Critical Care Feeding?

[Hank288]

Hi,
Dotty's abscess is not getting any better and she has had the whole course of antibiotics now. She is currently at my mums house as I was on holiday for a bit. Mum is syringe feeding her twice a day and can't do much more as she is working. She feeds 2 teaspoons of crushed pellets with a pinch of pro-c probiotics mixed with water twice a day. She probably has 30-40 mls per day. She has also said she is still eating hay and grass and will eat veg when chopped up really small.
She now only weighs 780grams and has lost about half of her body weight since before her first dental surgery 2.5 months ago.

We are looking to perk her up a bit while we are making her comfortable as there is nothing more we can do. She is also on 0.3mls metacam morning and night.
I have looked at critical care but am unsure whether to get the oxbow one or the vert ark one. Also whether to get the fine grind or normal oxbow.

How much do you use for each syringe feed? I also need to know if I need 450g of the 150g bags.

My mum wants to know if there is anything else we can feed her to fatten her up a bit more? I remember reading that you could feed certain kinds of baby food?

Please advise me as we are just trying to make her as comfortable as possible.

 

[Wiebke]

What antibiotic has your guinea pig been on? if the abscess has not got any better, you may have to either switch to a stronger or your vet may need to consider lancing or operating, depending on where it is.

It doesn't really matter all that much which recovery food your are giving; personally, I find that the vetark one goes down easier and better accepted. A healthy guinea pig eats about 120ml in solids per day to keep up the weight, older piggies somewhat less. Considering the weight loss, 30-40g daily are not enough; it is the amount to keep a guinea pig that is not eating at all just about alive through an acute crisis.
Here is our syringe feeding guide, which gives you all the information, including amounts in various situations. It also addresses your other questions. Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

Wishing you and your mum all the best.

@furryfriends (TEAS) @MintyAndGarry (TEAS)

 

[Hank288]

She was on Zithromax with the abscess closed. The only option would be to open it up with another operation. I am not going to put her through that as I cannot really afford it and I think it is a nasty operation and she will not enjoy the aftercare at all. I wouldn't like someone squeezing pus out and flushing my face twice a day. Plus there is a chance that she still may not recover.
I have tried a lot for her and the vets bills have been huge and unfortunately I had to draw the line somewhere.

I have the syringe feeding guide, we have been doing this with her crushed up food. But I thought that critical care might have more nutritional content in it. I will order the vet ark one as it is cheaper as well.

I shall let my mum know that we need to get more into her. Though it is hard work as she has a full time job and dotty gets bored very easily when eating. I am going to collect her next week and bring her back here but I would only be able to feed her 3 times a day max as I work every morning.
How would I manage to get 120ml down her?

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

I have replied to your post you have put on Facebook. I am offering Dotty a permanent place at TEAS x

 

[biscandmatt]

we use the critical care normal one and i think it's really great. it's best made up 1/3 with water. i usually use a tbsp or two per feed so i'd always get the larger bag as it does go down quickly if you're doing regular feeds. i'd be wary of feeding baby food because they can unsettle the tummy in some pigs.

i don't think opening the abscess involves an operation does it? or if so, it'd probably be a light GA to get things started. nothing major i wouldn't have thought. the daily flushing will be hard work and a long process but combined with zithromax it is meant to work very well and be well tolerated by most piggies. our vets are very reasonable with payment plans. they have to get the ok from one of the partners (so aidan for piggies) and they're usually fine about it. might be a good option to discuss so you don't have to pay all at once

hope you can work something out x

eta: usually feeds are recommended at 15ml every 4-6 hours as a guide and adjusted depending on amount they'll take and how often, plus weight loss/stable/gain etc. x

 

[biscandmatt]

what is her weight loss like on 30-40ml feed per day? has it slowed down much?

 

[Wiebke]

I have replied to your post you have put on Facebook. I am offering Dotty a permanent place at TEAS x

That is great! Hopefully Simon can sort out the abscess and you the care, so Dotty can hopefully recover and return home well again in due time.

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

we use the critical care normal one and i think it's really great. it's best made up 1/3 with water. i usually use a tbsp or two per feed so i'd always get the larger bag as it does go down quickly if you're doing regular feeds. i'd be wary of feeding baby food because they can unsettle the tummy in some pigs.

i don't think opening the abscess involves an operation does it? or if so, it'd probably be a light GA to get things started. nothing major i wouldn't have thought. the daily flushing will be hard work and a long process but combined with zithromax it is meant to work very well and be well tolerated by most piggies. our vets are very reasonable with payment plans. they have to get the ok from one of the partners (so aidan for piggies) and they're usually fine about it. might be a good option to discuss so you don't have to pay all at once

hope you can work something out x

eta: usually feeds are recommended at 15ml every 4-6 hours as a guide and adjusted depending on amount they'll take and how often, plus weight loss/stable/gain etc. x

Whether an operation is required depends on the type of abscess. A lot of these dental abscesses can be very deep and in the bone.

 

[vickie bashford]

What antibiotic has your guinea pig been on? if the abscess has not got any better, you may have to either switch to a stronger or your vet may need to consider lancing or operating, depending on where it is.

It doesn't really matter all that much which recovery food your are giving; personally, I find that the vetark one goes down easier and better accepted. A healthy guinea pig eats about 120ml in solids per day to keep up the weight, older piggies somewhat less. Considering the weight loss, 30-40g daily are not enough; it is the amount to keep a guinea pig that is not eating at all just about alive through an acute crisis.
Here is our syringe feeding guide, which gives you all the information, including amounts in various situations. It also addresses your other questions. Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

Wishing you and your mum all the best.

@furryfriends (TEAS) @MintyAndGarry (TEAS)

hi one of my piggies are making a croacking sound is there anything to worry about cos if there is i will take him to the vet tomarrow hope somone gets back to me thanks xx

 

[Wiebke]

hi one of my piggies are making a croacking sound is there anything to worry about cos if there is i will take him to the vet tomarrow hope somone gets back to me thanks xx

|f the croaking sound persists or gets worse, please see a vet tomorrow or - in case of a deterioration (stopping to eat/drink, struggling to breathe, lethargy etc.) - an out-of-hours vet, the contact number of which you should find via your vet's answering machine message.

 

[vickie bashford]

|f the croaking sound persists or gets worse, please see a vet tomorrow or - in case of a deterioration (stopping to eat/drink, struggling to breathe, lethargy etc.) - an out-of-hours vet, the contact number of which you should find via your vet's answering machine message.

thank its not stoping him from eating n drinking he has been all day but somtime he duse it load and somtimes he duse it quite so i dont no we bathed him lastnight and ever sints that hes been doing it x

 

[Wiebke]

thank its not stoping him from eating n drinking he has been all day but somtime he duse it load and somtimes he duse it quite so i dont no we bathed him lastnight and ever sints that hes been doing it x

It would be best if you saw a vet tomorrow. It can be that he has either got some water going down during his bath or he is developing a respiratory infection (an infection in the breathing system). The sooner you can treat him, the easier it will be to get on top of it.