• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

Paralyzed Piggie, Unsure What To Do Next...

PiggyPack

PiggyPack

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Mar 27, 2015
Messages
394
Reaction score
365
Points
430
Location
The Wirral and Liverpool (Uni)
Okay so I’ll give you guys the low down. Two days ago I noticed Pablo wasn’t walking quite as he should, I immediately rushed him to the vets. The prescribed an anti inflammatory, which was basically pointless as he had no injury or pain.

The vet examined him and concluded he hadn’t broken anything and there was no injury, he said it was the oh so inconvenient mystery paralysis that guinea pigs can get. I then took action in to my own hands and have tried giving him osteocare for the past few days.

Originally his left leg was worse than his right, now his left leg has somewhat regained balance and he right leg is now worse.

The little guy is eating drinking pooping and peeing as normal. But constantly has crusty eyes, is a little bit bloated and nose crusts, which the vet ignored even though I thought it was something to consider... hmm

He’s soiled and covered in his own poop and watching him drag his legs around breaks my heart.

The vet said we should come back on Tuesday if there is no improvement to consider other options...

I just don’t know what to do...
 
I m not expert but if a vet ignored eye and nose crusts then that is worrying. Is the vet an exotic trained vet if not have you tried looking if there is one local to you on the Forums Vet Locator Guinea Pig Vet Locator
I think the sooner you get him to another vet the better. Here's hoping Pablo gets the right treatment soon.
 
worried val of york said:
I m not expert but if a vet ignored eye and nose crusts then that is worrying. Is the vet an exotic trained vet if not have you tried looking if there is one local to you on the Forums Vet Locator Guinea Pig Vet Locator
I think the sooner you get him to another vet the better. Here's hoping Pablo gets the right treatment soon.
Click to expand...

I did point them out, but they weren’t very visible and just looked like a runny nose at first glance. Same with the eyes.
 
You need emergency vet treatment now.
Sorry but this sounds serious.
Please let us know what happens
 
piggy.pack said:
Okay so I’ll give you guys the low down. Two days ago I noticed Pablo wasn’t walking quite as he should, I immediately rushed him to the vets. The prescribed an anti inflammatory, which was basically pointless as he had no injury or pain.

The vet examined him and concluded he hadn’t broken anything and there was no injury, he said it was the oh so inconvenient mystery paralysis that guinea pigs can get. I then took action in to my own hands and have tried giving him osteocare for the past few days.

Originally his left leg was worse than his right, now his left leg has somewhat regained balance and he right leg is now worse.

The little guy is eating drinking pooping and peeing as normal. But constantly has crusty eyes, is a little bit bloated and nose crusts, which the vet ignored even though I thought it was something to consider... hmm

He’s soiled and covered in his own poop and watching him drag his legs around breaks my heart.

The vet said we should come back on Tuesday if there is no improvement to consider other options...

I just don’t know what to do...
Click to expand...

Hi! I am very sorry. Can you see a more savvy vet?

Please have your piggy seen asap for URI as well as the paralysis, which is obviously also impacting on the gut movement; your piggy may be suffering from partial gut stasis, either caused by intense pain or paralysis. The paralysis can be caused by sciatica, a blood clot stuck in an artery in the spine (may have happened to my Ffraid) but it could also be neurological. Not easy to diagnose, but it is not as simple as an injury to spine.
Please do not stop the painkiller/anti-inflammatory in case he is in pain.

Your piggy needs gut stimulants as well as an antibiotic and probably some mucus-thinning medication to clear the airways (bisolvon for the UK). There are lots of things that can cause pack leg paralysis and it depends where along the body/spine the problem happens. Determining the cause can be detetctive's work, but it should not distract from treating coincidental problems. It doesn't sound like a simple calcium drop overnight paralysis.

As to looking after your piggy at home:
- please step in with syringe feeding asap. Over 80% of the daily food is hay, which you need to make sure that he can get to, as well as water. Weigh daily at the same time to control the food intake and top up accordingly with fibrous feed and as much water as he'll take. In an emergency you can used mushed pellets provided you cut off the syringe tip as shown in our guide.
Bloat, Gi Stasis ( No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

- Please gently clean his bits (which he is no longer able to do himself) daily (or in the case of diarrhea more often if necessary) with some baby warm water. Dry gently to prevent urine scald and soreness. Also check his foot pads daily, front and back for stuck poos and sores.

- Change the bedding/cosies where he is sitting 2-3 times daily to prevent him from lying in his own excretement and keep him as dry and clean as possible. Vetbed bedding is best surface to keep a piggy with mobility issues on. Cut it into pads so you can change regularly.

As long as your piggy is still interested in food, it has got the will to live. See a vet asap for pts if that is no longer the case and it also refuses extra feed or becomes lethargic.

Here is our recommended vets locator: Guinea Pig Vet Locator
 
piggy.pack said:
We’ve booked in to a vet on the vet locator, in Hoylake. Thanks everyone for helping.
Click to expand...

Hopefully you can get your piggy through this. In many cases, back leg paralysis will gradually reverse, depending on the cause.

Please step in with syringe feeding ASAP to make sure that your boy has got enough fibre coming through, which is half the battle with his diarrhea and his guts.
 
Amazing news everyone! :yahoo:
After a week of stressing like crazy Pablo is nearly back to full health.

The vet in hoylake was so thorough with Pablo and he checked everything single thing he could. We were delighted to find that there was nothing wrong internally and that it may just be a simple reaction to the anesthetic he was given for his operation, or lack of vitamin C.

We continued with the osteocare and originally saw how improvement and began worrying. However as we were advised to syringe feed him 5ml of pineapple juice or more a day he has perked up almost instantaneously, he’s running, popcorning and standing normally, although a little off balence, it’s safe to say that Pablo is back to his normal self and has four weeks to go until he can be with some lovely ladies!

I am overjoyed and without people showing me the vet locator he would have almost certainly been pts on Tuesday. I can’t thank you all enough!
 
That is great news! Thankfully most forms of paralysis do reverse on their own, if sometimes rather slowly and sometimes leaving a weakness behind. There are more forms than just a temporary dip in calcium, which is why osteocare doesn't necessarily work (and is therefore not recommended for home treatment on spec) and why seeing a good vet is important.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top