Milky Red Urine/calcium/fishy Smell

[Dilly's Piggies]

I'm back again! Willow has blood in her urine, again. The last time she had this was 3 months ago and she was given sulfatrim 0.3ml x2 daily for 2 weeks, wasn't long enough in my opinion but it did seem to clear it up, however tonight it's back again, and it actually appears a milky white mixed with red, like she is peeing heavy calcium along with this.

The only new thing I've added to their diet is Protexin Pro-Fibre pellets which were added on Thursday 13th April, it's supposed to be safe to feed small animals daily and I've not heard of it ever causing problems or even containing much calcium, if any at all, the package doesn't state that it contains calcium so I'm assuming it doesn't. There is a strong fishy smell coming from her bottom and I'm not sure if this is due to a urinary infection, or if it's the yeast from the Pro-Fibre pellets, however I've not heard of these pellets causing this. I'm also not sure if I've overfed them, the packaging says to feed ad-lib, as much as they want, they've had about 6 15ml scoops today between the 5 of them so I don't know if that was too much and contributed to this.

Their diet is low calcium, here is what I feed daily;
Oxbow Timothy Hay
Oxbow adult Guinea Pig pellets 1/8 cup (per pig, although with having 5 in the same cage it's hard to know how much each one eats)
Oxbow urinary support tablets 1/2 tab (per pig)
Veggies: Round lettuce (or romaine or little gem), cucumber, celery, green beans, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers (red, green, yellow).

They don't get leafy greens of any kind, ever, I try hard to keep their diet as low calcium as possible, if anyone sees anything here that I'm feeding that could be removed to lower the calcium further please do advise. They get a litter tray full of veggies daily between 5 so maybe it's not what I'm feeding, but how much I'm feeding, although when worked out it is about 1 cup x5 pigs. Due to the cold weather here my piggies have not been outside on the fresh grass for 8 months, I did give them a tray of grass and dandelions last week and it triggered Tizzie's 'IC' (which we believe she has due to no bacteria in the urine culture) and Willow also spotted blood for 1 day after, then it went away, and now it's back, so I don't know if this is also IC the same as Tizzie has but Tizzie does not get a fishy smell like Willow has at the moment. I do test my own piggies urine with home dipsticks and Willow has maximum blood and protein tonight.

Willow does not appear to be in pain, she is not acting any different, eating all of her food, bright and alert, not squeaking whilst peeing also. I doubt I will get an appointment for her today as it's Saturday, my vet is only open 9am-12pm so it will most likely be Monday they will see her, but I will try and get a urine culture sent off today so they can check for bacteria. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, this is so depressing to have 2 with the same reoccurring problem, unless Willow's is actually a UTI that never fully cleared up.

 

[Wiebke]

I'm back again! Willow has blood in her urine, again. The last time she had this was 3 months ago and she was given sulfatrim 0.3ml x2 daily for 2 weeks, wasn't long enough in my opinion but it did seem to clear it up, however tonight it's back again, and it actually appears a milky white mixed with red, like she is peeing heavy calcium along with this.

The only new thing I've added to their diet is Protexin Pro-Fibre pellets which were added on Thursday 13th April, it's supposed to be safe to feed small animals daily and I've not heard of it ever causing problems or even containing much calcium, if any at all, the package doesn't state that it contains calcium so I'm assuming it doesn't. There is a strong fishy smell coming from her bottom and I'm not sure if this is due to a urinary infection, or if it's the yeast from the Pro-Fibre pellets, however I've not heard of these pellets causing this. I'm also not sure if I've overfed them, the packaging says to feed ad-lib, as much as they want, they've had about 6 15ml scoops today between the 5 of them so I don't know if that was too much and contributed to this.

Their diet is low calcium, here is what I feed daily;
Oxbow Timothy Hay
Oxbow adult Guinea Pig pellets 1/8 cup (per pig, although with having 5 in the same cage it's hard to know how much each one eats)
Oxbow urinary support tablets 1/2 tab (per pig)
Veggies: Round lettuce (or romaine or little gem), cucumber, celery, green beans, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers (red, green, yellow).

They don't get leafy greens of any kind, ever, I try hard to keep their diet as low calcium as possible, if anyone sees anything here that I'm feeding that could be removed to lower the calcium further please do advise. They get a litter tray full of veggies daily between 5 so maybe it's not what I'm feeding, but how much I'm feeding, although when worked out it is about 1 cup x5 pigs. Due to the cold weather here my piggies have not been outside on the fresh grass for 8 months, I did give them a tray of grass and dandelions last week and it triggered Tizzie's 'IC' (which we believe she has due to no bacteria in the urine culture) and Willow also spotted blood for 1 day after, then it went away, and now it's back, so I don't know if this is also IC the same as Tizzie has but Tizzie does not get a fishy smell like Willow has at the moment. I do test my own piggies urine with home dipsticks and Willow has maximum blood and protein tonight.

Willow does not appear to be in pain, she is not acting any different, eating all of her food, bright and alert, not squeaking whilst peeing also. I doubt I will get an appointment for her today as it's Saturday, my vet is only open 9am-12pm so it will most likely be Monday they will see her, but I will try and get a urine culture sent off today so they can check for bacteria. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, this is so depressing to have 2 with the same reoccurring problem, unless Willow's is actually a UTI that never fully cleared up.

Hiya!
Please have Willow's womb checked, and not just her urinary tract.

UTI is just one of the problems in the urinary tract that can present with very similar symptoms. The strong smell points to either a cystitis (inflammation of the bladder walls) or a womb/ovarian tract infection/inflammation (pyometra) rather than a UTI.
Interstitial cystitis (IC) is a recurring cystitis that cannot cleared up by antibiotics and that can at the moment only be managed, but not cured until it eventually disappears on its own years, rather than months later. Diagnosing IC is arrived at only by default after excluding any other possibilities (stones/sludge, womb issues in sows). IC has been on the rise in recent years, and it has become sadly increasingly common.

If your vet arrives at this diagnosis, please protect the bladder walls by giving cystease/cystophan or another glucosamine based supplement that helps protecting the natural glucosamine coat of the bladder walls. You manage the acute phases with metacam (which is an anti-inflammatory as well as painkiller) rather than with antibiotics and feed a diet that cuts out any root veg, grain, lettuce, fresh grass and other potential trigger foods.
The sample picture in our diet thread is a good example for a diet that can be used for bladder piggies, minus the lettuce.
Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet

 

[cinn&sugarmybbs]

I'm back again! Willow has blood in her urine, again. The last time she had this was 3 months ago and she was given sulfatrim 0.3ml x2 daily for 2 weeks, wasn't long enough in my opinion but it did seem to clear it up, however tonight it's back again, and it actually appears a milky white mixed with red, like she is peeing heavy calcium along with this.

The only new thing I've added to their diet is Protexin Pro-Fibre pellets which were added on Thursday 13th April, it's supposed to be safe to feed small animals daily and I've not heard of it ever causing problems or even containing much calcium, if any at all, the package doesn't state that it contains calcium so I'm assuming it doesn't. There is a strong fishy smell coming from her bottom and I'm not sure if this is due to a urinary infection, or if it's the yeast from the Pro-Fibre pellets, however I've not heard of these pellets causing this. I'm also not sure if I've overfed them, the packaging says to feed ad-lib, as much as they want, they've had about 6 15ml scoops today between the 5 of them so I don't know if that was too much and contributed to this.

Their diet is low calcium, here is what I feed daily;
Oxbow Timothy Hay
Oxbow adult Guinea Pig pellets 1/8 cup (per pig, although with having 5 in the same cage it's hard to know how much each one eats)
Oxbow urinary support tablets 1/2 tab (per pig)
Veggies: Round lettuce (or romaine or little gem), cucumber, celery, green beans, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers (red, green, yellow).

They don't get leafy greens of any kind, ever, I try hard to keep their diet as low calcium as possible, if anyone sees anything here that I'm feeding that could be removed to lower the calcium further please do advise. They get a litter tray full of veggies daily between 5 so maybe it's not what I'm feeding, but how much I'm feeding, although when worked out it is about 1 cup x5 pigs. Due to the cold weather here my piggies have not been outside on the fresh grass for 8 months, I did give them a tray of grass and dandelions last week and it triggered Tizzie's 'IC' (which we believe she has due to no bacteria in the urine culture) and Willow also spotted blood for 1 day after, then it went away, and now it's back, so I don't know if this is also IC the same as Tizzie has but Tizzie does not get a fishy smell like Willow has at the moment. I do test my own piggies urine with home dipsticks and Willow has maximum blood and protein tonight.

Willow does not appear to be in pain, she is not acting any different, eating all of her food, bright and alert, not squeaking whilst peeing also. I doubt I will get an appointment for her today as it's Saturday, my vet is only open 9am-12pm so it will most likely be Monday they will see her, but I will try and get a urine culture sent off today so they can check for bacteria. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, this is so depressing to have 2 with the same reoccurring problem, unless Willow's is actually a UTI that never fully cleared up.

It's def a UTI. My guinea pigs had it and I was prescribed baytril for two weeks. It knocked it right out. Baytril isn't the best but in situations like these I would just have the vet give it to them

 

[Dilly's Piggies]

Hiya!
Please have Willow's womb checked, and not just her urinary tract.

UTI is just one of the problems in the urinary tract that can present with very similar symptoms. The strong smell points to either a cystitis (inflammation of the bladder walls) or a womb/ovarian tract infection/inflammation (pyometra) rather than a UTI.
Interstitial cystitis (IC) is a recurring cystitis that cannot cleared up by antibiotics and that can at the moment only be managed, but not cured until it eventually disappears on its own years, rather than months later. Diagnosing IC is arrived at only by default after excluding any other possibilities (stones/sludge, womb issues in sows). IC has been on the rise in recent years, and it has become sadly increasingly common.

If your vet arrives at this diagnosis, please protect the bladder walls by giving cystease/cystophan or another glucosamine based supplement that helps protecting the natural glucosamine coat of the bladder walls. You manage the acute phases with metacam (which is an anti-inflammatory as well as painkiller) rather than with antibiotics and feed a diet that cuts out any root veg, grain, lettuce, fresh grass and other potential trigger foods.
The sample picture in our diet thread is a good example for a diet that can be used for bladder piggies, minus the lettuce.
Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet

Thank you Wiebke that is very helpful, so I should cut out lettuce completely too for Tizzie? I only feed it for its water content as Tizzie isn't a good drinker, but she loves cucumber and I feed very watery veg as it is so it probably wouldn't make much difference to cut it out.

Willow did have an ultrasound of her ovaries/bladder done back in January when she got her first UTI symptoms, her scan was all clear but it wouldn't hurt to have it done again as I know things can change very quickly with piggies. It may sound silly if I'm wrong but can the vet actually take a swab sample from inside a sows uterus to check for any infection, as it may be hard to see from an examination? Just a thought!

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you Wiebke that is very helpful, so I should cut out lettuce completely too for Tizzie? I only feed it for its water content as Tizzie isn't a good drinker, but she loves cucumber and I feed very watery veg as it is so it probably wouldn't make much difference to cut it out.

Willow did have an ultrasound of her ovaries/bladder done back in January when she got her first UTI symptoms, her scan was all clear but it wouldn't hurt to have it done again as I know things can change very quickly with piggies. It may sound silly if I'm wrong but can the vet actually take a swab sample from inside a sows uterus to check for any infection, as it may be hard to see from an examination? Just a thought!

If the uterus was affected (it was in one of my sows, and I ended up with an emergency spay instead of a bladder flush for sludge for which she was already in treatment), the distinctive smell comes from the effluent from the womb and can therefore be swabbed. However, if your vet has taken a scan and has taken the reproductive system into account, then I would not worry about that angle. Any problem would have shown up as it is only three months.

I would leave out the lettuce for a while and see whether it makes a difference in terms of recurrances. Serious research into bladder stones and urinary issues in guinea pigs is only just starting, so we are still very much in the empirical stage of what works and what not. We have come further and have been able to discard a lot of suggested things that have been making the rounds, but it is still very much a matter of finding out what is going on for your vet and supporting your piggy as best as possible for you with what has stood the test of time.