Diarrhea And Probiotics

[Shauny]

Hi,

I think my Taffy has diarrhoea. Last week she was prescribed baytryl for a torn/infected nail. She was on it for 7 days which ended on Saturday. However I read that probiotics would help whilst she was on the baytryl, so I ordered some proC by VetArk.

I put the the probiotics in the water a couple of days ago and then noticed this morning that it looked like the water had gone moldy! I quickly emptied it, scrubbed the bottle an put fresh water back in. I normally give them fresh water every couple of days or so (they have 600ml water bottles which I fill up to the top). About an hr ago I noticed Taffy had done a small amount of wet poop (it was both kinda solid an watery at the same time). I totally didn't think about the probiotics in the water going bad, do you think this has caused her to get diarhea?

I've given her some more fresh water with a scoop of the probiotics back in (though I'll be making sure to clean out regularly), along with lots of hay.

Sorry it's so late at night, can't sleep I worry too much. I feel so awful that I might have made things so much worse for her.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi,

I think my Taffy has diarrhoea. Last week she was prescribed baytryl for a torn/infected nail. She was on it for 7 days which ended on Saturday. However I read that probiotics would help whilst she was on the baytryl, so I ordered some proC by VetArk.

I put the the probiotics in the water a couple of days ago and then noticed this morning that it looked like the water had gone moldy! I quickly emptied it, scrubbed the bottle an put fresh water back in. I normally give them fresh water every couple of days or so (they have 600ml water bottles which I fill up to the top). About an hr ago I noticed Taffy had done a small amount of wet poop (it was both kinda solid an watery at the same time). I totally didn't think about the probiotics in the water going bad, do you think this has caused her to get diarhea?

I've given her some more fresh water with a scoop of the probiotics back in (though I'll be making sure to clean out regularly), along with lots of hay.

Sorry it's so late at night, can't sleep I worry too much. I feel so awful that I might have made things so much worse for her.

I am very sorry for your problems. Baytril can soften the poo and can cause diarrhea in some piggies; it is well known for being harsh on the guts. Please take any guinea pig with diarrhea off any fresh food and just keep it on fibre until at least 24, better 48 hours after the poos have firmed up. Then you can slowly and gradually re-introduce fresh veg again. A bit of brown cardboard or toilet/kitchen roll inners can also help with stabilising the guts.

Please give a pinch of probiotic 1-2 hours after the antibiotic for best effect, ideally you dissolve it in a syringeful of water and syringe it, so you know that all goes where it has to. In piggies with working tummies, you can alternatively give the pinch on a bit of their favourite veg. Never give any medication or supplements via the water, as a) the water goes off in no time flat (as you have found out the hard way) and b) you can't control the intake. Most guinea pigs drink noticeably less when the water has been tampered with. Please change it daily.

If Taffy has got a healthy companion, you can also give her poo soup. That is the water in which you have soaked some very fresh poos from her companion; it contains some of the "right" stuff for the guts. While it is rather gross for us humans, it mimics what piggies do instinctively, and it is generally quite a hit with the piggies.

Contact your vet if the diarrhea is not firming up and ask for a change of antibiotic. We have got a piggy savvy vet locator on the top bar if you wish a second opinion.

All the best!

PS: I use to have a sow called Taffy, too. Sadly, she passed away last November, aged 6 years.

 

[BonBon2010]

P@H do probiotics in a powder form (Pro-C), I can swear by it, sprinkle it on her nuggets rather than add it to water - also recommend fibre plex from the vet.

 

[Shauny]

Thanks for the quick reply last night, I saw the email come through but unfortunately wasn't able to login on the site to read the message due a 'data base error'. All is fine this morning though.

When I check on her this morning all the poops are solid again (just a bit softer than normal) so hopefully this is a good sign. I have changed the water back to fresh water with no proC in anyway. I've mixed some of the probiotics in with there pellets though.

We have 2 other healthy piggies in another cage so used their poops to make her a poop soup, she was being a madam and was'nt having any of it though. With her poops being solid however we gave her a little bit of cos lettuce with the proC sprinkled on. Will try again tonight with the 'soup'.

I'm off to work but the other half is at home all day so is going to watch over her.

@Wiebke i'm sorry for your loss of your little Taffy, 6 years is a good old age for piggy.

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks for the quick reply last night, I saw the email come through but unfortunately wasn't able to login on the site to read the message due a 'data base error'. All is fine this morning though.

When I check on her this morning all the poops are solid again (just a bit softer than normal) so hopefully this is a good sign. I have changed the water back to fresh water with no proC in anyway. I've mixed some of the probiotics in with there pellets though.

We have 2 other healthy piggies in another cage so used their poops to make her a poop soup, she was being a madam and wasn't having any of it though. With her poops being solid however we gave her a little bit of cos lettuce with the proC sprinkled on. Will try again tonight with the 'soup'.

I'm off to work but the other half is at home all day so is going to watch over her.

@Wiebke i'm sorry for your loss of your little Taffy, 6 years is a good old age for piggy.

That is great news! Hopefully, your Taffy will be as good as new again soon! I would recommend that you ask your vet in the future to consider other antibiotics like septrin after her bad reaction. Baytril is still the only officially licensed antibiotic and therefore the first one to use, but it is the one that is harshest on the guts of the range that is nowadays used for guinea pigs. You will have to sign a form with any unlicensed medication.

My Taffy was either the last one or one of the last from a large rodent rescue action from truly horrible surroundings; she was one of over 40 mostly pregnant. She'd been bred back-to-back several times from her bad state and had her last litter in rescue, the only daughter Telyn came here with her. Sadly Telyn (the white aby in my avatar) passed away from heart failure just days after her second birthday from heart failure, like most of her generation, due to indiscriminate mass inbreeding in a never cleaned pen with four boars and lots of sows. Under the circumstances, Taffy has lived a very long, active and happy life filled with love and very caring mates despite the loss of Telyn and her going blind with cataracts. I was blessed to have had her in my life.

 

[Shauny]

Awh, I'm sorry to hear that your Taffy had such a bad start of life, though she ended up having a great life with yourself in the end.

It's inconceivable how people can be so cruel to animals, they know what's right and wrong but they choose to let the animals suffer all for their own gain. These types of people have to be mentally unstable to be okay with causing such cruelty.


(Just got back home, an my Taffy seems to be doing well. Still soft poops but no diarrhoea. Thank god! Looks like she must've just drank a little bit).