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Head Tilt, Possible Cystitis And A Neck Lump

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Melly78

Melly78

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi all! I have a 5 year old female piggy (Millie) who has ongoing health issues. We noticed she had a neck lump last July, It was smaller than a grape, but we decided to wait an watch as I didn't want to put her through surgery due to timing and also the positioning (close to her ear/jaw). The lump has slowly but surly grown, she is eating well, she has ongoing cystitis (treated currently with cystease), but today she is randomly tilting her head and appears to be in pain with it (trying to rub/wash it). It's odd that it looks to be the opposite side o the lump :hmm: I've booked a vets appt for today (luckily they had a space), but my mind is all over the place as I can't bare the thought of her going down hill over the bank holiday with no vets open! I don't want to make any rash decisions because of this, but I know her days are coming to an end and I desperately don't want her to suffer (I'm not being heartless). She may pick up with pain meds and abs (I gave her 0.2ml of Infant Calpol to help with the pain, for now), but how long for?! I had another piggy go down hill and pass away over the Easter period before and it was horrendous. Easter time seems to be cursed for my piggies :(

I just wanted to get that off of my chest really, please don't think bad of me x
 
Nobody thinks badly of you. I'm afraid I don't have answers, although the tilt of her hear, could be mites, a stroke or something neurological. Let us know how you get on, sometimes I think the worse if one of mine has to go to the vet. Then things aren't as bad as think. I hope Millie is gonna be fine
 
Melly78 said:
Hi all! I have a 5 year old female piggy (Millie) who has ongoing health issues. We noticed she had a neck lump last July, It was smaller than a grape, but we decided to wait an watch as I didn't want to put her through surgery due to timing and also the positioning (close to her ear/jaw). The lump has slowly but surly grown, she is eating well, she has ongoing cystitis (treated currently with cystease), but today she is randomly tilting her head and appears to be in pain with it (trying to rub/wash it). It's odd that it looks to be the opposite side o the lump :hmm: I've booked a vets appt for today (luckily they had a space), but my mind is all over the place as I can't bare the thought of her going down hill over the bank holiday with no vets open! I don't want to make any rash decisions because of this, but I know her days are coming to an end and I desperately don't want her to suffer (I'm not being heartless). She may pick up with pain meds and abs (I gave her 0.2ml of Infant Calpol to help with the pain, for now), but how long for?! I had another piggy go down hill and pass away over the Easter period before and it was horrendous. Easter time seems to be cursed for my piggies :(

I just wanted to get that off of my chest really, please don't think bad of me x
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Hiya! Bank holidays are always a good time to panic! Thankfully, there are more vets available during weekends and bank holidays than there used to. Google for 24 hours services in your area. You may not see a small animal specialist, but you should have access to vet care; most places now have got no frills round-the-clock chains that only fetch a small surcharge during their regular opening hours.

There sadly comes the time when an older piggy's body is giving up. The realisation is always something of a hit in the guts, especially after a bad experience. Try to take a deep breath and concentrate on what you CAN do - checking vet access, being there for your girl and sending her positive healing thoughs. Please be aware that by treating with pain meds at home, your vet may not be able to administer some meds at the clinic. You need to mention the calpol and when you have given it last.

Take every day you have with her as a gift and see what the vet says. The head tilt could be ear infection, ear mites, a stroke or a neurological problem.
 
Aw thank you for your kind words, I do have a little tear in my eye now. I've been mentally preparing myself for months now, but it never makes it any easier.

She seems a lot more comfortable at the mo, so hopefully that's a good sign.

I'm interested in the vets thoughts and of course I'll mention the Calpol (I gave it to her early this morn on the assumption that I wouldn't get a vets appt, doh). I'll be sure to get their Emergency/out of hours number. I'll let you know the outcome.

My heart is already breaking for her as there's so much going on.... she's still got some fight, so I need to run with that!
 
I'm very sad to say that Millie was sadly PTS as we thought it was the kindest thing to do for her. We discussed other, temporary, options, but the vet ultimately said these would only potentially prolong life for a few weeks or until I felt 'ready'. I knew then that I couldn't let her suffer for the sake of my own mental state. She still had some fiest (head butting the vet) and most importantly, dignity. This was the hardest decision and I want nothing more than to hear her stupidly load weeeeeeep again, but it was right for her.

Thanks for the words of advice earlier. I now officially hate Easter!

Gonna miss my Silly Millie soooo much. Sweet dreams gorgeous girl x
 
Jaycey said:
@Melly78 I'm so very sorry. It's always such a hard decision, I had to do it too in January. I hope you're okay :hug:
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Thank you. It's just the worst part of being a piggy Mummy.

Now I'm wondering whether to clean the cage as Ruffles (my hairy pig) has been out all day?! I hate seeing lone piggies.
 
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