Help/advice With A Uti Or Stones :(

[Wiebke]

Wow, poor little thing! That has definitely put things into perspective. I definitely know that this is worth it, just hoping that this doesn't mess with him later on down the line. But your story has reassured me, thank you. I'll still have a chat with the vet tomorrow just to be sure of everything.

You always have to get through the acute crisis you are faced with first before you can think about the long term. It can be physically as well as emotionally very draining and exhausting, not to mention the hemorrhaging of your purse.
Because of that, I have started to reset the clock at any potentially life threatening condition/op and start to count this as a new lease of life. It helps me to appreciate the extra time I have with a piggy that I would not have had with the ones in the olden days.

It is any vet's job to weigh up the pros and cons of each medication they prescribe for any given problem. Vets are now more generous with supportive meds (painkillers and gut stimulants) than they used to be, which makes a real difference for the piggies in terms of comfort level. Tramadol is the one I would be most worried about for long term use; your vet will take your boy off it as soon as he feels it is safe to.

HUGS

 

[Tina McNulty]

Day three after surgery:
Badge has been quite lethargic today. It is quite warm today so I have upped his feeding and water intake to every hour or so. His piggy poops were stringy earlier which I know is a sign of dehydration. How much water should he be having daily? He has eaten the occasional cucumber or piece of celery, I gave him a couple of dandelion leaves from the garden earlier which he demolished plus a blueberry for a treat. So far I have been able to feed him 31 mls of CC/Emeraid (feeding him the Emeraid is easier!) and I've given him roughly 20 mls of water. Its hard to be approximate with his water intake as he does dribble a little. Am I doing alright so far? Or do I need to up my game?

 

[Tina McNulty]

Badge is doing OK today, he's eating little bits on his own again and I found him nibbling on hay when I checked on him during the night. He's also started drinking from his water bottle occasionally without needed any coaxing. His piggy poops are getting more each day, no longer stringy and getting a bit bigger. I'm still syringe feeding him often, he definitely prefers the emeraid over the oxbow cc. He seems more energetic aswell.
I've been getting quite a bit of grief from my place of work over this. A colleague even thought it would be appropriate to ridicule me on social media. It's like some people don't see guinea pigs as being a pet you can bond with or have emotions over. My team leader even laughed at me and called me stupid for the money I had to pay for surgery. Yes, I've been off work for the past four days to tend to Badger but he would have died otherwise. This added stress has made me feel so sad about how people can feel about guinea pigs as pets.

 

[piggies04]

You are doing a wonderful job looking after him don't let people upset you.
Guinea pigs have their own characters, are affectionate and bring joy into the family.
He's very handsome and I hope he is feeling back to normal soon.
x

 

[Tiamolly123]

Piggies mean everything to some people, when my Molly died, it broke my heart, It does when one of my hamsters passes. Bet your lot a work cry when the dog dies. They are all animals that have a heart & soul they feel emotions & .pain.
Just ignore them

 

[Tiamolly123]

Hi & welcome to our friendly forum.

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

You poor thing, you're going through a terrible time! You're doing great by your little boy and your work colleagues need to get a life to be honest. If you don't treat your animals like you would a human child then I think there's something wrong with that person. I would have done the exact same as you, in fact I've taken a week off work next week for my little girls surgery.

I'm sorry I can't offer any advice as the stone is out of my expertise but it sounds like he's well looked after with his meds and certainly looked after well by yourself. I do hope it gets sorted, I don't know if there's any way of breaking it down is there?

Sending big hugs your way x

 

[Tina McNulty]

You poor thing, you're going through a terrible time! You're doing great by your little boy and your work colleagues need to get a life to be honest. If you don't treat your animals like you would a human child then I think there's something wrong with that person. I would have done the exact same as you, in fact I've taken a week off work next week for my little girls surgery.

I'm sorry I can't offer any advice as the stone is out of my expertise but it sounds like he's well looked after with his meds and certainly looked after well by yourself. I do hope it gets sorted, I don't know if there's any way of breaking it down is there?

Sending big hugs your way x

Thanks Cavy Kung-Fu, there isn't a way of breaking down the stone. He needs to get over the initial surgery for now and build his strength back up. When he starts to be more himself then its time to look into the situation with the stone. Hopefully it'll possibly pass through into his bladder and then it can be removed or it'll need to be flushed out and at the very worst have the ureter/kidney removed. I'm not 100% on the medical procedure of stone removal from the ureter, only from previous posts on this thread. Just have to wait and see what happens.

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

Thanks Cavy Kung-Fu, there isn't a way of breaking down the stone. He needs to get over the initial surgery for now and build his strength back up. When he starts to be more himself then its time to look into the situation with the stone. Hopefully it'll possibly pass through into his bladder and then it can be removed or it'll need to be flushed out and at the very worst have the ureter/kidney removed. I'm not 100% on the medical procedure of stone removal from the ureter, only from previous posts on this thread. Just have to wait and see what happens.

Well he's certainly well looked after by yourself so I'm sure he'll recover beautifully Fingers crossed that it starts to pass through a bit more.

Give him all the healing vibes I'm sending!

 

[Tina McNulty]

Badger is really putting up a struggle when trying to feed him. I've tried every option but the little sod isn't daft and soon finds a way to avoid having a syringe feed. I'm glad to see he's got his strength back but he still isn't eating much on his own. He's been 'fine' up until now. I was hoping to give him a relatively large amount of food so I can actually get some sleep tonight. Any suggestions

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

Badger is really putting up a struggle when trying to feed him. I've tried every option but the little sod isn't daft and soon finds a way to avoid having a syringe feed. I'm glad to see he's got his strength back but he still isn't eating much on his own. He's been 'fine' up until now. I was hoping to give him a relatively large amount of food so I can actually get some sleep tonight. Any suggestions

I had the same battle with Iggy, if you can get some wheat grass powder (I got mine from a health food shop) and add some to the critical care mix I found that really helped. Now that I add some of that my pigs will eat it off a spoon, it makes life a lot easier!

 

[Tina McNulty]

I had the same battle with Iggy, if you can get some wheat grass powder (I got mine from a health food shop) and add some to the critical care mix I found that really helped. Now that I add some of that my pigs will eat it off a spoon, it makes life a lot easier!

I'll give it a try, it does contain quite a bit of calcium though. I'm trying to limit the amount of calcium he gets, but adding a bit won't do much harm surely?

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

I'll give it a try, it does contain quite a bit of calcium though. I'm trying to limit the amount of calcium he gets, but adding a bit won't do much harm surely?

Yes I don't blame you, are you using a low calcium nugget? I only add a little bit for the taste, with low calcium grain free nuggets and critical care... It's like cooking a meal but I must say I don't taste it myself

 

[Tina McNulty]

Yes I don't blame you, are you using a low calcium nugget? I only add a little bit for the taste, with low calcium grain free nuggets and critical care... It's like cooking a meal but I must say I don't taste it myself

I was giving him oxbow cc but he hated the stuff. I tried mixing with his nuggets or cranberry juice but he wasn't having any of it! I got him some emeraid which he preferred but only by a little. I've been out and got him some wheatgrass powder and he does seem to like it mixed in with his feed. Still struggles a little (especially of a night!) but it's a little easier. Takes me 15 minutes per feed instead of 30. Haha! He's getting stronger though, his back legs are still a little weak but he moves about a bit easier. He's having a snooze on his fluffy mat under my computer desk right now

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

I was giving him oxbow cc but he hated the stuff. I tried mixing with his nuggets or cranberry juice but he wasn't having any of it! I got him some emeraid which he preferred but only by a little. I've been out and got him some wheatgrass powder and he does seem to like it mixed in with his feed. Still struggles a little (especially of a night!) but it's a little easier. Takes me 15 minutes per feed instead of 30. Haha! He's getting stronger though, his back legs are still a little weak but he moves about a bit easier. He's having a snooze on his fluffy mat under my computer desk right now

Aw bless him, he's not making it easy for you is he? Have you offered it to him on a plate or spoon? It's great to hear he's getting stronger, even if it means he fights you too haha.

 

[Tina McNulty]

Hello all, update on Badge time!
I've got him in his cage mostly at the moment, I still keep him in his suitcase bed of a night. I'm still syringe feeding him but when it comes to veges, he seems keen and has a sniff around the plate but will barely touch any of it. He still isn't drinking from his water bottle so that requires the syringe too. I don't know if it is still early days but how can I possibly try and encourage him to eat solids again?
His back legs have got stronger and he's more mobile than he was, he still fights me initially when syringe feeding but eventually accepts the inevitable

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

I'm glad to hear he's becoming more mobile! Would he eat nuggets if they were softened with some warm water maybe? Does he eat much hay? You could try him on some different hay, perhaps some oat grass? I've found poorly pigs do like the Friendly Readigrass oat hay when they're recovering. Have you tried grating veggies or anything? I wonder if that may help him.

Maybe putting some Pro C in his water bottle might tempt him to have some?

 

[Tina McNulty]

I haven't tried the softened nuggets yet, I'll try it in the morning. He doesn't eat much hay, just the odd nibble. I have Meadow hay, Timothy hay, Readigrass and Dandelion salad. I'm not sure if the Readigrass is oat hay, doesn't say anything like that on the bag. I like the grated veggies idea, its definitely worth a shot! I have a Vitamin C solution in his water bottle and I give him pro-biotics 2 hours after having his antibiotics and half way in between. He is being a proper little grumpy pig with me now though. He wont even take food off me by hand anymore, I have to get my partner to do it! I think the 5 years of trust and loyalty have gone out of the window Hahaha!
Thanks for the suggestion Cavy Kung-Fu, Ill be sure to try them.

 

[Tina McNulty]

1 week 1 day after surgery:
Badge is doing so well! Feeding has got a lot easier and he's started eating hay and nuggets on of his own accord. He moves around more freely, still a little weak but he's exploring again. I even caught him playing with some of his toys! I've never been so happy and proud of him. He has come such a long way in a week. He still isn't drinking from his water bottle but he quite openly accepts it by syringe. I was reading a thread on here about impaction and thought I'd have a look on him myself so I have cleaned out his anal sack as best as I could (bleurgh, did I feel sick though!) He still squeaks when pooing but no where near as much. I cannot express my sincere gratitude to everyone who has supported and helped me on this site! Badge isn't quite out of the woods yet but I'm confident he will pull through this.

Cheers everyone! x

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

1 week 1 day after surgery:
Badge is doing so well! Feeding has got a lot easier and he's started eating hay and nuggets on of his own accord. He moves around more freely, still a little weak but he's exploring again. I even caught him playing with some of his toys! I've never been so happy and proud of him. He has come such a long way in a week. He still isn't drinking from his water bottle but he quite openly accepts it by syringe. I was reading a thread on here about impaction and thought I'd have a look on him myself so I have cleaned out his anal sack as best as I could (bleurgh, did I feel sick though!) He still squeaks when pooing but no where near as much. I cannot express my sincere gratitude to everyone who has supported and helped me on this site! Badge isn't quite out of the woods yet but I'm confident he will pull through this.

Cheers everyone! x

I'm so glad to hear he's doing so well! Badge is a strong willed little boy indeed. He's got a great piggy parent to help him and I hope he's continues his recovery in leaps and bounds

 

[Tina McNulty]

Nearly two weeks after surgery:

Badge has come on in leaps and bounds! He's eating a bit more veg on his own each day and running about playing. He does tend to stay in his bed a lot but he was like that anyway. Still won't drink from his bottle though, I'll try using a bowl tonight and see if that works. I no longer give him the Emeprid or Ranitidine and I've limited the Tramadol to 5 drops to once a day instead of three. Syringe feeding him can still be tricky at times but other times I can get about 10-15 mls in 30 minutes (massive improvement on 5 mls in 20 minutes)
He has another appointment this Wednesday for a check up so fingers crossed that all is well.

Thanks for reading x

 

[Tina McNulty]

Update on Badger.
Things are not good. He has started bleeding again and its worse than last time. He was fine yesterday morning, ate all his breakfast and moving around a bit but when dinner time came he wouldn't come out of his house to eat dinner and was doing very high pitched squeaks. I took him out to syringe feed and there was blood. Both me and my partner are absolutely devastated by this. I hope my vets is open today but being a bank holiday I don't know, doesn't say anything about BH on their website. I can only hope that they are! I'm wondering if this means that the stone has moved down into his bladder. Is it possible for a guinea pig to pick up another UTI so shortly after the first one? Luckily, I still have a bit of his medicine left so he's on that again. Just when I thought he was getting back to normal he rapidly declines back into where he was 3 weeks ago.

Thanks for reading x

 

[DM030819]

@Tina McNulty The blood may have been caused by the stone moving. They are rough and spiky so could scratch when they move.

Good luck at the vets today, let us know how you get on.

 

[Tina McNulty]

Regrettably, we had no other option but to send Badge to the Rainbow Bridge. My partner and I are absolutely distraught over this, I know we did the best we could for him but in the end this was the kindest thing we could do for him even with a heavy heart. The stone hadn't moved and had caused his bladder to swell and fill up with sludge. He could have been operated on again but it would have been futile. I'm so upset but relieved that he is no longer in any pain.
Thank you to everyone who has shown their support and given kind words of advice. I will miss Badge so so much but know that he is now at peace.

RIP Badger xxxxxxx

 

[Gem789]

Regrettably, we had no other option but to send Badge to the Rainbow Bridge. My partner and I are absolutely distraught over this, I know we did the best we could for him but in the end this was the kindest thing we could do for him even with a heavy heart. The stone hadn't moved and had caused his bladder to swell and fill up with sludge. He could have been operated on again but it would have been futile. I'm so upset but relieved that he is no longer in any pain.
Thank you to everyone who has shown their support and given kind words of advice. I will miss Badge so so much but know that he is now at peace.

RIP Badger xxxxxxx

I’m so sorry for your loss xx