|
Post by 3piggles on Jan 26, 2016 13:29:26 GMT
With breathing issues, always get them to the vet as soon as you hear it. If it's an upper respiratory infection (URI), the sooner it's treated the less likely it is to become pneumonia. I've been through all of that, and it's not good for the piggy. My Dallas survived pneumonia, but developed endless allergies. He had to use an inhaler and take meds for the rest of his life. He did live a good year after he beat the pneumonia, and it was a brutal summer of soupy humidity everyone had trouble breathing. He had to go to the vet periodically for time in the oxygen tent they designed for him, when the humidity got too bad.
If it's not a URI, which we always hope it's not, then it could be an allergy. Pigs definitely do get allergies. It might mean changing the brand or type of hay, if you use a loose bedding that might need to be replaced with fleece, etc. There are ways to help with allergies that aren't terribly expensive. They just take extra time.
Pigs can also develop a Rhinovirus, which is in their sinuses rather than their lungs. It makes them sound wheezy. Rhinovirus can become chronic if not treated early, so again, off to the vet. Good luck, and I hope the boys are just making weird noises on purpose.
|
|
|
Post by bazookagoof on Jan 27, 2016 3:08:10 GMT
3piggles, your advice is always appreciated- I made an appointment with the vet tomorrow- I'm leaving work a little early just so not to put this off any later, just in case.
|
|
|
Post by Bean on Jan 27, 2016 10:20:50 GMT
Sorry you've got worrying breathing noises. Anything that persists for more than an hour or two, or that you can hear down in their lungs (I just put my ear to their body to see if I can heat it there) does need investigating, but I hope it doesn't turn out to be anything serious. Let us know how you get on at the vet, but sorry you're needing to be back there again.
|
|
|
Post by 3piggles on Jan 27, 2016 13:15:32 GMT
I've been caught "listening" to the pigs breathing before. My family always got such a hoot out of me doing that They called it the Piggy Phone
|
|
|
Post by jolovespiggies on Jan 27, 2016 19:43:07 GMT
Hope everything is OK Baz love, will be with you in spirit. That is so cute Piggles hunny, I will be listening to my piggies now.
Hugs Jo xx
|
|
|
Post by bazookagoof on Jan 28, 2016 3:40:26 GMT
Theodore seems to have a bit of a cold, and he's on some antibiotics (which he resists taking with every fiber of his being) and we're making a few changes, just in case: We used to change bedding twice a week, but with neither cavy drinking much water we switched to once a week- we switched back to twice a week, just to be safe.
Also, Theodore is going back to non-scented bedding, as of tonight. Maybe it's not causing anything, but we'll see- when he gets better, we might go back and see if his symptoms return.
On a non-related note, the vet did mention he's not dehydrated at all, so I'm glad he's eating his vegetables. It's still hilarious to see him grab a tiny pepper and duck into his pigloo as fast as he can.
Also vaguely related: I need to change the filter in my furnace; it's about 20 days overdue.
|
|
|
Post by 3piggles on Jan 28, 2016 14:03:12 GMT
I'm glad it's nothing major, and he has some antibiotics (ABs) to help keep it from becoming anything major I won't say don't change the bedding more often, but going to an unscented bedding may have the desired effect. Loose bedding, even Carefresh (which is think is the best) has some dust in it. If the sniffles continue, and you want to stay with the loose bedding, consider getting a plant misting bottle, not a spray bottle, and misting each handful of loose bedding before you add it to the cage. That barely adds any water, but is enough moisture to stop whatever dust is in the bedding. You can also use the loose bedding as the absorbent layer, add a piece of screen and a piece of fleece, and you have fleece bedding you can remove daily, dump the poos and hay, and replace. I bought 3 pieces for $10 at Walmart, and considering that your cages aren't huge, one piece might do more than one cage. Have some hinged clothes pins or binder clips to clip the fleece to the outside of the cage at the corners and maybe in the middle of each long side of the cage. Then dust in the loose bedding won't be a problem. Good luck Here are some YouTube videos on force feeding guinea pigs. Yes, giving them meds they really don't want to take is force feeding. It's not cruel. It's absolutely necessary: The first video shows the actual feeding. The second video shows some syringe options. I bought a large syringe in the baby section at the supermarket, and have also used a basting syringe without the pokey end on it, to feed Crittical Care (CC). I hope these help you get the meds into Theodore
|
|
|
Post by jolovespiggies on Jan 28, 2016 20:45:49 GMT
That was brilliant, I have bookmarked it. What a lovely lady and Baby was really gorgeous even if he did look a net fed up but who wouldn't LOL? Thanks for sharing hun.
Hugs JO xx
|
|
|
Post by jolovespiggies on Jan 28, 2016 20:46:55 GMT
Ohh sorry Baz love, I hope Theo is better soon.
Hugs Jo xx
|
|
|
Post by bazookagoof on Jan 29, 2016 3:24:46 GMT
3piggles, a BIG thanks for those vids- Theodore is a struggler, and he's lightning-quick when he turns his head to avoid the incoming syringe! I will have to try that tomorrow for his first dose- he's getting some of his meds, but the rest ends up all over his beard. A little early to tell, but I think he's quieter with his breathing after a day of antibiotics and unscented bedding. His eyes also appear a little less red. Off-topic, (and this is just the old curmudgeon in me) but I thought the girl in the second vid looked a bit young to have all those tattoos, but that's neither here nor there. jolovespiggies, thanks for the well-wishes.
|
|
|
Post by Bean on Jan 29, 2016 10:24:51 GMT
Good luck getting the antibiotics into him and fingers will be crossed that his breathing is soon clear - good news that he seems to be improving so far. I don't think Ive seen red eyes with a URI before (just crusty), that does seem to indicate something is irritating him so changing the bedding is definitely a good move. What's the bedding scented with?
|
|
|
Post by 3piggles on Jan 29, 2016 13:43:57 GMT
Don't get me started on tattoos. I really fall into the old curmudgeon category with that. When I was growing up, tats were on criminals, dock worker, truckers, gang members, etc. What my mother always called "Those people." It was not an association we strove to achieve. Now, I realize it's a way of using the skin as a canvas. My daughter has a tat. I won't be getting one any time soon, and my daughter didn't get hers (the outline of a dragon in purple, in the small of her back) until she was an adult. To me, being covered with tats still looks dirty, as if they need baths, but I know that's because of my upbringing. Hubby and I were talking about it at breakfast this morning, as there was a woman covered in colorful tats on the news. We were looking at the tats, and totally missed the point to her being on the news. We raised our daughter not to do all the extra piercings and to get tats, but all of her friends were doing it, so of course she had to do it. None of our friends were doing it, when we were growing up, so we weren't fighting against peer pressure.
The red rimmed eyes, nasal congestion, sneezing, coughing and scratching can all be signs of allergies, and guinea pigs get all the same allergies we get. They can get hay fever, as can rabbits, which seems counter to everything that's important to them, as both must eat hay to keep their innards moving smoothly. Perfume is definitely an issue for them, even in some natural forms, which is why only Aspen shavings are at all approved for guinea pig bedding. Aspen has the least amount of essential oils that come through as an odor the pigs have to breathe, because they live so close to their bedding. Some bedding manufacturers add baking soda to reduce the toileting odors in the cages, but again, pigs live so close to their bedding, they might as well stick their noses in it and inhale. Even the loose bedding with the lowest possible dust content has dust, which again, is right under their noses. All of the issues with loose bedding are why so many of us push fleece bedding, but again, if washed in a scented detergent, it's just as bad. I really hope changing to the unscented bedding helps, and he shows some real improvement quickly.
|
|
|
Post by jolovespiggies on Jan 30, 2016 18:54:42 GMT
You are welcome love, I hope the little chap is on the mend.
Hugs JO xx
|
|
|
Post by Bean on Jan 31, 2016 18:40:54 GMT
To me, being covered with tats still looks dirty, as if they need baths, but I know that's because of my upbringing. I love that sentence! I know what you mean though, especially in relation to sleeve tattoos. Tattoos and piercings are so increasingly commonplace - I remember times when having them would scupper your chances at an interview, but not so much anymore. Quite a few of the teachers at school have facial piercings or visible tattoos (only small ones). When I was a teenager, I thought I wanted a tattoo, but I said to myself that I'd leave it until I was 21 and if I still wanted it then, I would have it. Totally changed my mind about that in the meantime! I'm almost certain that if I had had one done then, I would have ended up with more though - it definitely seems to be something that's quite addictive. I did get my belly pierced as soon as I left home though and my grandparents weren't happy about that!
|
|
|
Post by bazookagoof on Jan 31, 2016 21:35:48 GMT
Many of the circles I run in have people with tattoos, so I try not to be judgmental, especially since I'm in the minority. (I once worked in a place where I was the only one without a tattoo, facial hair or beer gut- it was interesting.)
However, I can't help but wonder about how much of a good idea it is when those tattoos fade and blur as the decades pass. I know they can be touched up, but when all four limbs are covered, that can be costly to have done, I imagine.
Many of the people I know that have them got them for a reason (One man honored his dead son, another guy got one to remind himself to stay away from his once-shady past, and so on.) It occasionally just gets irksome when some people seem to get them as a fashion statement.
|
|
|
Post by 3piggles on Feb 1, 2016 0:25:31 GMT
My daughter and her friends got tats because getting them was cool. Seems like a real waste of money, but it was their money to waste. Daughter also had her belly button pierced, but she let that heal. I don't disapprove of piercings or tats. I have pierced ears, and have worn some major makeup, so the idea of body adornments is a matter of personal preference. It's just not my personal preference, so it stands out to me. As for the sagging and fading it does happen, and the few sagging tats I've seen weren't pretty I don't know if there's a way to keep tats from fading. I'll have to Google that.
|
|
|
Post by jolovespiggies on Feb 1, 2016 21:28:42 GMT
I don't mind either way. I don't have any tats but I do have my ears pierced three times but that has been as daring as I dare to be LOL!! Each to their own, if people want them fine and I must admit I have seen some beauties. If I had any it would be a bunny and a guinea pig.
Hugs Jo xx
|
|
|
Post by 3piggles on Feb 2, 2016 15:39:15 GMT
I Googled keeping tats from fading, and apparently it's all about performing the right care as soon as the tat is in place. That includes covering it until it heals, keeping is clean with gentle soap, doing a lot of moisturizing once the tat heals, and applying sun screen to protect it from UV rays. Not exactly rocket science, but many of the sites said a lot of tattoo artists just do the tat and send people on their way without instructions on how to properly treat and preserve the tat.
|
|
|
Post by jolovespiggies on Feb 2, 2016 21:33:10 GMT
That makes perfect sense piggles love, something like this would need lots of moisturising and aftercare. If I had one I would put on extra cream after every shower and ensure that it didn't get too dry or faded.
Hugs JO
|
|
|
Post by Bean on Feb 3, 2016 9:16:30 GMT
You'd think the artists would want their work to last and properly advise people on how to take care of the tattoos? As you say, not many look good once they're faded. I always think of this lady who wanted a picture of Marilyn Monroe on her arm when someone mentions getting a tattoo. I don't think she did any research into the guy she used before she let him loose - BIG mistake!
|
|