Advice on sterile cystitis

[Geofaye]

Hello, this is my first post on here I’m just wondering if any one has any experience and advice on how best to look after a guinea pig with Sterile cystitis.
So I have a 6 1/2 year old female guinea pig called Moose. We have been back and too the vets a whole lot lately. Looking forward answers on why she hasn’t been very well. After doing a lengthy urine test that was sent to the vets lab for testing. They found no bacteria and deduced she is suffering from sterile cystitis. Earlier in the year she had passed a small bladder stone and believed the issues all triggered from there. She went on a course of bayril. Which she has now finished. She is on a dose of Meloxaid once a day for pain and anti inflammatory.
I give her 1 oxbow urinary support treat each day and glucosamine. She’s eating and drinking, enjoying her, veg, grass and hay, but she does have her quiet days now and again.
I was just wondering if anyone has experienced the same and has any tips to help give her the very best quality of life with her being an older lady.
Thank you

 

[Wiebke]

Hello, this is my first post on here I’m just wondering if any one has any experience and advice on how best to look after a guinea pig with Sterile cystitis.
So I have a 6 1/2 year old female guinea pig called Moose. We have been back and too the vets a whole lot lately. Looking forward answers on why she hasn’t been very well. After doing a lengthy urine test that was sent to the vets lab for testing. They found no bacteria and deduced she is suffering from sterile cystitis. Earlier in the year she had passed a small bladder stone and believed the issues all triggered from there. She went on a course of bayril. Which she has now finished. She is on a dose of Meloxaid once a day for pain and anti inflammatory.
I give her 1 oxbow urinary support treat each day and glucosamine. She’s eating and drinking, enjoying her, veg, grass and hay, but she does have her quiet days now and again.
I was just wondering if anyone has experienced the same and has any tips to help give her the very best quality of life with her being an older lady.
Thank you View attachment 289670

Hi and welcome

Can you please tell us what kind of dosage of metacam she is on and what weight is she?
Is the concentration on the meloxaid bottle 0.5 ml/mg? (i.e. cat metacam)?

What glucosamine product are you exactly using in addition to Oxbow? Oxbow urinary support is on the low side for an acutely affected piggy.

Has your vet also checked for arthritis, which is pretty common at her age? Please make sure that you check her weight regularly since pain is an appetite killer.
Are filtering your water and how much pellets and what veg are you feeding?

Since sterile IC can only be managed, and rather crudely as well, we have to ask you quite a few questions to help you optimise your support.

Please be aware that the medication may be OK for the maintenance but is insufficient for any recurring acute spikes, which are so characteristic for sterile interstitial cystitis. Sterile cystitis affects generally piggies born with a nervous disposition when they are experiencing their mother's high stress levels as their normal default setting while still in the womb. Sterile IC is connected to mass breeding for sale and a relatively new illness, which is why it is not so well known.
Other piggies can pick up sterile IC from their companions but their immune system is strong enough to deal with it in my own experience with acute IC piggies in my own Tribe groups.
It is likely that old age and a lowering of your girl's immune system from the stone could have led to it becoming acute.

Unless we know those details, we cannot help you to tailor your personal support to the adequate level of IC and age support that you need for the longer term.

Wiebke's Guide to Pees and Stones

Weight and Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support Levels

Caring for Older Piggies and Facing the End - A practical and supportive information collection

 

[CTWC]

Hello and welcome I have no advice sorry but wanted to wish you well and say what a beautiful photo

 

[fluffysal]

My 4 year old boar Sir George (who is a fellow sufferer) says Rumble, Rumble pretty lady

 

[Geofaye]

Hello and welcome I have no advice sorry but wanted to wish you well and say what a beautiful photo

Thank you, that is very kind

 

[Geofaye]

Hi and welcome

Can you please tell us what kind of dosage of metacam she is on and what weight is she?
Is the concentration on the meloxaid bottle 0.5 ml/mg? (i.e. cat metacam)?

What glucosamine product are you exactly using in addition to Oxbow? Oxbow urinary support is on the low side for an acutely affected piggy.

Has your vet also checked for arthritis, which is pretty common at her age? Please make sure that you check her weight regularly since pain is an appetite killer.
Are filtering your water and how much pellets and what veg are you feeding?

Since sterile IC can only be managed, and rather crudely as well, we have to ask you quite a few questions to help you optimise your support.

Please be aware that the medication may be OK for the maintenance but is insufficient for any recurring acute spikes, which are so characteristic for sterile interstitial cystitis. Sterile cystitis affects generally piggies born with a nervous disposition when they are experiencing their mother's high stress levels as their normal default setting while still in the womb. Sterile IC is connected to mass breeding for sale and a relatively new illness, which is why it is not so well known.
Other piggies can pick up sterile IC from their companions but their immune system is strong enough to deal with it in my own experience with acute IC piggies in my own Tribe groups.
It is likely that old age and a lowering of your girl's immune system from the stone could have led to it becoming acute.

Unless we know those details, we cannot help you to tailor your personal support to the adequate level of IC and age support that you need for the longer term.

Wiebke's Guide to Pees and Stones

Weight and Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support Levels

Caring for Older Piggies and Facing the End - A practical and supportive information collection

Hello and thank you,
Yes of course, she’s having 0.04ml of metacam which is the cat strength one. She currently weighs 840 grams (she’s always been little I had her as a rescue, my biggest piggy is 1.2kg )
I do her weight every other day in the morning so it’s consistent.

I am using feliway cystease gloucosamine. I’m giving her one of those (just the powder not the plastic cover)

No my vet has not checked for arthritis, I hadn’t thought of that I will mention it to them. To my eye she is always bombing around her enclosure and looks quite happy they have 6ft by 6ft so she has a good area to move in all level no stairs in.

Yes we have filtered water. The pellets I use are selective naturals grain free guinea pig food. She has Timothy and meadow hay. We have been told by my vet to keep her on a lower calcium diet due to having the stone earlier on this year. So she gets peppers of all colours, romain lettuce, cucumber. We are looking into what else we can give her that’s low calcium and oxalate.

I unfortunately don’t know her background with her being a rescue but iv had her for 3 years making her 6 1/2 now. Shes always had very good quality hay/veg and pellets and very well loved

​

 

[Piggies&buns]

Hello and thank you,
Yes of course, she’s having 0.04ml of metacam which is the cat strength one. She currently weighs 840 grams (she’s always been little I had her as a rescue, my biggest piggy is 1.2kg )
I do her weight every other day in the morning so it’s consistent.

Can we just check that you really do mean 0.04ml and not 0.4ml?
0.04ml of cat is not going to touch any pain.
Is that once or twice a day?

 

[Geofaye]

Can we just check that you really do mean 0.04ml and not 0.4ml?
0.04ml of cat is not going to touch any pain.
Is that once or twice a day?

Yes it is 0.04 ml that’s what my vet prescribed, and it’s only once a day.

 

[Wiebke]

Yes it is 0.04 ml that’s what my vet prescribed, and it’s only once a day.

That's like giving an overweight adult man with a bad cystitis half a dose of baby calpol once a day. It is totally cosmetic.

It is the lowest metacam dose we have so far come across, seeing that you can safely give 0.75 ml cat metacam (adjusted for your piggies' weight) twice daily as a maintenance dose and even go higher in an emergency.
These are volumes that we have seen prescribed by vets for other IC piggies on here (0.75 ml cat metacam translates to 0.25 dog metacam, which is three times stronger). Unfortunately, even though guinea pigs generally do better on dog metacam and it is also easier and cheaper to give, cat metacam is the only one licensed. You would have to ask for a form to sign that the prescription is by your request and the prescribing vet is not liable for any consequences.

Guinea pigs have a different metabolism to other pet species and require much higher dosages. They tolerate long term metacam without the kind of kidney damage that you get in other species.

No wonder is your poor girl still in major pain and has her off days.


How experienced is your vet with guinea pigs?

 

[Geofaye]

That's like giving an overweight adult man with a bad cystitis half a dose of baby calpol. It is totally cosmetic. Guinea pigs have a different metabolism to other pet species and require much higher dosages. They tolerate long term metacam without the kind of kidney damage that you get in other species.

No wonder is your poor girl still in major pain and has her off days.


How experienced is your vet with guinea pigs?

Oh my gosh, thank you for making me aware of this I had no idea! I feel awful, I’m going to contact my vets straight away and get them to recalculate the dose!
My vets have a very good reputation and I see the exotics vet when have taken her in. I don’t know what went wrong there but thank you for binging it to my attention.

 

[Wiebke]

Oh my gosh, thank you for making me aware of this I had no idea! I feel awful, I’m going to contact my vets straight away and get them to recalculate the dose!
My vets have a very good reputation and I see the exotics vet when have taken her in. I don’t know what went wrong there but thank you for binging it to my attention.

It could be a decimal mistake (they can easily happen). It would be still a pretty low dosage, but it would be at least a dosage; you would be at least on half an adult paracetamol a day.

 

[Geofaye]

Thank you, iv contacted my vet just waiting for them to get back to me