Content
- My guinea pig doesn't want to eat
- Lack of vitamin C in guinea pigs
- Symptoms of Respiratory Problems in Guinea Pigs
- Signs of Heart Problems in Guinea Pigs
- Symptoms of Intestinal Problems in Guinea Pigs
- Guinea Pig Skin Disease Symptoms
- my guinea pig is dying
When we take care of a guinea pig, our main concern is to maintain its health. To do this, in this PeritoAnimal article, we will explain how to know if our guinea pig is sick, paying attention to the warning signs that we can observe. It is important that we have a trusted veterinarian who is an expert to help us if we have any questions about your health. It's also important to say that following a balanced diet is a basic pillar to keeping our piggy healthy, as well as keeping him in a stress-free environment.
My guinea pig doesn't want to eat
The main recommendation on how to know if a guinea pig is sick is to pay attention to our intuition. If our piglet is different, that is, does not perform its normal activities in any respect, we must think that it may be sick and therefore we must seek immediate veterinary attention, as guinea pigs are very sensitive animals and can come to pass away in a matter of hours.
Because they are active and vital animals, if we notice that our guinea pig it's very quiet, don't eat, it's complaining or any other sign outside your normal activity, we should contact our veterinarian. In the following sections, we will explain what are the symptoms of the most common disorders that our little pig can suffer from.
Lack of vitamin C in guinea pigs
Guinea pigs need a diet that contains vitamin C as they cannot synthesize it. Your disability is responsible for the disease known as scurvy in guinea pigs. How to know if our guinea pig is suffering from this disorder? Scurvy produces the following symptoms: anorexia, that is, our little pig stop eating and, as a result, loses weight, wound healing takes longer, appear hemorrhages, alopecia, the remaining coat looks bad, the pig limps, it has diarrhea or lose teeth. Veterinary assistance and usually supplementation is required.
Symptoms of Respiratory Problems in Guinea Pigs
Due to their anatomical particularities, guinea pigs are prone to suffer from respiratory diseases and even lung tumors. Bacteria, viruses, fungi, tumors, toxins, heat stroke or heart disease may be among the causes. In these cases, how to know if our little pig is sick? Let's look at characteristic symptoms such as sneezes or runny nose and eyes. It is important to go to the veterinarian as these respiratory infections, if left untreated, can lead to pneumonia.
Signs of Heart Problems in Guinea Pigs
Pigs can also suffer from the heart, and how can we know if our guinea pig is sick with this organ? The characteristic symptoms will be breathing difficulties, tachycardia, that is, very fast heartbeats, pallor of mucous membranes, weakness in general, exercise intolerance or abdominal bloating, known as ascites. As some of these signs can have multiple causes, our veterinarian will be the one to locate the source of the problem to successfully treat you.
Symptoms of Intestinal Problems in Guinea Pigs
These can cause so much diarrhea how much constipation. In the first case, the piglet will pass liquid feces, usually more often than usual. Constipation would be the opposite situation, that is, the piglet will not produce excrement or will do so with difficulty. We can also note that your belly is swollen, the hair looks bad because the nutrition is not being adequate, and we may even see parasites in the stool.
To know if our guinea pig is sick, we must pay attention to the functioning of its digestive system. Any abnormality must be evaluated by the veterinarian, and for recovery it will be essential establish a balanced diet and suited to the needs of the pig. Also, as intestinal parasites sometimes cause these clinical symptoms, it is important deworm our guinea pig periodically. Within this section, we also include oral problems that can produce symptoms such as anorexia, as eating causes pain, weight loss, tooth loss or lack of wear, malocclusion, hypersalivation or nodules.
Guinea Pig Skin Disease Symptoms
O onset of itching, injuries, fat, scaling, crusts, alopecia, darkening or thickening of the skin or pads, either in a generalized or local way, indicate the existence of some alteration that may be due to the presence of parasites, fungi or some endocrine disorder. Any one of these symptoms helps us to know if a guinea pig is sick and is a reason for a veterinary visit. To avoid part of these problems, it is important to establish, with our veterinarian, a deworming calendar adequate.
my guinea pig is dying
Sometimes, and even in a very short time, our guinea pig's health can deteriorate to the point where he loses his life. Although it is normal that with aging cataracts, tumors, joint stiffness or pain when walking, when our piglet is dying, we can observe a very difficult breathing, very slow movements or no movement at all, or urinary incontinence, which means that the pig urinates on itself. When it comes to such a serious health condition, it is very difficult to reverse the situation, so it is important to be clear about how to know if a guinea pig is sick, so that you can seek veterinary assistance from the first moment. When the pig has no cure and is suffering, we should evaluate the option of euthanasia together with our veterinarian.
This article is for information purposes only, at PeritoAnimal.com.br we are not able to prescribe veterinary treatments or perform any type of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case it has any type of condition or discomfort.