Healing Vibes For Bracken

So glad Bracken is doing ok and that you finally have a diagnosis I don't think it's a very Common problem but I know I've read about it on the forum before but it was quite a while ago now

Search results for query: Giardia

Try having a look at this search looks like most of the posts are from your thread- but there's a few others thrown in try having a look at Guinea lynx as apparently that has mentions of parasites/ parasitic diseases
Guinea Lynx Forums - Search
Metronadiazol/flagyl seems to be the treatment of choice to beat this protozoa successfully.
Are the worms being treated separately? Panacur for rabbits is often used for worms in guinea pigs.
There's also a product called verm-x for rabbits that's not actually officially a wormer but it's supposed to have plants and herbs as ingredients that lessen the risk of intestinal challenges I fed my girls on it for a short time as I won it in a competition the girls loved it and it was classed as a complementary food

Good luck &speedy recovery to all your little ones.

love from the girls and I x x
 
Thanks @GPTV I did search the forum as soon as we found out what they had, they also have worms but not the usual ones, can't remeber what they were called, there was an awful lot to take in what with all the Bracken stuff as well. They did loads of tests on his bladder etc to try and find out why he got stones but nothing unusual has come back yet. They are all being treated with Panacur for five days, apparently it treats worms and Giardia. I have to do a complete clean out everyday for eight days so I am going to try to use mostly newspaper that way I can just lift soiled hay and poop out wrapped in the paper and burn it. I'll just put little fleece pads under their pigloos, just have to persuade them not to eat the paper! I looked at Guinea Lynx yesterday, I don't know why but I find it an impossible site to use and understand, me being thick I suspect. Now I've seen the vet today I now know how to proceed and hopefully we will get rid of this in one go.
 
I'm sorry you are going through this nightmare.would it maybe be easier to have disposable bedding,so washing is not so much of a problem.i hope bracken has a speedy recovery.ive two piggies loosing weight ,and seems to be no reason why.my piggies have been outside for the summer.Toby has stopped eating and has dental issues now.i usually worm all my guinea pigs every three months to prevent worms.my vet was ok with this,especially with having a cat,and alot of cavies.it will get easier @piiggyminder.hugs to you.xx
 
eileen said:
I'm sorry you are going through this nightmare.would it maybe be easier to have disposable bedding,so washing is not so much of a problem.i hope bracken has a speedy recovery.ive two piggies loosing weight ,and seems to be no reason why.my piggies have been outside for the summer.Toby has stopped eating and has dental issues now.i usually worm all my guinea pigs every three months to prevent worms.my vet was ok with this,especially with having a cat,and alot of cavies.it will get easier @piiggyminder.hugs to you.xx
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I'm going to try newspaper today with just some old vet bed squares under the hides which I will then throw away. Everything in the cages needs washing today and I will gradually get through all the fleece, I feel it all needs washing before use again as I don't know what has been used recently and what hasn't and Gardia can live for sometime without a host.
If your piggies don't pick up soon it would be worth getting a poo check done even if only on the one showing the worst symptoms. I think the chance of them picking something up in the grass has been higher this year because of the weather, the grass has been so short they are eating it at soil level.
I hope your piggies get better soon.
 
Sendign lots of recovery vibes to your boy, at least you know what is causing it now. I hope you can get it cleared quickly Have a hug
 
Thanks @sport_billy and everyone else, I need lots of hugs. Just taking one step at atime the moment, bedding the boys on just newspaper and burning it every day along with hay and the old vetbed squares I'm putting under their hidies. Bracken is bright as a button and zooming around, you wouldn't believe he's just had major surgery, perhaps I should have some of his drugs. The others are all lethargic and unhappy but then the cage layouts are very different now, the barest minimum and all plastic so I can disinfect it daily. OH just been out and bought corex so we can replace it rather than try and deep clean it all at the end of treatment, we had bits taped together from various cage expansions so not very easy to clean. Cleaning and medicating is taking all day at the moment but there is light at the end of the tunnel, usual life is hopefully round the corner!
 
I think you are very wise to use newspaper that can be burnt along with the waste hay etc. I was wondering if freezing your fleeces for 48 hours before using might help. You can do this for lice and fleas, it kills the eggs too, but not sure if it works for worms and giardia, maybe you could ask the vet? Just put fleece in a plastic bag, seal and place in freezer for 48hours. Wishing your piggies a speedy recovery x
 
Merab's Slave said:
How are you doing today?
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We are doing okay thank you. Much easier now I've stream lined the cleaning. The incinerator was still hot this morning so I just threw bags of waste in and off it went, didn't even need to find a match. I finished cleaning at 3pm and managed to go shopping for veggies. I feel a lot calmer now I think I'm getting over the shock. I feel so bad for the piggies though, they have been so ill. I think I would have noticed they were off colour quicker if I wasn't so wrapped up in Bracken's operation. The weird thing is they should have had diarrhoea which I would have noticed but they didn't. They don't seem to mind newspaper in the main cage, they have a big pile of hay in the middle. If I could get hold of enough papers I would be tempted to keep it this way and save the washing!
 
Have you any neighbours or family that read the papers? Most people are happy to collect for you as long as you pick them up. I collect some from old people home near me. I like newspaper to line bottom of outdoor and indoor cages, it works a treat and is compostable too.
 
Bill & Ted said:
Have you any neighbours or family that read the papers? Most people are happy to collect for you as long as you pick them up. I collect some from old people home near me. I like newspaper to line bottom of outdoor and indoor cages, it works a treat and is compostable too.
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You got there just before me! I was going to suggest that! Great minds think alike!:tu: :DMind you fools never differ!:crazy::crazy:
 
They already do but I often run out just lining the cages under the vetbed. My OHs daily exercise is out and about on his bike collecting the free papers :)). We shall manage, it's only another week or so and hopefully we shall get a clear poo test.
 
Here he is one week post op, he's bright as a button.IMG_0540.webpIMG_0541.webpIMG_0546.webp To think last Monday he was booked for PTS. This is the new cage set up for daily deep cleaning, excuse the poops it's about to be cleaned. They usualy have a vetbed mat in the carrier I'd just emptied it out before I took the photo. They seem to quite like the new set up, loads of room for zoomies!
 
I thought some of you may be interested in how things stand now with this saga.
The 8 days after treatment fecal test came back clear. :yahoo:

Bracken is still squeaky pooping, we don't know why. Vet says this suggests a problem at the top of the bladder. He's had loads of tests including having a biopsy of the bladder lining which was taken during the stone op, all tests are negative. He is pooing really well now. He is on Metacam, Cystease, 20mls syringed fluids a day and low calcium diet. It is now a case of wait and see, managing his pain and giving him lots of love. If no further developments the vet will see him again in 6 months but obviously if we are not managing the pain he will go back sooner. Other than when he poops he is absolutely normal, such a happy bouncy piggy. Right now I am taking everyday as it comes, everyday is a bonus.

Whatever was wrong with Spike, probably just the gut disturbance from the parasites and worms he is back to his lovely grumpy self. He's 4 at the beginning of December and has started to age, he is slower than he was and slightly deaf so often needs calling for food as he no longer notices the bag rustle or the fridge open when he is in a deep sleep. :luv:

The others are fine, all starting to regain lost weight although it has surprised me that it has taken so long to turn the corner, they infact lost a bit more after the end of the treatment.

I don't know where I would have been without your support, so thank you all. X
 
Bracken was a bit off over Christmas, we were away at my daughters so I wasn't sure if it was just the change of scene. He needed more pain killers soon anyway so booked I him in for a check up on Saturday. The vet was initially pleased with him, she palpated his bladder etc and said he seemed more comfortable than previously although he had not gained as much weight as she had hoped. As I put him back in the carrier he did a red wee which on being dip sticked showed blood. Yesterday he went for a scan, faecal test, urine test and blood test. The scan showed a stone in the bladder and kidney and mineralisation of a kidney the bladder and a testicle. We are waiting for the other test results which will be slower than usual because of the bank holiday. It's not looking good for our gorgeous boy. I had hoped after the stone operation we could keep him stone free with the right diet and lots of hydration but things have not worked out so well. Bracken is so happy in himself, as top pig he's still putting Rusty in his place and popcorning and zooming, he eats well, always the first at the bars when the fridge opens. He's so good taking his meds and extra water twice a day, now he's getting a shower every time he sits on my lap, poor boy.
 
piggieminder said:
Bracken was a bit off over Christmas, we were away at my daughters so I wasn't sure if it was just the change of scene. He needed more pain killers soon anyway so booked I him in for a check up on Saturday. The vet was initially pleased with him, she palpated his bladder etc and said he seemed more comfortable than previously although he had not gained as much weight as she had hoped. As I put him back in the carrier he did a red wee which on being dip sticked showed blood. Yesterday he went for a scan, faecal test, urine test and blood test. The scan showed a stone in the bladder and kidney and mineralisation of a kidney the bladder and a testicle. We are waiting for the other test results which will be slower than usual because of the bank holiday. It's not looking good for our gorgeous boy. I had hoped after the stone operation we could keep him stone free with the right diet and lots of hydration but things have not worked out so well. Bracken is so happy in himself, as top pig he's still putting Rusty in his place and popcorning and zooming, he eats well, always the first at the bars when the fridge opens. He's so good taking his meds and extra water twice a day, now he's getting a shower every time he sits on my lap, poor boy.
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Oh my you are being tested with the love you have for Bracken. Send you lots love and piggies hugs. Dave. x
 
Thanks David, as you know caring for a very sick guinea pig is draining, emotionally, physically and financially I'm a bit of a wreck at the moment but as long as I can keep him pain free I'll keep going.
 
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