Abdominal mass advice needed

[Touie]

Wookie is 3 1/2 I took him to the vets on Tuesday as he has a really hard large stomach, big to the point where he can't fit through the door of a guinea pig house anymore

His stomach was so hard that the vet wasn't able to feel it properly and was keen to admit him to hospital and xray. I was convinced it was bloat and got medication for that instead and painkillers. 4 days later there is no change in his stomach, he is eating, drinking and pooing normally. He is a little less active than he was but seems happy enough and no sign that he's in pain he chirps away like normal.

I'm not sure what to do with him now, I think it must be a tumor but am reluctant to put him through a general anaesthetic in order to xray. Does this sound like a tumor?

 

[Touie]

 

[Betsy]

Only a vet can diagnose what is wrong with your piggy. Please be guided by your vet. Betsy has to have an x-ray and only needed vacation whiff of GA to keep her still.

 

[Bill & Ted]

Poor Wookie, such a lovely piggie, hope you find what’s troubling him, and get it sorted out soon x

 

[Touie]

Poor Wookie, such a lovely piggie, hope you find what’s troubling him, and get it sorted out soon x

To be honest, I don't think it is something that can be sorted now, I got that impression from the vet too, I think she was just humouring me with the bloat treatment if I thought he had something treatable I'd book him straight in

 

[Wiebke]

Wookie is 3 1/2 I took him to the vets on Tuesday as he has a really hard large stomach, big to the point where he can't fit through the door of a guinea pig house anymore

His stomach was so hard that the vet wasn't able to feel it properly and was keen to admit him to hospital and xray. I was convinced it was bloat and got medication for that instead and painkillers. 4 days later there is no change in his stomach, he is eating, drinking and pooing normally. He is a little less active than he was but seems happy enough and no sign that he's in pain he chirps away like normal.

I'm not sure what to do with him now, I think it must be a tumor but am reluctant to put him through a general anaesthetic in order to xray. Does this sound like a tumor?

Hi! Unfortunately, only an x-ray or scan is going to tell your vet and you what is really going on, so you can make any informed decision as to where you go from there. Our guesses are even less valid than yours because we are working on minimal information.

I know that it is a very tough place where you are right now and that the decisions you are facing are likely all very tough ones. Please don't let your fears get in the way of doing what is necessary for Wookie and not fail him in his hour of need. Be strong for him! He needs you now more than ever to do what is best for him, whatever that is. Sometimes you have situations where you are very much between a rock and a hard place with your beloved piggies.

HUGS

@Jaycey @helen105281 @furryfriends (TEAS) @Freela

 

[Freela]

Unfortunately, without imaging there is really no way to know what is going on. I would encourage you to do the imaging, if only so that you have a better idea of what you are dealing with so you can make more informed decisions. It's never easy to have to make medical decisions for pets, but the more info you have, the better equipped you are to make the right ones.

 

[DM030819]

@Touie It's a very hard decision to make and it's one I'm currently pondering over with my boar, Jon Snow.

I had a pig in the past called Spencer. Outwardly he seemed 100% healthy. Eating, pooping and weeing fine and acting very happy. But the vet found a worrying lump at one of his appointments. The vet could feel that it was something significant. So we opted for a scan. It wasn't good news but we opted for surgery. The lump was too intricate to remove so we opted to have him pts. It may seem a bit harsh as he was so healthy but the lump would have ruptured and very likely killed him. So I think we did the right thing.

With Jon Snow it's a bit different. The vet doesn't think the lumps are life threatening (yet) and he's healthy and happy otherwise.

At the moment he's in the best position for surgery. He's healthy and he's only going to get older. But, he's healthy so what if he dies in surgery?

Waffly post but I think what I'm trying to say that if the lump is impacting Wookie then personally I would go for the scan and/or surgery.

 

[Betsy]

Christian had a lump that the vet thought was benign so we opted to leave and observe. It stayed that way for months then it started to grow so I took him back to the vets. She did a needle aspiration and pulled out a load of yellow stinky pus . So I had to have the abscess (as that is what it was) removed. 7 days later he had the op to remove it. It was a very difficult operation and Christian only just survived. The vet nearly phoned me twice for permission to pts as the lump had adhered to nearly every internal structure including his stomach, his femoral artery and his penis shaft. The abscess had grown from the size of the end of your thumb to this

in 7 days! . In a couple of places the abscess was 1 cell thick and was about to burst causing a very nasty and painful death. Here is Christian's rather impressive scar



This is all you could seen on the outside before his operation.



So never leave a lump.

 

[Claire W]

I'm sorry that you are going through this with your boy. If it were me, I would opt for a scan first. They aren't invasive and your vet should be able to do it whilst he is conscious. Whenever my piggies have had an xray, my vet has either been able to do it conscious (she uses sand bags to keep them still) or a light whiff of gas to sedate them. But I'm afraid that a scan or x-ray will be the only way to find out what's going on

 

[pig in the city]

I'm sorry that you are going through this with your boy. If it were me, I would opt for a scan first. They aren't invasive and your vet should be able to do it whilst he is conscious. Whenever my piggies have had an xray, my vet has either been able to do it conscious (she uses sand bags to keep them still) or a light whiff of gas to sedate them. But I'm afraid that a scan or x-ray will be the only way to find out what's going on

I agree with Claire. An ultrasound scan would probably be the best imaging in this case. Not all vets have the equipment or the skill so check with your vet first.

 

[Merab]

Only a vet can help you.
There are many of us here who have had to deal with lumps - some with happy outcomes, some not so happy.
Whatever you decide and whatever happens we're here for you.