Guniea Pig seems quite sickly

Question
I bought a young Abyssinian pig about a month ago.  He's been fairly attentive and friendly, scampering about when loose, also eating and drinking well.  All of a sudden, two days ago, he stopped eating and drinking, and now tends to lay on his side in the corner of his cage where he has cleared away the bedding.  At first, he was kicking his hind legs about, and making a sound as if he was having trouble breathing.  No squeaking sounds, no chatter, or anything. Currently, the breathing sounds continue, but he's become much more calm.  The noises he makes and movement are most prominent when he's in the cage; when I hold him he's rather quiet and still. When I pick him up, he feels limp and doesn't make any effort to move on his own whatsoever.  I've seen him wiggle about in his cage, scooting across it on his side.  I've seen him move all of his appendages when laying on his side, kind of like he was running or walking. He doesn't want to stand up on his own, it's poosible that he's too weak to do so.

He did take a drink of water from his bottle when I held it to his mouth, and took a tiny nibble of lettuce.  I've also noticed that his stool is a bit different in appearance, a bit smaller and a lighter brown color. He won't touch his usual pellet food and the usually delicious Vitadrops.

The temprature in the room he was in did fluctuate somewhat when I first brought him home, but he was moved to a steady climate soon after.

I fear that he may be dying.

Could you possibly shed some light on anything?

Thanks in advance.

Answer
Dustin --

There are quite a few different diseases that may be happening here.  Unfortunately, all of them are pretty serious.  In fact, the least serious thing I can think of is a serious ear infection.  However, since I'm not a vet, and we're dealing with some pretty serious conditions here, I'm going to recommend that you get him to a vet as soon as possible.  Have you noticed any other symptoms, like weight loss?  Make sure you tell the vet every symptom you can think of, as well as everything that has stayed the same.

I'm sorry I couldn't be more help.  If you have any more questions, please feel free to contact me, and please let me know how it turns out.  Good luck!

Lorena