Cant eat ?

[Babsmam]

Please can anyone help. My guinea pig has not eaten anything solid for 6 weeks. I know this is incredible but he is only 3 and is surviving on regular syringe feeds of food, water, and diarolyte. He woke up 6 weeks ago and could not eat although he used to go to his bowl and try to pick up food, however even when he managed could not chew it. He has been to the vet and checked, they told me he had no problem visible with teeth or anything else. He didnt improve so was given an anaesthetic and although his teeth were not long they took off what may have been a sharp edge. Still did not improve so he was anaesthetised again and had an x ray which showed no problems with his jaw. I was advised to try Daktarin to deal with a probable thrush infection but he is no better. After starting the daktarin he started to have excessive saliva and frantically grinds his jaw. There is obviously a mouth problem and I think he is in pain despite the prescribed Metacam. I don't know what else to do or try. He is so terribly thin now but does not give in and anxiously awaits his liquidised food (guinea pig food powdered in a grinder mixed with Critical Care and extra Vitamin C). I just keep giving the food and hope that whatever the problem is will get better but he is starving to death and I'm not sure if I'm just prolonging his pain and discomfort. I don't know what is the right thing to do but I love him and don't want to him to be suffering. I will be grateful for any advice or help. I was informed by CCT that he should never have been anaesthetised by the vet but I didnt know this at the time and I had no reason to question the vet when this was suggested. Please can someone help.

 

[kayjay]

Sorry I've got no advice, but I hope you can get to the bottom of this. I'm sure someone experienced with piggies will be along very soon. Poor little man, he sounds a really brave pig.

Kathryn

 

[michellemuffin]

I'm going through the same problem with Patch he had an op on his overgrown back teeth saturdaay and I have been syringe feeding him ever since, he wants to eat but cant for some reason, Ia m really worried and wonder if the anesthetic is to blame, I'm wracking my brains as to what to do as this is a very difficult problem to solve as I know over the years its happend a few times to me and is not usually a good sign, any one got any ideas for us both, we are both very worried piggy owners at the moment,

 

[Caroline]

I'm so really sorry for both of you and your poor little piggies. I don't have medical knowledge to help, but could you try another vet, if you could find ones with small animal experience? There does seem to be a vast difference between vets in the matter of small animals. Lucinda's wonderful Dr Atkins had dreadful teeth trouble, which re-occured only a couple of weeks after the first operation. She had to syringe feed Doctor, who seemed to enjoy strawberry smoothie as well as all the essential foods. Perhaps smoothie would be a treat for your piggies too. xx

 

[Abnoba]

I was informed by CCT that he should never have been anaesthetised by the vet but I didnt know this at the time and I had no reason to question the vet when this was suggested.

Have you actually been down to the CCT then you have your piggie seen to, or did she just give you advice over the phone?
If you havent, I would give it a shot... Vedra picked up what was wrong with my Lily within two minutes of her being there.

 

[Lucinda]

Anaesthetic will not be to blame. These days guineas have the same anaesthetic agents as humans, which have fast recovery times, and do not stay in the body.

I am very sorry about your problem. It is heartbreaking when a piggie will not or cannot eat. Have you tried restoring the gut balance with either probiotic or natural yoghurt?

When Dr was so ill I was syring feeding him every couple of hourse - recovery food and smoothie.

I don't know what else to suggest. I do suspect that teeth may be the problem. I'm so so sorry. I know what you're going through. xx

 

[michellemuffin]

patch is having regular probiotic to restore his gut balance, and is looking bright seems some pigs just give up on eating I'm going to try mashed banana tomorrow you can see he wants to eat it but does'nt seem to know how to eat it whole, wierd!

 

[starshine]

Please contact the CCT and get in touch with your nearest Rodentologist asap. It sounds like your piggie needs urgent specialist help.

 

[Abnoba]

Please contact the CCT and get in touch with your nearest Rodentologist asap. It sounds like your piggie needs urgent specialist help.

Thats why I was asking before if she had only talked to them over the phone or was actually there, because she wrote:

I was informed by CCT that he should never have been anaesthetised by the vet but I didnt know this at the time and I had no reason to question the vet when this was suggested. Please can someone help.

she has been in touch with them, I am just wondering if Vedra doesnt know, who else could?

 

[starshine]

There will be a rodentologist in the area who can actually look at the pig rather than just give telephone advice. It is hard to diagnose a problem over the phone whereas if the pig is seen by a specialist it has the very best chance of recovery. Talking on the phone is fine the the first instance but this pig clearly needs more if it is still not eating.

 

[cavykind]

I was informed by CCT that he should never have been anaesthetised by the vet but I didn't know this at the time and I had no reason to question the vet when this was suggested. Please can someone help.

Please don't beat yourself up about this, it's all very well the CCT trust telling you that, but few of us have rodentologists near enough to us to be of any practical help. Again, for many more a trip to the CCT is hours and hours away, a round trip of about 8 to 9 hours for us :-\
One of my guineas has had 2 anaesthetics for teeth probs, the vet has done an excellent job trimming and guinea recovered within hours of coming home.

If you can get the the CCT, please do, or try and locate a rodentologist near enough to help. What area are you in? Maybe one of us can recommend a good local vet?
Good luck,
Barbara


Edited to add: While waiting for a second opinion, you could try 1ml of honey twice daily to help keep the guineas energy levels up. Peter Gurney suggested this and I've used it to good effect many times and it's especially good post op in my experience. I like to use the natural, clear wild flower organic variety.

 

[Babsmam]

Thank you all so much for your kind words and advice regarding Bab who continues to need syringe feeding. I was unable to post any replies as in my distress I spilt lemonade over my laptop and messed up the keyboard. update on Bab, i contacted Vedra who put me in touch with the nearest rodentologist and we took him to have his teeth clipped. He is much more comfortable but still seems to have no strength in his jaw to chew.He is ravenous now and is eating much more via the syringe and looks much brighter and happy. Its sad there are so few rodentologists, we had to maka a 6 hour all round journey to get expert help for Bab but it was well worth it as the lady gave advice and tips to help build him up. I will continue to do my best as he does not appear to have any pain and i think he is enjoying all the extra fuss.

 

[Lucinda]

I'm so sorry this is still going on. I know what it's like.

Have you tried fruit smoothie in the syringe? It makes a nice treat.

Also, are you anywhere near Bath as I have an excellent guinea vet.

 

[Glynis]

Good luck keep up the good work

Keep up the syringe feeding, i also added pureed baby foods to the syringe and this seemed to bulk them up too. Please try to give as many feeds of critical care as you can as there's so many essential vitamins etc in it.

 

[bevs]

I can make a comment here after being lucky enough to yesterday spend a couple of hours with 2 excellent rodentologists whilst another member here (DebbieR) had her piggies teeth seen to, apparently piggies jaw muscles very quickly lose their strength, even after just 1 week of not being able to chew,and it has to be built back up again with regular chewing practice.

Hope he gets better soon, welcome to the forum

 

[DebbieR]

Yes it sounds like your piggy is going through exactly what George is at the moment. Most vets don't even know piggies have back teeth so I would never let a vet near my piggies mouths.

George had his teeth clipped and they are now back to normal. No anestetic (sp sorry) was used. When piggies have had such bad tooth problems they need to be taught to eat again and encouraged to take bits of food. When they have anastetic (oh I don't know how to spell that blooming word) it takes them about 4 days to fully recover by which time the problem is starting to occur again because they haven't been grinding down the teeth. Also,like Bev says, the jaw muscles lose their strength.

He needs to have bulk put into him asap. You can worry about the nutrients later. The main thing is to keep his gut working. I am syringe feeding george with chinchilla pellets mashed with weetabix, (he didn't like the mashed potato after all that Bev), softened in boiling water and mixed into a mush. Also Abidec multivitamin drops. I am also feeding him teeny bits of cucumber putting them into his mouth so he can do some chewing.


Good luck
xx

 

[Lucinda]

anaesthetic ;D

 

[DebbieR]

;D Thank you. I was really struggling with that. Did it show? ;D

 

[Billies Mum]

My vet is amazing with teeth. She gives a teeny tiny bit of anaesthetic and then does the work.

Bill was always right as rain after a few hours and he was done every 5 weeks for 10 months

 

[Lucinda]

Poor little love

 

[cavykind]

My vet is amazing with teeth. She gives a teeny tiny bit of anaesthetic and then does the work.

Bill was always right as rain after a few hours and he was done every 5 weeks for 10 months

Mine too, so I don't worry too much about the anaesthetic.
Unfortunatley for many of us there just isn't arodentologist near enough to consult :-\

 

[hopperhaven]

It seems as if this is a bit too common I have a lad who won't eat as well. He had a lump removed last Tuesday, and was castrated, and now he won't eat so I have been syringe feeding him ever since. He seems bright enough and the wounds are healing, he just won't eat I am giving him recovery mixed with avipro and critical care. I'll have to try and coax him with small pieces I think. He took tiny nibbles of cucumber and a few tastes of celery, and a few bits of hay, but not proper eating.
I haven't had one do this before

 

[Mary]

Try soaking food in cucumber, this worked for mine I put cucumber in a blender.

 

[longpark1.freeserve.co.uk]

Elaine, Cornwall

I've been reading your entry regarding George with great interest. I realise you posted your query a while ago but I was wondering what the outcome was and if you had any success in getting your guinea eating.

Gussy, my four year old guinea, has been ill for over a month. It started with a blocked back passage, then he contracted pneumonia which was successfully treated with antibiotics. However, he still would not take solids so when he was strong enough he had his teeth examined and it was discovered he had a back tooth that needed clipping. Nearly two weeks on from that he still won't eat anything other than the syringe food!

I've tried tempting him with all his favourites, he gets excited when he smells or sees the food and his jaws move as if he's eating. But an hour later the food is always still intact!

My vet and his team have been excellent and can find no reason why he's not eating. The tooth that was clipped had only caused minor damage to his tongue and should be healed by now and, although anaesthetics are a controversial area with guinea pigs, I felt it was the right thing for him and he coped well.

Any advice would be very welcome! I feel he's strong to have come through so much in the last few weeks and, in spite of only having syringe food, is lively and chatty so I really do not want to give up on the little fellow. Likewise, I want him to have a good quality of life and do not want him to suffer.

I sometimes wonder if he's forgotten how to eat or if he just likes all the attention!

Many thanks
Elaine

 

[alcesterpigs]

Longpark Where are you? Pm if you wish. There is absolutely no need for a general anaesthetic for dental work. It is not sufficient to have a quick look, decide that one tooth needs clipping and discharge the pig. The mouth and dentition are a complex piece of machinery, for want of a better term. The overgrown tooth is the RESULT of a problem, the ulcer on the tongue is a secondary condition. The initial cause needs to be determined. Many dental problems require more than one visit. I have a pig that belongs to a friend that has been with me since last December, he needs his teeth trimmed twice a week. He has a complex problem which cannot be cured, only managed, to the extent that he will be a permanent "inpatient" with me. This is because the owners live 50 miles away.
Syringe-feeding is another matter all together....!

 

[rw3399]

I'm just catching up on this and have to say that you are doing a fantastic job looking after your piggie. When my piggie had dental problems I found that grating up carrot and chopping veg/fruit into very small pieces encouraged her to eat.

 

[Roo3]

We went through a similar problem a few weeks ago with Fuzzy. He wanted to eat but was in pain and couldn't. We took him to our normal vets who kept him in for a week and a half, whilst he was bright and alert he wouldn't eat anything. They syringe fed him every hour to keep his weight up. When they had exhausted all options to them, they referred Fuzzy to a specialist. He diagnosed an ear infection amongst other things and started Fuzzy on medication. Another week passed and Fuzzy still wouldn't eat. The vet changed his medication and one day we rang to check up on him to be told that he had eaten a bowl of food and some veggies by himself. He carried on and finally a week and a half after taking him to the specialist he was allowed to come home. We've had him back with us for about 5 weeks now and he is still eating by himself. He has put weight on (apart from one little blip) and is a happy little piggie again.
I would suggest that you get a second opinion on your piggie, if we hadn't I doubt Fuzzy would be with us today.

 

[Laura-CCC4]

I was reading this thread with great interest and then noticed the date.

Longpark - have you tried Daktarin Oral Gel? A three week course gives the most beneficial effect, often just one or two weeks isn't quite enough to completely cure any soreness -

Week 1 - 0.5ml 3x daily
Week 2 - 0.5ml 2x daily
Week 3 - 0.5ml 1x daily

An oral infection/thrush/soreness can cause as much trouble as dental problems, often presenting the same symptoms. Quite often an oral issue is the initial cause of dental problems, as opposed to the other way around.

 

[Josephine]

josephine

Have you actually been down to the CCT then you have your piggie seen to, or did she just give you advice over the phone?
If you havent, I would give it a shot... Vedra picked up what was wrong with my Lily within two minutes of her being there.

I have just lost my precious guinea pig "Temie" short for Artemis to anaesthesia. She was sent home after her op. and I could tell right away that she was brain damaged as she was so limp and sleepy. The vet said that this was normal, but after a series of fits and coughing bouts she deteriorated and died in my arms in the night. She only needed her back teeth clipping. I am devastated and left with one very lonely and confused little guinea "Frodie" short for Aphrodite.

 

[alcesterpigs]

How many times have I posted that there is no need in ANY circumstances for a GA to either look at or trim teeth?
I feel so sorry for you.