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Jabba our piggie is unwell

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chriscundy

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Our piggie Jabba (has a brother called Chewie) is very unwell.

Couple of months ago he developed a wonkeyness and the vets said he may have had mild stroke. He was eating however in the last 2 weeks has lost half of his body weight and is barely over 500g.

He is going through the motions of eating, making a chomping sound, looking like he's eating grass etc. But nothing is getting past his teeth.

Following a cucumber test with his brother and 2 seperate pieces of cucumber, his brother gulped it down however Jabba just made teeth marks.

His teeth are a bit wonky and he looks really hungry but is quite boney.

He is a lovely guinea pig and have a vet appointment tomorrow which my wife booked as he is her piggie and the other is mine.
She did say she is considering having him put to sleep.

If that happens I really do hope the other one will be ok. He does generally seem more soletary since Jabba has been ill so hopefully he will cope ok.

:aLJFBQ00151070111C: sad times

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jabba1.jpg

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Sorry to hear Jabba is poorly. Has he been checked by the vet for dental problems? He needs to see a vet as soon as possible.

You will need to syringe feed him something like critical care http://www.vetuk.co.uk/rabbit-suppl...197/oxbow-critical-care-for-herbivores-p-2426 this will get somefood into his system and keep his tummy moving.

Tips on syringe feeding can be found at the guineapighelpline by an ex member from here http://www.guineapighelpline.com/SyringeFeedingFactsheet.pdf

Where about do you live? We may be able to recommend a Guinea Pig Savy vet local to you.

I have asked your thread to be moved to health and illness section by a mod as it will be seen more there.
 
My guinea pig was like that. Although we got her teeth trimmed she lost weight everyday. She was 5. We had her put down in the end as we couldn't bear to watch her slowly starve. If he does have to be put down remember it's for the best and you'll always love him.
 
We live in Weston-super-Mare.

Can much be done about teeth? we don't have a lot of money either :(

Another question, what do you think Chewie will be like if Jabba has to goto sleep? They have been together for 4 years now since they were born.

Would it be good for him to have a friend or just to be on his own?

I gather if he needed a friend it would have to be a girl?

Thanks for your support guys, I really love this community - people really care :)
 
Ok, I'll do a search for you on vets local to you...

Teeth problems can often be sorted by experienced vets. There is a very good dental vet in Northampton called Simon Maddocks in Northampton. Debbie (furryfriends) on this forum also runs a sanctuary for dental piggies.

Just gonna search for you now on vets
 
The closest I can find for you are in Bristol http://www.zetlandveterinaryhospital.co.uk/ I know this isn't that close. It may be worth ringing around all your local vets asking if any of them have experience with Guinea pig dental problems... That's how we found our vet.

I am hoping someone local to you may be able to recommend a vet, please get Jabba to a vet as soon as possible, vets within your area will operate an out of hours service. His weight loss is massive and he needs veterinary treatment.
 
chriscundy said:
Just got a small sachet of Oxbow from local vets.
Click to expand...

Well done, you'll need a 1ml syringe. Please take time to read Laura's factsheet. Syringe feeding a piggie can take time to master and you have to be careful with the speed you use as you do not want to choke them.
 
As has already been mentioned, the very best vet for dental issues is Simon Maddock of the Cat and Rabbit Care Clinic in Northampton. I run a sanctuary for guinea pigs with dental issues www.teasnorthampton.co.uk and I offer temporary places to piggies to enable them to receive treatment from Simon and then return home when their dental issues have been cured.

So many vets haven't got a clue about dental problems in guinea pigs and often totally misdiagnose. Dental issues don't have to be a death sentence if you can get them appropriate treatment.
 
Well done, you'll need a 1ml syringe. Please take time to read Laura's factsheet. Syringe feeding a piggie can take time to master and you have to be careful with the speed you use as you do not want to choke them.
Click to expand...

My wife has a degree in animal care so I leave the feeding to her :)
 
@ furryfriends (Excellent Adventure Sanctuary)

How much is dental care? What would it cost for Jabba to goto your sanctuary?

Thanks
 
chriscundy said:
@ furryfriends (Excellent Adventure Sanctuary)

How much is dental care? What would it cost for Jabba to goto your sanctuary?

Thanks
Click to expand...

There is no charge for boarding or the supportive care given by me at the Sanctuary. Veterinary fees would need to be paid directly to the vet. The Sanctuary relies solely on fundraising and donations and therefore any small donation is always very welcome.
 
If strugglng with transport, and that's the only thing stopping the piggie getting to Simon, it might be worth seeing if a piggie train could help. A train is when volunteers take the piggie somewhere in relays.
 
we hopefully taking him to better vet @ langford vetinary college tonight.

he is wet under his teeth which suggests he his a dental problem.

as his teeth are wonky I imagine it would be best for his teeth to be cut trimmed and then allow them to re-grow and manual feed in the meantime.
 
If the teeth are 'wonky', just cutting them right back isn't going to sort the problem. They need to be filed, not cut, to a state where the guinea pig can start to make some attempt to eat for themself. Unfortunately very few vets know what guinea pig teeth are meant to look like.

A guinea pig who isn't eating at all needs 120 mls of syringe food per 24 hours, whilst at the same time being tempted with veggies that are either grated or cut into small pieces. The Burgess Blackcurrant and Oregano pellets are great for dental piggies as they are very small.
 
Good News, Jabba is going for dental surgery tomorrow! :)

Will post any news as I have it.
 
Jabba came home yesterday evening (Friday) and is responding well.
Eating mashed up pellets however will need to re-learn how to eat simple things like dandelions and grass etc.

Things are looking up :)
 
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