How Much Critical Care?

[TheCavySlave]

Is it possible to overfeed Critical Care to Duncan? He's 1kg, and we have a sachet mixed up with water, and we've been feeding it to him but what happens if we don't feed him it all tonight? Is it bad to feed lots in one go? I mean, if some gets thrown away will it still work for him? And, if we can't finish it tonight, will it be okay for tomorrow?

 

[sport_billy]

Hey

Critical care is a food substitute so you cant over feed.... he will just stop eating it. We tended to make up a little at a time, but switched to mushed pellets when syringe feeding as Cookie used to prefer it.

Have a read of syringe feeding guide here for amounts and tips.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

Is he eating food on his own? Veg and hay?

 

[Poppy'sMum]

I make up a few teaspoons at a time, it doesn't get wasted then. I am using Burgess Blackcurrant & Oregano at the moment, I whizz the pellets in a clean coffee grinder & soak a couple of teaspoons with cooled, boiled water & Ziggy is eating far more than she was with the Critical Care

 

[TheCavySlave]

He's fine, the Critical Care is just sort of like a helping paw the vet suggested.
Also, oops. I made them up a salad, I wanted to make sure Duncan had some extra hydration and he shared a small portion with Godfrey. Was that a mistake, if he's having Critical Care? They were wheeking at me because I was late with lunch.
And Duncan's in fine form, he was burrowing in his hay in the carrier, and having a munch. I made up the full sachet because I wanted to make sure I had the exact amount of water suggested (yeah, it's like a weakness) and have been feeding him it a bit at a time, with a while in between. He likes it, and eats it quite happily, which makes it so much easier. He's such a sweetheart, sits quite patiently, even if he won't let me wipe his chin.
I kind of feel like I'm doing it wrong? The syringe is 15ml, so I fill most of it, then gently squeeze so he can eat off the tip of it. If he's eating normally, and drinking, is Critical Care still okay? His poops still don't seem 100 right to me, but they're okay, and the vet said he was fine, but I think it's good to make sure. But I'm still worried I'm harming him! I'm so bad at this whole thing

 

[Wiebke]

He's fine, the Critical Care is just sort of like a helping paw the vet suggested.
Also, oops. I made them up a salad, I wanted to make sure Duncan had some extra hydration and he shared a small portion with Godfrey. Was that a mistake, if he's having Critical Care? They were wheeking at me because I was late with lunch.
And Duncan's in fine form, he was burrowing in his hay in the carrier, and having a munch. I made up the full sachet because I wanted to make sure I had the exact amount of water suggested (yeah, it's like a weakness) and have been feeding him it a bit at a time, with a while in between. He likes it, and eats it quite happily, which makes it so much easier. He's such a sweetheart, sits quite patiently, even if he won't let me wipe his chin.

If it is just topping up, then you offer him syringe feed 2-3 times daily and let him have as much as he wants. Offer a syringe full of water for every 3-5 syringes of feed. Let him suckle and never push more than 0.3 - to max. 0.5 ml (i.e.1 mouthful) for an adult guinea pig into the mouth. You can find lots more tips in the syringe feeding guide.
Mostly I use mushed up pellets, but if it is formula, I add three times as much water to the amount of powder; that gives you a good consistency.

 

[TheCavySlave]

If it is just topping up, then you offer him syringe feed 2-3 times daily and let him have as much as he wants. Offer a syringe full of water for every 3-5 syringes of feed. Let him suckle and never push more than 0.3 - to max. 0.5 ml (i.e.1 mouthful) for an adult guinea pig into the mouth. You can find lots more tips in the syringe feeding guide.
Mostly I use mushed up pellets, but if it is formula, I add three times as much water to the amount of powder; that gives you a good consistency.

Thank you! I'm so worried I'm doing it wrong.
Would it work to refrigerate it then let him have more tomorrow?

 

[pig in the city]

Thank you! I'm so worried I'm doing it wrong.
Would it work to refrigerate it then let him have more tomorrow?

You can keep it in the fridge for up to 24hours (after that it might lose some of its nutrents) warm it up slightly before you feed it by adding some warm water, it tends to thicken up when its been stood a while