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Loss of appetite, soft poo, bumble foot

Maddykins

Maddykins

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
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Hi, people may remember but I have a 6 year old boar who has been through the wars a bit recently. I guess it's all age-related stuff really. He seems happy enough in himself generally. His bumble foot doesn't seem to be getting much better but is better than it was initially and is not getting any worse I don't think. The main new problem is that he seems to be losing his appetite which I think is a major red flag, right? A few occasions in the last few weeks he hasn't really eaten his pellets but did eat his veg. Then the last day he wasn't really eating any of either so I was getting worried and thinking that if I came home from work ad he hadn't eaten any then we would syringe feed. Plan was for me to take him to vets Wed morning but I can't anymore, I won't be able to take him until Thursday morning at the earliest (unless absolute emergency! if emergency, we would get him to vets whatever the time or date, one way or another). Anyway I came home from work and he had eaten his pellets, phew. I gave him his evening pellets and he wheeked at me and sniffed them but didn't touch them. He is eating his veg though - tomatoes and cucumber.

I know he is old and he has been going downhill really for the last few months. Vet thinks he may have bowel cancer. Any advice much appreciated. I think maybe we should ask vet to trial a painkiller for a bit to see if that improves his appetite, I know you can lose your appetite with pain, right? Also was going to ask vet to check his teeth too in case that's why he's struggling with his pellets as they're so hard.
 
Maddykins said:
Hi, people may remember but I have a 6 year old boar who has been through the wars a bit recently. I guess it's all age-related stuff really. He seems happy enough in himself generally. His bumble foot doesn't seem to be getting much better but is better than it was initially and is not getting any worse I don't think. The main new problem is that he seems to be losing his appetite which I think is a major red flag, right? A few occasions in the last few weeks he hasn't really eaten his pellets but did eat his veg. Then the last day he wasn't really eating any of either so I was getting worried and thinking that if I came home from work ad he hadn't eaten any then we would syringe feed. Plan was for me to take him to vets Wed morning but I can't anymore, I won't be able to take him until Thursday morning at the earliest (unless absolute emergency! if emergency, we would get him to vets whatever the time or date, one way or another). Anyway I came home from work and he had eaten his pellets, phew. I gave him his evening pellets and he wheeked at me and sniffed them but didn't touch them. He is eating his veg though - tomatoes and cucumber.

I know he is old and he has been going downhill really for the last few months. Vet thinks he may have bowel cancer. Any advice much appreciated. I think maybe we should ask vet to trial a painkiller for a bit to see if that improves his appetite, I know you can lose your appetite with pain, right? Also was going to ask vet to check his teeth too in case that's why he's struggling with his pellets as they're so hard.
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Hi

I am very sorry! It is always so difficult when the immune system is no longer fully working and the rat-tail of secondary problems is starting to build up. :(

Please take into consideration that the recent heat can also have contributed to his loss of appetite. It is an added stress factor for any frail, ill or older guinea pig that can help to tip any fragile balance, as I know myself.

Please see whether he is responding to syringe feeding support; this should hopefully help with the soft poos if he isn't eating enough hay but too much veg. You may find the tips in this link here helpful in addition to the syringe feeding guide itself:
Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

I would recommend to have him vet checked and discuss with your vet measures like analgesics and gut stimulants if necessary.

Here are our hot weather care tips: Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
 
Hi, thanks for your response.

I took him to the vets on Thursday and she confirmed she is still pretty sure he has bowel cancer and confirmed my thoughts about just keeping him as comfy as possible for as long as possible now until we have to inevitably make the decision to put him to sleep. We have known this for a few months but still upsetting, I try to comfort myself with the knowledge that we really love him and we always tried to give him a lovely life since we adopted him when he was about 1 (unwanted children's pet!).


We have metacam for him now 0.12ml daily - he has been gradually losing weight since about March but the last few weeks has lost a lot in a short space of time with his reduced appetite. I'm not actually sure if he is eating hay at all, I don't think I've seen him eat any for a week or so but it's difficult to know whether he is eating it when in his hideys where I can't see. He is also back on Fibreplex twice a day as well. The vet says he has to be reviewed in 3 months if he lives that long but otherwise we can just order the medication for him. He is still eating a bit but not as much as he used to. We are aiming to give him a bath tonight and then put him in a clean cage as he kept managing to burrow under his bedding the last couple of days so is pretty filthy from urine and his soft poo and I'm sure that isn't helping his bumblefoot etc. Bad timing that my daughter is also quite unwell atm so we are very stretched.

He still seems happy enough and runs out to wheek at me when we go in the room etc. How do you know when it's time to :no:say goodbye though? I don't want to leave it too long and have him suffer but I also don't want to do it prematurely.
 
Sorry, I should say that we haven't been syringe feeding him, there was one day when I was worried he hadn't eaten all day but then when I got back from work he had eaten all the pellets I'd left out for him and he has been eating since then but not as much as he would when healthy, and I'm not sure if he is eating hay. The vet didn't say anything about syringe feeding and I thought as he is eating now I wouldn't need to, what do you think? I also am wary about long-term syringe feeding and how that affects his quality of life etc.
 
I never came back to update my thread - my little boy was unfortunately PTS on the vet's advice on 9th August. I knew something wasn't write on that day, he wouldn't eat and was not very responsive so he went to the vet that afternoon and they said he was dying basically so we did the kindest thing. We miss him so very much but I like to think he is popcorning about with his brother again now in grassy fields somewhere...thank you to everyone on this site for all your advice over the years. We are not getting any more guinea pigs as we are so busy with our 1 year old daughter but I think we probably will in the future maybe when she is older in a few years time because they are such lovely things.
 
Maddykins said:
Hi, thanks for your response.

I took him to the vets on Thursday and she confirmed she is still pretty sure he has bowel cancer and confirmed my thoughts about just keeping him as comfy as possible for as long as possible now until we have to inevitably make the decision to put him to sleep. We have known this for a few months but still upsetting, I try to comfort myself with the knowledge that we really love him and we always tried to give him a lovely life since we adopted him when he was about 1 (unwanted children's pet!).


We have metacam for him now 0.12ml daily - he has been gradually losing weight since about March but the last few weeks has lost a lot in a short space of time with his reduced appetite. I'm not actually sure if he is eating hay at all, I don't think I've seen him eat any for a week or so but it's difficult to know whether he is eating it when in his hideys where I can't see. He is also back on Fibreplex twice a day as well. The vet says he has to be reviewed in 3 months if he lives that long but otherwise we can just order the medication for him. He is still eating a bit but not as much as he used to. We are aiming to give him a bath tonight and then put him in a clean cage as he kept managing to burrow under his bedding the last couple of days so is pretty filthy from urine and his soft poo and I'm sure that isn't helping his bumblefoot etc. Bad timing that my daughter is also quite unwell atm so we are very stretched.

He still seems happy enough and runs out to wheek at me when we go in the room etc. How do you know when it's time to :no:say goodbye though? I don't want to leave it too long and have him suffer but I also don't want to do it prematurely.
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I am very sorry. You will know when the time has come and your boy is no longer able to lead a normal life and willing to eat on his own, even if it is taking syringe feed - the day he loses his appetite is usually a good indicator.
You may find the chapter on looking after terminally ill piggies in this link here helpful; it deals with the aspect of when to draw the line, too: Human Bereavement: Grieving, Coping and Support Links for Guinea Pig Owners and Their Children

Is this dog or cat metacam? The dosage is very low and in the case of cat metacam rather negligeable. You can safely go up to twice daily 0.4 ml of dog metacam and 1.2 ml of cat metacam for a 1 kg piggy. For terminally ill piggies freedom from discomfort outweighs any long term concerns anyway. Please keep in mind that metacam is usually starting to wear off after 10 hours due to the fast metabolism in guinea pigs, so it is advisable to give the same dosage twice daily.

Please switch to weighing daily at the same time. Over 80% of the daily food intake should be hay, which you cannot control by eye. The daily weigh-in (kitchen scales from a supermarket are fine) will help you to know when to start offering additional syringe feed top up, as much as your boy wants to eat willingly.
You can find the detailed advice in this link here: Weight - Monitoring and Management
 
Maddykins said:
I never came back to update my thread - my little boy was unfortunately PTS on the vet's advice on 9th August. I knew something wasn't write on that day, he wouldn't eat and was not very responsive so he went to the vet that afternoon and they said he was dying basically so we did the kindest thing. We miss him so very much but I like to think he is popcorning about with his brother again now in grassy fields somewhere...thank you to everyone on this site for all your advice over the years. We are not getting any more guinea pigs as we are so busy with our 1 year old daughter but I think we probably will in the future maybe when she is older in a few years time because they are such lovely things.
Click to expand...

I am very sorry; it was the most loving and at the same time most heart-breaking gift you could make him.
You may find this link here helpful: Human Bereavement: Grieving, Coping and Support Links for Guinea Pig Owners and Their Children

I sincerely hope that you'll come back to guinea pigs again when the time is right for you!
 
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