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Guinea pig losing weight.

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halfpenny

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Nookie, a 6 year old Guinea pig we have had for about 4 years has been losing weight for months now, he is also drinking large amounts of water. He has been x-rayed, scanned and a urine sample was sent off for analysis, the vets did try to blood sample but were not successful. Nothing showed up, other than bladder crystals, which the vets did not think was the cause of the weight loss. The urine sample did not indicate kidney failure or diabetes, which were my concerns. His teet were perfect.
Anyway he has a very keen appetite and I have been giving lots of veg, ad lib hay and pellets. Yesterday and today he seemed to be less keen for food, I'm not sure if his teeth are an issue and will get him in to be checked tomorrow but I am concerned he is in kidney failure, every morning my first check is him as I expect to find him gone, although he is bright and alert and they all start speaking as soon as the light goes on.
Any ideas as to what the problem could be, I am aware it could also be a tumour somewhere and there is little we can do, but I just wondered if anybody had any ideas?
 
i havent sorry, but i hope you get to the bottom of it, its just horrible when you dont know what you are dealing with x
 
Hello
He must have a blood sample done really to get a body profile. Also hyperthyroidism is now recognised in g pigs and can be diagnosed via blood test. I have a video of guinea pig blood sampling if folks want me to post it.

Goodluck
 
Rodneyvet said:
Hello
He must have a blood sample done really to get a body profile. Also hyperthyroidism is now recognised in g pigs and can be diagnosed via blood test. I have a video of guinea pig blood sampling if folks want me to post it.

Goodluck
Click to expand...

Thank you again, you helped me on the rabbit forum with my rabbit in renal failure.
I hope I am not too late for him as although he has been getting weight checks the vets have not been able to offer any more treatment. I have plenty of experience of hyperthyroidism in cats and can see the similarities in him, how is it treated- I'm not sure if he would survive an op and I'm guessing you can't give them the tablets?
I'll try and get an appointment today.
 
Just wondering- where does the blood sample have to be analysed, what are the ranges for a guinea pig thyroid levels, do the alt level generally increase too. My vets use the Idexx lab for blood samples but I'm not sure if they have all the reference values for small animals.
 
Good questions, I use Pinmoore Animal lab Services (PALS) for G pig bloods. If You are using Idex then send me the value and Ill check it for you. The test isnt yet validated for G pigs so we extrapolate from dogs and cats to a degree. ALT may be raised but hasnt often been in my experience. Options for treatment include surgery and the tablets cats have. Can you feel a goitre?
Hope this helps
 
Hi,

If you could please post the video of blood sampling that would be very interesting as a lot of vets seem to be quite hesitant as to the best way.I had been told that the easiest place was from overcutting a toenail.Many thanks.
 
Thank you. He is booked in at 3 this afternoon, although I'm not sure if the vets will try and blood sample then or will book him in as a day patient. I haven't felt for a goitre but have had a look online and it appears the thyroid is higher up in guineas than cats ( I have felt goitre in cats). I'll print this out and the other paper I founding hyperthyroidism.
One more thing ( or 2 actually!)- if a goitre is felt, do I start medication before the results ( he is so thin) and how do I give the right dosage ( the paper I found said you can make a solution) but the tablets say they shouldn't be crushed.
I have the video of you blood sampling the guinea pig from a post on Ru, I just need to get my vets to try it.
 
I have been able to palpate in guinea pigs if the goitre is present. You can make a solution (crush the tablets) to medicate if you need to.
FAO Winkie I will try to get it posted today. Would you like it on this post or a new one for easier retrieval in the future?
 
Rodneyvet said:
I have been able to palpate in guinea pigs if the goitre is present. You can make a solution (crush the tablets) to medicate if you need to.
FAO Winkie I will try to get it posted today. Would you like it on this post or a new one for easier retrieval in the future?
Click to expand...

Start a new thread and then it can be made a sticky. Thank you.
 
Thank you.
I'll take Incy, his friend too, so the vet can compare the thyroid area- I'm guessing it will be a new thing for them so better they have a normal for comparison.
 
I took Nookie and Incy to the vet, both boys throats felt the same to the vet so not sure if that is of any importance.
I showed the vet the info on hyperthyroidism, showed her the blood sample video and said you, Rodneyvet, had suggested hyperthyroidism and it was you taking the blood sample on the video ( not sure if that is correct but it's the same practice!)
We waited for about half an hour and I confess I was getting pretty anxious but he is home and seems fine if a bit cold so has a snuggle pad ( they are inside anyway).
She was very interested and agreed that we must try as he doesn't have long we don't think.
So he is being tested for biochemistry and hyperthyroidism as we are not sure if there is enough for haematology too.
Fingers crossed we get an idea of what is wrong with him and can find a solution before its too late.

We also had a new cat in to be tested for FIV/ FeLV and thankfully he was clear so can join the rest of the gang. So some good news today.
 
Yes it is me taking the blood sample.:)
Its also on My Smartphone App (amongst others), I will get it uploaded onto the site whan I get the chance.
I hope the results shed some light.
 
HI, Rodneyvet, sorry for the delay in responding but have been out most of the day.If you could post it on this thread please that would be great as others may be following this.Just out of interest what part of Kent are you in.? as I use a couple of vets in the Kent area although live on the Surrey border.
 
Many thanks.

Very interesting.Not seen this before and thank you for the links.I am about only aprrox.15 miles away so this is very useful.Thanks again for your help.
 
Rodneyvet, I hope you don't mind me contacting you but Nookie's results have come back.
My vet says the T4 does not indicate hyperthyroidism ( I did print out a paper about hyperthyroidism in GPS and it said that T4 may be normal but T3 needs to be looked at too- unfortunately I gave the vet the paper but didn't specify I also wanted a T3 too. His bloods do not indicate kidney failure or diabetes but his white blood cells are high. The vet is concerned it may be a chronic infection or a lymphoma (he did say we could test for T3 levels and calcium, because he says Ca may be high if a lymphoma, the problem is I do not think Nookie is fit enough for another blood test, it took them a good 30mins last time after showing your video, and he was very shaken by it. The vet is treating him with betamox, Baytril and steroids to try and perk him up. He nows the steroids are risky but feels we need to try, he isn't happy giving thyroid treatment unless we know it is definitely this. Nookie has gone downhill, he had a touch of diarrhoea last night so I gave fibreplex and he is really keen to take it, he seems hungry but takes food in his mouth then drops it out. He takes something new keenly but the next day isn't interested in it. I've tried recovery food, Ella's kitchen baby food, grated carrot, apple and pear sliced into small pieces, broccoli, hay, grass, dandelion. I fear he isn't now taking enough to survive and wonder if it would be kinder to PTS, but he is still fairly bright and fighting and it goes against my nature to give up on him ( a failing of mine!)
I would be grateful for any opinions, I'm happy to pay a consultation fee as I do not want to take advantage.
Many thanks.
Louise.
 
Rodneyvet, I hope I didn't offend you by offering to pay. I tried to pm but I'm not allowed to.

Sadly Nookie passed away last night. He was a lovely wee chap and will be missed. I still don't know what was wrong, I'm tempted to get a post mortem done to see if it sheds any light on what was wrong. We cannot help him but may be able to help other pigs. Already my vets now know that hyperthyroidism is a possibility in guinea pigs and have the paper, which may help someone else's pig.
 
So sorry you lost Nookie - it's always hard when you lose them but especially when you don't know why. I hope you get answers and find closure. Thinking of you and sending lots of hugs x
 
So sorry about Nookie :(. Best wishes, shiny
 
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