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guinea pig is limping

lilyandluna

lilyandluna

Junior Guinea Pig
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my guinea pig lily has devolved a limp. her paw looks a little swollen too. i know that i should take her to a vet, but she gets really stressed out and I've read these injures can go away by themselves.
advice?
btw this happened yesterday
 
I would get to the vet ASAP. Is she eat, drinking, and pooping normally? If it's swollen it may be an infection. Hope she feels better soon!
 
Only a vet can diagnose and help with the problem. Leaving it to get better on its own is not a good idea - it may get worse and not better.
 
Please see a vet promptly; a swollen paw is in indication of either a break or an infection; the latter will need an antibiotic to prevent the infection from spreading up the leg, into the bone and into the body.
 
Hi,
she seems to have improved a lot. yesterday i was freaking out and I now know that her paw is not swollen. The guinea pig vet in our area is not open till tomorrow so i will monitor her.
 
She is also eating and drinking normally. She doesn't seem to be in ANY pain. I even held her. I'm still worried about the limp tho :/ She can still put weight on it.
 
I think a vet check and an xray is still advisable, piggy legs break surprisingly easily if they jump and land hard or in the wrong position, and they are very good at hiding their pain. A splintery break can cause all sorts of nasty infections that can spread and lead to the leg needing amputating, or even septicaemia, only an xray and experienced vet can rule this out, and even a clean break needs monitoring and stabilising and pain relief.
 
Yeah i'm thinking about heading to the vet tomorrow.
Any idea on the cost?
Of course I would take her no matter :)
 
Are you in the UK? A vet consultation is usually about £30, plus xray plus medication might bring the cost to around £120. A vet might suggest a general anaesthetic for an xray which adds to the cost and risk but really sedation rather than GA should be sufficient for an xray. If you aren't in the UK I really couldn't say... but if you are UK based then £200 should cover diagnosis and meds initially, unless emergency surgery is needed. I usually guestimate £200 per unexpected vet trip and I'm usually surprised/relieved it comes in a bit cheaper!
 
No, not "just for a limp", for a potentially life threatening or life changing broken leg or foot that could kill piggy or leave them in chronic pain for the rest of their life. Vet bills are part of pet ownership, I don't want to be judgemental but I would always have £200 per piggy somewhere or from someone you know that you can draw on just in case... leg injury, acute bloat, dental problem, skin problem... all happen to the healthiest of piggies with no warning. Piggies don't have any NHS or usually any health insurance, so its up to us to pay for them to stay well...
 
Okay, vet tommorow.
She seems pretty happy, still standing up on the cage to come and see me. Vet visit will still happen though :( Any tips how how to calm her down on the ride?
 
I'm sorry i came off that way. I really do care about my girls. Is it okay to wait until tomorrow?
 
lilyandluna said:
She is also eating and drinking normally. She doesn't seem to be in ANY pain. I even held her. I'm still worried about the limp tho :/ She can still put weight on it.
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Hi! It sounds like a sprain, and not a break then. If in any doubt, please have it vet checked tomorrow, but it is not an emergency anymore.
 
Good to be sure :) don't want to judge you in any way but vet bills just happen (I spent £130 this morning on mites and a tummy upset) so its always good to prepare for the worst then be pleasantly surprised when the price and diagnosis isn't too shocking!
 
Okay guys!
This morning Lily looks a lot better. I am almost 100% percent sure it was a sprain. She is still walking around, eating, pooping and is putting more weight on it. My roommate thinks that I should monitor it and wait to bring her to the vet.
Thoughts?
 
Hi, I had a similar problem with my pig this weekend. Took her to the vet today to check and luckily it was a sprain, but it only cost £13 for the check up and they also gave my other piggy a check over at the same time. So please don't let some if these estimated costs put you off! If your still worried just go to the vets.
 
lilyandluna said:
Okay guys!
This morning Lily looks a lot better. I am almost 100% percent sure it was a sprain. She is still walking around, eating, pooping and is putting more weight on it. My roommate thinks that I should monitor it and wait to bring her to the vet.
Thoughts?
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I would still take her as if it is a sprain she will still need pain relief.
 
lilyandluna said:
Yeah, i'm just worried about the trip. She gets pretty stressed out.
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How far is your vets? I don't drive so I had a 10-15 min walk to mine which does include some busy roads. The pigs don't particularly like it but once they're back home with a chunk of cucumber they soon forget all about it.
 
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