Please Help! my 5 day old orphaned guinea pig refuses to eat

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klynne

Post   » Sun Feb 04, 2007 9:09 pm


Be sure you still wash that bagged salad stuff very thoroughly--there've been some E. Coli and other health issues associated with those bagged greens.

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Becky

Post   » Sun Feb 04, 2007 10:23 pm


Be careful with the spring greens--those prepackaged ones. They generally are immature leaves and lack the nutrition of more mature plants.

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Webs
Cavies 'n Cobwebs

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 4:55 am


Generally the ones you get over here are the whole mature thing, and not prepared.
Image

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-JC-
I gave AGAIN, dammit!

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 6:07 am


Red peppers are worth their weight in gold - more VitC than an orange - in fact just LOADS of VitC and other good stuff in them. If you can get the little ones (and mum) accustomed to eating slices of red pepper, it'll be a good addition to their diet throughout their lives. Try it and see!

Could the bald patch on Popcorn be mites? Is there any scratching and have the pigs ever been treated for mites? Mites can lay latent for some time and only take a hold when the piggies are stressed/under the weather, as recently. Just a thought. It could be stress-related. I had two gerbils who developed bald patches when I changed their bedding from peat to sawdust, and the vet said it was the stress of the sudden change.

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ellissian

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 6:26 am


Thats the greens I bought Webs, from Tesco!

I will give the peppers a go JC, its worth a try.

Im definately taking her back to the vets. She is losing more fur but new fur is growing there, so she isnt completely bald.

Its very strange, her old fur is out of condition apart from the fur on her head.

She isnt scratching any more than a guinea pig would normal scratch.

I will see what the vet says.

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-JC-
I gave AGAIN, dammit!

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 9:30 am


NB - don't let the vet take a 'skin scraping' to diagnose mites. It hurts the piggie and oftens yields a false negative anyway, where the vet doesn't find mites - but they may still be present. Mites mostly can't be seen at all without a microscope. The only really safe treatment is ivermectin, which I can tell you about - how to get it in the UK etc - if you want to know more. But let's wait and see what the vet says. Good luck.

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ellissian

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 9:36 am


Thanks JC!

I dont exactly trust my vets when is comes to guinea pigs at all, so dont know what method they will use to determin mites. Maybe they will just treat her anyway, Im not sure.

I thought she was too young to get ivermectin as she is only nearly 3 weeks old, is this right?

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SylvesterPiggie

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 10:11 am


I think it is more of a weight thing.

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-JC-
I gave AGAIN, dammit!

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 10:11 am


Oh hell, yes, you're right! I forgot she was so tiny. The treatment may have to wait until she's grown a bit, then - I'm sure others can advise (I've never dealt with tiny babies).

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ellissian

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 1:44 pm


Ive been told that revolution may be suitable for her, but whether my vets stock it or not I dont know.

Webs just out of interest, though rex babies that lost their fur. Did you have any idea why it happened?

If a guinea pig has mites does new fur grow back immediately or are they left with bald patches?

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daftscotslass

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 2:45 pm


Just to let you know that I have a big tub of Oxbow Critical Care sitting here of which hardly any has been used. It goes out of date in March and if you need any please let me know. I would hate to see it go to waste - I'm sure it would cost less than a pound to post.

If you are also looking for rescue pigs in your area I know that Cavy Kind is in Tyne & Wear - http://cavykind.mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/

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Webs
Cavies 'n Cobwebs

Post   » Mon Feb 05, 2007 2:48 pm


The hair does grow back pretty quickly once the mites have been treated.

We're not quite sure why the rex babies lost their hair (they are the most recent babies in the Scottish Rescue thread in Cavy Chat, Scoobytoo and Tealeaf). It may have been because of stress or may have been something to do with having skinny pig genes. Their mum hadn't been at Thistle that long before she gave birth. The pups were a bit scruffy looking as they lost their rex hair but sleeker hair grew in its place.

Good nutrition will certainly help your little one.

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