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?cause of weight loss

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Flossyfi

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Hiya
My 2 1/2year old male pig, Oats, has worrying symptoms. He is drinking loads, lost loads of weight but is bright at present. Vet says problems with kidneys and nothing he can do. Seems strange as urine clear and only a little protein. He hasn't had any other tests as the vet does not think it will help. Having just spent £450 on my cat I am not keen to spned money if it will make no difference to the prognosis. My other pig, Butter is fine.
Has anyone come across this before?
Thanks
 
Has the vet checked Oats teeth? One of my regular visitors has tooth problems and the first sign that his teeth need trimming are increased drinking and weight loss, once he's seen his vet for a "dental" (fully awake and no GA I hasten to add) he is back to normal for a while.

I'm afraid I can't comment on kidney problems as I don't have any experience in this area, I hope you get to the bottom of his problem.
 
Thanks - yes he has had his teeth trimmed on first visit to vet although they weren't bad at all.
 
You say that Oats seems well and alert, is he also eating well? Hopefully some more of our experienced posters will be along with suggestions shortly.
 
I always suspect possible kidney problems when there is a change, one way or the other, in the quantity of water being consumed. If this is the case there is little that can be done. Often a kidney problem is associated with a loss of appetite, the pig will appear to want to eat but will go to the food, sniff it and then walk away. A pig with kidney problems will also be miserable and tend to sit in a corner not bothering about anything. Your pig does not seem to fit into this category.

Another possibility is diabetes, however a urine test on a gp needs caution to interpret the result correctly.
 
Could the vet test for diabetes at all? Increased thirst is a common symptom of diabetes in both humans and guineapigs :)
 
Oats' problem does 'seem' to be a bit of a tricky case. What is his diet like, what type of dry feed are you giving and what fruits/veg?
 
Thank you all for your advice. My first thought had been diabetes but I would have thought this would have been picked up by the vet. (Having said that the vet has missed mouth fungus in my other guinea pig saying he is a mucky eater when he looked at his sore lips!) Any one know what treatment a diabetic guinea pig would need?

He still is eating well - although he has on occasions sniffed and walked away. He is bright eyed but VERY thin.

He is out to grass when it is dry, has "Pets at Home" nuggets. Also has a mix of sweetheart cabbage, carrots, cucumber, brocolli stumps or celery. Occasionally a corn on the cob.
 
I'm not sure what to suggest,do you give him hay?it may help him put on much needed weight as it is usually a big part of there diet,
i hope you get some answers soon it must be hard not knowing xxxxxxx
 
I understand the confusion. I asked about the diet as one of the tests for diabetes (the urine test) can be greatly affected by what the guinea pig eats. If the pig is on a sugary diet, the glucose level in the urine is going to be high. Often, this is assumed to be down to diabetes and a pig is treated unnecessarily, and dangerously, when actually the reading is because of the diet! For this reason, a test diet for a period prior to a second urine test is important, although the example of the test diet is highly debatable and argued.

Treatment for diabetes is simple and effective provided it is proven to be diabetes, and not just a high-sugar diet. A once daily injection of insulin (dose is 1 international unit, but tried to the minimum effective dose) will help control the glucose levels, as well as assessing the diet for sugar levels and keeping them to a minimum.

What you are feeding is not bad. A little more variety in the fresh veggie diet may be beneficial, although it is unlikely to affect the weight of the piggie.
 
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