Female guinea pig lump near vaginal area

[Rinoa]

She is 8 years and a few months. I had her 7 years going on 4 months now but someone else had her before me.


she has a swollen bottom. Was wondering what this swollen bottom is? I have a picture i can attach.


Jan 4th she was peeing red/blood. staring at the wall, barely eating or drinking water. Losing weight.
Jan 5th taken to vet. given bactrim and metacam 0.17cc. for 2 weeks she continued to pee red so the antibiotics didnt work.

Jan 19th back to vet. blood work and Xray. nothing seen on the xray. Given new antibiotics (doxy). After 3 days she stopped peeing red.
Feb 4th peeing red stopped and hasnt returned since. I took her in for an X ray and he said there is a bladder stone in her bladder. Missed it the first xray, maybe a bone was in the way.
Wouldnt do surgery due to her age.

She is taking metacam 0.20cc. Vitamin c. Sherwood urinary tabs.

weight has been 1lb 10oz since jan 5th. lowest was 1lb 8.9oz. I have been giving her critical care. 15-20ml morning, 15-20ml night.

so now i know she has a bladder stone and this is why she has been staring at the wall and not eating/barely eating. But what is this swelling of her bottom? Are they 2 seperate things going on (other stone in that area) or is this the stone in the bladder that i am feeling thats hard down there? When i touch it the outside is soft like it should feel but if i press a little farther i can feel its very hard. I cant tell if thats a bone thats supposed to be in that area or a stone.

I have googled for hours and while i can find many examples of guineas with stones i dont see any with such a swollen bottom. As of now she is popping correctly and peeing. I mentioned this puffy bottom to my vet but he didnt mention anything about it. Just talked about the bladder stone on the xray which looked much higher.

Even tho you cant do surgery if the stone is in the bladder due to age if the stone is near the urethra/in the urethra I'm reading that stones located there can be removed without surgery. Should i go to another vet for a 2nd opinion? I have the xray and can attach as well.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.

Please do see another vet asap.
Swelling like that can happen if the stone has moved out of the bladder, it can then get stuck in the urethra.
If a stone blocks the flow of urine then it becomes an emergency situation.

I hope she is ok

 

[weepweeps]

I’m sorry your piggy has a bladder stone. Good luck at the vets. I hope they can remove it.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi

HUGS

What a mahoosive bummer at such a great age!

Urethral stones in sows tend to fetch up in the area which you are indicating; they cannot pass out when they are too large because of the ring of muscles at the exit that controls the urine flow.
Smaller urethral stones in sows can sometimes be manually manipulated and extricated but the large ones need operative removal as more carbohydrate (which is the stuff stones are actually made off, not calcium) can continue to be deposited on it and eventually block the urethra with fatal results.

I can fully understand your vet's reluctance to operate re. the advanced age, though. I know of a few piggies of that age with successful operations but I also know of ones that have not come off and of more where the owners have decided to either euthanise or let a piggy with a modicum of quality of life go on until an emergency pts became necessary.
The choice for you between a life in constant discomfort and a likely emergency pts or to risk an operation is not at all an easy one. I call them 'between a rock and a hard place' choices. Either way has its pros and cons and there is no right or wrong which way you decide because as long as you make your decision based on your love, you are not doing wrong.
You may find the questions in this guide link here can help you work out the way forward that it is the best for you in your specific situation, since only you as the owner can make it. We can only give you the tools for finding out what is in your heart of hearts so you can come out of it knowing that you have done for her what feels right for you.
Operation, Terminal Care or Euthanasia? - Helpful Questions to Ask Ahead or in Hindsight

PS: My Teggy had one such urethral stone with accretions that started blocking the exit but had a successful operation by my local general vets under protest (as it was during pandemic lockdown conditions); the stone was the result of the first Lockdown. She lived for another couple of years longer to 6 years.
I hope that this helps you?


Here is the link to our detailed post-op care advice: Tips For Post-operative Care

 

[Rinoa]

Yes thats why i am thinking and not rushing. some people will see my post and say "run to vet asap" because stones in that area are an emergency but the thing is i already did take her to the vet (my regular one who seems to know what hes doing).

so you are sure that is a stone and there is no bone in that area? It does feel sort of circular when i move my finger around it a little to see how big it is. Between her stomach and private parts its soft nothing is there but soon as i move down it feels hard. Either the stone is in the urethra or its right at the entrance but cant go down as you said.

"let a piggy with a modicum of quality of life go on" that seems to be my vets idea

He admitted its a complicated surgery due to her age. His solution for the time being is what you mentioned to have her on pain meds to control pain and just hoping it doesnt get stuck at some point.

Because she is walking around (for the most part), pooping normal sized poops,peeing and eating (for the most part) and i havent heard her squealing in pain ill stay on this path and think about it for awhile.

 

[Wiebke]

Yes thats why i am thinking and not rushing. some people will see my post and say "run to vet asap" because stones in that area are an emergency but the thing is i already did take her to the vet (my regular one who seems to know what hes doing).

so you are sure that is a stone and there is no bone in that area? It does feel sort of circular when i move my finger around it a little to see how big it is. Between her stomach and private parts its soft nothing is there but soon as i move down it feels hard. Either the stone is in the urethra or its right at the entrance but cant go down as you said.

"let a piggy with a modicum of quality of life go on" that seems to be my vets idea

He admitted its a complicated surgery due to her age. His solution for the time being is what you mentioned to have her on pain meds to control pain and just hoping it doesnt get stuck at some point.

Because she is walking around (for the most part), pooping normal sized poops,peeing and eating (for the most part) and i havent heard her squealing in pain ill stay on this path and think about it for awhile.

There are no bones in that area and in my own experience in the last good twenty years of unbroken ownership, any hard lump in that area has turned out to be a urethral stone in sows of mine.

 

[Rinoa]

Same Vet says theres no stone there. I also took her to a guinea pig rescue, where a guy did a health check and said she was healthy. I asked if there was a stone in urethra and he claims no. thats a bone. i asked 3 times to be sure and he said no. So I'm starting to think theres no stone in the urethra which leaves that swelling to something else.

All i can think of is i gave her foot soaks in epsom salt (feet were red and have been red for awhile) and after these soaks id dry her feet using a blow dryer. I wonder if its possible the heat from this touched that area maybe. epsom salt soak touching that area or heat touching it is the last of my guesses.

someone brought up impacted anal sacs,abscess or tumor. But she is pooping so I'm not sure if its impacted.

 

[Wiebke]

Same Vet says theres no stone there. I also took her to a guinea pig rescue, where a guy did a health check and said she was healthy. I asked if there was a stone in urethra and he claims no. thats a bone. i asked 3 times to be sure and he said no. So I'm starting to think theres no stone in the urethra which leaves that swelling to something else.

All i can think of is i gave her foot soaks in epsom salt (feet were red and have been red for awhile) and after these soaks id dry her feet using a blow dryer. I wonder if its possible the heat from this touched that area maybe. epsom salt soak touching that area or heat touching it is the last of my guesses.

someone brought up impacted anal sacs,abscess or tumor. But she is pooping so I'm not sure if its impacted.

Hi

Unfortunately, as we don't have hands-on access to your girl, we cannot tell.

However, please forget about blow driers or epsom salt causing a lump (although you should use them on the lowest warmth setting from at least 30 cm away).

Anal sacs and impaction are an exclusively male problem that manifests as a swelling of the genital area but not as a lump next to the genitalia. Sows simply don't have testicles that distend the anal sac when they descend at the start of teenage with some major hormone spikes to form a cavity in which not properly formed poo can collect in especially older, not neutered boars. The anal sac of babies and neutered boars is about pea-sized.

You may be feeling the pelvic bone but it shouldn't present as a lump. Just keep an eye on your girl but as long as she is eating normally and the lump - whatever it is that you are feeling -doesn't change in size, it has to unfortunately remain a mystery for the time being.

 

[Rinoa]

Took kiki to vet march 27th since her eye was half closing. Dropped her off and got a call few hours later. My vet did a lateral xray. It showed a stone sitting on the outside of the urethra same area as the first image i posted where i felt this hard circular thing. It was too big to pass and was stuck there for 3 months. Its a miracle she was able to pee with this stone blocking that area. This is what caused the swelling.

My vet was able to remove the stone without surgery. Because the stone was too big to pass he had to break it into pieces little by little till it was all out. Took another xray after which showed it was indeed all gone. Now kiki is going through the recovery stage. She is going to be sore for awhile. Her bottom is still swollen. Hopefully it goes back to how it was before.

She is on metacam and bactrim. Also eye medicine for the eye half closing.