Crackling Breathing

[Bitsato]

Hey, Gnar's breathing does this cracking sound, it's coming from his nose. There's no discharge, but he's sleepy, sneezing and coughing. I'm waiting for the clinic to open in 45 minutes, then I'll call them.
I have a problem though, it's been about 4 months since they last went to the vet and they both (I have 2 piggies) don't fit in their carrier anymore. Would Gnar be okay going alone?
I'm so afraid. Also, could anytone tell me the difference between an uri and pneumonia (not sure if I spelled it right)?

 

[Wiebke]

Hey, Gnar's breathing does this cracking sound, it's coming from his nose. There's no discharge, but he's sleepy, sneezing and coughing. I'm waiting for the clinic to open in 45 minutes, then I'll call them.
I have a problem though, it's been about 4 months since they last went to the vet and they both (I have 2 piggies) don't fit in their carrier anymore. Would Gnar be okay going alone?
I'm so afraid. Also, could anytone tell me the difference between an uri and pneumonia (not sure if I spelled it right)?

Hi! It sounds like a URI (respiratory infection). Guinea Lynx :: URI

You can take just one guinea pig if necessary or take both if you have got a large enough cardboard box that you can fit out.

If he is lethargic, please weigh him daily at the same time to monitor his food intake. Please top him up with syringe feed and water if he has lost over 30g. With URI, the need to breathe comes before the need to drink and then the need to eat. This is necessary to keep the guts going and also to maintain his fighting strength.
The antibiotic you will be mostly likely given is baytril, which is rather an appetite dampener or even killer in itself. If you can get hold of probiotics from your pet shop to help bolster the guts. Your care is as important the medication.
Here is our step-by-step guide: Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

 

[helen105281]

With Pneumonia there tends to be fluid on the chest, and he would need a diuretic in addition to any antibiotics. With a URI and Pneumonia steam therapy can help and so can a product called Bisolvon which dissolves mucous in the nasal passages. I am not sure if that is available in Estonia though. For diuretics, in the UK this is usually called Frusemide. Like Wiebke has said it does sound more upper respiratory but the vet will need to rule out Pneumonia.

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke @helen105281 Thank you both, we're back from the vet. She said it is an uri, but fortunately I noticed it early and he'll be okay. He'll be on antibiotics and a recovery mix, which has probiotics for two weeks, which I'll be giving with a syringe. They said that if it doesn't go away within those 2 weeks, I have to go back.
I gave Gnar his first dose, at first he was clearly confused, but he ate it happily, I'm pretty sure he liked its taste.

 

[Bitsato]

I don't think I have to make a new thread, since it's about the same topic?
Gnar really hates it when I'm giving him his antibiotics. He tries to wiggle himself out, I'm afraid I'll hurt him if I hold him I don't know how to give him those so he would stay calm.
The other thing, the vet told us to give the recovery mix with his favorite fresh veggies, like bell peppers etc. He won't eat them. The vet also said that if he won't eat it, I could put it on his paws, so that when he's cleaning them, he'll eat the mix? I'm so confused and I don't know what to do with him
Edit: He'll eat those veggies a bit but not all, so I'm not sure how much mix he's getting and if it's enough.

 

[Wiebke]

I don't think I have to make a new thread, since it's about the same topic?
Gnar really hates it when I'm giving him his antibiotics. He tries to wiggle himself out, I'm afraid I'll hurt him if I hold him I don't know how to give him those so he would stay calm.
The other thing, the vet told us to give the recovery mix with his favorite fresh veggies, like bell peppers etc. He won't eat them. The vet also said that if he won't eat it, I could put it on his paws, so that when he's cleaning them, he'll eat the mix? I'm so confused and I don't know what to do with him

If Gnar is on baytril (which is the most likely given antibiotic as it is the only one officially licensed), then it is the most foul tasting thing! You could try to mix it with an equal amount of ribena to mask the taste of it somewhat or give the ribena immediately afterwards.
Here are more tips: Administering Medications

Bayril is also an appetite killer, as is URI, so your little one is dealing with a double whammy right now. If your piggy doesn't want to eat veg (try fresh her herbs in between syringe feeds), then just concentrate on getting enough syringe feed into him, like we recommend in our guide, which relies on years of experience with very ill guinea pigs from several people. I have never heard of the paw licking, but you won't get much food in that way, not in the quantities needed to keep a guinea pig going. it is more likely working for dogs or cats.

Please read our guide carefully. Make sure that you give a pinch of probiotic once or twice daily with the syringe feed to bolster the effect of the baytril. If he has a companion, you can also consider giving poo soup, which you make from soaking the fresh healthy poos from a companion in a little bit of water, then syringing the water; it contains all the right stuff to re-stock the guts and mimics guinea pig behaviour even though it is a bit gross.
Please also make sure that you keep him watered to rpevent dehydration.

All you can do right now is get him through the crisis. it takes a day or two for the antibiotic to kick in fully.

Place a bowl of steaming water next to the cage and replace from time to time to help ease the breathing.
Guinea pigs can't breathe through their mouths, so any obstruction in the airways makes the breathing very noisy. it can sound much more alarming than in a human with a bad cold because of that. (PS: URI is a bacterial and not viral infection, so you can't catch if from your piggy - and neither will your piggy catch it normally from you although we ask people to please use common sense and good hygiene when they are ill).

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke I think it's Bactrim(?) that he's on. I'll insert a picture of it, it's just a whitish liquid.

Is Ribena a juice drink or something like that? We don't have it in Estonia, but I think we have similar drinks I could buy.
His breathing isn't as loud as yesterday today, but he is very sleepy and doesn't want anyone near him.
I haven't seen him use their bottle, should I syringe him water, too?

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke I think it's Bactrim(?) that he's on. I'll insert a picture of it, it's just a whitish liquid.
View attachment 44587
Is Ribena a juice drink or something like that? We don't have it in Estonia, but I think we have similar drinks I could buy.
His breathing isn't as loud as yesterday today, but he is very sleepy and doesn't want anyone near him.
I haven't seen him use their bottle, should I syringe him water, too?

Bactrim should taste a lot better than baytril; it is mostly used as a brand called septrin here in the UK so you won't need the ribena.
Please syringe water, too, as much as he will take, but depending on his age, never more than 1/3-1/2 of a syringe at once (which is about a mouthful). Please carefully read the links I have given you. They should hopefully help you. Please make sure that he gets at least 40-60 mls of syringe feed in 24 hours to keep him alive; he will need more once he is voer the crisis.

If you still struggle on your own, you can try giving the antibiotic by sitting him on your lap, facing away from you. lift his upper body against yours so you confine his movement with your own body, especially when he tries to turn his head away from the syringe.

Do you know what dosage and what concentration of bactrim you are giving and what weight your piggy roughly is?

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke I've been reading the links, I'll try wrapping him up like on the picture in one of the threads. I've been sitting him on my lap as you said and he still wriggles really hard.
Gnar's about 5 months old and weighs ~890g. I don't know the concentration, but I'm giving him 0,5ml twice a day.

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke I've been reading the links, I'll try wrapping him up like on the picture in one of the threads. I've been sitting him on my lap as you said and he still wriggles really hard.
Gnar's about 5 months old and weighs ~890g. I don't know the concentration, but I'm giving him 0,5ml twice a day.

That sounds reasonable if it is a similar simlar concentration to the pediatric septrin that is given over here. Just persist.
@Abi_nurse @helen105281

Try to establish your dominance by fondling his ears (friendly dominance) and by forcing his chin up (not so friendly dominance). Give him lots of piggy kisses afterwards by stoking the area around his eye to tell him that you love him and to praise lavishly what he is doing right.

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke thank you for your help I'll give an update in the evening after the second dose.

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke Hey, I just gave him his meds. It didn't go well, I tried sitting him on my lap as I always do, then I tried wrapping him up in a towel and since he's wriggling so hard, he got out of it easily. I'm so afraid of hurting him. He did get his meds down, because my mom helped me, but me and my mom both have to be able to do this on our own, because I'll be out of town Monday to Tuesday and I can't stay home, so my mom has to do this by herself then and other times I have to do this by myself, because my mom's working. I'm so nervous.
I have to give him his probiotics too, I have no idea how to do this, if he keeps fighting the syringe so angrily..
Atleast he's eating! They're in their playpen and he's been eating hay and pellets and I finally saw him drink, too.

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke Hey, I just gave him his meds. It didn't go well, I tried sitting him on my lap as I always do, then I tried wrapping him up in a towel and since he's wriggling so hard, he got out of it easily. I'm so afraid of hurting him. He did get his meds down, because my mom helped me, but me and my mom both have to be able to do this on our own, because I'll be out of town Monday to Tuesday and I can't stay home, so my mom has to do this by herself then and other times I have to do this by myself, because my mom's working. I'm so nervous.
I have to give him his probiotics too, I have no idea how to do this, if he keeps fighting the syringe so angrily..
Atleast he's eating! They're in their playpen and he's been eating hay and pellets and I finally saw him drink, too.

Be firm with him; you don't break him that easily! It is the mistake a lot of new owners make. To be honest, I wouldn't try wrapping as he will wiggle out of it most time. The best grip you can get is around the upper body where he can't push off you with his feet and so has less purchase. A lot of it simply practice and experience. Your nervousness is translating to you piggy.

You can offer the syinge feed with some probiotics mixed in in a little dish and see whether he takes it like that if he is eating on his own.

 

[Wiebke]

Here is how I am holding my Pili Pala (Welsh for Butterfly) against my body - see how front paws are between my fingers so I use my thump and second finger to help push up the head and still got my left hand free for the syringe? This position also allows me to lean back a bit to provide less purchase for her back legs.

It is mostly a matter of finding out what works for you until you can get the hang of it.

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke he actually will pull his head out of my grip? I don't know how to explain this, I'm holding his upper body, like in the "Administering Medications" thread and he'll go down, like a ball and pull his head out? I'll try holding his front paws as you showed.
Also, we've tried giving it in a dish, he doesn't like its taste so he won't eat it like that. That's why the vet said to give it with his favorite veggies, but he won't eat those either then.
Your piggy is gorgeous, too.

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke he actually will pull his head out of my grip? I don't know how to explain this, I'm holding his upper body, like in the "Administering Medications" thread and he'll go down, like a ball and pull his head out? I'll try holding his front paws as you showed.
Also, we've tried giving it in a dish, he doesn't like its taste so he won't eat it like that. That's why the vet said to give it with his favorite veggies, but he won't eat those either then.
Your piggy is gorgeous, too.

Many piggies don;t like the taste of syringe feed. have you tried giving mushed up pellets or half 'recovery/half syringe feed?

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke no I haven't, should I give it with a syringe or in a dish?

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke no I haven't, should I give it with a syringe or in a dish?

Try it in a dish first. You can mix the probiotic in as well.

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke okay, thank you! I'll let you know how it goes

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke Gnar just got his morning meds, but he started crying when he saw the syringe/smelled the meds.
I mixed pellets and the mix together and it works. He eats it out of the bowl, as long as it tastes like their pellets haha.
I gave them their morning veggies also, he's eating happily and fast, but he coughed two times. I made a thread about him I think a month ago, he'd been coughing then too, but only when he's eating. I think it was @helen105281 , who said that if he starts hooting or his breathing is laboured, then I should post again, but if not, he's probably just eating too fast. Could he be eating too fast again? His breathing hasn't been cracking and he's not as lethargic anymore.

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke Gnar just got his morning meds, but he started crying when he saw the syringe/smelled the meds.
I mixed pellets and the mix together and it works. He eats it out of the bowl, as long as it tastes like their pellets haha.
I gave them their morning veggies also, he's eating happily and fast, but he coughed two times. I made a thread about him I think a month ago, he'd been coughing then too, but only when he's eating. I think it was @helen105281 , who said that if he starts hooting or his breathing is laboured, then I should post again, but if not, he's probably just eating too fast. Could he be eating too fast again? His breathing hasn't been cracking and he's not as lethargic anymore.

Great that the mix is working. Keep on weighing to be sure that enough goes down.

it sounds like he is eating too fast. Hooting is more often from a blocked nose.
Only if coughing after eating and hooting are happening all the time and are really persistent does a check for heart problems come into play. You also want to see other symptoms that would indicate potential heart disease. You are definitely not there by a very long margin!

PS: I am very sorry, but you have to stay tough when it comes to medication... It is tough when you have not yet got the experience to handle a piggy and to push through this for its own sake.

 

[Bitsato]

Hey Gnar's doing well, he actually gained 30g this week! He's taking his meds like a little champ, doesn't squirm anymore. He'll be on his antibiotics until the 5th of April.
I now have another problem and I wasn't sure if I should post in this thread or make a new one, so I'll try in this one first.
Gnar's brother, Sneaky, is now jealous (if piggies can get jealous?). Every time I pick Gnar up, Sneaky starts "crying" and stops when I pet him/pick him up. Yes, Gnar has gotten a bit more attention (they both get laptime, but Gnar has been on my lap more, because of meds) and now it really looks like Sneaky is very jealous. If they're in their cage and I pick Gnar up, to give him his meds, Sneaky stays in the cage and starts crying and biting the bars of the cage. What should I do?

 

[Wiebke]

Hey Gnar's doing well, he actually gained 30g this week! He's taking his meds like a little champ, doesn't squirm anymore. He'll be on his antibiotics until the 5th of April.
I now have another problem and I wasn't sure if I should post in this thread or make a new one, so I'll try in this one first.
Gnar's brother, Sneaky, is now jealous (if piggies can get jealous?). Every time I pick Gnar up, Sneaky starts "crying" and stops when I pet him/pick him up. Yes, Gnar has gotten a bit more attention (they both get laptime, but Gnar has been on my lap more, because of meds) and now it really looks like Sneaky is very jealous. If they're in their cage and I pick Gnar up, to give him his meds, Sneaky stays in the cage and starts crying and biting the bars of the cage. What should I do?

Pick Sneaky up first, give him a little cuddle and some syringe training with a touch of water/fruit juice mix (so he will be used to a syringe whenever he needs one) before you treat Gnar. I would also recommend to handle his feet, so he gets used to that for nail cutting.

I suspect that Sneaky is the top boar? Always respect the piggy hierarchy and handle, treat and address the lead piggy fiirst.

 

[Bitsato]

@Wiebke Okay thanks, I'll do that. I'm not sure if Sneaky's the top one. I saw Gnar nibble on Sneaky's ear once (Sneaky really didn't like that), but when they're running around, then Sneaky is trying to mount Gnar pretty often.

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke Okay thanks, I'll do that. I'm not sure if Sneaky's the top one. I saw Gnar nibble on Sneaky's ear once (Sneaky really didn't like that), but when they're running around, then Sneaky is trying to mount Gnar pretty often.

If Gnar puts up a real fuss, then you know... and can adjust!