Planning for post-operative care after neutering

[PigglePuggle]

So Theo has his neutering operation scheduled for 9th July, and I was ok with this idea until I keep seeing posts about post-op haematomas and abscesses and hernias...
In the 3 weeks we've had Theo he has become an incredibly important member of the family and the future guinea pig herd (the lady piggies get very upset now if he is out of sight/sound/smell range for more than 3 minutes) so I was wondering whether to book some post-op vet checks for him to make sure everything is ok? How often should I ask the vet for post-op check ups to balance wanting Theo to have the best care available and not having to wait if anything is wrong, vs. not insulting the vet assuming something will go wrong and appearing like a crazy obsessive guinea pig lady? After reading about some of the post-op problems recently on the forum I would happily pay for a daily vet check-up for Theo but that would be weird probably and a bit insulting to the surgeon who is doing this fairly routine procedure...
If the op is monday should I ask for a check up on the friday after plus a week later? Or a check up sooner, or later? This hot weather is scaring me too, presumably a post-op piggy could dehydrate very fast- plus the car journey home from the vets- (its only 1 mile but cars are hot... iced water bottle in a sock? Or might a post-op piggy be chilly anyway after the GA?) So many worries!

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

You should be offered a post op check anyway. My vet does a post op check 5 days after surgery.

 

[Wiebke]

So Theo has his neutering operation scheduled for 9th July, and I was ok with this idea until I keep seeing posts about post-op haematomas and abscesses and hernias...
In the 3 weeks we've had Theo he has become an incredibly important member of the family and the future guinea pig herd (the lady piggies get very upset now if he is out of sight/sound/smell range for more than 3 minutes) so I was wondering whether to book some post-op vet checks for him to make sure everything is ok? How often should I ask the vet for post-op check ups to balance wanting Theo to have the best care available and not having to wait if anything is wrong, vs. not insulting the vet assuming something will go wrong and appearing like a crazy obsessive guinea pig lady? After reading about some of the post-op problems recently on the forum I would happily pay for a daily vet check-up for Theo but that would be weird probably and a bit insulting to the surgeon who is doing this fairly routine procedure...
If the op is monday should I ask for a check up on the friday after plus a week later? Or a check up sooner, or later? This hot weather is scaring me too, presumably a post-op piggy could dehydrate very fast- plus the car journey home from the vets- (its only 1 mile but cars are hot... iced water bottle in a sock? Or might a post-op piggy be chilly anyway after the GA?) So many worries!

Hi!

Please take a DEEP breath!

Most ops by a competent vet go without a hitch. Please keep in mind that our forum is a place where people come when they have a problem; it does NOT reflect reality appropriately! Sometimes too much online research when you have an anxious disposition can be rather counterproductive.

You need to see a vet promptly if there are problems (which I hope not); otherwise you can stick to the normal routine check-up as specified by your vet. You will be told when to book him in again.
With the very latest methods, a check-up is not even necessary.

Make sure that you have got syringes and syringe feed at home so you can step in asap if there is loss of appetite, especially on the day after the op. If you are worried about dehyration, use dioralyte as specified on the packaging.
Don't panic, but your good care at home in that respect can make a real difference if you run into problems. Many deaths occur needlessly because people don't step in with syringe feeding and watering and don't contact their vet promptly if there is a problem.

Here are our very detailed tips that tell you exactly what to do in case you encounter problems and also a success story just to counterbalance all the bad press and to show how an operation recovery should ideally be like.
Tips For Post-operative Care
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths And Facts

The travelling guide includes a section on travelling in hot weather.
If possible, keep your car in a shady place; that is the best prep before you set out on a hot day, so the car cannot heat up as badly. Open all doors to let out the worst of the hot air for a minute before plasing him inside. A wrapped frozen bottle in OK. Keep the carrier in the food well if possible where it is coolest and also keep your boy where it is coolest in your house/flat.
Travelling with guinea pigs

PS: It is very normal to have second thoughts and apprehensions before and during an operation. Keep telling yourself that you are doing to give your boy a chance at having the happiest of lives. If you find you are panicking, it helps to concentrate on sending him positive and loving thoughts instead of working yourself up on what ifs. Send your love with every breath you let go.

 

[Betsy]

Take Theo in a lunch box of his favourite food for after the op as they will want to get him eating as soon as possible.


Something like the above. It has carrot, rocket, a little gem lettuce leaf, pepper, a grape, hay, pellets, a strawberry and grass in there.

 

[PigglePuggle]

Thanks Wiebke! My background is veterinary research (large animal, but mostly pathology!) so I am used to assuming animals are always really sick and die. I've not had furry pets since I was a child until April this year. Also my mother visited this weekend and raised all sorts of concerns about Theo's op then listed all the furry pets I had as a child and got out photos of them then spent hours telling us how they all died in agony while she tried to nurse them with 1980's pet care knowledge. The hamster with seizures, the piggy with the heart attack, the elderly bunny with the horrific anal impaction abscess...
We will try be sensible about this and of course if Theo is at all unwell he will be syringe fed and cuddled through the night then back at the vets as soon as they open at 8am
Its just struck me today that it is elective surgery which sounds fine for a piggy you've only read about online but it's a different thing when it's your new best friend who licks your face and eats your hair and romances your shoes!

 

[PigglePuggle]

Take Theo in a lunch box of his favourite food for after the op as they will want to get him eating as soon as possible.
View attachment 90207

Something like the above. It has carrot, rocket, a little gem lettuce leaf, pepper, a grape, hay, pellets, a strawberry and grass in there.

Thanks Betsy I already had his lunchbox planned- spinach, parsley, cucumber and red pepper- but after today's watermelon success definitely watermelon too. And pellets. And 3 different kinds of hay. And a towel the ladies have peed on so he doesnt get lonely

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

This is exactly one of the reasons why I get all the boars neutered before they are put up for adoption, even if they're initially going to live with another male. I have an excellent vet, who neuters without any issues and by the time they go to their new home, they're good to go with male or female friends and the new owner doesn't have to worry! I have seen too many boars end up living alone, after their little friend dies, or they fall out. If they're neutered it opens up so many more opportunities for them.

Neutering should be a fairly straightforward op, in most cases. As long as you're using a guinea pig savvy vet, he should sail through the op.

 

[EJMA82]

as Long as you have a good vet Theo will be absolutely fine. I contacted a rescue near to me for a recommendation for a vet who does lots of neuters and Ringo sailed through the operation.

 

[PigglePuggle]

This is exactly one of the reasons why I get all the boars neutered before they are put up for adoption, even if they're initially going to live with another male. I have an excellent vet, who neuters without any issues and by the time they go to their new home, they're good to go with male or female friends and the new owner doesn't have to worry! I have seen too many boars end up living alone, after their little friend dies, or they fall out. If they're neutered it opens up so many more opportunities for them.

Neutering should be a fairly straightforward op, in most cases. As long as you're using a guinea pig savvy vet, he should sail through the op.

Theo was an impulse rescue from the free ads while I was looking in the ads for a bigger second hand hutch he just looked like he should be part of my little herd of 2 ladies and his owner was giving him away free at 14 weeks old after buying him from pets at home 5 weeks earlier because her kids thought he was boring and they decided they would rather have a puppy! We were going to wait and plan and adopt a husboar from a responsible rescue centre in a few months time... but we all fell in love with Theo's little badger face and stripy bottom
Of course neutering will revolutionise his life and after his 6 week post op wait he can go live in the new big cage we bought with those 2 magic piggy princess ladies he talks to through the cage and playpen bars and rumblestruts for every day... Puggle wants to marry him and Piggle treats him like a little brother but we love him so much now I'm so worried sending him off for surgery!

 

[eileen]

I has two boars neutere d on thursday at an exotic vet,both piggies stayed in overnight. i had to syringe one piggie for 24 hours but he is fine !i have not been asked to take the boys back for a checkup.i place post op neuters on puppypads with white vet bed over the top,so i can observe urine output,any blood.i am checking the wound twice aday.supplementing vit c for 7 days.ensure you are given pain medications to give at home !ive had a total of 14 piggies neutered at the same vets,ive not had any problems or complications with any of my neutered boars.i agree with furryfriends that it gives so many more options if the piggie falls out,or looses his mate.i hope all goes well with your boar.i would ensure you also have critical care/supreme science syringe feed and some syringes incase his food intake is low after the op.it really makes alot of difference.i also weight once aday to ensure they are not losing weight,as this is a better indication of the fact they are eating enough to maintain weight,if not i step in with syringe feeding.

 

[PigglePuggle]

I've ordered critical care food and syringes today, should be delivered well before his operation. Thanks for the reassurance everyone, I think just hearing about poor little Sven's abscess after it was such a love story,with Elsa, and reading about so many pets dying in the heat this week, then my mother spending the whole weekend telling me in detail about how all the pets we had 30-some years ago died, has made me a bit upset.
I'm off to feed Theo some extra late night watermelon to cheer myself (and him) up

 

[Betsy]

Christian and Dennis sailed through their neutering ops and have been happily living with the girlies for over 2 years. Theo will be fine!

 

[helloitsbecca]

Good luck Theo! I’m sure everything will be fine - he is in good hands with you.

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks Wiebke! My background is veterinary research (large animal, but mostly pathology!) so I am used to assuming animals are always really sick and die. I've not had furry pets since I was a child until April this year. Also my mother visited this weekend and raised all sorts of concerns about Theo's op then listed all the furry pets I had as a child and got out photos of them then spent hours telling us how they all died in agony while she tried to nurse them with 1980's pet care knowledge. The hamster with seizures, the piggy with the heart attack, the elderly bunny with the horrific anal impaction abscess...
We will try be sensible about this and of course if Theo is at all unwell he will be syringe fed and cuddled through the night then back at the vets as soon as they open at 8am
Its just struck me today that it is elective surgery which sounds fine for a piggy you've only read about online but it's a different thing when it's your new best friend who licks your face and eats your hair and romances your shoes!

I know the feeling! It is always 10 times worse when it is your own and your own decision.

Family can be sooo no help, especially when they are well meaning! My mum is always telling me 'Keep in mind they are only animals and not your baby replacement.' GRRRR! I have long stopped telling her when a piggy of mine has died!

I have grown up with piggies in the 70ies and and 80ies (including having my first own piggy neutered then). I can reassure you that veterinary knowledge and skill has come A VERY LONG WAY from there!
Key is that you trust your vet, and that your vet is familiar with operating on guinea pigs and small furries.

All the best! You'll get through it!

 

[PigglePuggle]

Is this Supreme Science Selective a good recovery food for post-op syringe feeding if we need it next week? The main ingredients are timothy hay and alfalfa and it has vitamin c and a probiotic...I've ordered Oxbow critical care as well but I couldnt get a guaranteed delivery date on that so I ordered this too to make sure we are all prepared... I've ordered new more accurate weighing scales too to monitor any post-op weight loss... deep breaths!

 

[Betsy]

The vet gave me normal Science Selective and it was excellent. Luckily Christian liked it and would happily take up to 9ml every 2 - 3 hours day and night when I syringe fed him for 3 days after his abscess op. When he was neutered he didn't need syringe feeding and neither did Dennis which was just as well as they were done at the same time. I'm sure Theo will sail through! He's a fit and healthy piggy. Don't panic.

 

[EJMA82]

Yes it’s very good. For Ringo, I gave him the burgess dual care nuggets which can also be used to syringe feed but I also have a supply of this left over from the vet for when Snowy was poorly. On a good note, Ringo had his post op check this morning (on day 8 rather than 5 due to me working) and everything is in perfect order. I wish Theo an equally smooth recovery once he visits the plum fairy.

 

[Wiebke]

Is this Supreme Science Selective a good recovery food for post-op syringe feeding if we need it next week? The main ingredients are timothy hay and alfalfa and it has vitamin c and a probiotic...I've ordered Oxbow critical care as well but I couldnt get a guaranteed delivery date on that so I ordered this too to make sure we are all prepared... I've ordered new more accurate weighing scales too to monitor any post-op weight loss... deep breaths!

You can feed it. Any of the recovery formulas will do. If your piggy doesn't like the taste, then mix it with some more familiar mushed pellets and cut off the syringe tip as shown in the guide to allow the fibre to come through.

Kitchen scales are perfectly adequate for monitoring the weight at home to see whether it is stable, there is a gradual slow weight loss or a large sudden weight loss. Vets need very accurate scales in order to computate the appropriate dosages for medications.

 

[Qualcast&Flymo]

Thanks @PigglePuggle for starting this thread, I was wondering the same things myself as I have given up trying to get a boar-friend for Squeaks and just booked him in to be neutered on Friday 13th ().
My vet mentioned, when I asked her about her neutering record, that in about 30 years she and a colleague have only lost one pig each after neutering, each to a different infection. So now they routinely give 2 different antibiotics to be taken alongside pain meds after the op. Which antibiotics are the best ones for preventing post-op infections, that I should ask for if they aren't among those two?
In addition, when I bring him home, is vet bed better than fleece for his 'hospital' cage? I have a piece of vet bed, though it seems to have quite a deep pile, about 2cm deep (see pic) and I wonder if threads might stick to the wound. Are there other types more suitable for post-op recovery?

Thanks!

 

[Flutterby]

I had one boar not so long ago go through a terrible time post op, but he is the only one I've had complications with. It's just luck in a lot of cases. You will always have one or two that have complications. I have two boars in for neutering on Thursday, it certainly hasn't put me off!

 

[PigglePuggle]

Hope you arent superstitious! I refused a friday 13th appointment (because I am a completely rational science lecturer except when it comes to my pets!) which is why we are going on monday 9th. I have a stockpile of very old soft well washed towels for the hospital cage which hopefully will do the job... look forward to hearing what everyone says about bedding though, I am quite willing to panic buy more things to help little Theo through his ordeal!
Personally I would be reluctant to accept "just in case" antibiotics because of what they do to the usual gut bacteria, but I will go with whatever the vet recommends I guess if they do it routinely...

 

[Qualcast&Flymo]

Hope you arent superstitious! I refused a friday 13th appointment (because I am a completely rational science lecturer except when it comes to my pets!) which is why we are going on monday 9th. I have a stockpile of very old soft well washed towels for the hospital cage which hopefully will do the job... look forward to hearing what everyone says about bedding though, I am quite willing to panic buy more things to help little Theo through his ordeal!
Personally I would be reluctant to accept "just in case" antibiotics because of what they do to the usual gut bacteria, but I will go with whatever the vet recommends I guess if they do it routinely...

I'm trying hard not to be superstitious! That day was the soonest available with my preferred vet, I don't want to delay further as school holidays and my family holiday are approaching, and I want healing to be well underway before I go away and leave him with someone else.
I understand what you are saying about 'just in case' antibiotics. I'm not too worried about gut flora/loss of appetite, I've got Fibreplex, ProC and Recovery Food and plenty of syringes in stock already in case; but I'd be interested to know what other people think who have had more of their piggies neutered. I may of course have misunderstood or misremembered what my vet said!

 

[PigglePuggle]

My new digital kitchen scales were delivered today and I just gave Theo an accurate pre-dinner weigh-in... 647g does that sound a healthy weight for a 17 and a half week old boy about to have neutering surgery? He's gained over 160g in three and a half weeks (unlimited hay, possibly a bit too much watermelon, and lots of exercise!)