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Advice needed about neutered boar

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Sappho

Sappho

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Hello,

I've not used the forum for a while, but I'm in need of a bit of advice. I took my piggy Bagginan (it's a weird name, I know:)) to be neutered at my old vets in Wiltshire as I trust my vet Karen implicitly with my pigs. It is a long way from me as I'm in West Sussex, but I have tried three vets in the area, neither of which know much about treating piggies, and I wanted him to get the best care and attention which I know Karen always gives.

Anyway, the op went well and a week later he is eating and drinking normally, he has been on metacam and is behaving normally. He was quite swollen when he came home, but it has gone down only on one side. I took him to another vet this morning who seemed to think he was having a reaction to the sutures on one side. She advised to leave it alone.

I'm hoping to take him back to the vets in Wilts on Monday, but I am worried about the advice I was given this morning. I'm worried it might be the beginning of an abscess. If it is, won't it need treating straight away with antibiotics and regular flushing? I've had to deal with a lot of guinea problems, but never abscesses, so I have no idea what I'm looking for!

Is there anything I can do in the meantime, or should I try and get him seen by someone else before monday?

Any advice would be appreciated,

Thanks,

Sappho
 
I've heard a couple of experienced piggy owners here mention that they take their guinea pigs to Rob Reynolds at Seers Croft Vets in Horsham, if that helps. Hope little Bagginan recovers well x
 
I would also recommend Rob at Seers Croft. Jenny at Crawley GPR uses him for her pigs.

My Joe had an abscess caused by a reaction to a suture. He had antibiotics and it burst a few days later. It wasn't obvious that it was an abscess initially as he had no other symptoms/ was eating and behaving normally.

I would try and get another opinion before the weekend. Fingers crossed it's just post-op swelling though. x
 
aaw I hope the little fella be ok - sending lots of love to him:red
 
This is just as a precaution for him as he has a swelling.....

I recommend getting a second opinion and seeing another vet like the one Flips recommended above.

Keep a regular eye on him and make sure he doesnt pull stitches out cos its swollen he may be tempted to nip it or lick it - if stitched come out its dangerous (it means a rush to vets).

Try keep him calm and on his own - away from other pigs just until he is better (as he may get excited)
You talk to him calmy/maybe put a radio on
keep him warm
make sure he eating and pooping regularly
keep him clean on clean towels
dont get him too excited
try not to pick him up - if you do be very careful - you dont want anything to rupture or burst.
keep him away from females so he dont do the male rumble/strutt causing pressure on his stitches

I hope its ok to share this with you

Hope all goes well and he gets better little dear xxxxxx
 
Thank you all, and thanks for the vet recommendation - I will ring them in a minute. I should have contacted Jenny at Crawley GP rescue, she found us a mate for our single piggy last year.

Thanks PiggyLove, I had read through that thread before, and I'm doing all the things like keeping him on his own etc. He's a cheeky little boy, and I know we shouldn't have favourites, but I have such a bond with him - I found him half dead at a pet shop a year ago and brought him home with me thinking he'd pass away, ended up hand feeding him for a week and treating him for skin infections etc, and he's now a big healthy chap with the soppiest personality!

Just a question about abscesses though - are they generally quite hard and swollen, or more soft? Or do they change depending on what stage they are at?
 
Abscesses can vary a lot in appearance and feel. Joe's abscess was soft and not very big (when you looked at it) but that was because it was quite deep under the skin.
Another boy that had an abscess had a very large swelling where the skin was taut and hot too the touch. It burst very easily and came up overnight.
Jenny has a pig that has bad abscesses on her leg, these are very solid and the flesh around them is hard.

You could still give Jenny a call. She is in contact with someone who has a lot of experience with this type of thing. :)
 
Hi
Sorry to hear about your boar - I am in Wiltshire and looking for a good cavvy savvy vet - could you let me know who you use please. - have also heard could be a reaction to the type of suture they used (there are 2 types apparently - one sometimes more problematic than the other )

thanks
 
Thanks flips, I guess only a good vet will be able to tell me what it is. I'm no closer to knowing what's up with him, it's still the same and he's still behaving normally. I have an appointment for Monday in Wilts, will hopefully be taking him to a nearer vet tomorrow (different vet again!). Would it be worthwhile asking for some baytril for him in case?
 
Oh, and Tan, the vet I use is called Karen Grabham at The Beeches Veterinary Surgery in Melksham. She is the best vet in the area, I have been trying others for years before I found her! They are also great with price - a consultation for a small animal is about £10, and they are great with medications too.
 
Sounds like an abscess to be honest. Unfortunatly they can occationally occur through no fault of the vet. Boars are dirty little boys sometimes and it just cannot be helped. I would get some antibiotics as soon as you can for your little guy so you can start treating it.

Hope he does ok. Let us know how you get on.

x.
 
Ok, I'll get down to a vet here. She's not great with pigs, but she might be able to give me some antibiotics. Is baytril the best for abscesses? Should I ask her to take a sample of it, or just give him the antibiotics and wait for a proper consultation with a good guinea vet on Monday?

Thanks everyone, this has been really helpful.
 
I don;t know exactly where in West sussex you are but as well as using Rob at Seers Croft in Horsham for the more unusual problems, I take my pigs more routinely to see Ben or Ruth at East Grinstead veterinary hospital as it is closer for me.

http://www.eastgrinsteadvethospital.co.uk/opening-times


The pratice also has surgeries in Crawley and Crawley Down (the vets rotate bewteen the three) but the East Grinstead one is open on sunday mornings between 10 and 12, offering consultations at normal prices and I know Ruth is consulting there tomorrow

The lump will need to be aspirated to determine if it is an abcess or not and if it is they may recommend a microbial culture to test for antibioitic sensitivity or they may just decide to give an antibioitic. Although baytril is the first choice as it is the only one licensed for piggies, septrin might be a better bet as baytril-resistant bugs are becoming quite common.

HTH
x
 
Thanks guys. East Grinstead and Crawley are about an hours drive for me - I'm right on the coast near Bognor, but if I can't find one nearer I will just have to grit my teeth and make the necessary journey and hang the expense.

Bagginan saw a different vet yesterday, who seemed to know a bit more what he was talking about, used a needle to draw a bit of fluid out. Not a lot came out, but it may have been a bit too thick for the needle, but it was analysed anyway and there were some bacteria in there, enough to warrant him being put on 0.5ml Baytril both morning and evening.

If it doesn't go down (and I'm guessing that probably it won't just with meds) then they want to put him under anaesthetic to aspirate it. Does it need anaesthetic? I guess it's not a surface abscess so local might not work.

I think I will still take him to the vet who did his op tomorrow, but I'm happy that something is being done. Bagginan is still being his cheeky self, took his meds like a lamb this morning. He's such a good boy!
 
I don't know about anaesthetics, but if it is an abscess or infection that is difficult to shift, you may ask your vet to contact Simon Maddock in Northampton for the use of a strong specifically antibacterial anitbiotic called zithromax. It can saves lives where baytril won't. It has saved my Hywel's life earlier this year.
Here are the contact details: http://www.inorthamptonshire.co.uk/profile/457491/Northampton/Cat-and-Rabbit-Care-Clinic/

Sending my vibes to Bagginan!
 
Sappho said:
Not a lot came out, but it may have been a bit too thick for the needle, but it was analysed anyway and there were some bacteria in there, enough to warrant him being put on 0.5ml Baytril both morning and evening.
Click to expand...

If he's been prescribed the 2.5% oral suspension Baytril, then 0.5ml twice daily seems like a very high dosage. If you're not already giving a probiotic alongside his Baytril then I'd strongly advise it.

I've heard brilliant things about using Zithromax for stubborn infections. I haven't used it myself but definitely would if the need arose.

Fingers crossed for the little guy x
 
Thanks for the replies. I have had him on probiotics alongside the baytril, it does seems a lot but he is a very big pig. He's not a big eater at all, he is just naturally huge! His weight is has been between 1500g and 1600g since he's been an adult pig. I have asked vets before if he's overweight, but he gets a good lot of exercise and I'm certainly not over-feeding him!

He visited his normal vet-savvy vet this morning, and she gave him a thorough examination. Her thoughts are that it is either a herniation (sp?) or post-op swelling. She doesn't think it is the first - she couldn't find any sign of it, he wasn't in pain during the exam, and he's pooping normally. She says I could consider taking him off the antibiotics if I wanted, but to keep an eye and if it's not gone down in a week or so to start looking further into the herniation theory.

So - to medicate, or not to medicate? Obviously I don't want to disturb his digestion if I don't have to.

Thanks again all.
 
I was just reading your thread about Bertie and so came over to read about Bagginan :... oh dear what a worry you've had with both the boys!
If you see any changes i'd be straight to the vets...... these abscesses can be so hard to get rid off mallethead

HEALING WHEEEEEEEEEKS FOR BAGGINAN XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
 
Just wanted to do a quick update on Bagginan.

He is doing very well - it looks as though it was just a huge amount of post-op swelling. I'm still keeping a very close eye on him and making sure he doesn't start looking unwell, but the swelling is going down very slowly, so hopefully that is the end of it.

Thank you to everyone who posted and made me feel calmer! I'm glad it's not an abscess (well, not yet, fingers crossed it's not just hiding!), but thanks for all the advice. He was seen by three vets in total, and there really is no substitute for a guinea savvy vet!

The next step is introducing him to the girls. He's still got two weeks left before he is safe (that will make it five weeks since his op). Does anyone have any advice on how I should go about introducing him? He is about the go into the girls C&C cage which I have divided up, so they can see and smell each other. Any advice would be greatly appreciated :)
 
Glad to hear that the little man is doing well!

I've only ever had boars so I can't advise on introductions but hopefully all goes well and his ladies are very welcoming :)
 
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