• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

Expected Recovery Time After Bladder Stone Surgery?

Status
Not open for further replies.
C

cutepiggies

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Oct 17, 2013
Messages
44
Reaction score
9
Points
145
Location
Dorset
Hi, my gorgeous little boy was diagnosed as having 3 bladder stones on Monday. He went in Wednesday morning for an operation to remove them. The operation was a success and they were amazed as to how quick he started to eat (within an hour) after coming round from the GA, although he continued to need full supportive care/assisted feeds.
They kept him in for 24 hours to monitor but were then happy for him to come home. I guess this is where I'm struggling. I have never nursed a piggy after an operation so I have no idea as to what is normal regarding recovery? When he first came home, he spent an hour walking around his cage/attempting to do the deed with his friend/and eating hay. He then changed and fluffed right up facing the wall, and for the rest of the evening only attempted to eat the odd bit of hay and some vegetables. I rang my vet panicking whom advised that the journey home had probably knocked him about and it had maybe just hit him ( it was a 2 hour journey home so very feasible ).
My concern is that although he doesn't look as in he is in as much pain today ( still spiky, but not as bad ) he is making no attempt to drink independently and eating very little. I am syringe feeding and will continue giving him as much intense care as the little fella needs but just need to know if this is normal :-(
My head is telling me that it's only been 48 hours and he has had major surgery, but because he seemed to be eating so well at the vets, I'm a little concerned as to why that has sloped off?
He is on 0.25ml of the 1.5g Loxicom x2 daily, Cisapride, Zantac and an A/B x2 daily.

I would really appreciate other members experience as to how long it took for their pigs to eat anything substantial, and what else I can expect? He can mobilise well by the way when he wants to, and doesn't appear to struggle.

Thank you.x
 
We had a real struggle for the first 3 or four days and had to syringe feed and ended up asking the vet if we could increase painkillers as the original dose was not enough to keep him comfortable.

Pain can be a big problem as it stops them eating and moving and can make them feel lousy.

Keep on going with the meds and syringe feeding and hopefully in the next day or two you will see things improve. Piggies recover at different rates but surgery really can take it out of them (imagine if you'd had major abdominal surgery...) so just take it steady. if things aren't improving, don't be worried to go back to the vets.
 
Thank you for your reply, that is reassuring. I think if I hadn't seem him do so well when I first brought him home I probably wouldn't be as worried now as the poor mite has had a very traumatic operation. It's just awful watching him and hoping he will recover properly, but good to know that it's normal for him not to be eating well yet.x
 
cutepiggies said:
Hi, my gorgeous little boy was diagnosed as having 3 bladder stones on Monday. He went in Wednesday morning for an operation to remove them. The operation was a success and they were amazed as to how quick he started to eat (within an hour) after coming round from the GA, although he continued to need full supportive care/assisted feeds.
They kept him in for 24 hours to monitor but were then happy for him to come home. I guess this is where I'm struggling. I have never nursed a piggy after an operation so I have no idea as to what is normal regarding recovery? When he first came home, he spent an hour walking around his cage/attempting to do the deed with his friend/and eating hay. He then changed and fluffed right up facing the wall, and for the rest of the evening only attempted to eat the odd bit of hay and some vegetables. I rang my vet panicking whom advised that the journey home had probably knocked him about and it had maybe just hit him ( it was a 2 hour journey home so very feasible ).
My concern is that although he doesn't look as in he is in as much pain today ( still spiky, but not as bad ) he is making no attempt to drink independently and eating very little. I am syringe feeding and will continue giving him as much intense care as the little fella needs but just need to know if this is normal :-(
My head is telling me that it's only been 48 hours and he has had major surgery, but because he seemed to be eating so well at the vets, I'm a little concerned as to why that has sloped off?
He is on 0.25ml of the 1.5g Loxicom x2 daily, Cisapride, Zantac and an A/B x2 daily.

I would really appreciate other members experience as to how long it took for their pigs to eat anything substantial, and what else I can expect? He can mobilise well by the way when he wants to, and doesn't appear to struggle.

Thank you.x
Click to expand...

Please step in with syringe feeding and watering asap as soon as a post-op or ill guinea pig is not eating properly. That is absolutely vital; your boy is on plenty of gut supporting drugs, but they won't necessarily make him eat.
It can well be that is antibiotic has killed the appetite; that is not at uncommon, especially when it comes on top of the operation drugs. Please weigh any post-op or ill guinea pig daily at the same time in order to monitor the food intake.
Also give him a pinch of probiotic daily to help prop up the guts.
Your home care is very important to get him through this. We have made an illustrated step-by-step guide that tells you everything you will need: Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

See your vets promptly if he doesn't perk up on the syringe feed or if he continues to deteriorate. Check his bits daily for any sign of swelling in the groin area for the next few weeks.
 
Thank you Wiebke. I have been syringe feeding/giving him water since the moment he came home. I have become quite a pro at that sadly over the years! He is in the lounge being kept warm and atm is snuggled into a large fleece in the corner of his cage looking quite relaxed. Just not sure as to when you should become concerned if they have not started to pick up with the eating etc themselves. It's a horrible operation and it must really knock it out of them :-(
 
Sorry, I know this may be a daft question but would you expect him to perk up from the syringe feeding even if he is still in pain from the operation?
 
It will help but it won't be everything. Mostly for my wee guy it was just about getting him through the first few days when he didn't feel like eating. He wasn't keen on it and it didn't make him feel much better, it just kept him going til he felt better in himself and started to eat for himself more.

Adequate pain relief is difficult as piggies hide pain well and normal veterinary doses (are in my opinion) a little conservative at times like this. We ended up giving Stru really big doses (with our vets blessing) just for the first few days to get him through the worst of it. We decided with the vet that it was worth the risks to him to do so but Stru was 4 years old and this was make or break for him so every situation is different.

Please go back to the vet if he is still obviously struggling as there may be other pain killers (opiates like tramadol) they can try if metacam alone isn't keeping him comfortable. Then feeding and everything else gets a bit easier, but hopefully he will perk up himself if you continue as you are, feeding and watering him.
 
My piggie had a bladder stone op today but they found he had a blood clot not a stone. He only had his op at 2 and he's already home so am anxious. He's had a bit of food, the vet syringe fed him and I will do the same. Will I be ok to go to work and leave him on Monday ? Xx
 
JoannaMarie said:
My piggie had a bladder stone op today but they found he had a blood clot not a stone. He only had his op at 2 and he's already home so am anxious. He's had a bit of food, the vet syringe fed him and I will do the same. Will I be ok to go to work and leave him on Monday ? Xx
Click to expand...
It will depend on how he's doing but if he's eating for himself by then, he should be ok. Make sure you syringe feed until you are sure he is eating enough by himself. I think the link to the guide is already in this thread..
 
Glad your little one's surgery went well. The time after the operation is always so worrying especially when you've never had a piggy that has had an operation before.

It's perfectly normal for a piggy to eat quickly after an operation. It's also very normal for them to go off there food. When my little P had his bladder operation he was eating initial by the evening he was looking very sorry. P took 10 days before I relaxed and he was fully recovered. The first week was the worst, it's also not unusual for them to urinate blood and squeak when urinating after a bladder operation not surprising given the nature of the operation.

Keep going with the supportive care, wishing your little one a quick recovery.
 
He's starting to eat by himself now and he just had a drink on his own too. I'll carry on with the syringe feeding until he's eating normally but finger's crossed he seems to be recovering well. He is squeaking less now than he was before the op so he must have been very uncomfortable before. His poo isn't quite normal - they are small and he's not doing as much as usual but I'm guessing this is normal?
 
The more I read about these ops the more I realise how lucky I was with Panda. Honestly he was completely back to normal the day afterwards. So lucky. I expect yours is already feeling much better now that weeing doesn't hurt and hopefully he will be back to popcorning again very soon.
If he's not been eating his usual amount I would expect his poos to be small for a while.
 
I was so fortunate with mine. He was quiet when I bought him home but was back to normal the next day. I didn't have to syringe feed etc.
 
The poo thing sounds normal in my experience, my guy has small unformed tiny poops but some poop is better than no poop! Keep going and once his guys are feeling normal and his appetite is back to normal they should come through better, i always liken it us humans, if we're off our food then it unblances our 'natural rhythm' too.
Best wishes to your piggy xx
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top