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Neutering On Monday...

Amysguineapigs

Amysguineapigs

Teenage Guinea Pig
Joined
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Location
West Midlands
Hi everyone.
Haven't been on here for a very long time! Those who knew Cookie (profile pic) he was sadly put to sleep last summer, at a good age of 6.

Teddy who was his friend was on his own which I hated to see, as I know guineas should never be on their own! So we found a baby boar and named him Noah, he is now 9 months old. Because Teddy is 4 this year I worry about the day Noah will be left alone and my parents don't want the constant cycle of guineas so a baby boar would be out of question. We currently have Bonnie who's 7 this year and Tilly who's 10 months, and we know one day Tilly may be on her own. So the plan is to neuter Noah in hope that one day he can live with Tilly as their both so young!

I've booked Noah into the vets for surgery on Monday, our vet is very cavy savvy and trust her 100%. But naturally I am very worried, I work as a veterinary care assistant and hear some negative stories about guineas and surgery.
Noah has always been a bit 'clicky' from his nose, he had antibiotics for this when he was younger but the noise mainly comes when he's eating, other than this he seems happy and healthy.

Does anyone have any tips or experiences with neutering boars? I've only put one guinea pig through surgery once which was a major (bladder stones which were in unusual places), he sadly passed away one week later.
I just feel so guilty putting Noah through this.
The main question I have is does he have to be separated from Teddy when he has had the surgery?

Thanks
 
I had a boar neutered a few years ago.
All went well.
He had a bit of a wobble the following day but a phone call to the emergency vet resulted in some good advice on what to do and in no time he bounced back to his normal self.
So long as you trust your vet all should be fine.
Hope it goes well.
Please keep us posted
 
Merab's Slave said:
I had a boar neutered a few years ago.
All went well.
He had a bit of a wobble the following day but a phone call to the emergency vet resulted in some good advice on what to do and in no time he bounced back to his normal self.
So long as you trust your vet all should be fine.
Hope it goes well.
Please keep us posted
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply.
What was the wobble if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks, will do
 
Also my neighbours are having an extension and there's constant banging so I'm worried the noise will stress him out and affect his recovery
 
i have had 12 boars neutered in total.I'm sure you are aware of his needs post op.i use puppypads or light vetbed for a week to ensure you can monitor the pee,stools,and see if any bleeding occurs.check wound daily,especially looking for any infection,abcesses that I'm sure will not arrive ensure you have some food recovery,gut medication,in case stops eating,and metacam for any pain.to wait six weeks if you should want place him with any females ! Good luck,your lad is in very expert hands.:hug:
 
eileen said:
i have had 12 boars neutered in total.I'm sure you are aware of his needs post op.i use puppypads or light vetbed for a week to ensure you can monitor the pee,stools,and see if any bleeding occurs.check wound daily,especially looking for any infection,abcesses that I'm sure will not arrive ensure you have some food recovery,gut medication,in case stops eating,and metacam for any pain.to wait six weeks if you should want place him with any females ! Good luck,your lad is in very expert hands.:hug:
Click to expand...

Thank you for your helpful reply. What puppy pads do you use? As I heard some can be harmful to them? Unfortunately I only have brown vet bed! Do you know if he can still live with his male friend whilst he is recovering?x
 
Amysguineapigs said:
Thanks for your reply.
What was the wobble if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks, will do
Click to expand...
The wobble was that he suddenly went quiet and retreated into his hidey. He also seemed to stop eating.
The vet hospital said it was probably a reaction to the surgery, to hold him on a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel and syringe feed him some mashed banana. After about 10 - 15 minutes he perked up and wriggled free. He was fine after that.
Hope that helps
 
Amysguineapigs said:
Thank you for your helpful reply. What puppy pads do you use? As I heard some can be harmful to them? Unfortunately I only have brown vet bed! Do you know if he can still live with his male friend whilst he is recovering?x
Click to expand...
I use b and m puppypads,12.99 p for one hundred ,Yes he can still live with his companion.maybe use old light towels,just so you can see if any blood is passed,either from wound,or urine.really just to mointor.x
 
Noah is home and recovering. I mentioned that he was clicking a bit before surgery and during it he started to sound raspy so he’s on antibiotics for that too. But he’s been eating tonight, seems quiet but he will be today I guess. He has gut stimulant, antibiotics and metacam. The metacam dose is 0.3 once a day but I’ve read a lot of dosages and heard 0.2 twice a day would be better? Just don’t want him to feel stressed because of pain tonight.
 
Amysguineapigs said:
Hi everyone.
Haven't been on here for a very long time! Those who knew Cookie (profile pic) he was sadly put to sleep last summer, at a good age of 6.

Teddy who was his friend was on his own which I hated to see, as I know guineas should never be on their own! So we found a baby boar and named him Noah, he is now 9 months old. Because Teddy is 4 this year I worry about the day Noah will be left alone and my parents don't want the constant cycle of guineas so a baby boar would be out of question. We currently have Bonnie who's 7 this year and Tilly who's 10 months, and we know one day Tilly may be on her own. So the plan is to neuter Noah in hope that one day he can live with Tilly as their both so young!

I've booked Noah into the vets for surgery on Monday, our vet is very cavy savvy and trust her 100%. But naturally I am very worried, I work as a veterinary care assistant and hear some negative stories about guineas and surgery.
Noah has always been a bit 'clicky' from his nose, he had antibiotics for this when he was younger but the noise mainly comes when he's eating, other than this he seems happy and healthy.

Does anyone have any tips or experiences with neutering boars? I've only put one guinea pig through surgery once which was a major (bladder stones which were in unusual places), he sadly passed away one week later.
I just feel so guilty putting Noah through this.
The main question I have is does he have to be separated from Teddy when he has had the surgery?

Thanks
Click to expand...

No, he doesn't have to separated if all goes well! My Nosgan and Nye have been together the whole time last year including making the trip to the vet clinic together even though only Nye was neutered.
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths And Facts
Tips For Post-operative Care

All the best!
 
He's doing well thank you. Eating and pooping! Seems to be his normal self like nothing has happened, but still keeping a close eye on him x
 
I've made a new thread on Noah's castration which he had on Monday and put it under this section!

Noah seems to be bright and active, ate his veg last night and I see him at the hay but after seeing his faeces last night I'm not too sure whether his doing the typical guinea pig thing of pretending!

I noticed he had normal sized poops in the morning yesterday but on the evening he did some poops which were stringy with mucus, which I know is a sign the gut isn't working like it should be! So I syringed him 5ml of some mushed up pellets and gave him some gut stimulant. This morning I noticed his poops didn't have mucus on anymore but are half the size as what they usually are and some are slimmer so I gave him another 5ml. I don't know if I'm over worrying here but from my experience that's an indication his not eating enough so therefore getting no fibre. I guess my debate is how much to syringe him? As his been treated for respiratory too I don't want to increase any chances of flooding his lungs, I obviously syringe him slowly with small amount and wait for him to chew it but I just get a bit paranoid!

Also the vets I take him too don't do post op checks on the guineas and I think it's because my vet knows I have experience with guineas and am really vigilant so so don't think she's too concerned. Although I have never seen post op castration on a guinea before so I'm not 100% on what the wound should look like, to be honest I can barely see it it's so small and there's a bit of skin covering it!
 
I always syringe feed during any treatment or after ops just in case :) I would try to feed as much as he'll eat willingly every few hours and see how that affects his poos if he's still eating in his own.

I've never heard of a vet not doing post op checks, that doesn't seem right to me? My vets always do 2 free checks after any operation to check for infections or self injury etc, regardless of owners experience.

So is he on antibiotics for a URI? Which ones? Did they do the op while he had breathing problems? I don't know if it's just me but it seems very risky to put a piggy under an already dangerous anesthetic if they have breathing difficulties.

I would definitely support him with syringe feeding as much as you can. Have you got probiotics if he's on antibiotics too? That should help him as well :)

Hope he feels better soon!
 
Cavy Kung-Fu said:
I always syringe feed during any treatment or after ops just in case :) I would try to feed as much as he'll eat willingly every few hours and see how that affects his poos if he's still eating in his own.

I've never heard of a vet not doing post op checks, that doesn't seem right to me? My vets always do 2 free checks after any operation to check for infections or self injury etc, regardless of owners experience.

So is he on antibiotics for a URI? Which ones? Did they do the op while he had breathing problems? I don't know if it's just me but it seems very risky to put a piggy under an already dangerous anesthetic if they have breathing difficulties.

I would definitely support him with syringe feeding as much as you can. Have you got probiotics if he's on antibiotics too? That should help him as well :)

Hope he feels better soon!
Click to expand...

Yeah I'm syringing him every few hours, he takes it well so far, I'd rather be safe than sorry!

I thought that too, I'm not sure whether to book him an appointment myself or just see how he goes. Because I'm not a vet at the end of the day so I'm not certain what I'm looking for.

He's on enrocare, I told them before the op he was clicking but my vet gave the all clear as she could barely hear anything but 3/4 way through surgery the nurse said his breathing started to sound raspy so they injected him with antibiotics straight away.

We have but it's expired! Will have to see how quick it can get delivered or maybe I could do poop soup?

Thanks for your advice :)
 
Hi!

I have merged your threads to keep it all together.

As I have explained in your first thread yesterday and as I have also explained in our post-op guide, small, few and funny poos in the first two days post-op are perfectly normal. They reflect the operation (indluding the medical cocktail given) and the post-op recovery. The first poos will always be normal; they have been produced before the op. Passing them is a good sign because that means that the guts are still working. ;)
Tips For Post-operative Care

If you are worried, please ring up your vet clinic and speak to them whether you should bring him in or not. Ask your vet for gut stimulants (emeprid and zantac) and if necessary painkillers.

If his appetite is not picking up, please continue to syringe feed. You can give poo soup and probiotics additionally if you wish to. If the appetite is not picking up by tomorrow, I would consider ordering some fibreplex and mixing it into the syringe feed as many piggies don't like the taste of it; but it is very good with piggies off their food or with ongoing digestive problems as it helps to steady the guts.
Probiotics, Recovery Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links
 
Wiebke said:
Hi!

I have merged your threads to keep it all together.

As I have explained in your first thread yesterday and as I have also explained in our post-op guide, small, few and funny poos in the first two days post-op are perfectly normal. They reflect the operation (indluding the medical cocktail given) and the post-op recovery. The first poos will always be normal; they have been produced before the op. Passing them is a good sign because that means that the guts are still working. ;)
Tips For Post-operative Care

If you are worried, please ring up your vet clinic and speak to them whether you should bring him in or not. Ask your vet for gut stimulants (emeprid and zantac) and if necessary painkillers.

If his appetite is not picking up, please continue to syringe feed. You can give poo soup and probiotics additionally if you wish to. If the appetite is not picking up by tomorrow, I would consider ordering some fibreplex and mixing it into the syringe feed as many piggies don't like the taste of it; but it is very good with piggies off their food or with ongoing digestive problems as it helps to steady the guts.
Probiotics, Recovery Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links
Click to expand...


Thank you.

I did ask to be given an emeprid to go home with but I stopped giving it last night as he i thought I didn't want to give him unnecessary meds and he does seem to have an appetite. I will syringe feed two more times today and see how he goes, although he was munching at hay for a good five mins earlier. He is also on metacam for 2-3 days after the op so I will continue with that until tomorrow and assess whether I think he needs it carried on for another day.
 
Amysguineapigs said:
Thank you.

I did ask to be given an emeprid to go home with but I stopped giving it last night as he i thought I didn't want to give him unnecessary meds and he does seem to have an appetite. I will syringe feed two more times today and see how he goes, although he was munching at hay for a good five mins earlier. He is also on metacam for 2-3 days after the op so I will continue with that until tomorrow and assess whether I think he needs it carried on for another day.
Click to expand...

If he is eating by himself, you are out of the worst and won't need any gut stimulants. you can continue to offer additional syringe feed as much as he likes 2-3 times daily, but stop when his weight stabilises. The poos should reflect this in another day or two. ;)
 
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