Hi Everyone my name is Karen and my guinea is called Lola. She is nearly 5 years old and over the last few weeks i have noticed her right hind leg slowly not functioning properly. I have been to the vets when i first noticed it. They said they wasnt really sure and could put her on some pain relief .. metacam but she didnt appear to be in pain. She is eating and dringing and going to the toilet ok but this morning she was dragging it along. I am going to the vets again with her but i dont want them to suggest putti ng her to sleep but obviously her wellbeing comes first. Any ideas anyone?
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Loss Of Use In Back Legs
- Thread starter Karenb72
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Tiamolly123
Senior Guinea Pig
Hi & Welcome to our friendly forum.
Sorry I haven't a clue what's going on with your piggy, it concerns me, that the vet isn't sure what's wrong. Can you put your location on here, because we can direct you to someone Who can help.
Sorry I haven't a clue what's going on with your piggy, it concerns me, that the vet isn't sure what's wrong. Can you put your location on here, because we can direct you to someone Who can help.
Tiamolly123
Senior Guinea Pig
Ok in the green bar on the top of the screen is a vet locator. That will tell you the best cavy savvy vet.
Tiamolly123
Senior Guinea Pig
I forgot if you go into where you have put your name, further down is location....you put where you live.
It's just if something goes wrong with you piggy, or you need a piggie rescue, we can let you know where to send you.
It's just if something goes wrong with you piggy, or you need a piggie rescue, we can let you know where to send you.
Hi! have you been seeing one of their piggy savvy vets?
Back leg paralysis can have many different causes. If it is just one leg, you are not looking at the most common one in older guinea pigs, a sudden drop in calcium, as that affects both hind legs equally.
Has your vet checked for a) injury/sprain to one of the joints, b) arthritis, c) a swelling or build-up of fluid (a soreness/swelling in the adrenal gland area caused temporary loss of movement in one of the back legs of my 8 year old Nerys; it led to a build-up of fluid in the following weeks before disappearing as mysteriously and suddenly as it had come on), d) a neurological problem, e) a small blood clot in one of the leg vessels.
As long as your piggy still has the will to live and eat and is not obviously in pain, she still has quality of life, but you may need to adapt things around her. Change the bedding or cosies 1-2 times daily where is she is sitting most of the time. Make sure that water and hay (which makes up to 80% of the daily food intake) are very close by and can be directly accessed from her lair.
Weigh daily at the same time to monitor the food intake and if necessary top up with syringe feed or mushed pellets. I let Nerys eat from a spoon to make sure that it always was her decision and her will to live that was the decider, and not my just care that kept her alive.
Check all her legs daily; guinea pigs with limited mobility are more prone to develop sores on the pads of their feet, especially the weight bearing front paws (bumblefoot). They are also often developing urine scald from sitting in their waste (loss of hair in the genitalia area and then sore skin).
Please also consider that metacam is not just a painkiller, but also an anti-inflammatory.
Back leg paralysis can have many different causes. If it is just one leg, you are not looking at the most common one in older guinea pigs, a sudden drop in calcium, as that affects both hind legs equally.
Has your vet checked for a) injury/sprain to one of the joints, b) arthritis, c) a swelling or build-up of fluid (a soreness/swelling in the adrenal gland area caused temporary loss of movement in one of the back legs of my 8 year old Nerys; it led to a build-up of fluid in the following weeks before disappearing as mysteriously and suddenly as it had come on), d) a neurological problem, e) a small blood clot in one of the leg vessels.
As long as your piggy still has the will to live and eat and is not obviously in pain, she still has quality of life, but you may need to adapt things around her. Change the bedding or cosies 1-2 times daily where is she is sitting most of the time. Make sure that water and hay (which makes up to 80% of the daily food intake) are very close by and can be directly accessed from her lair.
Weigh daily at the same time to monitor the food intake and if necessary top up with syringe feed or mushed pellets. I let Nerys eat from a spoon to make sure that it always was her decision and her will to live that was the decider, and not my just care that kept her alive.
Check all her legs daily; guinea pigs with limited mobility are more prone to develop sores on the pads of their feet, especially the weight bearing front paws (bumblefoot). They are also often developing urine scald from sitting in their waste (loss of hair in the genitalia area and then sore skin).
Please also consider that metacam is not just a painkiller, but also an anti-inflammatory.
Tiamolly123
Senior Guinea Pig
Good luck
Thankyou. I have taken Lola to the vets tonight and vet said it could be artheritis or something pressing on her spinal chord. One leg is worse that the other. She has given her Metacam twice daily and ive bathed her as she had been lay in her own urine. She is very alert and eating and drinking well. I'm going back in a weeks time. I'm going to keep a close eye on her and keep moving her to keep her dry. The vet i saw had seen Lola a few months ago . She remembered her which was very helpful.
Just make sure that you clean the area she is lying in at least twice daily and bum end once daily, as she cannot move and cannot clean herself. Please apply the tips I have given you to make her as comfy as possible. Consider heating a microwaveable snugglesafe half-time, so it is just warm, but not hot and place it underneath her. Arthritis piggies tend to enjoy the warmth.
If it is arthritis, glucosamine or a glucosamine-based vegan product may help on top of the metacam.
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