Vet Questions

[Megan Davidson]

Hello everyone. So lately I have noticed my guinea pig has been having a hard time passing stool at some moments. Every couple of days for maybe the past two weeks I have been hearing her grunt while passing stool or letting out a small squeal like she is in pain. It goes on for about maybe 20-30 min each episode and has happened a handful of times now. I have called my local vets and got mixed opinions. So, she is eating, drinking, and moving around completely normally like her happy little self. No behavioral changes. But sometimes her stool is not normal. Today it looked like the usual little pellets, but a couple of days ago they were longer, thicker, and mushier. Now, vet #1 set me up an appointment on Wednesday at the earliest. The next vet I called, which I would prefer to go to over vet #1 due to reputation, said they may have time available Monday. This appointment is not a guarantee though, as the one vet there is doing surgery that day. They also recommended that I should go to an emergency vet, which is farther out. I wouldn't be able to make it to Sunday at least, so my question is would this be worth a trip to the emergency vet? She is doing well and if anything changes, I will obviously go to the emergency vet, but as long as all is well behavioral and eating-wise, could I just wait for my local vet appointment on Monday or Wednesday?

 

[sport_billy]

If the poo is normal at the moment then it is not a E-vet visit time. I would go with the vet you feel most confident with if she is all fine and dandy at the moment

 

[Wiebke]

Hello everyone. So lately I have noticed my guinea pig has been having a hard time passing stool at some moments. Every couple of days for maybe the past two weeks I have been hearing her grunt while passing stool or letting out a small squeal like she is in pain. It goes on for about maybe 20-30 min each episode and has happened a handful of times now. I have called my local vets and got mixed opinions. So, she is eating, drinking, and moving around completely normally like her happy little self. No behavioral changes. But sometimes her stool is not normal. Today it looked like the usual little pellets, but a couple of days ago they were longer, thicker, and mushier. Now, vet #1 set me up an appointment on Wednesday at the earliest. The next vet I called, which I would prefer to go to over vet #1 due to reputation, said they may have time available Monday. This appointment is not a guarantee though, as the one vet there is doing surgery that day. They also recommended that I should go to an emergency vet, which is farther out. I wouldn't be able to make it to Sunday at least, so my question is would this be worth a trip to the emergency vet? She is doing well and if anything changes, I will obviously go to the emergency vet, but as long as all is well behavioral and eating-wise, could I just wait for my local vet appointment on Monday or Wednesday?

Hi and welcome

Please switch from the usual once weekly weigh-in and body check to weighing her daily first thing in the morning on your normal kitchen scales for best day to day comparison. It is the only way to check her daily food intake, seeing that over three quarters should be hay - and that you cannot tell that by eye.
Keep in mind that the poo output is always running a day or two behind events since it takes about a day for food to go in at one end and come out at the other, and another day for the second run through the gut to break down the tough but nutritious grass fibre even further.
Your girl sounds like she has a pain issue which is impacting on the gut. Please keep in mind that in the case of pain when peeing and pooing the problem may not necessarily sit in the gut itself but is much more commonly caused by pressure on the lower gut or pain radiating into the lower gut from the urinary tract, the reproductive tract (ovarian cysts?) or even the lower spine and pelvis (arthritis).

Both looser and smaller than normal poos (if still of the same fatness) can be an indication of pain in the gut or radiating into the area where the poos are thickened and up and formed/expressed right at the end where the gut is very tightly wrapped around the urinary and the resproductive tracts and is also close to the lower spine.
Thinner than normal poos are an indication of decreased food (i.e. hay) intake and should be reflected by a decrease in weight.
A thorough examination and palpation of the bladder and the area just before the opening of the urinary tract exit for a urethral stone, checking for ovarian cysts, the shape of the kidneys and the mobility in the lower spine (arthritis) may hopefully give you an answer on your next vet check. I am going to have my own Cerian seen in a weeks' time by a guinea pig specialist for the same issue (on and off grunting when picking up digestive poos for the second run).

You may find these step-by-step guide links here helpful for more in-depth information and all the little practical how-to tips in terms of picking up on pain, weight and illness monitoring and providing the necessary home support in conjunction with any medical treatment.

Signs of Pain in Guinea Pigs
Weight - Monitoring and Management
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures