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Lenny Has An Upper Respiratory Tract Infection :'(

Magician

Magician

Junior Guinea Pig
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As per title really.
I was woken up this morning by a weird clicking noise...couldn't place where it was coming from, but checked all the animals (I share my room with 2 house rabbits and 2 guinea pigs) and realised Lenny was wheezing and clicking: suspected a respiratory infection of some sort as have had a hamster with the same symptoms who had one, so made a vet appointment for today (earliest available at such short notice was 5pm) and lo and behold...my poor baby does indeed have an infection in his upper respiratory tract.
He's lost a bit of weight but not much and was prescribed meloxicom and sulfatrim. We're going back next week to see if he has gained weight and stopped wheezing. Poor little baby; vet also noticed mild spurs on his teeth but his eating habits have not changed so these will be left alone so long as he copes OK.
I've also been doing a bit of steam therapy with thyme tea and hot water. This does seem to ease his breathing somewhat temporarily, but mostly it's just a matter of giving the drugs, giving good food, and waiting, with fingers, toes, and basically everything crossed for him.
It does at least explain why he's been feeling bonier and been being less active and more and more lethargic over the past 5 days or so. I wish I'd caught it earlier though; the clicking was a huge red flag though but he has been quieter. Took his drugs good as gold though and is now eating quite happily. Sorry sweetie feel like I've let you down with this :(
Sorry for the long thread just a bit upset over this. Poor stoic little mite.
He likes the extra cuddles though, as well as the fact that he's been gifted the pink fleece to use in his 'cavy cave' (think man cave with 110% more cute :D ). Oh, and he is a total druggie who adores meloxicom lol.
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All the best for a good recovery!

It is always good to switch from the regular weekly weigh-in as part of the health check to weighing daily if a piggy is not well. Switch to support syringe feeding fibre and as much water as a piggy is willing to take on if the weight goes below 50g in a matter of a day or just a few days. Weighing is an important tool because hay makes over 80% of the daily food intake; something you cannot control just be eye - the scales don't lie! The more you can keep the weight up and the guts going, the better of a recovery chance a piggy has. This is an aspect you should not underestimate!

The need to breathe comes before the need to drink and only thirdly the need to eat; so appetite always takes a back seat with a respiratory problem.
Not Eating And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
 
Sending Lenny healing vibes, get well soon little Lenny.
I've got a piggy on Meloxicom at the moment too, they all seem to love it. Peanut opens his mouth ready for the syringe as soon as he sees it.
 
I wouldn't be to harsh on yourself, I know he was quieter and eating less but had you took him to the vet sooner they may have not picked up the infection. Sometimes ailments have to appear before a successful diagnosis can be made.

I would however definitely recommend following Wiebke advise about weighing him going forward. It really does allow you to catch illnesses much quicker & as weight loss is almost always the first sign of an illness.

Hope your little one gets well soon!
 
Out of interest when syringe feeding how much should I aim to give per 'session'? Also, is four times a day enough?
 
Had to go back again today as he was not eating or defecating at all despite syringe feeding.
Vet found lumpy changes around his liver and in his abdomen and suggested that they were probably cancerous, as he had a mammary lump removed last year, and these are likely to be the same only internal and malignant. The respiratory infection is likely to be just secondary due to his poor general condition and compromised immune system from the cancer, and the lack of defecation is just because there can't be any output if there's none (or very little) input.
They could apparently try operating but neither myself or the vet were happy with doing this on a ill, underweight small animal.
So Lenny is basically on palliative care - have critical care for his weight, and meloxicom and sulfatrim to try and relieve the respiratory infection.
I worked out that he'll need basically in excess of 100 calories a day to gain weight so god knows how I'll get that into him.
If it looks likely he'll suffer for a long time or be in pain obviously will euthanise but he's only five so wanted to at least give him a fair try.
Sorry. Rambling a bit. Quite upset by this.
F&*! cancer.
 
Sorry to hear the prognosis isn't very good. My little one also has a URI that's secondary to something else. He's also off his food so I can empathise with your situation. Hopefully the antibiotics will kick in and help relieve his symptoms. How much does your little one weigh?
 
So sorry to hear this news about your handsome boy.
He is in the best place with you and he will be loved for the rest of his life, however long that is.
Look after yourself too .
 
He's 990g currently.
He hasn't lost much because he's got fluid bloating and I guess if there is cancer growing that will add weight too (whilst 'stealing' weight from him). His tummy is like a pendulum but you could hang your coat on his pelvic bones. He's still quite opinionated about stuff though and hasn't given up. So I'll keep going so long as he's willing really. Still open to PTS if necessary but don't think the respiratory issues actually hurt, it's just uncomfortable.
I feel so sorry for his little friend though (the red pig in my profile picture). He's so confused about it all which is so sad to watch.
 
Lenny keeps getting really tired and cold though. Not quite sure what to do about this but think i will stay up with him tonight and try different things out to make him more comfortable....never dealt with anything like this in a piggy before so it's just trial and error and I guess there's always the emergency vet if necessary. Fingers, toes, paws, everything crossed for him please!
 
I know that guinea pigs can’t regulate their own body temperature and my vet told me to check if my sick piggy was cold by gently stroking the ear.
They also suggested wrapping a hot water bottle in a towel ( not too hot) and sitting piggy, also wrapped in a towel on top on my lap.
As soon as the piggy felt warm enough he wriggled free of his own accord.
I know some forum members use heat pads.
Hope things work out for Lenny
 
Somehow missed this thread! So sorry to learn about Lenny he sounds a lovely little chap.
 
Sounds like you are doing all you can to support your little man and keeping him comfy. Hope he is doing ok.
 
Sorry for dropping off the face the earth....thanks for your kind words, but I'm truly devastated to say that Lenny passed away, at home, in the very small hours of Thursday morning. He'd been taking warm critical care every 45 minutes to an hour all day but became quite abruptly very cold and weak at around 2am, and it was fairly obvious he'd given up. He passed away with his friend close, wrapped in cosy fleece, getting a head massage like he always loved.
I'll miss his hungry shrieks you could hear at the other side of the house, his kisses, his shiny fur that was always so damn hard to get decent photos of; his happy chatters he did when you got that head massage 'just right', even his little sassy head tosses he did when you got something wrong, because he knew he was 100% king of the cage and of all the humans too.
Don't sleep tight little guy...Go make trouble. Go make trouble over rainbow bridge, and and wait for me and Aladdin, hope we'll see you again some day. Thanks for everything, sweetie. </3
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I realise I probably sound like I'm moping and wallowing in self pity, and OK, I might be a teeny bit, but doing that is doing this amazing, small, sassy, awesome little soul a total injustice. If he was anything he was a optimist, and his attitude to life is totally something we can all try and emulate (with the possible omission of the 5am rumblestrutting!).
 
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