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Dental op done but now muscle problems?

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katiewoo101

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Hi there,

Hoping some of you knowledgable people can help me and Lola!

She is two and a half and usually very healthy. After observing her not eating well last week, I took her to the vets who gave her a dental op under GA. It transpired that one side was completely growing the wrong way, and the other was nearly all gone due to eating all on this side to compensate. She had the overgrown teeth sorted, and I took her home that night. She would not eat the next day, but they told me she should be fine, so I took her back and they said to give it another 24hours, but to syringe feed with critical care. I tried this, she did take it but obviously really doesnt like it! Her weight continued to go down, so I took her back on Sunday. They took abit off her front bottom teeth, and then said they would keep her in. They thought there may be something wrong with her jaw. I went back to collect her yesterday as they said she had improved, and their advice is two drops of meloxidyl orally every day, until Saturday, along with critical care through syringe, when they said to take her back again. They put it down to a muscle problem as her teeth were so bad at the back, so mismatched, and think it will get better with time. She now weighs 730g from originally around 950g. I am so worried! Ive tried critical care with syringe but she seems so unhappy and doesnt enjoy it. I blended cucumber and grapes up last night and syringe fed her 15ml in total of that which she seemed to enjoy, but her tongue works very hard, its much more visible than normal, and she seems to really struggle. She really wants hay and grain,green beans etc, squeaks like mad, but just cant manage it. Does anyone have any advice as to how to get her weight up?Any food they really love blended up?! She lives with her best friend Nala who is three, and I have them indoors at the moment. Ive got her on a heat pad to keep her warm. I know money is not at all the point but I have already spent £250 on vets bills and its so upsetting to see her seem to be no better. The other things I am unsure of,
How much critical care should they have a day?
What weight becomes dangerous for a guinea pigs health? I just want to see her back to her hapy self, the worry is just horrible.
Thanks in advance for any advice, sorry its so long winded but didnt want to miss anything!
Kate
 
its poss she need daktarin gel from the chemist its 0.5mls 3 times a day give before syringe feeds, why the vet took some off the front teeth a day or 2 later i really dont know:{ i understand about the jaw not meeting which can take along time to go right but only once they are wearing their own teeth down, she WILL need more teeth treatment in a week or 2 so its very important you find a vet that will do her teeth with out a GA as it really isnt needed...

its also very poss that the vet as taken to much off her teeth in one go as the teeth should be trimmed in periods IF they are very tall (at the back)..

normally the teeth trap the tounge when they over grow, and into the cheeks which as a negitive affect on the front teeth IE making them slanted, broken, curl inwards.

i reallyl think you need to find another vet that will look at her teeth again with out GA as i feel they may not have done them right, if they have been done wrong it can make the problem even worse.

you need to be getting 120 mls syringe feed down her every 24 hours plus feed her probiotic via the syringe,

try getting burgess excel blackcurrent and origarno pellets pour boiling water on them (cover the pellets) wait 15 mins, poor more boiling water on them and wait another 15 mins and mush with a fork, then wait until cool and syringe feed this..

you can also buy veg baby food and syringe feed this or just mix a bit into the mushed pellets...

1 dental treatment does not sort of the problem they always 9 times out of 10 need treatment again normally every 2 wks..

she will not cope with a GA all the time this is why its very important you find a vet that will do it with out GA...

whicharea are you in someone can recommend a guinea vet that will do them with out GA and saving you a fortune x
 
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There aren't many vets that will do dental work without GA in my experience. Rodentologists are your best bet as they are trained to do dental work without GA so if you contact the CCT ( cavy cambridge trust ) they may be able to recommend a rodentologist in your area. As Claire said if you let us know your location someone may know a good vet in your area they can recommend.

The fact that she is showing interest in food is a good sign, it sounds as though she wants to eat but can't indicating discomfort in her mouth. Daktarin oral gel will hopefully sooth her mouth and enable her to eat.

Is it the oxbow critical care that your syringe feeding her? As I have used this with poorly piggies in the past and they have loved it so if your using a different brand it may be worth seeing if you can get some of this. Alternatively as Claire suggested making the slurry mix out of the pellets is a good alternative.

If she's not eating her veggies she will also need a vitamin c supplement as they can't produce their own. I believe 30 - 50mg per day is about whats recommended so if you buy a tub of 100mg tablets then cut it in half, grind it to a powder with the back of a spoon and I tend to mix it with a little water then syringe feed it.

As for food each pig will have its own favourites but parsley is normally a good one, you could also try grating things like carrot and putting that in to see if thats any easier for her to eat.

Please keep us updated x
 
I bought the burgess pellets and tried them this afternoon, but didnt have much joy. It is the oxbow critical care I'm using, she just really doesnt seem to like it! My vets are usually excellent, but i appreciate the advice of a second opinion. I live in Worcester. Ive been looking on here tonight and have found afew similar threads, the wanting to eat but cant, dropping food etc. I rang my vets today to ask how much critical care I should be giving a day and they said 20ml a day was enough, but on here people seem to give alot more? I'm petrified of her not having enough food but she literally will not take it, she just spits it out and hides even when me and my boyfriend feed her together with her wrapped in a towel! Its such a battle and she gets so distressed. I will buy some of the gel you recommended tomorrow, and hopefully that will help. I think there may be a rodentologist in Worcester judging from some of the posts on here, so will try and contact CCT tomorrow also to see if they can advise me. Ive also noticed tonight her top and bottom front teeth do not meet, they are offset so to speak, could this be a problem too? And she now has a white milky liquid coming from her eyes! Poor Lola.
Thanks again,
Kate and Lola xx
 
katiewoo101 said:
I bought the burgess pellets and tried them this afternoon, but didnt have much joy. It is the oxbow critical care I'm using, she just really doesnt seem to like it! My vets are usually excellent, but i appreciate the advice of a second opinion. I live in Worcester. Ive been looking on here tonight and have found afew similar threads, the wanting to eat but cant, dropping food etc. I rang my vets today to ask how much critical care I should be giving a day and they said 20ml a day was enough, but on here people seem to give alot more? I'm petrified of her not having enough food but she literally will not take it, she just spits it out and hides even when me and my boyfriend feed her together with her wrapped in a towel! Its such a battle and she gets so distressed. I will buy some of the gel you recommended tomorrow, and hopefully that will help. I think there may be a rodentologist in Worcester judging from some of the posts on here, so will try and contact CCT tomorrow also to see if they can advise me. Ive also noticed tonight her top and bottom front teeth do not meet, they are offset so to speak, could this be a problem too? And she now has a white milky liquid coming from her eyes! Poor Lola.
Thanks again,
Kate and Lola xx
Click to expand...

Hi
I don't have anything to add except to say hope she goes on ok & the milky white fluid is normal. Pigs excrete this to wash themselves with :)
 
Hi
I have a dental pig. He started the same way and had a dental under GA which didn't make any difference.
I initially fed him critical care and found it a complete nightmare - just getting him to take 1ml was a triumph! Fortunately I found that he really liked the Burgess Excel pellets mushed up, and he gradually accepted syringe feeding with much more relish after that. He now stands happily on my lap with no restraint at all and seeks out the syringe for his feed. He can motor through 20 or 30 syringes quite easily in a sitting. He is also banana crazy (I know too much banana is not the dietary ideal, but in these situations anything to get some weight on is more important).
Gig has now dropped from 4 or 5 feeds a day to just one maintenance feed in the evening. He is struggling still, but over the course of a day he manages to get an adequate quantity. He is still having banana daily as he finds it so much easier to eat than anything else.
I would keep experimenting with anything you can think of in the hope of finding something easy to eat that your piggy approves of. (It can be a time consuming process).
I must stress that Giggy is still here only thanks to the efforts of a local rodentologist who does his teeth every two or three weeks for me.
Very best of luck with your piggy. Lots of people have pigs who revert to eating normally again as quickly as they stopped.
 
AP i think must be quite near you. Can you post an email address as i can't Pm you and i'll send you his number. He is very knowledgable about guineas and may be able to help x
 
I don't know if this will help but when my pig had her 1st dental she couldn't pick up food to eat and was really against syringe feeding. So I started mixing burgess excel with hot water and forming a paste (not watery) which she licked of the end of my fingers. It was so much easier than syringed force feeding, which she used to get distressed about.
 
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