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I now think Paislee has a UTI

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BellasMummy

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Paislee is still drinking alot of water and this morning I saw her pee and she did appear to be sqeaking which she wasn't doing before.
The vet gave me Baytril the other day but this was before I suspected a UTI, my question is will Baytril treat a UTI? and if not what is the medication that will treat a UTI?
Is there anything that I shouldn't be feeding her, now I suspect a UTI?
Do you think I should take her back to the vets, now that I have heard her sqeaking whilst weeing?
Any info regarding UTI's and their treatment would be much appreciated.
 
Hi

It could be one of two things

1.\ Cystitis which is also often accompanied by, but not always a wet rear end or under belly

Human Cystitis medication (Cystease) is all that is needed.

2.\ A UTI , is she also passing blood, but a white towel in the cage to check.

If it is a UTI Bytril is not the best option and the Vet has probably dispensed too small a dose for it to work, they normally dish out 0.2ml which is the cat dosage but GPs have a high metabolic rate and need a higher dose of 0.4ml.

When mine get a UTI I normally give them a combination treatment of an antibiotic and anti inflammatory and I find Septrin and Rymadil give the best results.

Jeanette
 
Have your vet check for blood in the urine; a high protein content in the urine is also indicitave. UTI is the most likely possibility, bladder stones a less likely.

The preferred antibiotic for UTIs is pediatric septrin 0.5 ml twice daily for adult guinea pigs. Make sure that they get plenty of fluid. Unsweetened cranberry juice (either pure or mixed with water) can be given, as well as a mild diuretic herbal tea. This serves to flush as many bacteria out as possible. I have also found metacam a help, espially in the first days. It is a painkiller/anti-inflammatory.

Baytril can be used for UTI. In this case, you want to give 0.4 ml twice daily to an adult guinea pig. Any antibiotic course should be given for at least 2-3 weeks. UTIs can be very tenacious. If it doesn't clear, have an x-ray done to check for bladder sludge or stones.

Please only treat on spec until you can get an appointment as soon as possible.

http://www.guinealynx.info/uti.html
 
Paislee is currently on 20 units of Baytril twice a day but I have rung the vets again just now and asked if they would prescribe Septrin as I have been told some vets won't prescribe it. I am waiting for a phonecall back now.
 
3 of my pigs have similar things, they're all on baytril atm. One has blood (not viewable by eye) in his so the next step for me after I followed they're advice is to ask for Septril. <3

As 2 of them aren't really showing signs of problems now I don't think Baytril is all that bad, I think it really depends on the pig, they've not experienced anything wrong with their poos and have eaten normally, drank normally and don't wheek whilst peeing now. It might not be the best for weaker pigs properly?
 
I find that cystease (a food supplement for cats with cystitis) is a great help in guinea pigs with interstitial/chronic cystitis where antibiotics don't work. It is also prescribed for bladder stone piggies.

My Nerys (who is suffering from chronic cystitis) has been on it for a year now with good success. However, like septrin, it is something that is not in the rulebook!
 
Still waiting for a phonecall back from the vets. Laura has very kindly offered to send me a urine testing pack, so when that comes I should be able to see if there is anything untoward in the urine.
Its obviously not been confirmed as a UTI yet but would it still be ok for me to give the cranberry juice? I really want to try anything that might help.
 
Cranberry juice is OK - it is high in vitamin C, which will help with any kind of infection.
 
Make sure it has no added additives or sugar. I buy Holland and Barrett Cranberry concentrate it's expensive but lasts a long time.
 
Make sure it has no added additives or sugar. I buy Holland and Barrett Cranberry concentrate it's expensive but lasts a long time.

Thanks for that info, I can't get to Holland and Barrett but will try and get some from a supermarket tonight. Still waiting for the vet to ring me back, must be very busy as always!
 
Well got a call back from the vets at about 6pm last night and they didn't answer my question at all about whether they would prescribe Septrin or not, instead they just asked if I wanted Paislee to go in for observation for 24 hours. I said no as It would be a massive stress to her being away from Phoebe and in a strange place.
The urine test came today from Laura so will hopefully get that done later today.
Paislee is still eating well and seems her normal self if not a bit quiet sometimes but I think thats to be expected with the meds that she's on.
 
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