Charlotte and Jitterbug’s Medical

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kailaeve1271

Post   » Mon Apr 09, 2018 2:34 pm


Hello! I recently switched to Sherwood pellets for my piggies, but I’ve noticed their pee is now white? I have seen no calcium deposits even on the fleece. It all soaks in with no sign of calcium. However, I let them have floor time for over 1 1/2 hours each day (preferably more if I can) and I’ve noticed that when they have accidents on the tile it’s white now (but not gritty I guess you’d say?) should I be worried? Also while I’m asking, is there a way to make them go potty in a specific area during floor time such as on fleece or in a litter box during floor time? They have a lot of accidents but I guess it’s good this time since it allowed me to notice the problem

Bookfan
For the Love of Pigs

Post   » Mon Apr 09, 2018 2:43 pm


I can't answer your first question. We've had some luck with putting a litter box out and they frequently use it to pee, but not always. When we were still using wood chips for bedding we put them in the litter box. So I think it felt like home and they'd jump in & out. When we switched to fleece, we put fleece pads in so it would feel like their normal bedding.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Mon Apr 09, 2018 2:50 pm


I actually have both in their cage (to minimize urine smell). I’ve only tried putting fleece down though so I’ll have to try putting down a litter box and just see how it goes I guess. I’m just cautious when they are lose because I don’t want them to pee on the carpet. Thank you. I’ll just have to test it out then

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Apr 09, 2018 8:03 pm


The amount of whiteness (powdery calcium compounds when dry) is generally influenced by what they have recently eaten. Note when you've seen milky looking pee that dries white and what they have eaten in the last hour or two.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Tue Apr 10, 2018 10:16 am


That’s the weird part about it. It doesn’t dry white either. It just comes out white. All the eat is bell pepper, leaf lettuce, cucumber and a small cherry tomatoe. They get a mixture of Timothy, Oat hay and Orchard grass. They also are fed Sherwood pellets as mentioned before. I find the pellets have had a lot of health benefits so far but the pee does seem a little concerning. Also sometimes their fresh poops look a little green but dry to look more brown

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Tue Apr 10, 2018 11:46 am


Normal guinea pig urine is milky.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Tue Apr 10, 2018 1:25 pm


Ah okay. Before when I had them on oxbow it was kind of... orange so I guess this has helped with that too

kailaeve1271

Post   » Tue May 29, 2018 1:25 am


My pigs may be ill. There poops are kind of runnier then usual. They are refusing pellets and are eating little hay compared to usual, however, they will snatch veggies as soon as my hand is within reach and quickly scarfs them down. I'm also HEARING them pee? Not sure if this has anything to do with it, but I've never heard it before. I hear running water, look over and I see a huge wet spot in their cage. The rain here has messed up our water so I'm wondering if this is the issue. I've replaced their fleece liners, disinfected their cage and all toys with a vinegar solution (except wood toys which I boiled), all water has been replaced with filtered bottled spring water, and all hay areas and litter boxes were emptied, disinfected and replaced. This may seem a little over the top, but the cage was in need of a in-depth monthly clean soon anyways. Water levels appear them same since I changed them about 12 hours ago so little water intake, but that's normal for my pigs.

I mashed some pellets and force fed them just in case. I called the nearest vet earlier who thinks nothing is wrong and that I need to keep an eye on them and leave them to be piggies.

Does anyone think that the not eating hay or pellets could be a red flag for something? Am I, once again, worrying too much?

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Tue May 29, 2018 8:23 am


I think of hay especially and pellets most of the time as pretty basic. So it certainly could be a red flag for something. I hope their digestion settles down and they start eating the hay (at least) soon.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Tue May 29, 2018 12:02 pm


They began eating a little hay this morning. Last night I noticed there stomach got a little hard, but isn't anymore. May have been from them eggies they scarf down at once. Hopefully they'll eat more soon. It's still nothing like what they normally eat.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Wed May 30, 2018 12:31 pm


Jitterbug and Charlotte are both eating hay and most of their pellets now. I quickly found out that all this rain we are haing has caused bacteria outbreaks in people's water (yuck). Looks like the pigs will be on bottled water until we figure out if we were also affected by the rain. This may have been the issue, but at least they are doing better today!

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed May 30, 2018 8:16 pm


I have one neighbor who gets brown water from surface contamination when it rains a lot. Water quality could indeed have affected your guinea pigs. I hope they continue to improve!

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