Guinea pig with allergies?

Question
I have had my little lilac sow Fiona for 3 months now and she has had 3 "URI's". One came up right when I brought her home. Most of my new piggies will sneeze for a day or two when I first bring them home, but Fiona got a real snotty nose. She was treated and quarantined for over a month before I put her with another sow. Within two hours she was snotty again and I was told it was another URI. After a second round of antibiotic she started being snotty again just 2 days later. So then a third round. She stayed snotty for a few days and now is clear. She never had any rattling or clicking or discharge of any kind. I say snotty because she sneezed a lot and would sound like she was all stuffed up. On closer inspection I could see that her nostrils were actually closed up some. Could she possibly just have allergies? I usually use fleece but her second flare up was after being put on Care Fresh. The third she was back on fleece. I use free and clear liquid detergent. No fabric softener. The other sow she was with has never shown any symptoms. Thanks for your time.

Answer
I don't think this is allergies, nor am I convinced it's really an upper respiratory infection. I'm not a big fan of jumping right into antibiotics for guinea pigs, and to treat back to back like that can do more harm than it does good. Overuse of antibiotics compromises the immunity. That goes for humans as well as animals.

This 'snotty nose' you describe may be something else. Has the vet taken a good look up her nose to make sure she doesn't have something up there that's causing her to sneeze? Without the right equipment it's difficult for you to see what the inside of the nose looks like as the nostrils get narrower the farther up the nose you get. That's normal.

She may be reacting to the bedding, but it's also possible that what you're hearing is just the normal occasional nose and throat clearing that cavies do just as we do now and then. Why don't you just try leaving her be and not medicating for every sneeze. My guess is that she has neither allergies nor an infection that needs antibiotics. My recommendation is that you give her a chance to cope on her own and see how she does.