Ask the Veterinarian/Guinea Pig Eyes

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Expert: - 10/30/2011


Question
Bad Eye
Bad Eye  
Hello, yesterday we purchased a guinea pig that is around two-three months old. Her eye was bulged out farther than the other one and fearing an illness we took her home to be cared for. This morning the bulging has gone down and it is around the normal size of the other, which makes us think that she has just gotten poked. But she is always closing it and squinting it and I have noticed that the part that is supposed to be blue is a dull brownish. I have attatched a picture of her bad eye, around where the discoloration is that part would be a clear light blue on the other eye. Any help would be much appreciated!
Thank you!

Answer
I am not a guinea pig expert but I do know that many guineas have a 'mosaic' eye pattern, meaning that they have two toned eyes.

Without seeing your piggy in person it is impossible to say, so you really should have a vet look her eye over.

But as a general rule, if the eye looks healthy, clear on the surface and is shiny, there is most likely not a disease process going on.

If it is scar tissue, it could be cloudy and discolored on the iris. But again, there is no way for any one to know this by looking at a photo.

She would need to be seen in person to determine whether or not she has an injury or an eye condition.

Her eye looks pretty clear and shiny on the photo, but the iris itself cannot even be visualized.

Call your vet and have her given a quick look over.  

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

Expertise

PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

Experience

I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

Awards and Honors
Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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