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Swollen eye

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steph-J

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Hi. We brought 3 new guineas home 1 week ago and today noticed 1 of them has a swollen eye, she was fine yesterday eating normal etc.
I have rang petshop and they said quite normal as a stressor so advised me to bathe it and treat for mites just incase. The other 2 new ones are fine and so is our original piggy. Pics added of good eye and bad eye. Just wanting ro check advice I've been given as dnt want to be fobbed of.
Thanks
 

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They are not telling you things correctly.
It is not normal.
Your piggy needs to see a vet to have a potential haypoke checked and treated accordingly. It is diagnosed via a dye in the eye to check for corneal damage and ulceration. If diagnosed antibiotic eye drops and painkillers would be needed.
Eye issues are considered urgent and need to be seen by a vet within 24 hours. There is always a risk with a hay poke that hay may still be in the eye so could continue to scratch the eye

Please do not treat for mites unless a vet diagnoses an active infestation. Then the correct product will be prescribed.
Don’t use pet shop parasite treatments as they are not strong which to deal with an active infestation.
 
Pet shops strike again 🙄
Please take piggy to a vet. This is not normal at all, and treating for mites will have no effect on her eye - why they would suggest treating for mites when she most likely doesn't even have them is beyond me 😐
Hope piggy is OK! 🤞
 
steph-J said:
Hi. We brought 3 new guineas home 1 week ago and today noticed 1 of them has a swollen eye, she was fine yesterday eating normal etc.
I have rang petshop and they said quite normal as a stressor so advised me to bathe it and treat for mites just incase. The other 2 new ones are fine and so is our original piggy. Pics added of good eye and bad eye. Just wanting ro check advice I've been given as dnt want to be fobbed of.
Thanks
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome

Please have your piggy vet checked promptly for a potential eye injury in the indrawn, half closed eye, which is a sign of pain. The fully open eye looks normal to me.

Any eye injuries should be ideally seen within 24 hours since they can deteriorate very quickly but they generally heal well when treated promptly with the appropriate medication. The damage is usually much larger than visible to the naked eye which is why vets use a special dye under UV for assessment.

Since your piggies are only just settling in it is likely that they are still rather skittish and a bit more prone group/territory establishing dominance and mad dashes into cover when spooked by a sudden noise. Hay pokes are a common hazard with piggies. I would recommend that you look around for softer hay.

Here is some helpful further information:

Signs of Pain in Guinea Pigs
Guinea pig body quirks - What is normal and what not?

A Comprehensive Hay Guide for Guinea Pigs (incl. providers in several countries)

Arrival in a home from the perspective of pet shop guinea pigs

New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights (includes an explanation of your customer rights)

Getting Started - Essential Information for New Owners (for bookmarking - all the above links are part of our New Owners collection)

She is a very handsome girl, though!
 
steph-J said:
Thanks for the advice. I took her to the vets and she's on treatment now for bacterial conjunctivitis. Xx
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Thank you for the update. Glad that it isn't a full-on hay poke.

It is easiest for applying eye drops if you gently pull down the lower eye lid and aim the drops into the gap. Brace yourself that some drops may go awry, especially with wiggly babies. Some extra food just before you apply the drops will help as an additional distraction. Piggies are not very good at multitasking.

You should be able to reclaim the vet cost from the pet shop by providing the sales receipt and the vet bill. If they try to fob you off, demand to see the manager.
 
Wiebke said:
Thank you for the update. Glad that it isn't a full-on hay poke.

It is easiest for applying eye drops if you gently pull down the lower eye lid and aim the drops into the gap. Brace yourself that some drops may go awry, especially with wiggly babies. Some extra food just before you apply the drops will help as an additional distraction. Piggies are not very good at multitasking.

You should be able to reclaim the vet cost from the pet shop by providing the sales receipt and the vet bill. If they try to fob you off, demand to see the manager.
Click to expand...

They did initially, however I was persisten so already sent email proof over so just need to go over now to sort, heres hoping x
 
steph-J said:
They did initially, however I was persisten so already sent email proof over so just need to go over now to sort, heres hoping x
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All the best! Perhaps an oral antibiotic may be needed instead of just a topical one, or a combination of the two. Several of my own piggies were treated with a combination of the two because of the persistence/severity and in one case because of the old age/frailty, which ruled out an eye removal op for her - thankfully it worked although the zithromax (azythromycin) totally wiped her appetite and she lived for another year.
 
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