Weird Chewing

[basicpiggies]

Hi everyone,

Last night, I noticed two of my guinea pigs chewing in a very exaggerated form. Lips pulled back and their ears moving back as they’re chewing sometimes. At first, I thought it was something stuck in their mouths.

Today, they’re still doing it. One more than the other. One of them only does it occasionally while the other does it basically every time she chews a pellet. No drooling, though, I checked.

They just had a vet appointment 8 days ago and the vet checked their teeth like normal and said they looked fine, so I’m a bit confused. Plus, it would be weird for BOTH of them to suddenly have teeth issues…? Is it something just stuck in their mouths?

I’m going to call the vet as soon as they open tomorrow morning, but I’m definitely very concerned. The pig who is doing it the most has been acting very energetic and asking me for food more than usual. She’ll take pellets from me but not hay, which is odd, because you’d think she would want to eat soft food if her teeth were bothering her.

I’m not sure if I should start administering critical care, either. She’s eating pellets but I haven’t noticed her eat much hay…although I could just be paranoid. She’s still drinking water as well. I just don’t wanna syringe feed her if she doesn’t need it.

Sorry that this post is a big long mess — I just worry so much about them!

Thanks in advance for any replies.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Definitely best to have a vet check for any concerns.

The thing with pellets is that they soften in the mouth so they are actually easy to eat.

Switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh her daily while you have concerns. That will tell you if she is eating hay - any reduction in hay intake will be seen on the scales and you will then know if you need to syringe feed.

 

[Free Ranger]

I'm just wondering if you give daily fruit or acidic things like tomatoes? Or whether they've had a lot of these things recently? I know they're not recommended on a regular basis because of the acidity. I've not had personal experience but I think there can be an issue where the acid affects the lips and gums causing soreness and sensitivity and maybe even splitting in the end. There is something called Cheilitis where the lips split and become infected, scabs form and treatment can be tricky because it's a sensitive area (in regular use!) but presumably in the early stages it's just sore lips/gums that might sting when eating. Or sometimes piggies can get oral thrush which would presumably make the mouth pretty sore as well. But again, no personal experience.