PiggiesCarryOn
New Born Pup
Hello! To provide a bit of context for the situation:
The piggy in question, Gibson, has had a history of URIs. When I adopted him, the woman running the group said he had some sort of allergies that caused him to seem as if he had colds but he wasn't really sick and to use a small vaporizer to relieve the symptoms. I did this, but a month or so after taking him home, he developed a URI. I was able to clear it up thanks to the group I adopted him from letting me come by for an emergency exam and providing antibiotics, but also advised me to follow up with a vet after finishing the treatment.
Gibson recovered with the antibiotics, but again began to have a decline in his health. I took him to a vet to get him examined. Due to some scheduling issues (I was moved to an emergency appointment during my lunch hour at work), my mom took over with Gibson at the vet when I needed to get back to work. From what my mom passed along though, (A) the vet did not think allergies were likely, (B) an x-ray was performed and confirmed there weren't issues with his heart, and (C) she didn't seem super-keen on using the vaporizer. I eventually did phase out using the vaporizer, though mainly it was because it didn't seem to help very much and Gibson, little stinker that he was, figured out how to pull the top off and toss it aside when he wanted back in his cage. In any case, I got two different antibiotics, doxycycline and Meloxidyl. Those cleared the issue up immensely. In a follow-up visit, the vet recommended I keep him on the Meloxidyl twice a day and was of the opinion his frequent nasal issues were due to some sort of blockage in one of his nostrils. This was mainly because the last times she saw him, he had runniness in the nostril/eye of one side of his face. She theorized the blockage could be a piece of something stuck in there simply his skull having an odd shape. I declined a procedure to see what exactly the case was, because it didn't seem like there was much point -- per the vet, I could use saline water drops to try to flush out any foreign matter in there, but there didn't seem much to be done otherwise.
Cue the start of last April, when Gibson started getting the sniffles yet again and I brought him in for another check-up. At this point, the vet thought it was pneumonia and prescribed antibiotics accordingly. His recovery post-antibiotics was the best state I've seen him in for ages. He's been exploring his cage, climbing into the hay loft for snacks, rearing up on his hind legs enthusiastically for food, and even had the zoomies a few times. As of a day or so ago though, he started seeming to develop some sort of congestion again.
Here's where my question comes in: during the last vet visit, I had asked about getting a nebulizer for helping with his sinuses. The vet said that was a good idea and advised I use a simple saline solution in it. That's what I've done so far, no additional medicines. For each treatment, I put him in the carrier, drape a towel over, and let the mist go in through the front for about fifteen minutes. Since the sniffles started for him after I started doing this regularly, I'm worried about the best way forward. On one hand, I read that it's normal for piggies to some degree, as the nebulizer is loosening the mucus for them to sneeze up. On the other hand, I'm worried that it's causing him to get his nasal passage blocked up and it might develop into something worse. He did sneeze quite a lot after his most recent treatment and seemed a little livelier after the first go-around post-sniffles developing, but I don't want to take chances. He's started spending most of his time tucked away in secluded parts of the cage, which he does whenever he's sick, but he did come out to the open for food and climbed in the hay loft, which he doesn't usually do when feeling poorly.
I do plan to call the vet on Monday for suggestions, but I'm also interested in seeing if anyone else has experience using just a regular saline-distilled water solution in a nebulizer for their piggies. If so, is this course normal? Is there something I should be looking out for?
Many thanks in advance!
The piggy in question, Gibson, has had a history of URIs. When I adopted him, the woman running the group said he had some sort of allergies that caused him to seem as if he had colds but he wasn't really sick and to use a small vaporizer to relieve the symptoms. I did this, but a month or so after taking him home, he developed a URI. I was able to clear it up thanks to the group I adopted him from letting me come by for an emergency exam and providing antibiotics, but also advised me to follow up with a vet after finishing the treatment.
Gibson recovered with the antibiotics, but again began to have a decline in his health. I took him to a vet to get him examined. Due to some scheduling issues (I was moved to an emergency appointment during my lunch hour at work), my mom took over with Gibson at the vet when I needed to get back to work. From what my mom passed along though, (A) the vet did not think allergies were likely, (B) an x-ray was performed and confirmed there weren't issues with his heart, and (C) she didn't seem super-keen on using the vaporizer. I eventually did phase out using the vaporizer, though mainly it was because it didn't seem to help very much and Gibson, little stinker that he was, figured out how to pull the top off and toss it aside when he wanted back in his cage. In any case, I got two different antibiotics, doxycycline and Meloxidyl. Those cleared the issue up immensely. In a follow-up visit, the vet recommended I keep him on the Meloxidyl twice a day and was of the opinion his frequent nasal issues were due to some sort of blockage in one of his nostrils. This was mainly because the last times she saw him, he had runniness in the nostril/eye of one side of his face. She theorized the blockage could be a piece of something stuck in there simply his skull having an odd shape. I declined a procedure to see what exactly the case was, because it didn't seem like there was much point -- per the vet, I could use saline water drops to try to flush out any foreign matter in there, but there didn't seem much to be done otherwise.
Cue the start of last April, when Gibson started getting the sniffles yet again and I brought him in for another check-up. At this point, the vet thought it was pneumonia and prescribed antibiotics accordingly. His recovery post-antibiotics was the best state I've seen him in for ages. He's been exploring his cage, climbing into the hay loft for snacks, rearing up on his hind legs enthusiastically for food, and even had the zoomies a few times. As of a day or so ago though, he started seeming to develop some sort of congestion again.
Here's where my question comes in: during the last vet visit, I had asked about getting a nebulizer for helping with his sinuses. The vet said that was a good idea and advised I use a simple saline solution in it. That's what I've done so far, no additional medicines. For each treatment, I put him in the carrier, drape a towel over, and let the mist go in through the front for about fifteen minutes. Since the sniffles started for him after I started doing this regularly, I'm worried about the best way forward. On one hand, I read that it's normal for piggies to some degree, as the nebulizer is loosening the mucus for them to sneeze up. On the other hand, I'm worried that it's causing him to get his nasal passage blocked up and it might develop into something worse. He did sneeze quite a lot after his most recent treatment and seemed a little livelier after the first go-around post-sniffles developing, but I don't want to take chances. He's started spending most of his time tucked away in secluded parts of the cage, which he does whenever he's sick, but he did come out to the open for food and climbed in the hay loft, which he doesn't usually do when feeling poorly.
I do plan to call the vet on Monday for suggestions, but I'm also interested in seeing if anyone else has experience using just a regular saline-distilled water solution in a nebulizer for their piggies. If so, is this course normal? Is there something I should be looking out for?
Many thanks in advance!
