a vet visit is in order. Even if the irritation started with shavings, the resulting infection would require antibiotics to clear.
How long have you had them? Petsmart will provide vet treatment, but only within a short window after purchase. There is also small pet insurance in the US, which is very affordable (around $25/year/piggy), and might be worth looking into if the other option is no vet treatment.

thank you so much for the advice! i got gibby in december, & the other 2 towards the end of may. i absolutely agree that he needs veterinarian care, i’m currently looking for an affordable cost & treatment. there’s not many affordable clinics here, or that see “exotic” pets. i am going to absolutely look for some paper bedding or fleece to replace his current bedding.

 

[RosieLily]

yes ma’am! i thank you for the input, though as i stated before, the vet IS vital for confirming a diagnosis. gp’s are COMMONLY associated with these symtoms due to having fragile immune symptoms, causing them to be susceptible to allergies. thus me asking for hyper allergenic alternatives (regarding specifically the bedding i use) from the piggy community there are no other possible indicators associating my pig’s symptoms to uri other than periodic sneezing/wheezing sounds. his breathing is not labored, he does not seem under physical stress (though gp’s tend to hide their symptoms) i originally thought (emphasis on THOUGHT) that he was suffering from uri. due to him not having the common indicators of uri,(i.e lethargy, loss of appetite, discharge, fecal change) it is unlikely. his symptoms likely point to allergies or dehydration. the only thing that concerns me is the sneezing, although gp’s can do this in a change of environment (bedding), and his wheezy squeak. he has only sneezed one time (thankfully) and has only made wheezy sounds a couple times (only tonight) i gave him a lot of water & it seemed to help him. i’m only asking for advice or tips regarding the care of my sweet boy. referring to what you had voiced regarding to the “looking into sensitivities never comes first”... yes, i assure you, it is absolutely necessary to eliminate all possible causes so that the condition does not worsen during the time it takes me to find the money to pay possible veterinarian bills.

My guinea pig was diagnosed with a URI and shared the same rather "mild" symptoms as your guinea pig. If it is a URI, the more time you give it to worsen, the harder it will be to treat and the more expensive the vet costs will be.

I hope you get your guinea pig to a vet asap.

 

[Free Ranger]

I can't offer anything more than the others. I think you will need to see a vet for treatment. As one little chap has died you know it is serious. We do understand how expensive these things are in your country x

 

[mackie]

My guinea pig was diagnosed with a URI and shared the same rather "mild" symptoms as your guinea pig. If it is a URI, the more time you give it to worsen, the harder it will be to treat and the more expensive the vet costs will be.

I hope you get your guinea pig to a vet asap.

i hope so, too i’m going to get ahold of some clinics to see if there is a veterinarian available to see him and quote the cost. pay day is on the 24, so i hope nothing happens during that time frame. however in between that time, i’m trying to eliminate all factors that can contribute to worsening his condition.

 

[mackie]

I can't offer anything more than the others. I think you will need to see a vet for treatment. As one little chap has died you know it is serious. We do understand how expensive these things are in your country x

yes, absolutely. i agree, currently researching clinics in my area open to seeing him. going to try to set an appointment, thank you!

 

[tabelmabel]

there are no other possible indicators associating my pig’s symptoms to uri other than periodic sneezing/wheezing sounds.

The problem is, even if it is an environmental cause that has triggered the wheezing, this little pig's immune system is under strain from

1) potential allergy

2) having been exposed to whatever killed the cagemate

3) the hierarchy of your 2 remaining pigs needing to be re established which of course can cause chasing, humping, fall outs which all need energy and health/strength.

As you pointed out, you can turn to google to find out what bedding is hypo allergenic but you wanted advice from piggy owners and we are all saying vet.

 

[mackie]

The problem is, even if it is an environmental cause that has triggered the wheezing, this little pig's immune system is under strain from

1) potential allergy

2) having been exposed to whatever killed the cagemate

3) the hierarchy of your 2 remaining pigs needing to be re established which of course can cause chasing, humping, fall outs which all need energy and health/strength.

As you pointed out, you can turn to google to find out what bedding is hypo allergenic but you wanted advice from piggy owners and we are all saying vet.

 

[PigglePuggle]

Hi and welcome, just to be clear here that we all agree that your piggy needs to see a vet, and that the forum terms and conditions you agreed to clearly state that you agree to seek prompt veterinary treatment for any animal that needs it.
Pet store respiratory infections requiring a hands on vet examination and prespcription antibiotics are far more common that allergies, especially in babies. Allergies take time to develop- and usually need an experienced immune system to do so- whereas bacterial pathogens are much more likely, especially in young immunologically naive animals from a stressful pet store situation.
As you sadly already lost one guinea pig I really would urge you not to waste time on google and to proceed promptly to a qualified vet for correct diagnosis and treatment. After you see the vet, we will be happy to discuss the diagnosis and treatment you have received with you here.

 

[Swissgreys]

If money is an issue then please do contact the pet store you got them from.
As you have only had them for 2 weeks, and one has already died, they should offer to cover the cost of any necessary veterinary care.
As one of your guinea pigs was so ill he passed away (even with fairly minor symptoms) this is clearly more than just an allergy and does need to be seen promptly.

Good luck getting your piggy seen and please let us know how you get on.
Hopefully a round of antibiotics will do the trick.