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Fred is poorly

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furryfriends (Excellent Adventure Sanctuary) said:
I've jused zithromax such a lot, and I have never, ever had a bad reaction to it with any of the piggies or rabbits. I am thinking it's most likely pain that has stopped him eating and now he's become gassy. You are doing the right thing with gut stimulants and hopefully he will soon pick up. Is he still taking syringe food well? xx
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He's nibbling a bit more this evening, he's looking much better than this morning. I'm going to keep him on the med's, as well as the gut stimulants. I'm hoping we've just had a hiccup and are back on track on. x
 
He's still nibbling, and taking his syringe food really well but his wee tummy is quite bloated still which is a concern. I'm hoping this will sort out quickly, he still has poop which is re-assuring.

I'm going to keep going with supportive care and the med's, as he's still bright. My mum is feeding him well I'm at work which is awesome.

She is able to get 2 15ml's syringes into him thoughout the day, and then I can give him a big feed at night although if the bloat continues we may have to re-think the situation. Thankfully I don't start till 12, which means I can look after Fred in the morning and evenings.

Fred was just telling me we'll need to surprise our syringe feeder with some flower's when he's better, I would have really struggled if it wasn't for my mum's help.
 
flintstones said:
Fred was just telling me we'll need to surprise our syringe feeder with some flower's when he's better, I would have really struggled if it wasn't for my mum's help.
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He is such a gentleman isn't he :)

Mucho love to Fred and hugs to you Jo, your doing an amazing job.
 
I've had 3 piggies who have had ops with GA & all have had Zithro-max after with no ill effects, except Petal, my bladder piggy. She had a bladder flush just after Christmas & had a week on Zithro-max afterwards as she had a bout of cystitis. After 7 days I noticed she was doing very soft poops with mucus, a sign of gut problems. I did give her Avipro alongside the antibiotic but whether it was a reaction to the GA or the Zithromax I don't know, or it may have just been the stress of the op etc that started it off. She then had an emergency scan & x-ray & was diagnosed with gut stasis so I syringe fed her for almost 2 weeks in total, she had Zantac, Metroclopromide for her guts Septrin, Marbocyl antibiotics, Cerenia, Potassium Citrate for the calcium in her bladder & Metacam & Tramodol for pain relief. Tramodol made her a bit droopy but overall the pain relief helped get her eating again. I syringe fed her a packet of Recovery & more a day & fed her tiny bits of hay by hand as well. I can't blame the Zithromax for what happened as it could have happened anyway, I think stress has more of a part to play but I think maybe some piggies tolerate it better than others.

Keep up the good work, I hope Fred perks up soon, but it's definitely worth giving Tramodol a go as well for a short time. I also bought a car seat massage mat from Argos & sat her on that every time I fed her, I am sure it helped shift some gas from her tummy & it was very therapeutic for us both, I would almost fall asleep with her on my lap :)

Best wishes to Fred, tell him he is such a star he must pull his paws up & get better soon :)
 
Poppy's Mum thanks very much for the info re-car seat. I'm not reluctant to give Tramadol a go as it is a wonder drug and I have used it on two separate pigs but I am worried about the effects on the gut so think Fred is better on Metacam at the moment. He's on gut stimulants also along with Avri-pro, I can't say if it is the Ab or not and won't know unless I stop it which of course I don't want to do.

It does really depend on the pig, I'm not saying Zithromax is bad for all pigs but perhaps it just doesn't agree with Fred, all my pigs are fine on Baytril but Fred isn't so I'm not going to rule out the fact it could potentially be the 'AB'.

You don't happen to have the link to car seat massage pad you bought? Going to go to argos as lunch and get a vibrating pad for Fred.

Thanks everyone for the support and advice I'm hopeful we can get Fred though this especially with my mum helping so Fred isn't having to go without Feeds.

Sports Billy - Fred is a proper gent lol, or at least that's what he thinks the girls know differently ;) x
 
Its great your mum is helping :) I'd have to call in sick at work everyday with mine as my partner couldn't do it as he works
 
flintstones said:
Poppy's Mum thanks very much for the info re-car seat. I'm not reluctant to give Tramadol a go as it is a wonder drug and I have used it on two separate pigs but I am worried about the effects on the gut so think Fred is better on Metacam at the moment. He's on gut stimulants also along with Avri-pro, I can't say if it is the Ab or not and won't know unless I stop it which of course I don't want to do.

It does really depend on the pig, I'm not saying Zithromax is bad for all pigs but perhaps it just doesn't agree with Fred, all my pigs are fine on Baytril but Fred isn't so I'm not going to rule out the fact it could potentially be the 'AB'.

You don't happen to have the link to car seat massage pad you bought? Going to go to argos as lunch and get a vibrating pad for Fred.

Thanks everyone for the support and advice I'm hopeful we can get Fred though this especially with my mum helping so Fred isn't having to go without Feeds.

Sports Billy - Fred is a proper gent lol, or at least that's what he thinks the girls know differently ;) x
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Sorry only just seen this, I just checked & Argos don't sell it anymore :(

This is it though: http://www.amazon.co.uk/HoMedics-5-Motor-Back-Massager-With/dp/B000KZROQS/ref=pd_cp_d_1

It's a shame if I'd lived nearer you could have borrowed mine. Anything similar is good though, plus give him a little gentle tummy massage at the same time. :)
 
Oh no! I think his mouth may be a bit sore from losing his tooth... Poor little man! Sending him lots of love x
 
Fred's tummy is still quite gassy but he certainly has poo out put and is doing the odd rumble at the girls so he can't be feeling that bad. He still isn't a fan of the Avri-pro water but I remember when P was poorly he would go off his fave foods, quite bizarre actually. I ran out of critical care and am having to give mashed up nuggets, he absolutely adores it, which is great as it makes syringe feeding less of a chore.

He's still nibbling which is good news, I think we might have got the gut stimulants into him just in time. I'm going to start counting down the days till he's off AB's.

It's amazing just how these little guys take over, Thanks everyone for the good wishes.

Furryfriends - I do hope we have the same results as you, from hearing Zithromax's successes there's no doubt it's a very good AB and I am hopeful it'll sort Fred out. x
 
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How is he doing this morning? I was thinking about Fred last night, and I'm relieved so see that your last post was quite positive :)
 
Jerrybelly said:
How is he doing this morning? I was thinking about Fred last night, and I'm relieved so see that your last post was quite positive :)
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He was really good this morning when I got up, I had him out and he was happily munching some hay. He's loves his nugget mush he's a dream to syringe feed, his tummy however is still quite descended I just purchased a massage pad. Figured it's a good thing to have considering how often bloat has came about recently in my piggy household.

I'm hoping we can stay on top of his gassy tummy, it shouldn't be to much of a problem if it doesn't get any worse and hopefully with the gut med's it won't have the opportunity to get any worse.

I just can't wait until he starts going crazy for his Avri-pro water, that'll mean Fred is 100%!

I haven't commented on his abscess in a little while, his abscess hasn't got any bigger but it is still there, however Fred seems able to eat perfectly fine with three incisor's when he wants to :)).
 
Glad to hear he's doing so well! How much of the gut stimulants is he taking? My poorly boy Joben has been on 0.25ml twice a day of Zantac to help with his bloaty tummy while he's been getting over his illness. He's been on that dosage for six days and has now settled, so we are weaning him off to see how he goes. Really has helped him though. :)
 
I found that a twice daily dose of emeprid and a once daily dose of zantac worked wonders for Jerry when his gut slowed down after his AB intolerance x
 
Hope Fred is ok? I always found pellet mush was more tolerated than yucky critical care. He may also like some banana mashed into it... Sending you both a big hug xx
 
Fred is making an awful Squawk when passing pellets, I've been syringing him with extra water, probiotic's and pellet mush. His poops aren't small but certainly not there usual shape they where quite clay like today. We had a delivery of new hay's and pellets, Harrington's and some blackcurrant excel ones. I think he will be able to eat the little pellets much easier and his new massage, vibrating cushioning should come tomorrow.

His tummy is still very firm but he's on motility drugs twice daily for his gut. We're on day 6 of the antibiotic's.

We're due back on Monday to see the vet.
 
Poor Fred, hope his tummy is better soon. We had such a battle with bloat with our guinea Willow last year & it is just nasty to see them with uncomfortable tummies. I know I say this all the time but have you tried giving him a bit of grass from the back lawn? It is always greatly appreciated by any of our guineas when they are under the weather & I think it seems to cheer them up a bit :)
 
Poor Fred :( thinking of you both, hopefully after the AB's his tummy may settle a little x
 
I'm sorry that Fred is still poorly. Do you have an electric toothbrush you can run down his sides until the massage pad arrives?
 
How is the actual abscess responding to the new anti b?

He is certainly keeping you busy ;/ my guys have always only eaten the black current burgess excel, they refuse to eat bigger pellets.... I think he will like them ;)
 
Hi Guys,

Fred hasn't really improved any his stomach is very bloated. I received the vibrating massage pad so have had him on this, his output is better but still he's having trouble passing pellets and feels like a balloon. :( His appetite isn't great either.

He's not an 'ill' guinea pig so to speak, I think with the care and med's he's getting we're just managing to keep him stable. The abscess is still there, I'm not even sure if it's any different as this time round it was treated before it had the opportunity to grow. I'm convinced the only reason it grew so much last time was because of the fine needle aspirate.

We're on Day 7 of the ABS, just 8 more days to go...
 
Keeping fingers and paws crossed here for you and Fred......

........as far as guinea pigs go........stable is good!

x

PS Given the gas etc - might be worth talking to Glen about activated charcoal? (provided it doesn;t diminish the effets of the anitbioitics and other meds)
 
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