Critical care - should I give it now and how much

[ConfusedMamapig]

Hi there. I posted a few days ago about my little one year old piggie Whizz who has a recently been diagnosed with a bladder stone, arthritic knees and overgrown tooth roots. A week ago we found blood in his urine and the vet put him on metacam and Nutracys+ and we were told to monitor him for two weeks. His weight was holding fast at 860g but today he is down to 830g. He is still happily eating his veggies, pellets are being left and although I see him eating hay I suspect he is not eating as much as my others (he is spending a lot of time in his hidey). He is back at the vets at 6pm today as we had more blood in his urine over the weekend and he is developing bald patches. My question is should I start him on critical care because of the 30g weight loss (that was over a two day period)? I have never given it before. I have the pack and a 1ml syringe. If I should start him on it, how much should I aim to give and how often? Do I mix with warm water, what sort of consistency am I aiming for? Will he likely take it from a bowl or is a syringe best? I have read the emergency feeding guide but am after a bit of guidance specific to Whizz. Thank you so much. Very worried about the little chap.

 

[Swissgreys]

It is good you have the vet again today and it sounds like Whizz has a lot going on.

In the short term (between now and tonight) I would consider offering some pellet mash made with his regular pellets soaked in water, or Critical Care in a bowl.
I wouldn't personally stress him too much by syringe feeding as he is seeing the vet in a few hours anyway.
However you can also try offering him a syringe of Critical Care (or pellet mush) while he is in his cage.
I have had piggies push ups to the bars for this and take it quite willingly (but it's not common).

 

[Piggies&buns]

Also to ensure there is plenty of hay near and in his hidey so he doesnt have to come out for it.

On its own 30g over two days isnt concerning (50g or more in 24 hours is concerning) but as you know he isnt well then there is absolutely no harm in offering him top ups to stop his weight from dropping.

In terms of how much, there is no magic number, it comes down to how much an individual piggy needs to maintain their weight and that depends on how much hay they are continuing to eat for themselves.
Recovery feed/mushed pellets can be a few ml as a boost/top up a few times a day for a piggy who is still eating right up to needing 120ml of syringe feed in a 24 hour period, fed every couple of hours for a piggy who isnt eating anything for themselves.
Consistency - as thin as necessary for it to go through a syringe. If he will eat it himself from a bowl, then as above, mix some pellets with some water, it doesnt have to be runny if it isnt going through a syringe.

 

[ConfusedMamapig]

Thank you! I have mixed up a little bowl of critical care and he's licked around it. I'll leave it in his cage and see how he gets on. I have also popped some hay right by his hidey... I agree with not doing anything to stress him further. He's not surprisingly a bit out of sorts. This is probably a daft question but while he's eating less hay he still loves his little bundle of handpicked grass (he's an indoor piggie). Are there any risks in upping his grass while he's off the hay? He is on a low calcium diet, not sure if that is relevant.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thank you! I have mixed up a little bowl of critical care and he's licked around it. I'll leave it in his cage and see how he gets on. I have also popped some hay right by his hidey... I agree with not doing anything to stress him further. He's not surprisingly a bit out of sorts. This is probably a daft question but while he's eating less hay he still loves his little bundle of handpicked grass (he's an indoor piggie). Are there any risks in upping his grass while he's off the hay? He is on a low calcium diet, not sure if that is relevant.

If he is used to eating grass and doesn’t have any stomach upsets, then it’s fine to continue to give him grass.
(What you don’t want to do is give grass to a piggy suffering with soft poops or suddenly give lot of grass to a piggy whose digestive system isn’t used to it as that will cause digestive upsets).

 

[Wiebke]

Hi there. I posted a few days ago about my little one year old piggie Whizz who has a recently been diagnosed with a bladder stone, arthritic knees and overgrown tooth roots. A week ago we found blood in his urine and the vet put him on metacam and Nutracys+ and we were told to monitor him for two weeks. His weight was holding fast at 860g but today he is down to 830g. He is still happily eating his veggies, pellets are being left and although I see him eating hay I suspect he is not eating as much as my others (he is spending a lot of time in his hidey). He is back at the vets at 6pm today as we had more blood in his urine over the weekend and he is developing bald patches. My question is should I start him on critical care because of the 30g weight loss (that was over a two day period)? I have never given it before. I have the pack and a 1ml syringe. If I should start him on it, how much should I aim to give and how often? Do I mix with warm water, what sort of consistency am I aiming for? Will he likely take it from a bowl or is a syringe best? I have read the emergency feeding guide but am after a bit of guidance specific to Whizz. Thank you so much. Very worried about the little chap.

Hi!

30g is just the difference between a full and an empty tummy so it is not very dramatic.

If he continues to loose weight, then you can step in. Give him as much as he will take while he is still eating normally for as long as he is still eating and the weight loss is not dramatic (see recovery/top up feeding chapter in the syringe feeding guide). Follow the advice on the packaging for making up the mix.
If he doesn't like it, you can mix it with mushed up pellets but in this case you need to cut off the syringe tip with scissors just below where it widens in order to allow the much larger pellet fibre particles pass through while still holding the plunger in.
Please take the time to read our syringe feeding guide and follow the practical step-by-step advice in there.
Here is the link: Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

You may want to bookmark our Emergency and Crisis guide link; it contains all the practical information links and resources that you need to get your piggy through a rough spot: Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment

All the best!

 

[ConfusedMamapig]

Thanks for that. Those guides are really useful. It's our first time dealing with a poorly piggie so all a bit new. I know its not a massive weight loss but he's so scrawny now poor thing, three months ago (before all this) he was 925g and steadily gaining.

He has eaten some of the critical care mix from the bowl I gave him. I shall keep weighing him at the same time each day to track how he's doing .

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks for that. Those guides are really useful. It's our first time dealing with a poorly piggie so all a bit new. I know its not a massive weight loss but he's so scrawny now poor thing, three months ago (before all this) he was 925g and steadily gaining.

He has eaten some of the critical care mix from the bowl I gave him. I shall keep weighing him at the same time each day to track how he's doing .

Weighing is the best way to keep track as it give you up to date input in whether your piggy is eating enough to hold their weight, can cope with some voluntary extra feed or needs syringe feeding care, which you step up to round the clock care if your piggy loses their appetite completely.

I am currently at with two boars of mine. One who is mostly cooperating and who has started to nibble grass again (yesterday he literally ran away from it and would eat only syringe feed, and that not very willingly after the initial 2-3 ml) and the other I have to push through total loss of appetite and total lack of cooperation to get him through the crisis.

 

[ConfusedMamapig]

That makes sense! I have never taken as much interest in poos, wees and weight as I have the last week! I am definitely feeling more confident about what to do... That is good news about one of your boys. I hope the other chap picks up soon too. Do piggies tend to recover their appetite by themselves when they are feeling better or do some of them need a bit of prompting?

 

[Wiebke]

That makes sense! I have never taken as much interest in poos, wees and weight as I have the last week! I am definitely feeling more confident about what to do... That is good news about one of your boys. I hope the other chap picks up soon too. Do piggies tend to recover their appetite by themselves when they are feeling better or do some of them need a bit of prompting?

Recovery is a fluid process. It can range from force feeding (only that you please NEVER just squirt food into the mouth without any regard as to how much a piggy can hold in their mouth and whether they can swallow well or not/how weak they are) to trying to tempt a piggy with a little grass or fresh herbs. The next step is to offer some normal feed in the middle of a syringe feeding session; the syringe feed can trigger the appetite but then you make up for a mini portion of normal food with topping up feed to finish off the session. You will find that as a piggy recovers so they can take more feed on board and you can reduce the frequency of feeding sessions.

At the moment, I am on a 2 hour interval with both boys during the day until a late night feed before I go to bed, a night feed if a piggy really struggles and then starting the process all over again. Both are still at the 5-10 ml per sessions although Gareth is starting to take a little more now so I have started him on the recovery path.
Alan is still on crisis feeding but he is starting to put up a little less of a fight as he is realising that food in the tummy (plus painkillers and gut stimulants) is making him feel better until he can be seen by a specialist vet.

Practice and confidence are important. You can also assert your authority with piggy whispering. If a piggy feels that they cannot get away with any shenanigans, they will submit and cooperate noticeably more. It is the same with all grooming. You learn and gain experience by doing it.

This Gareth just having found his interest in nibbling on a little grass (an I mean little) again.


And this is Alan, who has no appetite at all and who needs his head immobilised to get some feed in.

 

[ConfusedMamapig]

Oh adorable boys. It sounds like you have your hands full with those round the clock feeds. Good luck, I hope they get their appetites back soon. You're so right piggies do sense if they can get away with things...

 

[Wiebke]

Oh adorable boys. It sounds like you have your hands full with those round the clock feeds. Good luck, I hope they get their appetites back soon. You're so right piggies do sense if they can get away with things...

Thank you - it's been full on for the last 2 weeks with a number of issues and one loss. The disadvantage of having lots of piggies...

All the best for yours!