| |

NAVIGATION
|
|
|
|
|
SIGNS OF ILLNESS You will no doubt know when your piggie is unwell, the signs to look for are many. 
refusal to eat anything
weight loss
trouble breathing
Unable to pass urine
Blood in urine
Bleeding from any area
Limping, hopping
Hair loss, excessive scratching
Loss of balance wheezing coughing dandruff any bald patches sore eyes wet eyes or swollen big tummy thats hard to the touch dull eyes drooling wet chin no droppings diarrhea [ of any kind]
|
|
|
|
MALE PIG
FEMALE photos taken at the rescue
|
|
|
|
Neutering your guinea pig
Getting your pig castrated means you can pair him with a female or
several females. This must be done by a good vet. Small animals are
harder to keep under and you need a vet skilled in doing small animals.
There are good vets around the country on another page. Ive never found
a vet wanting to spay a female pig as it would be very tricky because
of their size.
 The boars op is very straight forward and he should recovery very quickly.
Heatstroke
Heatstroke KILLS.If your piggie is out in the sun or the cage is in full sun overheating will occur.
First, move them to a cooler location
and offer them room temperature water (drinking cold water
can cause a system shock that will kill them, just as it can in
humans). Dip their limbs in cool, but not cold, water, and wrap cool,
damp cloths closely around the body.
HAY MITES
Hay mites cannot be avoided as they come in on
bedding.Some pigs dont seem to be troubled by them and others are very
prone to large numbers. The mites cannot be seen by the naked eye. The
first thing you will see is scratching and then dandruff .Later they
will loose hair and sometimes make themselves bleed with the constant
scratching.This if left can get very bad and it can lead to seizures so
early treatment is called for
They are easily treated.If its caught very early then over the counter
drops can be used, but if advanced then go to the vet for injections of
Ivamectin.
LICE Lice on piggies can be seen ,they are
somtimes called walking dandruff because thats what they look like.
They are easily treated by the vet
BUMBLE FOOT
Bumble foot
is an extremely painful infection of the pad on the underside of the foot. The pad is
swollen In severe cases, the piggie may not want to move, be depressed,
and may go off his food. If the bone becomes infected and can cause an abccess, the leg may need to be
surgically removed. Left
untreated it can cause death. It is very difficult to cure.Check your
pig your pet regularly to catch problems early. A vet should be
consulted and treatment given. Treatment will be very long term so
every effort should be made to prevent it happening.This complaint is
often caused by not enough bedding , wet bedding dirty bedding. photos taken at the rescue 
VITAMIN DEFICIENCY Piggies need lots of vit c as they cannot store it in their bodys. This is the main reason for feeding a good quality g/ pig food and veg. If they dont get enogh they will loose weight and condition, and their limb joints become enlarged and painfull. They will become lame and die. First treatment will be 100 mg vitamin c in the form of drops given by mouth. Adjust their diet.
SKIN DISEASES These are most often mites, lice,or fungus and should be treated by your vet. Baldness is common in pregnant sows or pigs just having given birth, possable due to the hormone change, it will grow back.
|
|
|
|
HELP THE BUNNIES, A BALE OF HAY COSTS £3.50 
|
|
|  |
|