The Bottom Line…

Anal Impaction:

A condition mostly seen in older boars. Guinea pigs are coprophagic, meaning they eat their soft droppings as part of the digestive process.

  • These droppings are retained in the anal sac while the dry hard ones are pushed out.
  • The soft caecal pellets contain the B-Complex vitamins and are important to the guinea pig’s health.
  • Get used to how your guinea pig feels in that area. Ordinarily it will feel soft/mushy, impactation feels like a hard lump/bolus.
  • When impaction occurs it is because the muscles have stretched/weakened. Both types of pellets can become trapped in the sac.
  • These must be expelled and fed back to guinea (soft pellets) in order for him to remain healthy.
  • Ask your vet to do the first clear out then clean out the sac regularly as needed, which may be twice daily or even just weekly.
  • Gently push down on the anus and ease the mass out. Take care when doing this, do not force things too much!
  • The condition may clear after a while but often it just improves.
  • Feed a low protein diet with lots of good hay.