Snorty breathing

[skinnypiggies02]

Hi!

I’m a little worried about my piggy Cheesecake (I’ll be ringing the vets in the morning - trust him to do this on a Sunday ). Cheesecake has been doing this snorty clicky breathing noise on and off all day (mainly when he’s eating or snuffling around for food, sometimes at rest - but not 24/7). I’m wondering if it could be that his new hay is dusty (it isn’t bothering the other two pigs, but ive switched it back to the old one just in case), or if it’s because he went out in the car and was handled quite a bit yesterday (he didn’t seem stressed at all, but i suppose he could’ve been). He seems fine in himself, still eating and drinking etc just breathing a bit funny. He has been quite sleepy today, but the weather has been awfully warm and he’s had the fan on. A couple of times he’s done a bit of a cough and sneeze and the snorting has stopped for a bit. I’m just really worried about him and can’t wait to ring the vets in the morning

 

[Wiebke]

Hi!

I’m a little worried about my piggy Cheesecake (I’ll be ringing the vets in the morning - trust him to do this on a Sunday ). Cheesecake has been doing this snorty clicky breathing noise on and off all day (mainly when he’s eating or snuffling around for food, sometimes at rest - but not 24/7). I’m wondering if it could be that his new hay is dusty (it isn’t bothering the other two pigs, but ive switched it back to the old one just in case), or if it’s because he went out in the car and was handled quite a bit yesterday (he didn’t seem stressed at all, but i suppose he could’ve been). He seems fine in himself, still eating and drinking etc just breathing a bit funny. He has been quite sleepy today, but the weather has been awfully warm and he’s had the fan on. A couple of times he’s done a bit of a cough and sneeze and the snorting has stopped for a bit. I’m just really worried about him and can’t wait to ring the vets in the morning

Hi

Can you hold your ear against your piggy's nose, throat and chest to get an idea where the problem sits? The chest (i.e. the lungs) would mean that it is an emergency. The airways especially in the nose are very small with piggies not being much in the way of mouth breathers, so even a minor obstruction can come across as rather alarming.

On the other hand, a stream of cold air from a fan or an a/c unit fully directed onto the cage can cause a respiratory infection. Breaking that stream with some dampened fabric to help cool down the surrounding area even more can help to prevent that problem.

Please take a look at our hot weather guide. There are lots more ideas on how to keep a room cool so your piggies don't overheat in the first place. Generally, a combination of quite simple, seemingly minor and low impact tweaks can be surprisingly effective.
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike

All the best for tomorrow if symptoms persist.

 

[Merab]

Just want to offer support

 

[MnJ]

How was the vet visit?