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Anaesthetic Death

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George pig

George pig

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Mar 17, 2014
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Location
Northumberland
Hi ,I am new here and unfortunately don't have a guinea pig. I lost George a month ago . He went for an operation to remove a nipple as he had blood coming from it. He was only two years old. I used a vets which deals in exotics and felt he was in good hands , but he died as soon as anaesthetic gas was given. I feel awful , I wish I had just left it. The vet said 65% of nipple tumours are benign .George was the most tame guinea pig I have ever owned. So bold , he used to lie by the fire with my border terrier and bite him on the nose if he bothered him. I would love to hear from anyone who has lost a pig under anaesthetic .
 
I didn't lose mine under anaesthetic but she never recovered after having an x-ray under anaesthetic & was so weak she had to be pts the next morning. Learning from this I would now never have one of my piggies under anaesthetic unless I thought they were strong enough to survive it. Madam came back having lost the will to live & it was so distressing not being able to do anything for her. I still miss her after 14 months.
 
I'm so sorry for your loss :(. I have to make a decision whether to have one of my piggies operated on , he is 5 years old and has a lump that's getting bigger under his throat . The vet I'm now using is simon maddock who is excellent with piggys but I'm still not sure what to do , if I don't do it it may get bigger and obstruct breathing etc and if I do do it he may not survive it . Its torture not knowing what to do for the best
 
We are really so sorry to hear you lost George... Run free little one.. x
 
I agree , I lost a pig 15 years ago after a bladder op, to remove stones. He died the next day. I thought maybe things had moved on and guineas were more easy to treat. I would never put one through it again only perhaps if it were life or death situation. I also think vets should really warn owners of the risks and get us to consider it very carefully first!
 
Thank you every one! I wish I had talked to people here first . I joined a few days before op , but was busy and didn't post. I have picked up so much information .
 
A friend of mine had a guinea pig with an abscess on his throat . He was 6 at the time and came through the op fine and lived till he was 8! I guess some are lucky!
george had cataracts and had suffered 3 uti infections . I wonder if he was inbred to have problems so young. As he was very well looked after and lived in the house. Perhaps he had heart problems too that we didn't know about!
 
I really don't know what to do for the best and I totally understand the loss your feeling
 
George pig I am sorry for your loss, I have 3 piggies, all three have been operated on by Simon Maddock in Northampton, very successfully & with the most neatest stitching I have ever seen (In case you are worried piggylover :) ) At various times they have between them had 5 ops with a GA, all were fine but they do need a lot of after care as it takes a good week before they are back to normal. Sometimes these things happen but from what I understand the chances are rare.
 
piggylover said:
I really don't know what to do for the best and I totally understand the loss your feeling
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Sounds like you have a good vet, I have seen his name recommended in this forum before .But it it is worrying . I think if there is no other option and he is healthy then have the op. It is an awful decision though. Really hope he will be ok
 
I am so sorry you lost your precious boy. Please do not feel guilty. You trusted your vet and was doing the best for your little one. It is very tragic he was taken away from you.
 
I'm so sorry, please don't blame yourself, there have been a fair amount of pigs on here that the same thing has happened to, it may be that it was his heart. I have not lost a pig this way but I have lost 2 hamsters.
 
Poppy'sMum said:
George pig I am sorry for your loss, I have 3 piggies, all three have been operated on by Simon Maddock in Northampton, very successfully & with the most neatest stitching I have ever seen (In case you are worried piggylover :) ) At various times they have between them had 5 ops with a GA, all were fine but they do need a lot of after care as it takes a good week before they are back to normal. Sometimes these things happen but from what I understand the chances are rare.
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I read so much online before the op and most of it positive about anaesthetic , which made up my mind to go ahead.I just hope George died because he had an underlying condition or reaction and not as a result of a mistake by the vet. He looked very peaceful when I brought him home . I'm glad I got his body back, and buried him in garden.
 
George pig said:
I read so much online before the op and most of it positive about anaesthetic , which made up my mind to go ahead.I just hope George died because he had an underlying condition or reaction and not as a result of a mistake by the vet. He looked very peaceful when I brought him home . I'm glad I got his body back, and buried him in garden.
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As Helen says he may have had an underlying problem, sadly :( I am so sorry.
 
My old two went in for neuturing, Patch came out fine but Billy's heart failed and he died. I felt awful, Patch went under with a friend, and come out without one. At that point we'd only had them 4 or 5 months, and had been told neuturing would stop the fighting - can't believe it now. But they're now both over the rainbow bridge running together, and hopefully they're best of friends!
 
That's such a lovely picture, as is you avatar, he was clearly loved very much by you. You did the right hing in trying to help him, I'm sure we would all have done the same.
 
I'm so sorry to hear you lost George in this way. I lost Cash right at the very end of an op at the start of the month so I know how you feel - it's doubly awful when you lose them trying to help them.

The important thing is to keep in mind that you were acting in his best interests and it wasn't your fault. X
 
Thank you everyone for the kind words . I am thinking of getting rescue guinea pigs in a few months. I always felt bad George was alone , but I took him on alone as an unwanted pet at 4 months old. He got so much attention and was free range in house when I was home and had a visiting guinea friend who he got on well with , and the dog. He loved all the fuss he got.
 
Oh what a lovely picture. Please try not to blame yourself you did it out of love for George.
 
Tbag said:
I'm so sorry to hear you lost George in this way. I lost Cash right at the very end of an op at the start of the month so I know how you feel - it's doubly awful when you lose them trying to help them.

The important thing is to keep in mind that you were acting in his best interests and it wasn't your fault. X
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Thank you . I think I read about your guinea , did he die at the end of an op? So sad. At least we know we looked after our pets the best we can, my vet said guinea pigs are often the most neglected pets.just forgotten about. Ours were loved and cared for till the end.x
 
I'm sorry you lost him. :(

There's always a small chance of that happening and why every time a guinea pig has to go through it is terrifying. I had one guinea pig who went through two surgeries and wasn't the healthiest of piggies but he was fine with both and not too long ago one of my boars also went through it for his neutering. He, too survived.

It really is hard as you will enver know what will happen until you get that call at the end. I'm so sorry again it happened to you. RIP George. Popcorn free little guy. x
 
piggylover said:
I'm so sorry for your loss :(. I have to make a decision whether to have one of my piggies operated on , he is 5 years old and has a lump that's getting bigger under his throat . The vet I'm now using is simon maddock who is excellent with piggys but I'm still not sure what to do , if I don't do it it may get bigger and obstruct breathing etc and if I do do it he may not survive it . Its torture not knowing what to do for the best
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@piggylover As long as he's strong & Simon's doing the operation, I would definitely go for it. You know your piggy best though & it's a hard decision to make. It's one of those damned if you do, damned if you don't decisions.
 
PipandPop said:
My old two went in for neuturing, Patch came out fine but Billy's heart failed and he died. I felt awful, Patch went under with a friend, and come out without one. At that point we'd only had them 4 or 5 months, and had been told neuturing would stop the fighting - can't believe it now. But they're now both over the rainbow bridge running together, and hopefully they're best of friends!
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I'm sorry you went through it too, at least under anaesthetic they will have gone peacefully without feeling pain. I know how you felt!
 
I'm really sorry for your loss! It is very stressful making decisions about when anesthesia is warranted. Even for humans, there is always a risk when anesthesia is used, and it's a larger risk in a smaller animal. I've been fortunate thus far with my pigs (one of mine has had repeated anesthesia for teeth/abscess issues) but I would be lying if I said I didn't worry about the risk every single time. ((HUGS)) to you, and so sorry about George. He sounds like a very sweet piggy.
 
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