shersher78
Junior Guinea Pig
Had 2 take my big boy (Shambo) 2 the vets last Monday 2 have his eye removed. Couldn't be sure whether he had injured it or whether it was something underlying as it had just appeared so quickly & there was no way 2 save the eye, it was protruding massively & has already 'dried'. Anyway, the vets kept him in Monday night, did the op Tuesday morning & kept him in 4 observation. The vets were really pleased with how it had all gone & I brought him him Wednesday evening.
Perhaps I should add that Shambo is a 4 years old Himalayan.
Anyway, he came home with Baytril once a day (2 guard against possible infection) & Metacam 4 pain. Syringe feeding him Critical Care (with a few added vit c drops 4 good measure) & was due 2 take him back Saturday 4 a check up.
Ended up taking him back on the Friday as notice his back legs seemed very weak & he didn't seem 2 b able 2 eat independently & was getting impacted. Vet told me 2 stop the Baytril & gave me Ranitidine & Cisapride 2 stimulate his gut. His weight was also dropping.Over the weekend, his poo returned 2 normal, albeit a little smaller than usual, but he still would not eat (despite trying 2) & seemed very weak. Took him back 2 the vets yesterday, who gave him a stronger pain killing injection (can't remember the name of it but it began with 'B'). Had a good chat with the vet & she was not happy with how he was doing & we both agreed it looked like an underlying issue has caused the problem with the eye. Came home & it seemed as if the injection did no good whatsoever, infact no poo's despite having loads of food syringe fed. Very listless guin
Back 2 the vets 2day & we r all in agreement that by the looks of things, the eye could've been caused by a tumor, as he seems 2 have lost his motor skills. they r keeping him in overnight 2 medicate him & get the head vet 2 assess him. I feel absolutely awful. In all my years of keeping guineas I have only had problems with 1 other (Rillo suffers with chronic cystitis, has had a bladder stone removed & just basically seems 2 have periods of being quite ill, eventhough she has had extensive bloodwork done, x-rays etc & nothing can b found. She is a 5 1/2 years old Tufty). I don't want Shambo being in pain & having no quality of life, but then again, I don't want 2 just give up on him (I was advised the kindest thing 2 do would b 2 put Rillo 2 sleep, but we battled on with full support of the vet & she's still here 2 years later, spritely as ever!) so if there's any chance of him recovering, I'll grab it with both hands.
Sorry 4 rambling & the HUGE essay but feeling really awful 4 my baby Maybe some1 has had a similar experience & can offer some words of wisdom?
Perhaps I should add that Shambo is a 4 years old Himalayan.
Anyway, he came home with Baytril once a day (2 guard against possible infection) & Metacam 4 pain. Syringe feeding him Critical Care (with a few added vit c drops 4 good measure) & was due 2 take him back Saturday 4 a check up.
Ended up taking him back on the Friday as notice his back legs seemed very weak & he didn't seem 2 b able 2 eat independently & was getting impacted. Vet told me 2 stop the Baytril & gave me Ranitidine & Cisapride 2 stimulate his gut. His weight was also dropping.Over the weekend, his poo returned 2 normal, albeit a little smaller than usual, but he still would not eat (despite trying 2) & seemed very weak. Took him back 2 the vets yesterday, who gave him a stronger pain killing injection (can't remember the name of it but it began with 'B'). Had a good chat with the vet & she was not happy with how he was doing & we both agreed it looked like an underlying issue has caused the problem with the eye. Came home & it seemed as if the injection did no good whatsoever, infact no poo's despite having loads of food syringe fed. Very listless guin
Back 2 the vets 2day & we r all in agreement that by the looks of things, the eye could've been caused by a tumor, as he seems 2 have lost his motor skills. they r keeping him in overnight 2 medicate him & get the head vet 2 assess him. I feel absolutely awful. In all my years of keeping guineas I have only had problems with 1 other (Rillo suffers with chronic cystitis, has had a bladder stone removed & just basically seems 2 have periods of being quite ill, eventhough she has had extensive bloodwork done, x-rays etc & nothing can b found. She is a 5 1/2 years old Tufty). I don't want Shambo being in pain & having no quality of life, but then again, I don't want 2 just give up on him (I was advised the kindest thing 2 do would b 2 put Rillo 2 sleep, but we battled on with full support of the vet & she's still here 2 years later, spritely as ever!) so if there's any chance of him recovering, I'll grab it with both hands.Sorry 4 rambling & the HUGE essay but feeling really awful 4 my baby
Maybe some1 has had a similar experience & can offer some words of wisdom?
(I won't cyberhug you as this is creepy). I do love guinea pigs and I think they should be treated like a dog or a human when it comes to care. I hope you get some answers.
The practice I use now has many vets that r guinea owners so they understand how much a piggy can mean 2 some1. When Rillo was having all her stuff done it looked like it was the end of the line 4 her (she was just over 3 at the time) & 1 vet in particular asked me what I wanted 2 do (by this stage we were nearing the thousand pound mark & I had not long given up work due 2 my health being pants). I just said I wasn't ready 2 lose her & I think because she saw how desperate I was 2 get her well she literally threw EVERYTHING at Rillo that could b of use & sure enough, after a week or so she was well & truly back 2 being on top form. I don't think I'll be that lucky with Sham, but he deserves the same chance, after all, they're more than just pets, they're family!
