URI’s or allergies?

[Josie_lg]

Hello everyone,
Just a quick question. Ever since I got my guinea pigs in March I’ve been super paranoid about them being poorly. Particularly with a URI they’ve always made a slight clicky sound when stressed however this has got better recently. Over the months they have shown a few signs of a URI which I’ve taken them straight to the vets for. Each time the vet has said there isn’t anything wrong. And the most recent time was a savvy vet and she didn’t pick up on anything. I’ve been told chest is clear, heart and lungs fine. One time the vet gave us Baytril because it was when the pandemic was at its worst and because I was concerned he reccomened giving Baytril as a precaution but insisted he saw nothing wrong with them. (Long story short the Baytril made two of them very very poorly which resulted in an emergency trip to the vet)
So they never finished their course of Baytril. They have no discharge from eyes or nose, no difficulty breathing, no wheezing. Just every now again I hear this slightly grumble sound from one or two. surely if they had a URI since march they would have been showing more signs, going downhill? Other than this they are perfectly healthy 5-6 month old baby Guinea pigs.
Any advice welcome.
sorry for the long post xx

 

[Wiebke]

Hello everyone,
Just a quick question. Ever since I got my guinea pigs in March I’ve been super paranoid about them being poorly. Particularly with a URI they’ve always made a slight clicky sound when stressed however this has got better recently. Over the months they have shown a few signs of a URI which I’ve taken them straight to the vets for. Each time the vet has said there isn’t anything wrong. And the most recent time was a savvy vet and she didn’t pick up on anything. I’ve been told chest is clear, heart and lungs fine. One time the vet gave us Baytril because it was when the pandemic was at its worst and because I was concerned he reccomened giving Baytril as a precaution but insisted he saw nothing wrong with them. (Long story short the Baytril made two of them very very poorly which resulted in an emergency trip to the vet)
So they never finished their course of Baytril. They have no discharge from eyes or nose, no difficulty breathing, no wheezing. Just every now again I hear this slightly grumble sound from one or two. surely if they had a URI since march they would have been showing more signs, going downhill? Other than this they are perfectly healthy 5-6 month old baby Guinea pigs.
Any advice welcome.
sorry for the long post xx

Hi!

URI bacteria can be present on a low level without causing an acute outbreak but it can create problems later in life.
Unfortunately because guinea pigs are prey animals, they will hold their breath and suppress any symptoms when they are out of their comfort zone, like at vet trip so it can be very difficult to have it diagnosed. It took me two years and a number of futile vet trips to have my old lady adoptee Ffraid diagnosed with upper and lower lung disease as a result from an underteated URI earlier in life. A lab tested swab could bring clarity but is not cheap.

The other possibility is a sensitivity to irritants, pollen or hay or other dust. New young guinea pigs from a rather sterile breeder or shop environment can react with sneezing when they arrive in a much complex home atmosphere. True allergies in guinea pigs are thankfully rare. The problem is that this is such a wide area that you can only explore it by trial and error.
Irritants to Avoid Around Guinea Pigs

 

[Josie_lg]

Thank you so much for your reply! My biggest worry is that they have a URI. They used to react badly to meadow hay so we swapped the hay round. They only react sneeze wise when the bag of straw or hay is near the bottom so dustier. But it’s the other noises that worry me. Also if one had a URI the others would surely have got it by now? As one or two don’t make any of the weird sounds. Thank you so much for your help and I hope your piggie is doing better now? xx

 

[Guineapig111]

I've had something similar happen I have one allergic to Timothy hay only found out after multiple trips to the vet time ever told nothing was wrong changed the hay and it resolved itself however may not be the case for your and I'd get a second opinion if you cann

 

[Josie_lg]

Hi!

URI bacteria can be present on a low level without causing an acute outbreak but it can create problems later in life.
Unfortunately because guinea pigs are prey animals, they will hold their breath and suppress any symptoms when they are out of their comfort zone, like at vet trip so it can be very difficult to have it diagnosed. It took me two years and a number of futile vet trips to have my old lady adoptee Ffraid diagnosed with upper and lower lung disease as a result from an underteated URI earlier in life. A lab tested swab could bring clarity but is not cheap.

The other possibility is a sensitivity to irritants, pollen or hay or other dust. New young guinea pigs from a rather sterile breeder or shop environment can react with sneezing when they arrive in a much complex home atmosphere. True allergies in guinea pigs are thankfully rare. The problem is that this is such a wide area that you can only explore it by trial and error.
Irritants to Avoid Around Guinea Pigs

Also I must ask how does the lab swan work? X

 

[Josie_lg]

Also I must ask how does the lab swab work? X

 

[Josie_lg]

I've had something similar happen I have one allergic to Timothy hay only found out after multiple trips to the vet time ever told nothing was wrong changed the hay and it resolved itself however may not be the case for your and I'd get a second opinion if you cann

Thank you. Ah that’s crazy Timothy hay!? Yes mine react to meadow hay. I’ve taken to them to 3 or 4 differant vets all said the same thing:/ x