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Ovarian cysts.

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halfpenny

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Of the 4 girl piggies we have lost, 3 of them had ovarian cysts- 2 died during the op and the 3rd survived and died a year later suddenly.
I was wondering how common are they, in reality, as due to my experience it seems to be very common.
I was also wondering if giving evening primrose oil would act as a preventitive as it has been suggested that it helps in humans. Has anybody tried this and does anybody have any ideas about dosage?
 
you might get more answers from the medical people in the illness thread
 
I have asked a mod to move this to the Health & Illness section so that, as Eleanor said, more of the "medical" people see it. :)

Ovarian cysts are very common, yes. They are generally harmless; some burst within the pig without effect but almost all cases of cysts are treated one way or another. A spay is a complete solution, but a dangerous one. When you weigh up the risks, it's usually not worth putting the sow through the surgery - yet most vets say a spay is the only treatment for cysts!

There are two other, safer, treatment options: draining the cyst via a needle through the abdomen (no anesthetic), and hormone therapy. The hormone therapy varies between vets (and countries) but on the whole it seems to have a good success rate. The CCT gives 0.2ml Chorulon (HCG), one injection followed by a second injection four weeks later. Some other vets prefer to inject the pig routinely - one injection every couple of months or so. One of the additional benefits to hormone therapy (aside from the fact it is merely an injection as opposed to major surgery!) is that it quickly deals with the symptoms as well, helping hair to grow back and calming sexually aggressive behaviour.

I've only had one sow diagnosed with ovarian cysts, she had a small one on one ovary. She required two "courses" of injections at the CCT; 2 injections four weeks apart and then again a few months later. Her hairloss turned out to be caused by a different problem, but the ovarian cyst was undetectable after the second course of injections and her behaviour drastically changed (from being a very sexually aggressive, dominant sow to a calm, "aunty pig" figure).

I have not heard about the use of evening primrose oil, although I have come across it being used alongside medication for other conditions. The dosage I'm lost on, unfortunately!
 
Lucky has a benign ovarian cyst. The vet said that as it does not bother her, or cause her any pain, there is little point in causing her discomfort with invasive and/or dangerous ops.

You'd hardly notice except for the fact that she appears fat around her belly, but when you feel it, it feels like liquid. I think it is a build up of liquid, and every so often it leaks through the uterus, and then gradually builds up again.

Doesnt stop her running around the lawn in the summer though!
 
Thanks for the replies so far.
We followed to advise on gunea pig lynx, which recommends the op.
I think, probably we lost Jumble to her being a very nervous pig and inexperienced nursing on our part.
Motley, was very ill with her cysts and lost a lot of weight, she was the worst candidate for an op, underweight and she had neurological problems due to being dropped ( why she came to us.) She sailed through the op and lived for another year, bright and healthy- she was 5 when she got the op.
Pip, was starting to lose weight we assumed due to her cysts, so she was given the op, sadly she didn't wake up. I am still glad we went for the op, because one of the cysts was black, filled with blood and she also had a necrotic kidney, which may have been the reason for her illness rather than the cysts.

I did read that keeping a neutered male was likely to reduce the incidence of cysts, but it certainly didn't work for my girls. i would love to find out if evening primrose may help, but scared about dosage, but I know it certainly helps my hormones.:(|)
 
halfpenny said:
I did read that keeping a neutered male was likely to reduce the incidence of cysts
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Ummm. I'm struggling to think of why this would help. Regular :o :x @) makes for a healthier girlie? Somebody enlighten me, please; this has piqued my curiosity!
 
Leave well alone, the cysts often rupture spontaneously. Failing which they can be easily and safely drained. No anaesthetic is needd for this procedure. An operation is too drastic and too expensive for any potential health benefit.
I have a number of sows with ovarian cysts, I take the view that it is an "interesting condition" and then ignore them!
They are not life threatening and, as with so many conditions, the owner is more concerned than the pig.
 
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What causes ovarian cysts, surely if it is a hormonal imbalance, just leaving the cysts leaves the pigs dealing with other symptoms- they often show increased hormonal behaviour- which I wouldn't think is pleasant. Certainly Motley and Pip were very unwell, and for Motley it was the cysts or the homones involved causing that.
This is why I'm quite interested in the evening primrose oil, it would be great if they could be prevented in the first place!:))
 
Furries said:
Ummm. I'm struggling to think of why this would help. Regular :o :x @) makes for a healthier girlie? Somebody enlighten me, please; this has piqued my curiosity!
Click to expand...

That is exactly what it was suggesting, but where the idea came from, who knows.:), maybe Bear, my boy, was just lazy.;)
 
I think the "rumour" (for want of a better word) is to let a sow have a single litter, as sows who have been bred from apparently have a significantly reduced chance of developing cysts.

Not to say that it's true or that I (or anyone on the forum) condone the suggestion - not in the least. I'd rather deal with a cystic pig than with a pregnant pig!
 
Google "cystic ovaries", there is more than enough reading material to pass away the time.
 
I have done so, and I'm sure I found something about evening primrose oil, but can't remember where I found it, and I can't remember anything being mentioned about doseage. As this seemed like quite a helpful and experienced forum, I wondered if anybody had heard of this being used as a preventitive.
 
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