Guinea Can't Use His Back Legs Properly?! He Stays In The Same Spot & Hops If He Has To Walk

[Emnicolee]

My poor little nugget has had this for about 4 days now. I took him to the vet as soon as we noticed & they don't know whats wrong. He was very constipated which has now cleared up but he really cannot use his back legs properly. It's not like they're paralyzed but they are very tender to the touch & obviously very sore. If he has to walk it's like a hopping/bumbling walk and he looks like he doesn't know how to use his back legs. Very sad to watch
He is eating fine & seems chipper apart from his legs. He has lost a bit of weight though. I have been treating him for scurvy by giving him vitamin C tablets crushed up in water, and then feeding it to him through a syringe but I don't know if it's making a difference. Any ideas?!

 

[piggyfan]

Please apply the crushed vitamin c to a slice of cucumber. When you add it to water the vitamin is lost through evaporation. Hopefully somebody will advice you on how to help your little one soon.

 

[karonus]

It could be a number of things that could be causing this as we have experienced with Star. A number of things it could be as we have found out, a possible injury causing pressure on the spine, ie a wrenched neck. A calcium deficiency, arthritis, a urethral stone and possible others. All of these need treatment by a cavy savvy vet.

What sort of diet does he have and where abouts are you in the country so the forum can suggest vets.

 

[Jerrybelly]

Did your vet suggest an x-ray? Possible spinal injury, perhaps? Were you given a painkiller to administer?

As others have said, it really could be anything.

As for the Vitamin C, I believe that these are well liked by piggies:
http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/products/type/detail?object=1698

You don't need to dissolve it - just give him one a day to chew on.

 

[Wiebke]

Which country are you located in?

If you are in the UK, we have got a piggy savvy vet locator here, if you want to go for second opinion.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/pages/guinea-pig-rescue-locator/

Has your vet checked for a spinal injury? Loss of use of the back legs especially in older piggies can have several causes, one of them a sudden drop in calcium ("overnight lameness"), but arthritis, schiatic or neural problems can also be at the root if it. Piggies will more often recover over time than not. Any lameness needs to be seen by a vet, as you have promptly done.
The hopping walk is typical for scurvy (lack of vitamin C). Syringing a freshly crushed lot of vitamin C tablet is a very good way of making sure that your piggy is getting the full dose to best effect. Dissolving it simply in drinking water in the bottle isn't. You can also place the table in suitably sized bits at the back of the mouth where the piggy cannot spit it out again.
Here is more information on scurvy: http://www.guinealynx.info/scurvy.html

Please gently massage the legs. Are they painful? You can check whether they have still got a reflex by pulling the legs out; a healthy piggy will automatically pull them back under.

Make sure that you keep the area your piggy is sat in dry and clean, and check regularly for urine scald.