Lauree34
Junior Guinea Pig
Good evening everyone,
I just thought I would share my story with Mary Anne, my guinea pig, to help make sure I'm hopefully good choices and so on.
Back in July of this year, my guinea pig began having a wet bum, a foul smelling urine odor and began pulling her hair out around her butt. She began losing weight, dropping from 1188 grams to around average of 1050. I took her to my main exotic specialist doctor. I suggested a urine culture but he was hesitant to do one. He said it could poke through the bladder lining and kill her. So he gave her baytril, then added bactrim, after about 2 weeks because it was not going away. That ran for close to another two weeks, but it didn't appear to be fully gone when he stopped the meds. He felt it was interstitial cystitis with x-rays done and bloodwork but no culture. When I returned from vacation, and my sister watching the girls, a few days after I returned it's like all her symptoms came back with a vengeance. So, I ended up going to a different doctor who was not considered a specialist but gave her Bactrim for another 2 weeks or so, but when nothing changed, she wasn't sure what to do. So, after looking up Gabipentin, she prescribed her a small amount of that. Ultimately, it's like Mary Anne took a nosedive, she was under 1000 grams. She was not very vocal, lethargic and her bum was red, and she was once again chewing her hair out near her bum and the bottom junction of her legs. So, my Dad and brother suggested I take her to the emergency clinic in Naples, Florida. The doctor suggested doing a Cystocentsesis. I said ok, sure, not knowing what that was. It turns out it was a self guided or guided ultrasound of her bladder - a urine culture. He said her bladder was very large because she had been holding her urine, because she was in such pain. So it was definitely not a problem for him to put a needle in her bladder and withdraw the urine directly. He determined that the Baytril and Bactrim were not cutting it, to stop the baytril and keep her on the Meloxicam and Gabipentin. He prescribed her a 1 milliliter of Azythromycin for 2 weeks, and it worked! He did another urine culture and it cleared out the bacteria, no new bacteria. Now, my main doctor did not believe there was an infection, but strictly cystitis, but he saw the first urine culture results which had a high white blood cell count, which means she was fighting an infection. My main doctor said the cystitis would keep returning. But if you have an infection, pain meds are not going to correct the infection. So, I don't trust the main doctor, because he was unwilling or did not wish or know who to refer her to, for a culture. If she would not have had the culture, I don't know if she would be alive right now. It seems most places/people say the infection causes the cystitis. It's been about 2 weeks since she has been off Azithromycin, since the 2nd culture results were negative. But I'm concerned because many of symptoms she had, the swollen butt, the smelly urine, constant pee / pee on her bum again, are all returning. But, I've been reading the symptoms of cystitis are very similar to a UTI. And I can't explain it, but I feel like it's not quite as vicious for her as the infection was - it's been rough to get her to drink more water than she used to, and if she lays flat with her paws showing a wee bit, I know she comfy or fairly comfy. But some days are a bit better than others, like tonight. I gave her a bum bath, which she hates but I think it helped some. She does not appear to be chewing her hair out by her butt, she might be chewing some hair near her leg, but I'm monitoring her. I give her .20 milters of Meloxicam/Medcam, Gabapentin on standby at .10 twice a day. I give her liquid glucosamine at .25 once a day. It's glucosamine and chondroitin, all that stuff. I have a play area for them, to get Mary Anne to run around. I read that's good for her bladder, and clean their dirty hay out daily. I flip or change their fleece potty pads daily. I have probiotic powder for them - Ginger is her sister and very protective of her. I'm just not sure what else I should or can do - I don't know if I should take her back down to the Naples Emergency clinic and ask if he can do another culture to make sure it's not bacterial, because I know a UTI can return but I hope it has not. I also give them liquid vitamin C daily., cucumbers, green peppers, butter lettuce and red lettuce, tomatoes and carrots sparingly. I'm also working on expanding their cage. I just don't want to have her do another urine culture if not needed, because I know it hurts her and yes, it can be costly. But, I don't want another scenario to where she is in that horrible place four weeks ago to where her weight loss was more significant, lethargy, and much pain so she was not vocal. Between the bloodwork and x-rays I have had for her in the past two months, her kidney's are good, she has no stones etc., her lady parts are good, because she is not spayed. So, suggestions would be lovely, please. I've never been through this with a guinea pig, so I want to help Mary Anne hopefully fully recover, but I don't want to be remiss, and yet I don't want to overkill either. This has been very long so thank you for taking the time to read it.
Sincerely,
~Lauralee~
I just thought I would share my story with Mary Anne, my guinea pig, to help make sure I'm hopefully good choices and so on.
Back in July of this year, my guinea pig began having a wet bum, a foul smelling urine odor and began pulling her hair out around her butt. She began losing weight, dropping from 1188 grams to around average of 1050. I took her to my main exotic specialist doctor. I suggested a urine culture but he was hesitant to do one. He said it could poke through the bladder lining and kill her. So he gave her baytril, then added bactrim, after about 2 weeks because it was not going away. That ran for close to another two weeks, but it didn't appear to be fully gone when he stopped the meds. He felt it was interstitial cystitis with x-rays done and bloodwork but no culture. When I returned from vacation, and my sister watching the girls, a few days after I returned it's like all her symptoms came back with a vengeance. So, I ended up going to a different doctor who was not considered a specialist but gave her Bactrim for another 2 weeks or so, but when nothing changed, she wasn't sure what to do. So, after looking up Gabipentin, she prescribed her a small amount of that. Ultimately, it's like Mary Anne took a nosedive, she was under 1000 grams. She was not very vocal, lethargic and her bum was red, and she was once again chewing her hair out near her bum and the bottom junction of her legs. So, my Dad and brother suggested I take her to the emergency clinic in Naples, Florida. The doctor suggested doing a Cystocentsesis. I said ok, sure, not knowing what that was. It turns out it was a self guided or guided ultrasound of her bladder - a urine culture. He said her bladder was very large because she had been holding her urine, because she was in such pain. So it was definitely not a problem for him to put a needle in her bladder and withdraw the urine directly. He determined that the Baytril and Bactrim were not cutting it, to stop the baytril and keep her on the Meloxicam and Gabipentin. He prescribed her a 1 milliliter of Azythromycin for 2 weeks, and it worked! He did another urine culture and it cleared out the bacteria, no new bacteria. Now, my main doctor did not believe there was an infection, but strictly cystitis, but he saw the first urine culture results which had a high white blood cell count, which means she was fighting an infection. My main doctor said the cystitis would keep returning. But if you have an infection, pain meds are not going to correct the infection. So, I don't trust the main doctor, because he was unwilling or did not wish or know who to refer her to, for a culture. If she would not have had the culture, I don't know if she would be alive right now. It seems most places/people say the infection causes the cystitis. It's been about 2 weeks since she has been off Azithromycin, since the 2nd culture results were negative. But I'm concerned because many of symptoms she had, the swollen butt, the smelly urine, constant pee / pee on her bum again, are all returning. But, I've been reading the symptoms of cystitis are very similar to a UTI. And I can't explain it, but I feel like it's not quite as vicious for her as the infection was - it's been rough to get her to drink more water than she used to, and if she lays flat with her paws showing a wee bit, I know she comfy or fairly comfy. But some days are a bit better than others, like tonight. I gave her a bum bath, which she hates but I think it helped some. She does not appear to be chewing her hair out by her butt, she might be chewing some hair near her leg, but I'm monitoring her. I give her .20 milters of Meloxicam/Medcam, Gabapentin on standby at .10 twice a day. I give her liquid glucosamine at .25 once a day. It's glucosamine and chondroitin, all that stuff. I have a play area for them, to get Mary Anne to run around. I read that's good for her bladder, and clean their dirty hay out daily. I flip or change their fleece potty pads daily. I have probiotic powder for them - Ginger is her sister and very protective of her. I'm just not sure what else I should or can do - I don't know if I should take her back down to the Naples Emergency clinic and ask if he can do another culture to make sure it's not bacterial, because I know a UTI can return but I hope it has not. I also give them liquid vitamin C daily., cucumbers, green peppers, butter lettuce and red lettuce, tomatoes and carrots sparingly. I'm also working on expanding their cage. I just don't want to have her do another urine culture if not needed, because I know it hurts her and yes, it can be costly. But, I don't want another scenario to where she is in that horrible place four weeks ago to where her weight loss was more significant, lethargy, and much pain so she was not vocal. Between the bloodwork and x-rays I have had for her in the past two months, her kidney's are good, she has no stones etc., her lady parts are good, because she is not spayed. So, suggestions would be lovely, please. I've never been through this with a guinea pig, so I want to help Mary Anne hopefully fully recover, but I don't want to be remiss, and yet I don't want to overkill either. This has been very long so thank you for taking the time to read it.
Sincerely,
~Lauralee~
