Rachel116
New Born Pup
Hi All,
Apologies for the long post but I'm at a loss and have never had calcium issues with my previous piggies. The vets are at a loss when it comes to my piggies too as they can't see what I am doing wrong either. Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Symptoms
Wilbur - 2 year old neutered male recue with a history of a poor diet. I have had him since August. Has always had a few wees daily with calcium deposits however not sludgy, gritty and no discolouration or blood. I would class the deposits as normal just too frequent.
Willow - 14 months I have had since 12 weeks old female, spayed two weeks ago due to very severe hormonal issues. Passing sludge every two to three days (see image) we have just treated her for a UTI as she was passing some blood, since starting antibiotics blood has gone. I suspect she has been passing sludge for a couple of months however hard to know as they were on shavings up until beginning of March - I changed to fleece to monitor wees and prepare for spay surgery. I had noticed some sludge in January and February however I assumed it was Wilbur due to his past. Since having them separated due to her spay surgery I can confirm Willow is the only one passing the sludge. In between the sludge passing episodes her wees are clear, which is also what threw me off it being her.
Diet
I have had a lot of guinea pigs before and never had issues with calcium/sludge or stones with what I have fed in the past. I have been careful given Wilbur's issues and since noticing the sludge end of Jan I have been even more careful but maybe I am missing something?!
Water: Tesco Ashbeck - they are both very good drinkers and drink at least two thirds of a bottle between them a day.
Hay: Great quality Timothy Hay from Hay Shed ad-lib. In the winter I use meadow hay in a snuggle/burrow area however since being on fleece they haven't had that.
Pellets: 40g shared per day of Science Selective Guinea Pig pellets. I have recently started doing 20g in the morning and 20g in evening to spread it out.
Veg: AM: (Per Pig) 1cm thick disc of cucumber, 1cm chunk carrot, a little patch clump of grass cut from the garden, 1cm think slice of pepper (colour varies). PM: (Per Pig) 1cm thick disc of cucumber, 1/4 stick of celery, 1-2 leaves of romaine lettuce depending on size of leaf.
Treats: They get the occasional selective naturals meadow loop or a timothy hay based chew. They also get a little readi-grass if it has been too wet/frosty to cut grass from the garden.
In terms of treatment, Willows bladder will probably be flushed once she has recovered from her spay. I am trying to avoid having to get Wilbur's done if possible as he is a timid little boy and I worry the vet stay will stress him out. I don't want to flush the bladder and then it reoccur as I haven't stopped the cause.
Again sorry for the long post but I am at the end of my tether and must be missing something. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. How long does calcium build up take to improve/clear following a diet change?
Gmail
Apologies for the long post but I'm at a loss and have never had calcium issues with my previous piggies. The vets are at a loss when it comes to my piggies too as they can't see what I am doing wrong either. Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Symptoms
Wilbur - 2 year old neutered male recue with a history of a poor diet. I have had him since August. Has always had a few wees daily with calcium deposits however not sludgy, gritty and no discolouration or blood. I would class the deposits as normal just too frequent.
Willow - 14 months I have had since 12 weeks old female, spayed two weeks ago due to very severe hormonal issues. Passing sludge every two to three days (see image) we have just treated her for a UTI as she was passing some blood, since starting antibiotics blood has gone. I suspect she has been passing sludge for a couple of months however hard to know as they were on shavings up until beginning of March - I changed to fleece to monitor wees and prepare for spay surgery. I had noticed some sludge in January and February however I assumed it was Wilbur due to his past. Since having them separated due to her spay surgery I can confirm Willow is the only one passing the sludge. In between the sludge passing episodes her wees are clear, which is also what threw me off it being her.
Diet
I have had a lot of guinea pigs before and never had issues with calcium/sludge or stones with what I have fed in the past. I have been careful given Wilbur's issues and since noticing the sludge end of Jan I have been even more careful but maybe I am missing something?!
Water: Tesco Ashbeck - they are both very good drinkers and drink at least two thirds of a bottle between them a day.
Hay: Great quality Timothy Hay from Hay Shed ad-lib. In the winter I use meadow hay in a snuggle/burrow area however since being on fleece they haven't had that.
Pellets: 40g shared per day of Science Selective Guinea Pig pellets. I have recently started doing 20g in the morning and 20g in evening to spread it out.
Veg: AM: (Per Pig) 1cm thick disc of cucumber, 1cm chunk carrot, a little patch clump of grass cut from the garden, 1cm think slice of pepper (colour varies). PM: (Per Pig) 1cm thick disc of cucumber, 1/4 stick of celery, 1-2 leaves of romaine lettuce depending on size of leaf.
Treats: They get the occasional selective naturals meadow loop or a timothy hay based chew. They also get a little readi-grass if it has been too wet/frosty to cut grass from the garden.
In terms of treatment, Willows bladder will probably be flushed once she has recovered from her spay. I am trying to avoid having to get Wilbur's done if possible as he is a timid little boy and I worry the vet stay will stress him out. I don't want to flush the bladder and then it reoccur as I haven't stopped the cause.
Again sorry for the long post but I am at the end of my tether and must be missing something. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. How long does calcium build up take to improve/clear following a diet change?
Gmail
