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Cystitis help please!

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i-love-pigs

i-love-pigs

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My 4 year old boy Mars has been battling a nasty urine infection/cystitis since Saturday when I noticed him struggling to pee and almost screaming (terrible high pitched pain squeak :( ). He was wet underneath and still the same Sunday. He has been on septrin twice a day and metacam once a day since Saturday morning and is less fluffed up, very little squeaking but he is quiet and hiding and totally off his pellets.

He is eating some hay and veggies and drinking but it is almost like he has given up and is not trying.

He had lost some weight when he was weighed on Saturday although he has been eating fine prior to this incident.

Any advice would be very appreciated as I have no experience of this with any of my boys. :(
 
I would monitor his weight daily. If he is still losing weight you may want to syringe feed him some mushed up pellets or Critical Care. My girl has recently got over a bout of cystitis and she was similar to this, puffed up and not interested in anything.
I don't really have any other suggestions I'm afraid. Hopefully the medications will kick in soon and he'll feel better.
 
Shellza said:
I would monitor his weight daily. If he is still losing weight you may want to syringe feed him some mushed up pellets or Critical Care. My girl has recently got over a bout of cystitis and she was similar to this, puffed up and not interested in anything.
I don't really have any other suggestions I'm afraid. Hopefully the medications will kick in soon and he'll feel better.
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Thanks. I might try to syringe him but he hates taking the meds so don't know how much success I will have! He has just tucked into some grass and herbs I picked but I am scared of upsetting his digestion if I give him too much grass and veggies but I suppose as long as he is eating something that's better than nothing.

How long did it take your piggie to pick up from the meds as Mars has had 3 full days dose now and although he seems in less pain I was hoping for more signs of recovery, or perhaps that is just wishful thinking.
 
It took a while for my girl to pick up too. At least 4 or 5 days. She was only on a weeks worth of meds, but luckily they seemed to do the job. She had Baytril instead of Septrin too, but I think Septrin is meant to be better for cystitis. As long as he is still eating hay and veg he should be ok, just keep an eye on him and monitor his weight daily.

I hope he perks up soon. It's such a worry when they look so down in the dumps :(
 
Please see your vet as soon as you can. Any piggy that is stopping to eat is severely ill.

Septrin can take a while to kick in and needs to be taken for at least 3-4 weeks to prevent a return, but a piggy going off food completely is not normal.

Please ask for metacam, a painkiller/anti-inflammatory; that helps to make the piggy feel better in himself and have more of an appetite (if you ever had cystitis yourself you know painful it is) and it also helps to reduce any inflammation.

Please have him x-rayed, preferably without or under only light anaesthesia to exclude the possibility of a bladder stone or sludge. It is always advisable to clear this point up early if there is the least suspicion.
http://www.guinealynx.info/uti.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/stones.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html
 
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Wiebke said:
Please see your vet as soon as you can. Any piggy that is stopping to eat is severely ill.

Septrin can take a while to kick in and needs to be taken for at least 3-4 weeks to prevent a return, but a piggy going off food completely is not normal.

Please ask for metacam, a painkiller/anti-inflammatory; that helps to make the piggy feel better in himself and have more of an appetite (if you ever had cystitis yourself you know painful it is) and it also helps to reduce any inflammation.

Please have him x-rayed, preferably without or under only light anaesthesia to exclude the possibility of a bladder stone or sludge. It is always advisable to clear this point up early if there is the least suspicion.
http://www.guinealynx.info/uti.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/stones.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html
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Hi, Mars hasn't stopped eating completely just his pellets he is ignoring and he is already on Metacam from his vets visit on Saturday.
 
Does your bottle give the strength of the suspension or say whether it is for dog or cats?

I wouldn't worry too much about not eating pellets; he is currently more after fresh food. Just up the amount of fresh veg you are feeding, especially any watery ones like cucumber and celery.
 
Salt n Peppers mum said:
Does it say on the bottle? Metacam often comes in a box too.
What does the Septrin smell like?
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The metacam just says oral suspension on the bottle. It smells disgusting and he hates the taste of this one.

The septrin smells yummy - like banana sweeties.

I will keep up the veggies - he is eating some cucumber now and some grass I picked in the pouring rain so it is good and wet - as am I!
 
i-love-pigs said:
The metacam just says oral suspension on the bottle. It smells disgusting and he hates the taste of this one.

The septrin smells yummy - like banana sweeties.

I will keep up the veggies - he is eating some cucumber now and some grass I picked in the pouring rain so it is good and wet - as am I!
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The banana one is the paediatric septrin and therefore the dose seems rather small. However, it depends on the weight of your piggie. How much does he weigh? If it is dog metacam the dose is rather large. The norm would be 0.1 ml up to twice a day.
 
furryfriends (Excellent Adventure Sanctuary) said:
The banana one is the paediatric septrin and therefore the dose seems rather small. However, it depends on the weight of your piggie. How much does he weigh? If it is dog metacam the dose is rather large. The norm would be 0.1 ml up to twice a day.
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Mars is just over a kilo in weight. I assumed it was dog as the vet said it was not specifically for piggies and he had to look up the dosage for the weight of pig and I thought he mentioned dogs in relation to reducing the dose but I can't really remember. If it was too much would he show any signs of OD?

I think I will have to make a return trip to the vets.
 
As Furryfriends said ^

Septrin paediatric - lower dose is 0.5mls to 1mls twice a day.
One of my piggies is on it now for cystitus at 0.8mls twice a day weighing in at over 1 kilo.

Dog metacam dosage recommended 0.1mls twice a day.
If its cat metacam the dosage would be different, maybe if you could find out it would make a big difference to his recovery.
 
My guinea is having the EXACT same problem but she is refusing to eat anything. She wont eat hay, wont eat pellets, and plays with her veggies but gets tired of chewing very quickly.

I have been spending nearly 4 hours a day giving her crit care, a veggie mush I made of her usual to keep her diet stable, cranberry and water for hydration, baytril 0.2mls twice a day (mixed with juice from a crushed orange segment) and metacam (cat 0.4mls once a day) neat. She used to weigh 1.1kg but has gone to 900gms and no matter how much food I try to give her she cant put on more. I give her about 18mls of crit care a day - in sessions of about 6mls.. After this point she is so angry with being force fed she wastes all her energy struggling and screaming at me! So much trouble.

Metacam seems to be the ONLY thing she will entertain without too much force.

Took her to the vets today for an xray but they found nothing. They're keeping her over night to monitor her. Feel sick with nerves for her!

Good luck with your little guy, at least he is eating his hay!
 
Dusty_bugs said:
My guinea is having the EXACT same problem but she is refusing to eat anything. She wont eat hay, wont eat pellets, and plays with her veggies but gets tired of chewing very quickly.

I have been spending nearly 4 hours a day giving her crit care, a veggie mush I made of her usual to keep her diet stable, cranberry and water for hydration, baytril 0.2mls twice a day (mixed with juice from a crushed orange segment) and metacam (cat 0.4mls once a day) neat. She used to weigh 1.1kg but has gone to 900gms and no matter how much food I try to give her she cant put on more. I give her about 18mls of crit care a day - in sessions of about 6mls.. After this point she is so angry with being force fed she wastes all her energy struggling and screaming at me! So much trouble.

Metacam seems to be the ONLY thing she will entertain without too much force.

Took her to the vets today for an xray but they found nothing. They're keeping her over night to monitor her. Feel sick with nerves for her!

Good luck with your little guy, at least he is eating his hay!
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You need to give 120 mls of syringe food per 24 hours to a piggie who isn't eating anything. They should be able to take 25 to 30 mls per sitting.
 
Salt n Peppers mum said:
As Furryfriends said ^

Septrin paediatric - lower dose is 0.5mls to 1mls twice a day.
One of my piggies is on it now for cystitus at 0.8mls twice a day weighing in at over 1 kilo.

Dog metacam dosage recommended 0.1mls twice a day.
If its cat metacam the dosage would be different, maybe if you could find out it would make a big difference to his recovery.
Click to expand...

Cat Metacam dosage is 0.3 mls twice a day
 
furryfriends (Excellent Adventure Sanctuary) said:
You need to give 120 mls of syringe food per 24 hours to a piggie who isn't eating anything. They should be able to take 25 to 30 mls per sitting.
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yeah, that's what I've always imagined aiming for, but I'm still boobing it up. On the packet of critcare it says 3tbsp's of powder per piggy kilo a day. I get about 5 to 6 x 3ml syringes out of 1tbsp...so for the max amount I would calculate out of that I would guess she'd be needing about 50 ml? Is it the oxbow stuff you use aswell?

I'm really going to have to toughen up on these feeds. We manage 0.2ml squirts before it comes back out of her mouth generally. To get (most of) a 3ml syringe down her, it can take 15 minutes. Am I not putting the syringe far back enough in her mouth? What is the ideal amount to squirt?

Alot of the time she spends trying to wriggle free, squeeling, freezing (not chewing). Otherwise the shots of feed would be successive. It's impossible getting one person to hold her and feed without her head going exorcist. I have small hands so find it difficult to support her body and position her head. We've tried different positions to see if she is more comfy vertical or on her front.. But as soon as you apply pressure to her cheeks she screams at you and burrows. So you have to go for the in/out approach.. I did it with meds which was relatively quick so she just sat it out, but not so with feed.

I will have her back tomorrow from the vets assuming they shrug their shoulders as to why she is still not eating. Also after tomorrow night I will have 6 days off so I can do feeds maybe 7 times not 4 and for less time so she doesnt panic for as long

I'm desperado to get more in her over the time we're spending.
 
If you can PM me a number I can call you on tomorrow, I will give you some advice and tips for syringe feeding. I find using a 1 ml syringe with the end cut off the easiest to use. You can then syringe in the full 1 ml and they should swallow it as you re-fill the syringe and be ready to take the next one.

Anyway it would be easier to talk to you than try and put it all down on here, especially when I am tired and my eyes won't even focus on the screen! :))
 
absolutely, plus I have just mini hijacked I-love-pig's topic! RUDE!

I-love-pigs, please do let us know how he gets on.. I'm very keen to compare his recovery rate with my guinea as they are both non nibblers! thankyoooooou!
 
Hi,

My P initially was on .6 twice daily of the child septrin initially when his IC (interstitial cystitis) when it first appeared generally when the illness first gripped P after 3 days the blood and squeaking would clear only to return a week later.

As you say he has weight loss and is squealing in pain I really would be very keen to have him Xray'ed, crying I would expect but I wouldn't expect him to be squealing with pain.

Metacam is great for pain relief, however long term management I found P functioned very well on Tramadol (Opium) pain killer happy to supply dose via pm.

Barley water - is super for lining the bladder, if you buy pearl barley from the supermarket line a pan of about 3 cm put double the amount of water in. Boil for 30 - 45 mins adding water when needed, it thicken's and becomes a gloupy substance. I know he's not keen on syringes but even my most cowardly pig who's never had a syringe in his life will run up for pearl barley, it's a real hit with my pigs.

Also cystease can be useful, in lining the bladder.

Good Luck x
 
Dusty_bugs said:
absolutely, plus I have just mini hijacked I-love-pig's topic! RUDE!

I-love-pigs, please do let us know how he gets on.. I'm very keen to compare his recovery rate with my guinea as they are both non nibblers! thankyoooooou!
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Don't worry about hijacking - it's great to have all this help and support in one place! Hope your piggie picks up soon, they are such sensitive little creatures.

I have been out foraging for decent grass and he has eaten quite a bit of veggies and herbs this morning. Still not eaten his pellets but he enjoyed some free ranging on the lounge floor last night as its too cold out now. Less wet this morning and fighting the meds more so he must be feeling brighter.

Flintstones - thanks for the pearl barley tips, I will try him later.
 
Got a fabulous call from furryfriends earlier today and she reassured me about syringe technique, quantity and we discussed my piggy's recent status following her return from the vets this morning. And to my sheer delight I was able to feed my girl 5mls of crit care in less than 10 minutes and then 2mls of pineapple juice and 1ml of gut moving stuff (I've forgotten then name).. Iformectin? If.. something. It would have taken over an hour before but this took 15 minutes!

The vet says as far as they know the urine infection started the decline in hunger, then one tooth grew a little so chewing looked difficult, then she bunged up from not having regular food intake, then she had diarrhoea from the painkillers, but now she is experimenting with more food so fingers crossed she's on the mend.. slowly!
 
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