How to Know if a Pet Guinea Pig is Ill

Video Transcript

"My name is Dr. Endre Sos and I will tell you shortly how to recognize if your pet guinea pig is ill. Recognizing this is not an easy task but it is possible and it can enhance the possibility that you save the life of your companion animal. If your guinea pig is ill the process is often rather fast and without veterinary intervention there is a limited possibility to stop the disease which can be even little. The very important thing is to be familiar how unhealthy the guinea pig looks like. For this you have to spend some time with your animal. You have to touch it on a daily basis and you have to sort of examine the guinea pig. There are different symptoms and different odors which can be in the guinea pig. The most important system is the gastrointestinal system in the guinea pig which is often affected. So first of all you always like to check the teeth of your animal. The teeth must be even and chisel shape so if you can see any kind of asymmetry this is problematic and please show your animal to a veterinarian who is familiar with guinea pigs. Also on the other hand always check the feces of the animal. If the feces is formed and the color is normal and the shape is normal it is a sign of a healthy guinea pig. Otherwise you can have dry or loose feces and these symptoms can change very rapidly and can be very dangerous for the animal. On the other hand you always check the skin of the animal. This is another organ which is often affected with fleas or mite infestation but bear in mind that if you only find some bear parts behind the ears of the animals like in this animal, two bear parts behind the ears, that is normal. If you just see other parts which are bear on the animal it is abnormal and must be treated either with drops which are against the fleas or other external parasites or either with drops which area against fungi. So in summarizing the whole thing how to recognize and what to do with an ill guinea pig. First of all be familiar with what is healthy and what is normal and if you just check any kind of changes or if you recognize any kind of symptoms or signs of disease immediately contact your veterinarian."