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Why Is My Piggie Getting A Wet Butt All Of A Sudden?

Lucy_Piggie

Lucy_Piggie

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi all! Around 3-4 days ago my guinea pig's butt started to get wet with her wee. I thought she'd just been sitting in her wee she'd done earlier but it's still wet and I don't know if I should make a vet call or not. She's still completely fine, eating, drinking etc. Thanks for any suggestions :)
 
I’d definitely get her seen. It could be the start of a UTI. Good luck.
 
Please have her seen by a vet to rule out a UTI or pain issue that may be causing her to move around less.
 
:agr:
Please do have her seen by a vet. If she does have a UTI then it can take a few days for symptoms to become consistent
 
Lucy_Piggie said:
Hi all! Around 3-4 days ago my guinea pig's butt started to get wet with her wee. I thought she'd just been sitting in her wee she'd done earlier but it's still wet and I don't know if I should make a vet call or not. She's still completely fine, eating, drinking etc. Thanks for any suggestions :)
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Hi

Please see a vet. It could be an infection in the urinary tract or, less likely, a problem with the kidneys. Have your piggies been on the lawn a lot recently?

Please gently wipe her bum with a damp cloth to preven urine scald.
 
My girls have gotten UTI more readily than my boys. I don't know but I suspect it's because they scent mark by wiping their bits on the ground. Caught early it has cleared up quickly with antibiotics and a bit of painkiller - as it progresses every pee stings because of the inflammation and you might notice piggy hunch up or squeal as she tries to pee. They can try to hold it in because it stings and you get a constant drip, drip which gives you the wet bum. At this time of year, even in the UK, it's important to sort this because the smell of a dirty bottom (which she can't help) can sometimes attract flies and then things can get a lot more serious.

The vet will probably also talk about the possibility of stones in the bladder/urethra and this can be spotted on x-ray. My vet usually does ABs first and then we discuss what to do next. But it's not bound to be a crisis... we've had very simple UTIs just cleared up with 5 days of antibiotics and that was that!
 
Hi all! I'm getting a bit worried because I just weighed my piggie today and realised she'd gone from 903g to 803g in a week. She might have UTI so I'm not sure if that is just meant to happen with it or is it hasn't got anything to do with UTI.
I'm going to make an appointment with the vet to find out weather she does have UTI, so shall I ask about the weight loss too?
Thanks :)
 
Hi, a loss of 100g within a week is classed as an emergency so please do have her seen asap for a potential UTI (which may or may not be the cause of the weight loss) and for the weight loss. Make sure the vet checks her teeth too particularly the back ones. In the meantime, please weigh her daily and if she is still losing, you will need to step in a syringe feed her. Her regular pellets mushed up with warm water will do All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
 
Lucy_Piggie said:
She's still eating on her own fine, should i still syringe feed her?
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She isn’t eating fine on her own that is why she has lost weight. Hay is the largest part of the daily food intake and she has lost weight because her hay intake has dropped considerably. Hay is 80% of the daily food intake. Veg and pellets jointly just 20% so seeing them eat those does not count and means food intake is much lower than you think. You cannot judge hay intake by eye at all and only the scales tell you whether they are eating enough - in this case, she isn’t eating enough.
Please urgently step in with support feeding so she doesn’t lose any more weight, and see a vet
 
Threads merged.

Please step in immediately with syringe feeding and get her seen by a vet as a matter of urgency.
 
Do call your normal vet practice phone number and if they don’t provide their own out of hours cover, their voicemail will tell you who does, so you can get her seen today.
I hope she is ok
 
Good News! Lucy has gained 20g and is eating hay nicely, her bum isn't wet anymore, do you think it's cleared up on its own or is that not possible? Still will be booking an appointment at the vets and will get her checked out, thanks for everyones help :)
 
Lucy_Piggie said:
Good News! Lucy has gained 20g and is eating hay nicely, her bum isn't wet anymore, do you think it's cleared up on its own or is that not possible? Still will be booking an appointment at the vets and will get her checked out, thanks for everyones help :)
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It’s great she has gained some back. Did you syringe feed her?
Definitely do still have her checked by a vet. UTI symptoms aren’t always consistent in the early stages, plus to have 100g in a week, something is not right
 
Lucy_Piggie said:
I syringe fed her once yesterday :)
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Please do keep a close eye on her and see a vet.
She must eaten more hay to have gained some weight back because one syringe feeding wouldn’t have done much (a poorly piggy can need feeding as frequently as every two hours). But it’s important you weigh at the same time each day - a full bladder can weigh 30g so monitoring closely is important in case her weight gain is not food intake related.
 
There's definitely going to be a vet visit needed. They don't always let you know how much they are suffering because prey animals don't show weakness - besides which things are normally cheaper if dealt with in the early stages. There's not usually that much weight loss for any good reason I can think of because they eat all the time! Pain alone can make them stop eating so much and the weight will drop. The weight loss is actually a very good indication that something is wrong - and the wet bum is telling you what that most likely is to do with.
 
Good luck at the vets. My piggy lost 100g the week before last and then 90g! Today he’s been diagnosed with a tooth root abscess. ☹️ I hope they can find out what is wrong with your piggy.
 
It is great she is seeing a vet - 20 grams gain is quite small, and the overall weight loss combined with a wet bottom definitely needs to be checked out.
Remember that we are all here to support you after the vet visit if she does need further treatment.
 
All the best! Piggies can really give us the run-around.

Please be aware that the difference between a full or empty bladder along is 10g; and that between a full or tummy can be 30-40g; the weight swings in a ca. 30g band over the course of 24 hours. But it is great that she seems to be holding her weight for the moment.
Weight - Monitoring and Management
 
Well done for getting her seen so quickly, and i am glad you have a treatment plan now.
What meds were you given?
 
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