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Choking After Eating?

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Robbiewilson

Robbiewilson

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hello,
I'm new to this forum read it a lot and got some very helpful tips.
However I need some advice.
First off I've been to the vet and they say it's not a respiratory infection and he has no teeth issues and that he's fine she didn't know what it was.
My little guy Logan sadly has started to wheeze and honk whenever he eats fresh veg or fruit at the moment. It's been happening for 5 days now. He hasn't lost weight he still runs around, however he makes a horrible wheezy noise after he eats. The only way it stops is when he clears his throat which sounds like a cat making a hairball. Has anyone come across this before?
We lost his brother a couple months back to an inner ear infection. We got him a cousin who is now growing I wonder if it is because he is now scoffing his good so his cousin doesn't take it!
Any clues guys?
 
Hello and welcome to the forum! That's a strange on really. Has the vet not suggested any other kinds of test? My first thought would be teeth and then URI. Does it happen with all sorts of fruit and veg or just hard types? Have you tried him with more squishy types to see if they will go down easier? I would be worried about there being some kind of blockage in his throat or the back of his mouth that could be affecting him. Does it happen with his hay or his pellets?
 
It sounds like he could be hooting. Which could be linked to the weather as it is very humid but can also be a sign of a heart issue, especially if followed by a cough. I would be inclined to ask for a conscious xray to check for heart issues and any fluid on the lungs or around the heart.

Please can you confirm your location so we can advise you more.
 
Hmm I've never heard of hooting myself I shall go look this up! Thanks Helen for educating me too! :)
 
Thank you for the replies. I'm based in Bristol.
Today was pepper the other day was spinach and tomato. I fear it's a heart issue!
He did it a little bit with pellets but not as bad
 
:( Is your vet a piggy savvy vet? May be worth finding one if not and pressing the issue so they can run some more tests to try and get to the bottom of it.
 
Have a look on our recommended vets locator, we have quite a few members from Bristol.

If it did turn out to be heart please don't panic, I have 6 heart pigs and they are all stable on medication.

Does he have any of the following symptoms in addition to the random coughing and possible hooting?

Laboured Breathing
Nodding when breathing
Rapid breathing
Low weight - failure to thrive
Bumblefoot
Blue lips, ears etc (extremities)
Recurring upper or lower respiratory infections
Excessive salivation without evidence of a dental problem
Unusually deep sleep
Abdominal bloating
Fatty (or pea) eye
 
He's dropped a bit of weight since I last weighed him a couple of weeks ago. But we were over feeding him.
He has none of the symptoms you say.
It's literally when he eats it's why I'm so confused
 
Thank you so much for the info. Everything I see is it's heart issues he won't last long but he's still acting the same cheeky chappy as usual.
Highcroft have a vets near me in long well green
 
Glad he has none of the other symptoms. It may not be heart and if it is it is usually treatable.
 
He's sat with me now eating some cucumber without his cousin 'pestering him' and he's eating nice and slow no choking or hooting yet. Although he did run up me and headbutt my mouth :) I really do appreciate this guys
 
Highcroft Veterinary Group
Jemma, Polly, Vim or Richard Saunders
615 Wells Road
Whitchurch
Bristol, BS14 9BE
01275 832410
 
Definitely get registered with, and book in to Highcroft. If you call their main Wells Road, Whitchurch surgery (01275 832410) they will be able to tell you who is working where and when. Mention that you want to book with an exotics vet (Jemma, Polly or Vim) and they will get you an appointment with one of them.

They can fix most things, but if its something they can't fix, they will pass you on to the referrals side of things where you'll see one of the "zoo vets" - Highcroft has some of the best exotics vets in the UK, even Europe, working in their referrals dept. (they call them the zoo vets because they treat the animals at Bristol zoo!)

In terms of personal recommendation - I very much recommend Highcroft. I work in veterinary medicine and they're my first choice for my pigs every time, I currently travel a 100 mile round trip to take my pigs there, they've done some amazing stuff with one of my pigs in particular, and they have all the facilities you could need all there on site (for example they have a CT scanner which gives a hell of a lot more info than an X-ray, and costs pretty much the same), but the important thing is that they also have the experience and expertise to best analyse the results.

Good luck!
 
Thanks for the response about Highcroft. Unfortunately they are fully booked until Sunday so I'm having to go to our normal vets tomorrow. He's running around loads today but the hooting is on and off. I will update you all when he's been to the vet tomorrow
 
I'm wondering what the outcome was for your piggie? Our pig Sonny has pretty much been doing the same on and off. He'll woot woot then choke after he eats some days. He's been to the vet twice they can find nothing wrong with him. I'm concerned about him although he is 5 now and I know pigs start getting health probs at the age. After he's choked or wooted he's jumping around his run all happy and eating hay. Its so bizarre.
 
Welcome to the forum, if you could start your own thread in health and illness we could help further. I would ask the vet to look into heart issues, as hooting followed by a cough is one of the symptoms.
 
helen105281 said:
Welcome to the forum, if you could start your own thread in health and illness we could help further. I would ask the vet to look into heart issues, as hooting followed by a cough is one of the symptoms.
Click to expand...
Thanks
He's been to 2 different vets both of whom didn't seem to think it was his heart one of the vets thought it was possibly down to the very humid weather we had which was unheard of in Scotland (mid 80s). Just this morning he got some mint and choked on it. He's eating his brekkie just now and its making me nervous.
I'll add that I'm very pregnant (6 days overdue now) and that's not helping as I would have to wait on my partner coming home in an emergency.
I haven't heard the wooting for a week until this morning.
 
Hello,
We had taken him to a different vets. He said it could have been 1 of 2 things. It was either ringworm (his ear showed a small sign of it) or a URI, so we were given cream for the ear (canisten actually) and antibiotics. It's cleared up now and the little guy has put weight back on. He still makes the occasional choke sound but no hooting.
I hope this helps
 
Robbiewilson said:
Hello,
We had taken him to a different vets. He said it could have been 1 of 2 things. It was either ringworm (his ear showed a small sign of it) or a URI, so we were given cream for the ear (canisten actually) and antibiotics. It's cleared up now and the little guy has put weight back on. He still makes the occasional choke sound but no hooting.
I hope this helps
Click to expand...

Thanks for this....ringworm eh? Noone has mentioned that. I've seen 2 vets. Sonny's weight is steady hes a healthy weight. Its just so frustrating not knowing what it is. Glad your pig is doing better now. :)
 
Check for any scabs. We noticed when the vet mentioned ringworm that Logan had been scratching a lot more. I hope your guy gets better
 
Ringworm would not make a pig hoot or choke, the 2 things are likely to be unrelated.
 
How is he now? this sounds similar to Fluffy - i started a topic called snuffling after eating a while ago. We are having to feed her by hand now otherwise she pigs out too quickly and makes a horrible noise coughing and choking. We also have to julienne her food to make it easier for her.
 
So it's been just over 2 weeks and the little guy is better.
He has gained 130g as he lost a lot. We fed him by hand for a while.
Our vet gave him an anti inflammatory and some anti biotics (which we gave him via pipet, which was a struggle as it was almost impossible as he hated the taste, even with cordial or food) he also had a bit of ringworm on his ear. The vet said it was either a side effect from ringworm or URI.
 
Quick update for everyone.
It turns out Logan has got ringworm. The vets have us some meds and he is on the mend.
We had to spray the whole house to stop anymore spreading of the fungus.
He hates taking the antibiotics which is a shame as he doesn't feed from our hands anymore. We wrap him in a blanket and give him them via pipet which is so easy wish somebody told us that the first time he was sick.
Only thing that slightly worries me is just noticed him gently nodding for a hails I've read this is normal and nothing to worry about. He doesn't seem to be eating as much veg or salad but more hay but his weight is still the same
 
Do you mean he is nodding as he is breathing? If so please run this past the vet. They can nod when they eat due to trying to breathe and eat at the same time, but it can also be a sign of a URI or even a heart issue and as he has recently had respiratory problems he may need a further round of antibiotics.

What medication has he been given for the ringworm? Is it Itrafungol?

When you say pipette do you mean a syringe? only reason I ask is that pipettes are usually glass and so would be dangerous if he bit it.
 
helen105281 said:
Do you mean he is nodding as he is breathing? If so please run this past the vet. They can nod when they eat due to trying to breathe and eat at the same time, but it can also be a sign of a URI or even a heart issue and as he has recently had respiratory problems he may need a further round of antibiotics.

What medication has he been given for the ringworm? Is it Itrafungol?

When you say pipette do you mean a syringe? only reason I ask is that pipettes are usually glass and so would be dangerous if he bit it.
Click to expand...
you do get plastic ones though ? good luck !
 
Well that's good then, I have only ever seen glass ones but it was years ago.
 
I mean syringe.
He is being treated for a URI as well. I think it's when he's chewing hay that he nods. It's knot little ones and they don't last too long
 
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