Why isn't my 3-month-old guinea pig drinking water from her bottle?

A [guinea pig](https://www.petcoach.co/article/what-you-need-to-know-about-your-new-guinea-pig) that is not eating or drinking needs to be seen by an exotics species veterinarian ASAP. Your guinea pig is at risk of developing (or may already have) a medical condition called Gastrointestinal Stasis (GIS). Without treatment, this can be a fatal condition. GIS is a common condition in guinea pigs and rabbits. Gastrointestinal stasis occurs when the normal emptying of the stomach and passage of food through the intestinal tract slows or stops. Food, fur, and other ingesta then accumulates in the stomach. Without sufficient water intake, the stomach contents become dehydrated, making passage of the contents even more difficult. Anything that causes your guinea pig not to eat/drink, such as disease, dental disease, pain, stress, or starvation, can lead to gastrointestinal stasis. Be sure to have your vet check your guinea pig's teeth for overgrowth or misalignment. A guinea pig's teeth are constantly growing. He or she must chew constantly to keep them trimmed. If not they can quickly become overgrown which will affect the appetite. Until you can get to your veterinarian for treatment, it is important to encourage your guinea pig to eat and drink. Some guinea pigs will readily drink fruit-flavored electrolyte replacement solutions, such as PediaLyte or Gatorade, from a syringe. Offer your guinea pig a [balanced diet](https://www.petcoach.co/article/things-to-know-about-feeding-your-guinea-pig) including a large selection of fresh greens such as cilantro, romaine lettuce, parsley, carrot tops, dandelion greens, spinach, collard greens and good-quality grass hay. Don't forget to supplement with [Vitamin C](https://www.petcoach.co/article/guinea-pig-vitamin-c-requirements). Your vet may recommend syringe-feeding a special herbivore diet, such as [Oxbow Critical Care](https://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/our-products/professional-line/critical-care), or you can mix ground up pellets with fresh greens, vegetable baby foods, water, or juice to form a gruel. Introduce the syringe tip into the mouth behind the front incisors and depress the plunger slowly, giving your guinea pig time to swallow. If your guinea pig is still mobile, encourage exercise for at least 10–15 minutes every 6–8 hours, as activity promotes gastric motility.

Thanks for reaching out about your guinea pigs. Drinking more water can be a sign of a urinary, liver or other metabolic concerns. It could also be a behavioral problems. As these guinea pigs are becoming middle aged, a veterinary visit is recommended. Diagnostics can lead to a treatment. Good luck.

Your skinny pig is very cute, I love thes guys! The increased drinking can be a number of things from a urinary tract infection to a teeth problem! Guinea pigs can pass creamy urine from excess calcium in their urine from diet or from a uterine issue. She will need to see a vet and have them check and see what is going on. If you can get her to go pee on a flat, clean surface, you can take it in to your vet. It should be in the fridge until you take it in. Make sure she is is getting low calcium veggies (like Romaine, Endive, Escarole, Cilantro and bell peppers), no alfalfa hay and Adult GP pellets that are free of Alfalfa.

Too much water can also pose a problem, so I would be inclined to allow her to hydrate orally. If there is a veterinarian who sees guinea pigs in your area they may want to give some subcutaneous fluids. This is helpful because it replaces electrolytes in addition to fluid. Best of luck and I hope she improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Your new babies are probably very stressed living in their new home. They're more likely to come out at night when the house is quiet. I would make sure the nervous piggy has access to water, just incase he doesn't know how to use a bottle. You may want to place a small dish of water in his cage.

I am sorry to hear about your guinea pig. It sounds like she definitely needs veterinary attention. There could be many different causes for her symptoms, ranging from infections, GI stasis, and dental issues. I would get her to the vet as soon as possible. In the meantime you can soak some guinea pig pelleted food in water and blenderize it, then use an eye dropper or syringe without a needle to try to feed Caramel to provide some calories.

Guinea pigs do not drink much, so it is normal that you do not see them drink often and that the water level doesn't seem to change a lot. do not worry, they drink the amount they need, you do not have to do anything to make them drink more.