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Maisie, URI again!

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MandFpiggies

MandFpiggies

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So we are just back from the vet! I thought Maisie didn't look quite right yesterday, but I couldn't see or hear anything wrong, I though I was just being a worry wort, but never the less I was keeping a close eye, last night I thought I heard a snuffling sound as I was walking past the girls cage, I stood very still and was almost sure it was Maisie, but when I crept closer I'll swear the little sod knew what I was up to, because she must have held her breath {:|, but there wasn't a sound out of place! This morning however there was no mistaking it, Maisie's breathing was definitely clicky and snuffly, she was still coming out for food and wheeking enthusiastically for veg, but I was taking no chances!

The Bank holiday meant we had to take whichever vet was on, but luckily enough although we got a junior vet she seemed at least to be comfortable around a guinea pig. She had a look at Maisie's records and said "Oh this is the famous Maisie then" :(|) , she had a good look at her all over, even her teeth, she asked about back in May when Maisie had been in for the same reason, back then Maisie was given what I thought at the time was a very frugal dose of Baytril for just five days, this vet listened to her chest and said that the bubbling sound was coming from high up in her airway and her lungs weren't bad, but given her history this vet decided to as she put it " hit this hard and really clear it up" so Maisie is home on 0.36 of Baytril once a day for 2 weeks.

No one mentioned pro biotic and when I asked the receptionist she didn't know what I was talking and they didn't have any, so I'll be ordering some online tonight, but can anyone tell me what the best one to go with Batyril is ?/

I was thinking a sticky on pro biotic's and which one is best when, if you know what I mean, might be useful for the future,if some of you more experienced folk get time 8:),

Anyway we've just got to wait and see how things go now rolleyes I think we've been quick enough that she's not in great danger she hasn't even lost weight! but Maisie has never breathed the same as the other 2 since we got her, she has always breathed faster and shallower, and now I'm wondering if this could have been a long term thing? I hope if that's the case that this vets idea of hitting it hard and clearing it up completely will work! we are to go back for a check up in 2 weeks time at the end of the anti-biotic course so we'll see then.
 
I use that one too. Mainly because it's the easiest to get hold of in a hurry ( I hate going to Pets at Home but will if it's an emergency).
For piggies with not much of an appetite when they're poorly it's worth having a pkt of Rapid care in the medicine cabinet too ( if you need to supplement their feed) because that also has probiotic in it.
 
Hope Maisie's feeling better soon. Sending healing vibes. :laluot_29:
 
Thanks Nibbles&Nugget, I've seen this one, but wasn't sure how to administer it as it just said on the tub to put in the water, but I know that's not a great way as it looses its goodness with time, and the putting it on food is a no no because Maisie has experience of being sick and is therefore naturally suspicious when I come bearing gifts {:|rolleyes
I wondered about putting it into a tiny bit of water and giving it to her with a 1ml syringe just like her medication, but I was afraid to do that just in case she aspirated it and I made matters worse mallethead I supose if I did it really slowly it should be OK? I also wondered how long I should leave it after she gets her anti-biotic as I can't see it doing any good to give her both one right after the other, as the anti-biotic would kill the pro-biotic on the spot would it not?
 
Why don't you mash up and soak a nugget of food with a bit of water ( nugget porridge) and mix some Pro C into that? I'm sure she'll eat that off a spoon if you're worried about syringe feeding.
 
Oh sorry to hear she is poorly again. I really hope she gets better soon.
 
AndreaJane said:
Why don't you mash up and soak a nugget of food with a bit of water ( nugget porridge) and mix some Pro C into that? I'm sure she'll eat that off a spoon if you're worried about syringe feeding.
Click to expand...

That's a good idea, I might even get her some organic baby food, you know like the Ella's kitchen stuff. It really should not be a problem, I'm just a bit of a panickier sometimes, its just because I haven't done it for a while, I did it fine when Maisie had her operation, and now I come to think about it I had to give her drinks along with her critical care and I didn't drown her then, so I'm just making a mountain out of a mole hill mallethead

Can someone tell me how long I should leave it after giving her the anti-biotic, before I give her the pro-biotic for it to have the maximum effect?

I would also value some experienced thoughts on the Baytril dosage and duration of the course, I'm sure I read on here that there were better drugs for URI's and I like to know what to ask about at the vets just in case this doesn't work.

Also when should I start to see improvement?

Sorry for all the questions, but we 're breaking new ground for me again ?/ So much for the years of quiet guinea pig ownership ahead that I hoped for after all the trauma of the first few months :x rolleyes
 
Baytril is disliked by many guinea pig owners as it's seen to be quite harsh on the stomach. Septrin is often viewed as a better alternative. I have given Baytril on numerous occasions to my guinea pigs to treat URIs and as part of other post-op care. For my pigs it has always worked well, although they really do not like the taste of it. You'll need to master the towel-wrap procedure!

The last dose of Baytril that I gave one of my pigs was 0.45ml twice a day for 10 days. At the time he weighed around 810g. I give the P@H probiotic an hour after administering the antibiotic.

Anything in a syringe is the enemy, so adding water to the probiotic and giving in a syringe is always out of the question. I sprinkle a scoop of the probiotic over very wet veg and it quickly dissolves. I think they must like the taste of it, as I always find the pigs licking the leftover water from the bottom of their empty bowls when they've finished their veg! :)
 
MandFpiggies said:
That's a good idea, I might even get her some organic baby food, you know like the Ella's kitchen stuff. It really should not be a problem, I'm just a bit of a panickier sometimes, its just because I haven't done it for a while, I did it fine when Maisie had her operation, and now I come to think about it I had to give her drinks along with her critical care and I didn't drown her then, so I'm just making a mountain out of a mole hill mallethead

Can someone tell me how long I should leave it after giving her the anti-biotic, before I give her the pro-biotic for it to have the maximum effect?

I would also value some experienced thoughts on the Baytril dosage and duration of the course, I'm sure I read on here that there were better drugs for URI's and I like to know what to ask about at the vets just in case this doesn't work.

Also when should I start to see improvement?

Sorry for all the questions, but we 're breaking new ground for me again ?/ So much for the years of quiet guinea pig ownership ahead that I hoped for after all the trauma of the first few months :x rolleyes
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Why don't you PM Debbie ( FurryFriends)? She's got a lot of experience caring for poorly piggies. x
 
Baytril has always worked well for our piggies URI's. Septrin is normally the drug of choice for Urinary tract infections..

With baytril we tend to give pro biotic a couple of hours after the dose of baytril. Normally we've been given a 7 day course and been told to expect improvements within a few days...

Please keep weighing Masie daily to keep an eye on what she is eating. If she doesn't improve or gets worse, get straight back to your vet. Sometimes if breathing gets worse the vet will I've them a diuretic goes called furosemide.

Hope she gets well soon, lots of healing vibes her way x
 
Quick Update

Day 3 on the Baytril and I think Maisie is showing sings of improvement, there seams to be less bubbling noises when she is breathing, even when she is sleeping and doesn't know I'm listening {:|.
She has however lost 57g (over 7 days) I realize this is not a huge amount when she has probably been sick for at least 5 days, and I'm trying not to worry too much, I've just gone out and got all her favorites so we'll see if a couple of days pampering can make a difference rolleyes, although if she looses so much as 10 more grams, I'm going to start syringe feeding whether she likes it or not :x
 
Oh nooooooooo i'd not seen that Maisie was unwell again :(
Please give her lots of little kisses and snuggles from the girls and big gentle loves from me!

COME ON MAISIE, LOTS OF HEALING WHEEEEEEEEEEEEKS AND VIBES FROM US ALL XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

reoccuring UTI's are awful :(

Re syringes if you can possibly offer her a syringe with something nice in it, she'll not be as nervous of it when you have to administer drugs..... my girls grew up with a syringe as part of their daily routine but with juicey or water in it, so when it was time for drugs i have no issues even with baytril!
 
Glynis said:
Oh nooooooooo i'd not seen that Maisie was unwell again :(
Please give her lots of little kisses and snuggles from the girls and big gentle loves from me!

COME ON MAISIE, LOTS OF HEALING WHEEEEEEEEEEEEKS AND VIBES FROM US ALL XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

reoccuring UTI's are awful :(

Re syringes if you can possibly offer her a syringe with something nice in it, she'll not be as nervous of it when you have to administer drugs..... my girls grew up with a syringe as part of their daily routine but with juicey or water in it, so when it was time for drugs i have no issues even with baytril!
Click to expand...


Glynis its so kind of you to find the time to be replying to others when you are bond to be both emotionally and physically exausted zzz Please do try to take care of yourself just a little, as my Hubby always points out to me, when he's gently telling me I've been over doing it a bit, "really love what are you thinking! we can't afford for you to get sick, who'd do all the stuff you do?" Anyways thanks for the tips, I'll give them a try, although I think I'm going to have to work very hard to get out of Maisie's bad books at the minute mallethead :x

I'm very happy to say that after just 24 hours of pampering Maisie's weight is up to 892, I know gaining 17g is not much, but I can't help but think it's a step in the right direction and I'll be happy so long as she doesn't loose any more. We are still only on day 4 of her 14 day Baytril course and she is no longer audibly wheezing any more, so I'm hopeful we might kick this URI's butt properly this time pow-pow.
 
OH love....... thankyou, but i'm not going to stop trying to support you and anyone else in your hours of need x>>x>>x>>x>>

I figure any step forward be it even little is a postive one!
Keep a diary of food she eats, meds etc.. you'll probably see a pattern emerge.
Velvet sends Maisie lots of sympathy kisses and brrrrrrrr's and says BLAH she not happy to take the meds either..... but the snuggles and the treats (pearl barley is like a treat to her) afterwards are the best!


COME ON MAISIE WHEE ARE ALL SENDING YOU HEALING VIBES XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
 
Day 5

I just wanted to keep everyone up to date :)
Day 5 and things seem to be going well so far, Maisie is talking her anti-biotic if not willingly then a least resignedly, and two hours later I am giving her a little pro-biotic mixed with baby food, I have to do this with a syringe however as she is just so suspicious of any thing I offer her she refuses everything {:| I just give her 2 fills of a 1ml syringe just to make sure she is getting her pro-biotic.
The good news is it seems to be working, as there are absolutely no bubbling sounds from her now, and she is up to 903g this evening, again its just 11g but it is going in the right direction, so it keeps mummy happy ;)
 
Quick Update

Day 9 of our 14 day anti-biotic course, and we seem to be holding our own. I give her pro-biotic in the morning and anti- biotic in the evening, she is eating by her self, and although she has not regained all the 57g she lost at the beginning of her illness, she has gained some and not lost any, so although they are tiny steps they are always in the right direction -c
 
Lost, tired and confused :(

I thought it was best to come back to this thread instead of starting a new one, because it just feels like an extension of this problem and not really a new one.

We finished the 14 day Baytril course and all looked well. They are on fleece, but they have a kitchen area, I had been putting the girls in a big pile of hay, which they loved to burow in, then I took it into my head that they might get an eye poke (I really should not read the Health & Illness threads) mallethead So I changed them to shavings, just in the kitchen. I got food poisioning and Hubby was on piggie duty, when he went to the pet shop to get more shavings they gave him apple scented ones. 1 week later and I'm up and about again but feeling pretty weak, I take a look into the girls, and Maise is wheezing again, I get her out and weigh her, she has lost 100g, we go straight to the vet, and she gets an injection to get rid of fluid (sorry I can't remember the proper name), and she is back on Baytril. We are now 5 days in to her course and I'm doing everything I can, syringe feeding, and pro-biotic, but she has lost another 40g and she is still not breathing right, she is still eating for herself, but it just doesn't seam to be doing her any good. I'm at my wits end, admittedly my wits end is not a long journey at the moment, I'm still not well (my GP wanted to send me into hospital, but I wouldn't go), my 3 year old daughter has a head cold and not one but two of my cats are going to the vets, one with an infected foot (oh and I think she's going blind) and the other with a tumor on her face, now add PMT 8... 8... @) 8... :red

Has anyone any sugestions, (at least for Maisie, I realize all the rest is a bit off topic) I had wondered if it could be cardiac, but my vet doesn't think so, she reasoned that if it were cardiac it would have presented a problem when Maisie went through the surgery on her leg back in March, and she's not even a year old yet.

I'm sorry this post is so long and rambleling, I'm just really really worried now. I should also say I have gone back to all fleece in the cage. I can't help but blame myself, it could have been the change to shavings that started this all off again :(
 
You musn't blame yourself. There's no way of knowing where the URI came from.

If she is responding (slowly) to the meds and syringing, then you must take heart from that x

Fingers crossed and all the best wishes to you and wee Maisie x
 
So, Maisie's weight at least seems to have stoped falling, she has sat at 780g for the last 2 days. I can't seem to get it up though and I'm not seeing any signs of improvement to her breathing. This is really worrying me as the last time she was vastly improved on the third day, but we are back to see the vet tomorrow morning, so we'll see what happens then. I feel sick at the thought of what the vet will say as I think Maisie is already on quite a strong dose of Baytril (0.32ml) and tomorrow will be the sixth day and I really can't see her getting better yet, and although she's doesn't seem to be getting worse, I can't help worrying that she could go rapidly down hill at any time.
 
Please don;t give up hope.

Given the fact she has already been given frusemaide, it would appear that at some point your vet has found/detected fluid on the lungs. Whilst this is indicative of pneumonia, the fact her breathing is still bad following a course of baytril (although improved following the frusemaide) either means that either a bug that is resistant to baytril (in which case try marbocyl or azithromycin) or heart problems need to be considered as the next step. (Fruesemide improves both of these conditions)

Given the history, there is a possibility that at some (recent) point she has had an infection (eg URI) that has also affected her heart - I have a piggie who suddenly presented with really bad breathing problems and following antibiotics, then ultrasound/ blood tests etc he was finally diagnosed with infective endocarditis. This condition is past the point of antibiotics being able to cure the problem as the damage has now been done....it is an immune reaction to a small number of bugs lodging on the artery or heart valve walls....and may have a genetic component.

This could be why Maisie didn;t present with any heart issues during her op - infective endocarditis could be a more recent development and therefore shouldn;t be ruled out by your vet.

Alan Maggots is now on frusemaide (2mg/kg) and fortekor (1mg/kg) for life - these keep the symptoms under control and he has actually started to popcorn again!

Those meds won;t harm her - so it might be worth a try - and certainly I would opt for this before PTS given Maisie's case history! She is not losing any more weight, she is eating etc.......if this were a standard URI she would be much more poorly by now.

I hope your vet is willing to explore other possibilities concerning diagnosis and treatment. If not, then you might wish to think about seeing another vet.

HTH
x
 
So sorry that Maisie is poorly again, hope the vet can do something tomorrow. Look after yourself too xx
 
Firstly, thank you so much Pebble, your post was so concise and informitive. I'm not likely to give up on Maisie after all we've been through together, I was just getting scared by her lack of improvement. The vet we are with is probably not as good as some of the reccomended vets on here, because she does not have the experience, but she is the very best we have access to, you have no idea what we went through trying to find a vet when Masie broke her leg, we would have traveled any distance, but it turned out that the best we could get was right in our home town. She did sugest putting Maisie to sleep back then, but that was because it was what she assumed we would want to do, I got very upset and said, NO, if she would give me some pain meds to keep her comfortable, that I would get on the ferry as a foot passanger, and hand Maisie over to the CCT (the only group I knew of back then), even if it ment never seeing her again it would be saving her life. When I said this the vets whole attitude changed, she explained that she thought surgery was possible, but she had never had an owner willing to try before, because it would be expensive and there were no garantes, because after care was a very long and difficult road. To be honest I can't see us getting a beter vet without getting on the ferry!

This morning the vet said that although I saw no improvement, that she did. She says that Maisie's lungs sound much better, her chest sounds clear, not at all like it did at the last appointment, she also says she can here absolutely nothing that would concern her when listening to Maisie's heart, and we should keep doing exactly what we are doing because in her opinion its working, we are to keep giving the Baytril for another week just to be sure. I came out feeling quite good. Ofcourse the little brute started rattling again as soon as she got home, so I didn't get too confident :{ I think all I can do is wait and see how things go in this next week, but if I get concerned at all I will be straight back to the vet, and I will be writing out all of what you have said Pebble, to take with me, so at least I'll sound like I know what I'm takling about ")
 
Well, Maisie has gained 15g, I know it's not much but at least it's not a loss :x but she is still very rattely when breathing, but only sometimes. Somtimes her breathing is just fine, a little fast maybe, but it always has been that way, other times she sounds like she's snorkling. She's still eating quite well herself, and the vet says her lungs are clear, but she still doesn't look like a healthy piggie to me rolleyes I've been reading Maggie's thread and it's got me wondering, but the difference is Maisie did have fluid in her lungs, it's gone now but it was there ?/ :{
 
Well we're struggling on rolleyes

Maisie has gained 20g and is now 805g, I'm relieved that she is back up over 800g, but I won't consider it job done until she is back up over 900g where she was before all this began.

The rattling has finally stoped, her breathing is still not what I would call normal, but it is back to normal for Maisie. She is still on Baytril, and I intend to give her every last drop I've got in the bottle just to be sure. So I supose all we can do is wait and see what happens once she comes off the meds.

I'm really hoping that the fact she is improving means her illness is not cardiac, as she has not had any other meds but Baytril for over a week and she is getting better, in theroy if it were cardiac she should be going down hill again by now ?/ but it still confuses me as to how this can be her third URI and she has never had any crusty/runny eyes or snot of any kind :{ Is it possible for this to happen? I do jump to it pretty quick with the vets and meds, could I be stopping it before those symtoms start?

Ah well so long as she keeps improving I'll be happy :) I can tell you all one thing for sure we will never again try anything new in our bedding routine, it's fleece all the way from now on!
 
Back on the rollercoaster again :(

We are just back from the vet again! I feel so bad about this, but as some of you may know I've been having a pretty rough time latley, and although the piggies have been getting all they need I just haven had time to sit with them, Maisie's got sick again and I've missed it mallethead 8...

Last week she got weighed as usual with the rest when their cage was being cleaned and all was well she still hasn't got over 900g but she was still gaining each week and we were almost up to 860g.

Yesterday was cage cleaning day so everyone was weighed, Maisie was down to 764g !:o :... so I finished up rather quickly and then sat quietly to observe for a while, and sure enough when the other two had settled down I could hear Maisie bubbling when breathing and then when she was eating some hay she actually cough/hicuped 3 times (she has never done that before). There has been no change of housekeeping this time so I can't imagine what has started it again.

Of course I rang the vet immediately, but I wasn't going to get the one I wanted that evening so I opted for this morning when I could. I went in intending to insist she investigate the heart this time and not just come home with Baytril again, but I didn't have to, after examining Maisie the vet said she wasn't happy that this keeps on comming back and she would like to book Maisie in for an x-ray. We said yes of course, the vet wants to do it on Monday because she wants to see it through herself and she wasn't on again untill Monday, so she gave Maisie 2 injections and we have to keep a very close eye on her over the weekend, with the obvious proviso that if she gets worse we get in touch asap

I don't know how I feel, guilty, that I missed it and she has lost so much weight, relieved, that the vet is going to explore other things, worried, about what they will find, not to mention worried, that Maisie will go downhill over the weekend :(
 
Not good news

I've put off updating this thread, I'm having difficulty bringing myself to write it all down in black and white mallethead

Maisie had her x-ray on Monday and what was found was not good. I got to see the x-rays, and Maisie's heart is very enlarged and looks like it has been peppered with pellets of calcium, and 3/4 of her lungs are full of what looks like cotton wool.
My vet said that as Maisie is not on a very high calcium diet, the calcium deposits make her think that Maisie has cancer, and that in the vet's opinion there is nothing more to be done, her advise is to keep Maisie comforatable untill she passes (for this she perscribed metacam) or I decide she is in disscomfort and then I can bring her in to be pts.

To be honest this is about as much of the situation as I can bear to write down at the moment, I have been pm-ing Debbie (furryfriends), who as always is being amazing.
 
I'm so sorry to read this update. It's very hard to know there is nothing further that can be done and it is palliative care now. You have really fought very hard to help your little girl. I hope the metacam helps her feel better and keeps her pain free. *big hugs*
x
 
Just had a message from Debbie, we're not giving up completely, even though it does look very bad.
 
?Cystitis

Hi guys, I'm new on here and wanted some advice. Ive got a guinea pig called choco, shes now 2years and 3 months now and quite a large guinea pig ( at 1.23kg). Today the vet has ordered to give her 0.48 twice daily for 10 days. Does that sound about right? I'm also worried about giving her baytril as read lots of stories about it. I hope she will be ok? Please write back soon, thank you xx
 
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