Urinary Tract Infection In Skinny Pigs

Skinny Pigs are susceptible to UTI’s just like humans. UTI’s are an infection of the urinary tract, also known as a bladder infection. Guinea pigs are low to the ground and not the cleanest animals, this makes UTI’s a common illness. UTI’s can be treated and are also preventable. The last thing you want is for your friend to be in pain all the time.

Signs & Symptoms of Skinny Pig UTI

Much like UTI’s in Humans, Skinny Pigs suffer from the same fate. It is very unpleasant for them to have a UTI so noticing the issue early is paramount to getting it corrected. Some things to look out for:

Weightloss
Blood in Urine
Pain while Peeing

Bringing Your Skinny Pig to the Vet

Your guinea pig should get an x-ray to rule out bladder stones, which have similar symptoms. Palpitating the abdomen and collecting a urine sample will be done. The urine can be tested to see if blood is present and can be cultured to see what antibiotics will best attack the bacteria present.

Skinny Pig UTI Treatment

Antibiotics and possibly a pain medication will be prescribed to treat the infection. Treatment can take around 2 weeks or sometimes more to clear.
If you notice blood again in the urine after treatment has finished, return to the Vet.

Skinny Pig UTI Prevention

Some ways to prevent UTI’s from occurring are:

Keeping a very clean cage
Remove solid areas daily
Use the most absorbent bedding you can
Supplement Diet with Oxbow Urinary Support Tablets
Unsweetened, watered down cranberry juice

Keeping your Skinny Pig healthy and diet conscious is very important. I like the Oxbow Urinary Support tablets for maintaining a proper and well balanced diet. Thankfully they are available from Amazon at a very affordable price.