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Hay poke - need vet attention or not

K

kieronapple

New Born Pup
Joined
Jan 27, 2020
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Location
Warrington
I noticed this morning one of my guinea pigs' eye was slightly wet and slightly closed, I saw a piece of hay stuck out the corner, I managed to pull her eyelid back and pull it out.

Do you think I still need to take her to the vets or will it be okay now?
 
kieronapple said:
I noticed this morning one of my guinea pigs' eye was slightly wet and slightly closed, I saw a piece of hay stuck out the corner, I managed to pull her eyelid back and pull it out.

Do you think I still need to take her to the vets or will it be okay now?
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Hi, how is the eye looking now? If it's looking well again, I'd say that you keep an eye on it and ring your vet just for some info and make an appointment if needed. If it's still looking wet and squinty, I recommend you get your guinea pig a vet appointment as soon as possible. @Wiebke might be able to give you some better info
 
MimiCreamie18 said:
Hi, how is the eye looking now? If it's looking well again, I'd say that you keep an eye on it and ring your vet just for some info and make an appointment if needed. If it's still looking wet and squinty, I recommend you get your guinea pig a vet appointment as soon as possible. @Wiebke might be able to give you some better info
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Hi, it was only about 2 hours ago. I had to go to work so I can't check until I'm home. It didn't look awful but i just spotted it as i was giving them some nuggets this morning.
 
kieronapple said:
Hi, it was only about 2 hours ago. I had to go to work so I can't check until I'm home. It didn't look awful but i just spotted it as i was giving them some nuggets this morning.
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Ok, just check it when you get home and then just ring your vet maybe. Describe what the eye looks like and ask if a visit to the vet is necessaryX
 
kieronapple said:
I noticed this morning one of my guinea pigs' eye was slightly wet and slightly closed, I saw a piece of hay stuck out the corner, I managed to pull her eyelid back and pull it out.

Do you think I still need to take her to the vets or will it be okay now?
Click to expand...
From personal experience, I would take him/her to the vet because although you may have removed the hay, they can properly check if there is any damage by using a dye, flush out anything that may be lurking and give you drops to help the eye heal. Also, the eyes can deteriorate quite quickly so it is always best to get an appointment just to check
 
Absolutely needs a vet check as soon as possible (as in this evening ideally - eyes come into the emergency cannot wait list of when to see a vet). Eyes can deteriorate quickly even if you see some hay in the eye and remove it, quite often the damage is already done, plus hay can get caught under eye lids etc when you can’t see.

The vet will put in some fluorescent dye and check the eye for ulcers. Antibiotics and pain killers should then be prescribed with a follow up appointment for a few days/a week later.
 
Last edited:
kieronapple said:
I noticed this morning one of my guinea pigs' eye was slightly wet and slightly closed, I saw a piece of hay stuck out the corner, I managed to pull her eyelid back and pull it out.

Do you think I still need to take her to the vets or will it be okay now?
Click to expand...

Hi!

Please always have your piggy vet checked with an eye problem. They have a special dye to check the extent of the damage under UV light.
A bit of hay can scratch the surface of the eye and cause an infection/ulceration which can deteriorate rather quickly. The sooner you can treat a potential or existing eye problem, the better.

The good news is that it is really worth it - when treated properly, any eyes that are not very badly damaged will heal very quickly, too; if not quite with the speed they get worse. :tu:

PS: If it is any consolation to you, I have an appointment with my Begw this afternoon, who has developed an ulcerating hay poke. :(
 
Wiebke said:
Hi!

Please always have your piggy vet checked with an eye problem. They have a special dye to check the extent of the damage under UV light.
A bit of hay can scratch the surface of the eye and cause an infection/ulceration which can deteriorate rather quickly. The sooner you can treat a potential or existing eye problem, the better.

The good news is that it is really worth it - when treated properly, any eyes that are not badly damaged, heal very quickly, too; if not quite with the speed they get worse. :tu:

PS: If it is any consolation to you, I have an appointment with my Begw this afternoon, who has developed an ulcerating hay poke. :(
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Good luck at the vet, healing wheeks for Begw :)
 
Dennis had haypoke last week. A hayseed had got in his eye. I couldn't see it straight away. By the time I got to the vets with him the damage had been done. The vet needed the assistance of local anaesthetic and a vet nurse to get the seed head out of Dennis's eye. Poor Dennis was left with a lump on his eye, 2 lots of eyedrops three times a day and Metacam twice a day for 7 days. He lost some weight (50g) because of the pain and it stopped him from eating. He is slowly gaining that weight back. Haypoke and any eye problems need to be seen promptly by a vet. Otherwise you risk eye removal and flushing of the empty socket to prevent infection.
 
Welcome to the forum.
Given the amount of time piggies spend hay diving it’s actually surprising that there aren’t a lot more cases of hay poke.
It’s easy to deal with.
Just make sure you have a bribe on hand when putting in eye drops.

Let us know how you get on
 
Hey all, thanks for checking up. What a lovely place this is!
We went to the vets with her, vet was really nice and comforting. She obviously mentioned it could get to a point where the eye has to be removed but she said she has to say that to everyone.
She prescribed metacam & some eye drops, she had the die in and she has quite some damage to the eye, poor girl. Back in on Wednesday for a checkup
 
Hopefully you’ve started treatment early enough that removing the eye won’t need to happen. Hay pokes are so common - both of my boys have done it.
What dose of metacam and how often? Is it dog or cat metacam?
 
Piggies&buns said:
Hopefully you’ve started treatment early enough that removing the eye won’t need to happen. Hay pokes are so common - both of my boys have done it.
What dose of metacam and how often? Is it dog or cat metacam?
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It is cat metacam, 0.4 first day then 0.2 twice a day
 
kieronapple said:
Hey all, thanks for checking up. What a lovely place this is!
We went to the vets with her, vet was really nice and comforting. She obviously mentioned it could get to a point where the eye has to be removed but she said she has to say that to everyone.
She prescribed metacam & some eye drops, she had the die in and she has quite some damage to the eye, poor girl. Back in on Wednesday for a checkup
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What kind of eye drops have you been given? With our prompt treatment eye removal is thankfully not a real risk - let me assure you!
Wishing your piggy a good and quick recovery! Ideally you pull the lower eyelid down a bit and aim at the gap when applying eye drops or gel. Distracting your piggy with some favourite food first can help (when they are absorbed in tucking into their favourite food piggies are much less aware of their surrounding), but as long as the eye is very sore and painful, it is naturally not quite as easy to get the medication in! I find using piggy whispering tips to assert my friendly authority but also my love and sympathy very useful and effective.
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips

This is how Begw's eye currently looks. I have already been able to get rid of most of the surface ulceration on top of the eye, apart from the small area where the hay stalk has penetrated but there is still quite an amount of infection in the chamber below the surface. Thankfully neither the stalk nor the infection has penetrated deeper into the eye.
So while this is looking rather alarmingly right now, it should actually all heal up again perfectly again!
IMG_0977_edited-1.jpg

Begw is on chloramphenicol antibiotic eye gel (which is the stronger of the available antibiotic drops/gel), metacam for painkillers/inflammation and on plain artificial tear gel for lubrication, comfort and healing support.

A smaller hay poke doesn't necessarily show up to the naked eye (unless there is a lot of eye blinking and watering, which is always a warning to have the eye checked) until it starts to ulcerate by creating first bluish dot over the penetration spot (or scratch if something has got stuck under a lid) and then a film of infection gunk on the surface of the eye. Ulceration can happen in a matter of just hours and get much worse very quickly. The deeper the infection can spread into the eye, the harder it is to get on top of it. The last resort is enucleation (eye removal).

That is the reason why you should never underestimate a potential eye injury and see a vet promptly as soon as you can within 24 hours with a minor injury, as an emergency as quickly as possible if there is blood.

After I had eight hay pokes in 2018 (some of them even nastier looking ones), I have always plain tear gel from a pharmacy at home. It can only be applied at least half to an hour after any antibiotic drops to allow them to be fully absorbed and not be washed away, but the tear gel can be applied up to 6 times a day.
 
Wiebke said:
What kind of eye drops have you been given? With our prompt treatment eye removal is thankfully not a real risk - let me assure you!

This is how Begw's eye currently looks. I have already been able to get rid of most of the surface ulceration on top of the eye, apart from the small area where the hay stalk has penetrated but there is still quite an amount of infection in the chamber below the surface. Thankfully neither the stalk nor the infection has penetrated deeper into the eye.
So while this is looking rather alarmingly right now, it should actually all heal up again perfectly again!
View attachment 132119

Begw is on chloramphenicol antibiotic eye gel (which is the stronger of the available antibiotic drops/gel), metacam for painkillers/inflammation and on plain artificial tear gel for lubrication, comfort and healing support.

A smaller hay poke doesn't necessarily show up to the naked eye (unless there is a lot of eye blinking and watering, which is always a warning to have the eye checked) until it starts to ulcerate by creating first bluish dot over the penetration spot (or scratch if something has got stuck under a lid) and then a film of infection gunk on the surface of the eye. Ulceration can happen in a matter of just hours and get much worse very quickly. The deeper the infection can spread into the eye, the harder it is to get on top of it. The last resort is enucleation (eye removal).

That is the reason why you should never underestimate a potential eye injury and see a vet promptly as soon as you can within 24 hours with a minor injury, as an emergency as quickly as possible if there is blood.

After I had eight hay pokes in 2018 (some of them even nastier looking ones), I have always plain tear gel from a pharmacy at home. It can only be applied at least half to an hour after any antibiotic drops to allow them to be fully absorbed and not be washed away, but the tear gel can be applied up to 6 times a day.
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Thanks for the information, very helpful she's on the Isathal eyedrops with Metacam painkillers atm. Hers isn't as bad as your piggies! Hers isn't on the centre of the vision thankfully, she seems like shes worn out from all the vet panic but is eating etc.
 
kieronapple said:
Thanks for the information, very helpful she's on the Isathal eyedrops with Metacam painkillers atm. Hers isn't as bad as your piggies! Hers isn't on the centre of the vision thankfully, she seems like shes worn out from all the vet panic but is eating etc.
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She will recover! Glad that it is not as bad and sounds like it should heal pretty straightforward within a week to ten days.

Begw's poke is in the upper right corner of the eye, not all that far from the reddish tissue.
The rest is all infection; just as an example how quickly and how fast the infection can spread and what a difference a few hours can make. ;)
 
Wiebke said:
She will recover! Glad that it is not as bad and sounds like it should heal pretty straightforward within a week to ten days.

Begw's poke is in the upper right corner of the eye, not all that far from the reddish tissue.
The rest is all infection; just as an example how quickly and how fast the infection can spread and what a difference a few hours can make. ;)
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What’s so cute is the fact it feels like my pig knows when I pick her up I’m checking on her, she usually hates it but must be loving the attention whilst she’s a poorly pig!
 
kieronapple said:
What’s so cute is the fact it feels like my pig knows when I pick her up I’m checking on her, she usually hates it but must be loving the attention whilst she’s a poorly pig!
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Once piggies realise that what you are doing is actually making them feel better, even the nervous ones will often tolerate treatment.
Sadly that usually changes again once they are feeling better again, but you know that you have got their implied trust.
 
kieronapple said:
Hey all, thanks for checking up. What a lovely place this is!
We went to the vets with her, vet was really nice and comforting. She obviously mentioned it could get to a point where the eye has to be removed but she said she has to say that to everyone.
She prescribed metacam & some eye drops, she had the die in and she has quite some damage to the eye, poor girl. Back in on Wednesday for a checkup
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Hopefully, she makes a speedy recovery! When one of my girls had a hay poke they prescribed eye drops. but I can't remember the name of it
 
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