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Our guinea pig has what appears to be spotty vaginal bleeding and is two years old. She has had one litter, very early on and lives alone now. We just noticed she has a brownish-red discharge and it is not from her rectum. Any idea what this could be? We took her to the vet and after cleaning her, there was nothing to indicate injury in that area that would account for the blood. The vet was at a loss as to what this could be since, once she was cleaned, there was no discharge to observe. We took her home and then noticed she had more on her fur around her vagina. Please help!
Optional Information: Age: 2; Female; Breed: Guinea PigAlready Tried: Took her to Vet today to see his opinion. Did not have one.
Did the vet you take her to have a lot of experience with guinea pigs?
Did they take any xrays? or run any tests?
Did the vet send you home with medications?
Is she eating and drinking well?
Theresa
1)He said that what he knows of Guinea Pigs he did not want to give her antibiotics because he knows they are "touchy" with those meds. He has 25 years in vet. He asked does she have diar (not that we have seen), and is she eating and drinking (yes, no change-big appetite, this AM no exception). 2) No to the X-rays or the tests. 3) No meds. He said if anything changes, bring her back. He examined her for injuries, her vagina, and her anal area... before and after rinsing her off. 4) See answer above. She had really good appetite this morning. We noticed this once we had her outside in a fenced area with the two rabbits we own (so they could get fresh air and run around). The rabbits and her get along very well and have behaved that way (together outdoors) for over a year now.
I suspect that your girl has either a urinary tract infection or bladder stones. I would highly suggest taking her in to see a veterinarian whose predominant practice is pocket or exotic pets however. I believe that the vet you are seeing is a good vet but don't think that his main practice involves guinea pigs. Your girl needs to have a urinalysis performed and an xray of the abdomen to rule out a bladder stone. These are very common issues in guinea pigs. Yes, they are sensitive to antibiotics particularly penicillin type antibiotics. However, baytril is commonly used with little to no ill effect. If you can put her down on a tile floor and have a syringe available you can collect the urine sample and take it directly into the vet to check for blood in the urine. Sometimes this isn't outwardly visible. It might even be easier to get a strip from the vet and take it home with you to check for blood. My other concern is that she may have a uterine infection. If she did have this she would likely be very ill and not eating so right now I am leaning more toward a bladder infection or bladder stones.
Experience: Veterinary Technician for 15 years
Reply to Theresa's Post: My wife told me after posting that the vet on duty today (Sat) told her that while being a vet for 25 years, he did not specialize in Guinea Pigs or other small animals (mostly dogs and cats). Thank you. We will do what you said and feel much better about what this might be. I understand though that you have never seen her and this is your best diagnosis based on what I have written. Thanks a million. Your analysis makes sense on both suspicions. We will watch her eating habits closely until Monday and report what we have seen once we find a vet that deals with small animals. Chances are that this place has a vet that does, just not on duty on weekends.