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Nursing a stroke victim- what to do about this balance issue please?

Pinki

Pinki

Junior Guinea Pig
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Our beauty Amla had a stroke recently. She been seeing a guinea pig expert vet and she's getting better but she occasionally looses balance. She has lost some control of her front left leg and has a head tilt due to the stroke. The thing is she ends up completely on her back when she looses balance- and seems to not be able to right herself- she just stays there until we help her- this is very upsetting and I've never seen it before- normally guineas will wriggle and right themselves if they go over.
She is clearly having balance issues as she sleeps with her head in between the two feeding bowls lots of the time. She is eating normally and is not in pain, drinking normally too. It's not happening all the time but it means she needs constant monitoring
Any advice appreciated, thanks
 
Pinki said:
Our beauty Amla had a stroke recently. She been seeing a guinea pig expert vet and she's getting better but she occasionally looses balance. She has lost some control of her front left leg and has a head tilt due to the stroke. The thing is she ends up completely on her back when she looses balance- and seems to not be able to right herself- she just stays there until we help her- this is very upsetting and I've never seen it before- normally guineas will wriggle and right themselves if they go over.
She is clearly having balance issues as she sleeps with her head in between the two feeding bowls lots of the time. She is eating normally and is not in pain, drinking normally too. It's not happening all the time but it means she needs constant monitoring
Any advice appreciated, thanks
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Hi!

I am very sorry. Strokes are sadly an area where there is very limited support possible - even less than we can help human stroke victims. A head tilt is not unusual, depending on the area of the brain the stroke has affected.

Please weigh her daily at the same time instead of the regular weekly weigh-in to control her food intake. keep in mind that over 80% of the daily food intake should be unlimited hay and not veg or pellets. You cannot control that by eye. Make sure that she always has hay close by.

Please also check the eye on her weak side regularly for signs of dehydration if she has lost the cleaning reflex, which can happen. Artificial tears from a pharmacy (preferably in longer lasting gel form rather than as drops) can help with that. Please don't mention that you are buying them for your guinea pig rather than for yourself to help with your dry eyes during the night.

You will also have to look out for overgrowing teeth if one side is affected by the stroke and chewing is uneven.

These are things I have learned from looking after a stroke survivor with a head tilt for a few weeks in 2016.

Unfortunately there is nothing you can do for her balance other than what you are already doing. All you can do is hope that it will come back over time as the brain tries to repair itself as much as possible.
 
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Pinki said:
Thanks Wiebke..gosh strokes are tough :(
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Yeah - it is always so hard when there is so little you can do for a struggling beloved one, whether it is a pet or a human. The feeling of helplessness is worst.

Keeping an eye on her weight, the hydration in her weak eye (it should be shiny and not sunken or shrivelled) and any slant in her incisors indicating developing one sided overgrowth of the back teeth is all you can do, apart from making her as comfortable and making sure that she has hay and water close by at all times.
 
Yes, thanks again.
It's going to be a long night
 
Aw thanks Bill and Ted, appreciated. Today she is sleeping a lot (nothing new there!) and eating. Still wobbly but only fallen once today. Currently enjoying corn husk and broccoli. We are giving her extra water and ProC which she's always responded well to.
Still touch and go. The vet said to put a rolled up towel in the cage for her to lean against. It seems to have worked. The vet also said to get a massage pad and to use it to help with her circulation. Fingers crossed.
 
I should add that we have her on VetBed which has really helped with her stability.
 
Hang on in there! Your girl is lucky to have found such a caring owner.
 
Thanks everyone. Today is a better day. Still only one topple over and it's 10pm. I guess she is adjusting to her new disability too.
 
Morning report.
She is definitely getting stronger. Mornings are not her best time as she's wobbly on her feet and did go over this morning but now after breakfast she's chomping away and looking good.
I've noticed she's now able to reverse when she's doing something like having a scratch that is threatening to topple her balance. This is a new and welcome development.
Today I've ordered a pet camera so we can monitor her remotely if she falls over. I've been told that if she does end up on her back it's not as distressing for her as it is for us! Obviously she cannot eat or drink, but it's not immediately life threatening. But we won't ever be more than a few minutes away anyhow...and we've got to have a life too!:nod:
 
Pinki said:
Morning report.
She is definitely getting stronger. Mornings are not her best time as she's wobbly on her feet and did go over this morning but now after breakfast she's chomping away and looking good.
I've noticed she's now able to reverse when she's doing something like having a scratch that is threatening to topple her balance. This is a new and welcome development.
Today I've ordered a pet camera so we can monitor her remotely if she falls over. I've been told that if she does end up on her back it's not as distressing for her as it is for us! Obviously she cannot eat or drink, but it's not immediately life threatening. But we won't ever be more than a few minutes away anyhow...and we've got to have a life too!:nod:
Click to expand...

Fingers crossed that her recovery continues apace!
 
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