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My guinea pig has bloat and is dragging legs. Can Petco help?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Small Animal | Unknown - Small Animal | Female | unspayed | 4 years and 10 months old

I think my almost 5 year old guinea pig sow is experiencing bloat. She has always been overweight, but now she is dragging her back legs behind her when she moves around, and her belly is distended on either side. On-line articles recommend getting her to a vet to get something to help with the bloat/gas, but our local vet does not treat small animals. So my question is, does Petco? Or is there a product at Petco that I can buy for her? I bought her at Petco.

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Eryn Taormina, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on June 13th, 2018

I'm so sorry to hear about your little piggy, Scamper! I definitely agree with you wanting to have her seen by a veterinarian. Bloat is a very dire situation in itself, and whether it's that or not, the signs your describing indicate something serious is definitely going on. You can call Petco and find out if they have any recommendations for a local veterinarian that treats exotics species. They will sometimes have a veterinarian who treats their animals and may be able to give you the info. If there is a Banfield Pet Hospital nearby, sometimes those veterinarians will see exotics species as they are usually located in a Petsmart. If there isn't anyone close to you who sees pigs, you may want to start searching for the closest possible veterinarian who does. If you are somewhat close to a veterinary university hospital, that would be your best bet. The university hospitals have exotics specialists available all the time. I hope you find someone to treat your baby!

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