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Kasper has an abscess?

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theoretikos

theoretikos

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Hi - As some of you may know Kasper got into a fight with Uno last week and Uno has now found foster parents Lisa and Ali.

Well the wound looked clean so I left it and checked it twice a day. Now he has an abscess and a very strong pus smell. Is this normal after a fight? It just appeared over night ?/

I'm taking him to the vet tomorrow morning asap to see but just wondering if anyone here has had this experience. He's eating fine, popcorning and being crazy as always so he seems fine otherwise!
 
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Please have him seen by a vet as soon as you can arrange an appointment.

Abscesses can come up very quickly. They are not all that rare after a fight.
 
If any of mine have been bitten I always bathe it in a saline solution to keep it sterile. Hope it all goes ok at the vets :)
 
He's at the vet just now, they are going to lance and possibly remove it. Hope he'll be ok x
 
Hope all goes well. x
 
The vet just phoned and he has come round. She isn't sure how he is going to be as the abscess was really deep rooted and has been festering for a while without me knowing 8... I feel like such a bad piggy mother.

I should be, fingers crossed, picking him up at 6:30 but the vet doesn't know if he'll be able to eat and use his mouth properly.

Just splitting up the cage so that he can get peace when he comes home and to make it easier to stop him free ranging and also to keep his side cleaner as I can change the towels and fleece more often x

Thanks for the good wishes
 
theoretikos said:
The vet just phoned and he has come round. She isn't sure how he is going to be as the abscess was really deep rooted and has been festering for a while without me knowing 8... I feel like such a bad piggy mother.

I should be, fingers crossed, picking him up at 6:30 but the vet doesn't know if he'll be able to eat and use his mouth properly.

Just splitting up the cage so that he can get peace when he comes home and to make it easier to stop him free ranging and also to keep his side cleaner as I can change the towels and fleece more often x

Thanks for the good wishes
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You're not a bad piggy mother at all! These things can be quite tricky to spot in the early stages.

He'll probably be coming home with a few different medicines (painkillers, and probably ABs too) so don't be afraid to ask the vets to explain everything to you a few times until you're comfortable with what you'll need to do. When my boys have had to have operations sometimes I've left the vets feeling totally confused and daunted by the prospect of having to take care of them post-op.

You may also need to syringe feed if he's not eating on his own. If you've never done this before, I would ask the vet to explain this all too.

Sending lots of healing vibes and well wishes for the next few hours and days x
 
Aww thank you Jerrybelly. I can syringe feed him antibiotics but never tried it with food so this will be fun...x
 
This link is useful:
http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html

Oxbow Critical Care or Recovery Plus can be syringe-fed to pigs, but softened pellets can also be used to. You'll need some 1ml syringes.

Again, I would speak to your vet about all of this later. Hopefully you won't need to go down this route, but I always find it better to be armed with the right information and prepared for all eventualities, just in case.

Please don't worry about any of this. If you have any questions, then just post them on this thread. But, as I said, don't be afraid to go in to the vets armed with a list of questions either (I usually do!) x
 
Following on from what Cath has said above, please ask the vet for some painkiller to give at home for a few days. Also to aid syringe feeding it can be handy to trim the end off a 1ml syringe (making sure the plunger can't come out) this makes it less likely to squirt the food out to fast into his mouth. Lots of healing vibes for your boy x
 
Thanks again everyone! Just ordered critical care and it should be here tomorrow so he'll have to get mashed up pellets tonight if he can manage. Really worried but will let everyone know how he is when he gets home xx
 
Kasper is back home xx>>>

He didn't eat at the vets but I gave him 5ml of critical care which he ate then hand fed him pellets! He also ate some salad leaves so far so good!

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Oh poor little sweetheart. I really hope he heals soon. It is great he ate salad.
 
Apart from being tired he seems to be fine. Was chutting on the couch and begging for more pellets lol
 
Ouch, that looks sore :/ Eating on his own is an excellent sign though :)
 
Poor Kasper, I hope he gets well soon. I wish Minky had those metal staples in when she had her abscess removals (3 in last 3 months). She had stitches & had to be kept away from the other piggies because they thought they'd help her by taking the stitches out. After the first op she went in to have her 4 stitches removed & there were only 2 1/2 stitches left.

Has she got a drain hole or has it been fully stitched. In the bottom picture it looks like there's possibly a drain hole on the left. If it is, has you been shown how to keep it clean & open? That was one of the main reasons that I changed my vet 5 weeks ago. The drain hole sealed & Minky had to have a minor op to reopen it. This was an unnecessary which should have happened if the vet had told me what to do.

Please weigh him daily until you're sure his weight is stable. It's the only way to know whether he's getting enough nourishment.
 
Stewybus said:
Poor Kasper, I hope he gets well soon. I wish Minky had those metal staples in when she had her abscess removals (3 in last 3 months). She had stitches & had to be kept away from the other piggies because they thought they'd help her by taking the stitches out. After the first op she went in to have her 4 stitches removed & there were only 2 1/2 stitches left.

Has she got a drain hole or has it been fully stitched. In the bottom picture it looks like there's possibly a drain hole on the left. If it is, has you been shown how to keep it clean & open? That was one of the main reasons that I changed my vet 5 weeks ago. The drain hole sealed & Minky had to have a minor op to reopen it. This was an unnecessary which should have happened if the vet had told me what to do.

Please weigh him daily until you're sure his weight is stable. It's the only way to know whether he's getting enough nourishment.
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A drain hole wasn't even mentioned to me! I'm going to see the vet again tomorrow so I'll ask her about it then. He got the staples since he was under the anesthetic for too long in the vets opinion.

He's now drinking fine which is a good sign for me. He says thank you for all the kind wishes xx
 
Poor Kasper, glad he has came round and eating, lots of healing vibes to him x
 
He's happily eating some yellow bell pepper, cucumber and baby leaf salad. Thanks for the healing vibes, they have been working for far x

Is it ok to feed him as normal? :S
 
theoretikos said:
A drain hole wasn't even mentioned to me! I'm going to see the vet again tomorrow so I'll ask her about it then. He got the staples since he was under the anesthetic for too long in the vets opinion.

He's now drinking fine which is a good sign for me. He says thank you for all the kind wishes xx
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A drain hole isn't always left. If the vet believes that the abscess is fully removed then they wouldn't leave a drain hole. It's only left if there's a possibility of pus to be drained.

I'm glad to hear he's been eating & drinking. Just keep daily check on his weight & hopefully you won't need to use critical care etc.
 
Hi again, haven't been on as had lots of washing to do as it was finally sunny!

The vet has fully removed the abscess. It was deep rooted pretty much up to his eye and that's why it has taken so long to notice. He also seems oblivious to it...@)

The vet was worried that there had been nerve damage but from what I can see he's fine - the only thing he is struggling with is bending to the stapled side but guessing it will be tight and that is the only reason.

Kasper is doing well and trying to escape the temporary cage. He is still eating and isn't interested in critical care at all. He's going to the vet in about an hour so I'll update more when we come back home.
 
Healing wheeks from our lot.. xx
 
Thank you! Uno is probably rubbing his hands together in glee lol
 
Awwwwwwww! xoxo He still looks lovely, he is missed :(

Kasper is back from the vets and is going back on wednesday. Sandra (the vet) couldn't believe the amount he had eaten but because he's not taking his baytril it is going to be laced with ribena haha.
 
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