Help! Internal Abscess Near Bladder

[Jordynn]

Hi all.
This is my first post. My guinea pig greedy had lost 200g and had a reduced appetite. We took him to the vet and they found an abscess near his bladder which is very difficult to find. The vet aspirated this to confirm the abscess.
We then had an ultrasound and further draining with a needle but only a 1/3 of pus could be removed. The vet said to completely remove the abscess greedy would need surgery but the vet thought greedy would not pull through the surgery as he has lost so much weight.
Greedy has been started on batryl and metacam orally and had injections today at the vet.
Greedy is responding to the critical care syringe feed and is gaining a little bit of weight. He is also more like himself chasing his brother around the cage.
My husband and I plan to increase greedys weight then decide if we should risk surgery as I'm not sure how long he can live with the abscess.
We have to go back to the vet in a weeks time to see if the abscess has increased in size but I don't think our vet has much experience with guinea pigs and keeps suggesting euthanasia which we don't want to do unless there are no other options.
Does anyone have Experience of this as all the information on abscesses are just under the skin.
Any help or information about the risks of abdominal surgery would be great.
Thank you

 

[GPTV]

hi there & welcome to the forum,

what dose did the vet give you of painkiller(oral metacam- cat or dog strength)? abscesses are usually very painful, you will need to ensure/confirm the dose is high enough. Guinea pigs when in pain often eat less/lose their appetite, so the feeding of critical care as you are doing is great.
sweetcorn is a good short term weight gaining food, try him with this &see if it helps?

Baytril is very harsh on the guineas gut, so if you can get a probiotic (pro-c from pets at home, fibreplex or avipro plus) to give him about two hours after his Baytril this will help replenish the good gut bacteria to help his digestive system keep ticking over. Baytril is also a broad spectrum general antibiotic that might not be strong enough to clear the infection.

I've never used it myself but other members on here have used the antibiotic 'Zithromax' with a high rate of success, it's unlicensed on gpigs but a disclaimer signing is usually all that's required by the vet. Its the big guns of antibiotic to use on abscesses, discuss this with your vet as an option.

If you are not happy with your vet have a look on the recommended vet locator on the tool bar above. see if there are any local to you that may be more savvy.

If the abscess does need complete removal, I think you should get a very savvy vet to perform it, as one that is inexperienced will heighten the risk of complications before, during & after the operation for your little man considerably.

have a look at other abscess threads on here & see if there is anything that could be useful as options.
hopefully one of the Health & Illness guru's with more experience, will be on to offer more advice soon.
Healing vibes to your little man & let us know how he gets on
xx

 

[Jordynn]

hi there & welcome to the forum,

what dose did the vet give you of painkiller(oral metacam- cat or dog strength)? abscesses are usually very painful, you will need to ensure/confirm the dose is high enough. Guinea pigs when in pain often eat less/lose their appetite, so the feeding of critical care as you are doing is great.
sweetcorn is a good short term weight gaining food, try him with this &see if it helps?

Baytril is very harsh on the guineas gut, so if you can get a probiotic to give him about two hours after his Baytril this will help replenish the good gut bacteria to help his digestive system keep ticking over.

I've never used it myself but other members on here have used the antibiotic 'Zithromax' with a high rate of success, it's unlicensed on gpigs but a disclaimer signing is usually all that's required by the vet. Its the big guns of antibiotic to use on abscesses, discuss this with your vet as an option.

If you are not happy with your vet have a look on the recommended vet locator on the tool bar above. see if there are any local to you that may be more savvy.

If the abscess does need complete removal, I think you should get a very savvy vet to perform it, as one that is inexperienced will heighten the risk of complications before, during & after the operation for your little man considerably.

have a look at other abscess threads on here & see if there is anything that could be useful as options.
hopefully one of the Health & Illness guru's with more experience, will be on to offer more advice soon.
Healing vibes to your little man & let us know how he gets on
xx

Greedy has been given dog metacam and he is to have 2kg dose once a day but he is only 1kg.
He loves sweet corn so I will give him more of that. He continues to eat veggies but is not eating his nuggets or water. He is having smaller poops than normal but they are conning more frequently now.
I will get a probiotic for greedy thanks.
I have looked at a different vet and found one that has a experience with guinea pig and will arrange and appointment to get a second opinion.
Greedy has gained 20g in two days. I'm not sure if that is normal. I am giving him three tablespoons of cc a day which he is taking well.
Greedy is only 3 years old and we want him to have the best chance of survival.

Greedy has been very active today but he has been following his brother sniffing his borrow and licking his face. He is really annoying ludo and I'm not sure if I should separate them or not?

 

[Adelle]

Greedy has been given dog metacam and he is to have 2kg dose once a day but he is only 1kg.
He loves sweet corn so I will give him more of that. He continues to eat veggies but is not eating his nuggets or water. He is having smaller poops than normal but they are conning more frequently now.
I will get a probiotic for greedy thanks.
I have looked at a different vet and found one that has a experience with guinea pig and will arrange and appointment to get a second opinion.
Greedy has gained 20g in two days. I'm not sure if that is normal. I am giving him three tablespoons of cc a day which he is taking well.
Greedy is only 3 years old and we want him to have the best chance of survival.

Greedy has been very active today but he has been following his brother sniffing his borrow and licking his face. He is really annoying ludo and I'm not sure if I should separate them or not?

He'll be looking for ludo's healthy poos which means the bacteria in his guts is out of balance, this is because of the antibiotics.

Please start him on probiotics given 1-2 hours after each antibiotic dose to help his guts. Examples include pro-c from pets at home, avipro plus and fibreplex from the vet.

Hopefully the antibiotics and Metacam will be enough to shrink and clear the abcess and avoid surgery.

Definately seek a second opinion if you aren't keen on your vet.

If he becomes lethargic, off his food and feels hot at any point get him to a vet ASAP as this could mean it has burst internally which is life threatening if not operated on quickly. Any distended or tenderness in the abdomen I'd get him straight to the vet too.

All the best x

 

[GPTV]

guineas have a very fast metabolism, I would ask if you can give the dose twice a day, as it will have worn off by 24hrs. @Adelle or @helen105281 I think has a formula for working out the kg to ml dosage to see how it compares with other threads, i'm a bit rubbish at working them out to compare. It looks like I usually have the cat strength so it's even more complex to work out

I would try & leave the boys together if they are getting on, your poorly boy is probably trying to gather healthy poops from his pad mate, to replenish his good gut bacteria, another option is poop soup mixed & fed to him - with poops collected from his buddy.
the small poops are probably from where he hasn't been eating as much, but as long as they keep coming that's a good sign.

I would definitely seek a different vet, as one that suggests euthanasia this early, doesn't inspire confidence!

 

[Jordynn]

He'll be looking for ludo's healthy poos which means the bacteria in his guts is out of balance, this is because of the antibiotics.

Please start him on probiotics given 1-2 hours after each antibiotic dose to help his guts. Examples include pro-c from pets at home, avipro plus and fibreplex from the vet.

Hopefully the antibiotics and Metacam will be enough to shrink and clear the abcess and avoid surgery.

Definately seek a second opinion if you aren't keen on your vet.

If he becomes lethargic, off his food and feels hot at any point get him to a vet ASAP as this could mean it has burst internally which is life threatening if not operated on quickly. Any distended or tenderness in the abdomen I'd get him straight to the vet too.

All the best x

Thank you.
I have a probiotic that I will start giving him. Greedy is improving but I am aware that the abscess could get bigger and greedy could worsen very fast.
We know the signs to look for as his lethargy caused us to take him to the vet initially
The vet did not think the antibiotics would shrink the abscess but we pushed to get them. I will ask for the stronger zithromax. To give him the best chance of recovering from this.

 

[Jordynn]

guineas have a very fast metabolism, I would ask if you can give the dose twice a day, as it will have worn off by 24hrs. @Adelle or @helen105281 I think has a formula for working out the kg to ml dosage to see how it compares with other threads, i'm a bit rubbish at working them out to compare. It looks like I usually have the cat strength so it's even more complex to work out

I would try & leave the boys together if they are getting on, your poorly boy is probably trying to gather healthy poops from his pad mate, to replenish his good gut bacteria, another option is poop soup mixed & fed to him - with poops collected from his buddy.
the small poops are probably from where he hasn't been eating as much, but as long as they keep coming that's a good sign.

I would definitely seek a different vet, as one that suggests euthanasia this early, doesn't inspire confidence!

ks

Thanks I will contact the vet in the morning to see if I can increase the dose because I'd hate to see him in pain. I haven't heard of poop soup before but I'm willing to try anything. I'll have a hunt for the formula but the vet gave me an odd syringe measured in kg not ml.

 

[helen105281]

Am afraid I am bad at working out doses too so will let Adelle answer. I usually give dog Metacam twice a day at a dose of 0.2ml.

 

[GPTV]

ks

Thanks I will contact the vet in the morning to see if I can increase the dose because I'd hate to see him in pain. I haven't heard of poop soup before but I'm willing to try anything. I'll have a hunt for the formula but the vet gave me an odd syringe measured in kg not ml.

poop soup doesn't sound appetising, but it's great to boost their digestive system & get it working again

& yes definitely take him back to the vets if he shows any signs of lethargy or deteriorates... probably to the other practice you hsve found , or see if they have a more savvy vet at your current practice. xx

 

[Jordynn]

poop soup doesn't sound appetising, but it's great to boost their digestive system & get it working again

& yes definitely take him back to the vets if he shows any signs of lethargy or deteriorates... probably to the other practice you hsve found , or see if they have a more savvy vet at your current practice. xx

L
I have just given him the poop soup and he loved it. Usually he fights with the syringe but he was eager to have it. Is this something I can give regularly to help digestion or is it something that has to be given sparingly?

 

[GPTV]

L
I have just given him the poop soup and he loved it. Usually he fights with the syringe but he was eager to have it. Is this something I can give regularly to help digestion or is it something that has to be given sparingly?

Lol! He likes it then! if you give him some about 1.5 -2hrs after his antibiotics, or the antibiotics will kill off the good bacteria in the poop soup too.
I would give him a big syringe full as much as he wants maybe 3 to 4 times a day to get him back on track, he'll probably want less as he feels better.

 

[Lady Kelly]

Hi, it might be worth seeking a second opinion if there is a more savvy vet in your area (try having a look on the vet locator on here). One of my pigs has currently has an abscess on her face and is on antibiotics. She has been given sulfatrim instead of baytril. It's my understanding that baytril isn't that effective for abscesses so if it doesn't shrink the abscess it might be worth trying something new. I would be worried about letting the vet operate if you aren't confident in their knowledge/ability with piggies

 

[Jordynn]

Thank you everyone for your help. I have made an appointment at seers Croft vets in Horsham. They have a specialist in guinea pigs so I'm sure he will give greedy the best chance of success.
I continue to give the poop soups and they seem to be helping as greedy is pooping more often but still small sizes.
Greedy is drinking more but only when I hold the bottle up to him on my lap. If I do it inside the cage he will ignore it. I'm worried he is becoming too reliant on me to hand feed him and he thinks he should wait for me.
Greedy will not go near hay or pellets but is eating as much veggies as he use to. Are we filling him too much with cc that he is too full for hay?
Greedy is gaining a fast amount of weight. He has put on almost 50g in three days. Is that normal for pigs on cc?

Thanks again xx

 

[GPTV]

ahh sounds like you're doing well. it might be worth feeding him the hay first, before the poop soup & veggies. It's just that hay gives the fibre for their digestion & the coarseness helps to keep their teeth in shape so its the most important. he's getting fluids from the poop soup so that will be filling him up as well as hydrating him.
when they're feeling poorly mine like to be fed strands of hay or you could stuff some in a toilet roll/cardboard tube to add to the interest/foraging instinct to get them going again.

it usually takes about 24hrs for the food to go through their system. so his poops should start to improve a bit soon if he's been eating more today.
lots of poops is a good sign though.
a steady increase in weight is a good sign too

I'm glad you have booked him in at a different vets, hopefully they'll give you some more experienced /encouraging advice to get a speedy recovery.

as long as he's eating at the moment I wouldn't worry about him being reliant on you - just keep the food coming.

 

[Jordynn]

ahh sounds like you're doing well. it might be worth feeding him the hay first, before the poop soup & veggies. It's just that hay gives the fibre for their digestion & the coarse'ness helps to keep their teeth in shape so its te most important. he's getting fluids from the poop soup so that will be filling him up as well as hydrating him.
when they're feeling poorly mine like to be fed strands of hay or you could stuff some in a toilet roll/cardboard tube to add to the interest/foraging instinct to get them going again.

it usually takes about 24hrs for the food to go through their system. so his poops should start to improve a bit soon if he's been eating more today.
lots of poops is a good sign though.
a steady increase in weight is a good sign too

I'm glad you have booked him in at a different vets, hopefully they'll give you some more experienced /encouraging advice to get a speedy recovery.

as long as he's eating at the moment I wouldn't worry about him being reliant on you - just keep the food coming.

Thanks gptv, I will offer him hay first to see if he will go for it. He usually just turns his nose up at it.

 

[GPTV]

Thanks gptv, I will offer him hay first to see if he will go for it. He usually just turns his nose up at it.

why do they do that? whatever we get them, it's never quite right
sometimes just a change in brand or type of hay can get them interested in it again. xx