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Bladder Piggies

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I wish we knew what caused it :( Although people have mentioned water already, maybe it's not just the type of water but the amount they drink. I do know that one of mine is leaving quite a few white patches so is passing a lot of sludge. She does drink a bit but not as much as the others. I know Vedra was recommending syringing extra water to all piggies a couple of years back but I have no idea if that would help at all :) Mine get washed veg & I leave a lot of water on them.
 
I do tend to think that the more wet the diet, whether through drinking lots of water or eating lots of wet veg, can help keep the bladder well flushed. When I prepare veg for the piggies I chop everything up and throw into a large washing up bowl that is full of water. I then drain the excess water and throw a handful of veg into each hutch. The veg they are eating is very wet.
 
Just thought I'd add my experiences, based on some of the above suggestions.

I lost my first piggy at the age of 2 years to a bladder stone that was wedged in his urethra. The vet (not cavy-savy, I'm afraid), attempted to remove the stone, but failed. He died 2 days later from post-op complications. I was not given any pain medication or gut stimulants, and was never advised to hand-feed. I didn't know about the forum then, and had only very basic piggy knowledge. I assumed the vet had given me everything I needed to look after him, so never thought to question it. I blame myself for not doing more. I vowed to find out everything I could about piggies from then on, particularly bladder issues. I joined the forum, read everything I could, and changed vets.

Benny was kept on woodshavings. He had tap water, and 4 months before his death we moved to a hard water area. His veg was washed in this tap water and given to him while still wet. He was fed Pets at Home nuggets. His diet was varied, but perhaps contained a little too much kale. He was a small boar, and weighed around 1kg.

His cagemate, Jerry, developed signs of bladder sludge 3 months after Benny's death. By this point I had done my research and had changed to Oxbow nuggets (timothy-based), timothy hay, and filtered the tap water. Kale was cut out altogether. Jerry has now lived with bladder sludge and cystitis for 2 and a half years. He had his bladder flushed in June 2012. His symptoms are managed with a low calcium diet, a low daily dose of Metacam (which is increased for a short period if he seems uncomfortable), a capsule of Cystophan, and a pinch of Phenyoxybenzamine. He weighs 1.1kg and is now on vetbed. His veg is washed in filtered water and given to him while still wet. I am currently trialing Jerry with some new nuggets specifically designed for bladder piggies - Supreme Science Vetcare Plus Multi-Modal Formula.

Perhaps Jerry's bladder problems are a result of my earlier naivety, but it seems strange that his symptoms only developed 3 months after I had made the changes.
 
I woke in night and started mulling this over again in my head. I feed less veg than lots of you, but probably more grass! There has to be a reason why my pigs don't get bladder issues. If I only had a few then you could say I had probably just been lucky, but when on average I have between 25 and 35 piggies here at TEAS then it surely must be something I am doing or not doing!
 
I wonder if there could be a link between pesticides & veg then? I cannot put mine out on our grass, we back onto farm fields & the farmer sprays his crops :( He was spraying this week & I cannot be sure it hasn't drifted onto our grass. It makes me very sad they can't enjoy it, but I would never forgive myself if anything happened. A few years ago we lost 2 close together after going on our grass & we think it was the spraying that caused it. I think I am going to grow grass in trays for them instead :)
 
I tend to feed as natural a diet as possible. Mainly hay and grass with very little of anything else. A small amount of nuggets (mixture of whatever I have, but mainly Burgess) and a small amount of veg, which even includes spinach at times. Every night I fill the hutches and cages to the top with hay, and by morning there is only a thin layer left at the bottom, so they do eat a huge amount of hay overnight. I give a handful of readigrass a couple of times a week, if I have any. I am trying to think if there is anything else significant in what I do.
 
Diet does seem a factor but how does that explain owners who have multiple pigs all on the same diet and only one has a problem?
Tango is a bladder pig but we never had any problems with Cash and they were on exactly the same diet...
 
I do believe some pigs, like some humans, are more prone to stones than other. My vet also agrees with this. I have two pigs who are on the same diet- same water, same pellets, same hay, same treats. The older one has never had a problem with stones. The younger one has been plagued with bladder issues, including a stone. My vet has gone through their diet and approved it as an appropriate one that is not too high in calcium. For whatever reason, Sundae has a stone and Linney does not (even though Linney has had an additional 18 months of life to develop them.)
 
Sorry all - just spent the last 24hrs in A & E - firstly Haywards Heath from 6.30pm friday, followed by a subsequent transfer to Brighton ( by blues and twos) at 3am yesterday morning.
Discharge from Brighton at 4.30pm yesterday and we are still sleeping out the after-effects. (Not me I hasten to add - it's my friend)

It's great to see the contributions to/interest in this siubject

I'll be back after proper sleeps and when I can make more sense.

x
 
Pebble said:
Sorry all - just spent the last 24hrs in A & E - firstly Haywards Heath from 6.30pm friday, followed by a subsequent transfer to Brighton ( by blues and twos) at 3am yesterday morning.
Discharge from Brighton at 4.30pm yesterday and we are still sleeping out the after-effects. (Not me I hasten to add - it's my friend)

It's great to see the contributions to/interest in this siubject

I'll be back after proper sleeps and when I can make more sense.

x
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Very sorry to hear that Pebble, I hope with all my (admittedly stone) heart your friend recovers rapidly, it's incredibly good of you to accompany them :)

Hope you fulfill your well deserved rest tonight :)
 
Thanx Falken -

My friend went through un-necessary & serious agony for 9 hours because the original hospital "didn't have the right equipment" (i.e. the right neck brace)

It was harrowing to watch and I still want to punch somebody on his behalf.

Thankfully as of 4am yesterday, he's now been stabilised with the right neck brace, and he's now discharged and back to his old self..(albeit he still has the brace to wear for the next 10 days)

x
 
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Pebble said:
Thanx Falken -

My friend went through un-necessary & serious agony for 9 hours because the original hospital "didn't have the right equipment" (i.e. the right neck brace)

It was harrowing to watch and I still want to punch somebody on his behalf.

Thankfully as of 4am yesterday, he's now been stabilised with the right neck brace,,.and he's now back to his old self.

x
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We often hear of less than positive experiences with the NHS, it's silly that he should be left to suffer for want of the correct neck brace, I'm happy he's now been stabilised with he correct equipment and that he's now back to his old self. I generally feel the blame rests with managers who wouldn't know which end of a scalpel to use.

Again, kudos to you for being by his side and looking out for his best interests.
 
Has anyone tried, or been recommended to try long-term potassium citrate for stone prevention? This is what is in the cystitis relief powders you can buy in the chemist. It helps in humans because it makes the urine more alkaline so there is less stinging, but it also helps to bind dietary calcium. I've seen a paper from 2006 where a vet recommends it after removal of an oxalate stone. @Pebble - any thoughts?
 
Elwickcavies said:
Has anyone tried, or been recommended to try long-term potassium citrate for stone prevention? This is what is in the cystitis relief powders you can buy in the chemist. It helps in humans because it makes the urine more alkaline so there is less stinging, but it also helps to bind dietary calcium. I've seen a paper from 2006 where a vet recommends it after removal of an oxalate stone. @Pebble - any thoughts?
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Yup my vet had me give my bladder piggie Petal Potassium Citrate when she was getting chronic cystitis problems, she was on it for around 6 months. Now she gets a Cartrophen jab every month which does seem to be helping as we only get a sporadic UTI now, although saying that when she does get blood in the urine (Even when not visible) we think it is down to her having cystic ovaries as well :( The thought is that the ovaries when enlarged they can put more pressure on her already weakened bladder wall, so with us it's a matter of maintaining her comfort & trying to keep infections at bay. She is also on a low 0.1ml daily Metacam dose :)
 
Poor Petal. Double whammy! I'm curious about the cartophen, I thought it was an arthritis drug, but it seems to be helping. Do you know what the rationale is?
 
Elwickcavies said:
Poor Petal. Double whammy! I'm curious about the cartophen, I thought it was an arthritis drug, but it seems to be helping. Do you know what the rationale is?
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Our Piggy vet has used Catrophen also has used it with success on piggies with inflamed bladder walls reducing it or coating it, I will ask Rosie for the full details when we next see her for you. I believe it works in a similar way to Cystease, we have had mixed results with it it worked for one of our Bladder piggies fairly well but not another.
 
Exactly what Sportbilly said :tu: Basically the cell walls in Petal's bladder have stretched apart because of multiple infections so Cartrophen acts like a barrier & lines the weakened bladder wall. Petal is due one on Friday so I'll ask my vet for a better description then :)
 
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