Why is my guinea pig wet around the chin?

Our vet works his magic on your furry friends

QOne of my four-year-old guinea pigs is a bit wet around the chin and neck but seems quite bright. His littermate has no signs of any problems. Should I be calling the vet?

A

This is definitely something to call your vet about. The signs you mention suggest excessive salivation and in guinea pigs it is a common problem. Guinea pig breeders call this disease “slobbers”, which is an accurate description of what’s going on.

Guinea pig teeth constantly grow and need plenty of fibrous food to grind them down. If the diet is incorrect, the cheek teeth in particular do not grind down accurately and develop sharp spurs on their edges, which can dig into the gums and tongue. This is called malocclusion, a painful condition accounting for the excess salivation.

Guinea pigs are a prey species and don’t usually show many signs until the malocclusion gets much worse. When this occurs the appetite dramatically decreases leading to a loss in weight.

Your vet will want to be sure you are following a correct diet, and it will also be useful to check on this from a reputable website too, for example burgesspetcare.com.

Confirmation of the problem will need a careful examination of the teeth, especially the premolars and molars, and the tongue and gums. Guinea pig mouths are quite small and special instruments will help the examination.

Any spurs on the teeth can be filed down under general anaesthesia. Regular checkups are recommended to prevent a recurrence.

Q

We have rescue dogs. The latest is a Jack Russell/patterdale cross called Cassie, who has been with us a year. She had to be separated last year from

Aanother Jack Russell but has now started fighting with our beagle. The situation is not ideal and we would appreciate any advice. Dogs and humans are both social species but it is a sad fact that not everybody gets on well.

A simple explanation is that Cassie just doesn’t like communal living and might be happier as the only dog in a new home. I suspect you would regard this as a last option and it is certainly worthwhile exploring possible solutions to your problem.

A qualified canine behaviourist visiting you at home and devising a programme would be ideal, although not practical at the moment.

I can suggest possible causes, trigger factors and simple training procedures that might help now. Stressors are an important underlining cause of aggression, which accumulate until fighting breaks out.

The year-long lockdown is an obvious stressor for all of us, with many dogs having less exercise than before, and feeling the pressure of being cooped up.

Identifying trigger factors that initiate the fighting and avoiding them is important. Examples include food competition and guarding toys and favourite resting places.

You could try increased exercise for the two dogs together, with two people and strong leads.

Give lots of treats when both are peacefully walking together. Cassie will hopefully learn that the presence of the other dog leads to pleasant walks and rewards.

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