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Gut Stasis

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Little Pig

The pigs have had a dramatic 24 hours. Little Pig's penis sores are back (he has his own thread on this) and Womble, my new boy, went into gut stasis this morning. He only did about 4 poos in 10 hours despite eating almost normally. The vet discovered a foul smelling greyish goo in his anus and no signs of poo at all. He was given an injection of Metoclopramide and was sent home with liquid paraffin to be added to his food (which sounded odd to me?). I gave him some critical care mixed with probiotics when we got home and just over an hour later he has managed around 12 healthy(ish) looking poos.

What I wanted to ask was, does anyone know what causes this? I want to work out what I did wrong to help prevent it happening again. The vet said it is often brought on my stress, but Womble has been very cheerful up to this morning and no specific event springs to mind. Does any one know of any other causes?

Also, is Metoclopramide and liquid paraffin fairly common treatments? Is there anything else I could be giving him to help?

Thanks
Rachel.
 
I only have had one case of gut stasis so far (and don't hope to have another ever again!). Mine came on while we were away for one of our usual weekend family visits, so I would class it a stress case. Thankfully, Telyn was not too far gone and made a good recovery; no paraffin given or needed.

I hope that Womble will also recover well enough, as will Little Pig! Perhaps your vet suspects that Womble may have eaten something that is not agreeing with him? Guinea pigs can vomit out again once they have eaten poison; it has to go through the guts.
 
I'm sorry you're having such a tough time. GI can be caused due to general gut slow down from animal not eating enough, stress, underlying conditions etc. So glad you've caught it though. It can be fatal as you probably know! I lost my beautiful bunny Blanche to it, even though we did catch it. The vet was crap though and by the time she got the treatment she needed and I had asked for 24hrs previous it was too late. , I'm welling up on the train now. I miss her so much :( x
 
Hmmm, he didn't mention food, but that has got me worried now. Womble has only been with me for 2 weeks now and in that time I have slowly been transitioning his dry food to the same as Little Pig's. Perhaps I did it too quickly and that has upset him - I feel terrible now. But thank you for the suggestion, as I'm going to have to be more careful on the nibble front. I don't think it is the veg, but again, could be wrong...
 
Metoclowhatyoucall it is a gut stimulant and is exactly what you need! Never heard of parafin though. Maybe ask for some meta am as well as GI can be painful as well.
 
youthnovels said:
I'm sorry you're having such a tough time. GI can be caused due to general gut slow down from animal not eating enough, stress, underlying conditions etc. So glad you've caught it though. It can be fatal as you probably know! I lost my beautiful bunny Blanche to it, even though we did catch it. The vet was crap though and by the time she got the treatment she needed and I had asked for 24hrs previous it was too late. , I'm welling up on the train now. I miss her so much :( x
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I'm sorry to have made you cry, and sorry to hear about Blanche as well (what a lovely name).

I'm feeling like a really bad owner today. With both piggies unwell for various reasons, and particularly the thought that it is stress that has caused Womble's problems, I'm worried that I am doing something wrong. My poor little boys.
 
I dont know if this is relevant but when I was growing up (say 30 years ago) I'm sure liquid paraffin was given to our dogs if they had constipation.

Please dont blame yourself - you are doing your best for them

hugs
x
 
If Womble has been with you for only two weeks, it is perhaps just down to the stress from changing homes and lifestyles! Piggies can be very fickle that way and not all that rarely come down with other stress based illnesses like URI or mites. Hopefully, he will settle in well soon and be one happy, loved piggy!

PS: I have the feeling that the paraffin was a bit of an extra "safety" measure by your vet, so don't panic! How old and how piggy savvy is your vet? Metoclopramide is the usual thing given to stimulte the guts; an injection is the quickest and most effective way, although it can also be given orally, so your vet has done absolutely the right thing.
 
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Liquid paraffin is a last resort as it strips out the gut mucosa...and from what you have described in your posts I think (based upon my own 10 years of experience) that this is therefore inappropriate at this time because there may be other, less agressive, alternative treatments that will have the same effect.

I will PM you my phone number ...please ring me as I will need additonal info from you about your piggie's situation before I can comment further ....and can;t type too well atm owing to a broken wrist! :(

x
 
Oh gosh sorry to hear about your new boy Womble and Little Pig having probs again too :(:...

HEALING WHEEEEEEEEKY LOVES TO BOTH WOMBLE AND LITTLE PIG XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
 
Thank you so much everyone - particularly to Pebble for the phone call last night (you are wonderful).

Womble seems to be okay today. He is eating and pooing. There are not quite as many poos as I would like to see, but a definite improvement from yesterday. He is being fed critical care every 2 hours to be on the safe side and I am keeping a very close eye on him.
 
Womble and Little Pig are certainly keeping you busy, between the two of them. Really hope that things settle down and get back on track soon. I'm sure you're doing a fab job x

That was really kind of Pebble to help - what a star!
 
Phew! Womble has been absolutely fine over the weekend. I am so relieved. He is eating and pooing normally and has learnt to love being syringe fed very quickly. He has become quite impatient when I am filling up the next syringe! I've been giving him little "top-ups" of critical care today, but don't think he really needs it anymore, which is good as I am back at work tomorrow.

I put him and Little Pig together again for a bit this evening (first time since Thursday night) and they both seemed very happy - lots of popcorning and general excitement.
 
Little Pig said:
Phew! Womble has been absolutely fine over the weekend. I am so relieved. He is eating and pooing normally and has learnt to love being syringe fed very quickly. He has become quite impatient when I am filling up the next syringe! I've been giving him little "top-ups" of critical care today, but don't think he really needs it anymore, which is good as I am back at work tomorrow.

I put him and Little Pig together again for a bit this evening (first time since Thursday night) and they both seemed very happy - lots of popcorning and general excitement.
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So happy that thing are looking up for you!
 
youthnovels said:
So happy that thing are looking up for you!
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Thanks - me too. Friday was so scary, I really thought I might lose Womble for a while then.

Wish I could say the same about Little Pig though. His poor penis is still in a bit of a state. I'm hoping the cream will start working soon though. If not, I'll be back to the vets with him in a few days.
 
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