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Please help...do I put down my guinea pig?

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Hi, One of my guinea pigs squeaks when urinating and over this last week we have found blood in his wee. We have taken him to the vet twice as he is in pain and wasn't eating much. Yesterday when we went to the vet we were advised to put him down, and he had a pain killer (injection) and we stated noticing there was no blood in his urine. We thought maybe he had passed the stone.
Today the blood has come back and he is in pain, although he is eating more and being much more active. Has anyone got any ideas on any medication to break down stones or help him?

Right now he is squeaking, and i dont know whether to see if he is getting better or get him put down? Please help
 
Its sounds like a water infection to me but i'm dont want to say anything thats wrong so my advice would be to get in touch with Laura via

http://www.guineapighelpline.com/

She will be able to advise you more.

Good luck, give your piggy a cuddle from me and my girls xx
 
What kind of *** vet did you take him to? Please find another one asap!

What your boy could do with is an x-ray to see whether he has stones in his bladder or urethra (in which case he needs an operation) or whether he has just got a bad URI (urinary tract infection/cystitis), which may need more than one course of antibiotic to clear .

Here is more information:
http://www.guinealynx.info/uti.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/stones.html
 
We took him to medivet, and they searched for stones and dont know if he does have them,he's on antibiotics for a urine infection, but it dosent seem to help him, we think he probably does have stones though, and though he passed them as his urine was totally clear yesterday when on pain killers, but the blood and squeaking has returned,
thanks for your advice:)
 
thanks though, we needed some advice as he is obviously in pain and we're not sure what to do. He is 3 years old and is such a friendly guinea pig, we dont want to say goodbye yet, and hopes he gets better
 
This is so strange as I am in the exact same position!

The blood has gone from my pigs urine and he's on septrin and metacam- apart from squeeking while going to the loo he's his normal cheeky self!

My vet also suggested pts if this lot of antibiotics don't work. I will most definately ask for an xray though and will operate if I can find a vet who will do it.

I hope things work out for your pig- I can't offer advice but I'll be keeping a close eye on the thread.
 
At the moment he is staying very still in his cage and isnt his normal self, we are told it cost £900 to get a stone removed and wondered if there was any medication that can break down stones, and because he is a boy it's less likely for him to pass it himself.
 
have the vets done an x-ray or contrast?

this is the only way to see if there is stones, sometimes xrays do not show stones so a contrast has to be done, this is where they flush a dye through the tubes and look at it on xray and see if there is any stones or blockages, if he does have stones he needs an op to remove them, the chance of survival is high, i had a bladder stone guinea and he got through the op but sadly the stones did return 3 mths later and he was pts, but i do know many guineas when they havent come back.

if he does have stones then a low calcium diet for life is a must, ie dont give cabbage, kale, spinach, very often give low calcium food but high in vit c like bell pepper, basil, orange etc.

he will also need to go on cysteaze for life which can be brought over the Internet at a dose of half a capsule dissolved into 1ml or water and syringe fed every day for life, this helps to stop stones forming, but will not dissolve stone already there.

if costs £160 to get a stone removed so i think you need to find yourself another vet as they dont sound very clued up on guineas at all.

there is no meds that can break the stones down he needs an op if it is stones x
 
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There's a list of recommended vets here
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=38481

and here
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1788


I would consider buying a glass water bottle as well (you can get them online at various places or Pets at Home sell them - I think)

We have spoken to our vet and guinea pigs that drink more have a significantly lower risk of bladder stones (an affliction that kills so many guinea pigs). Piggy’s that have glass water bottles seem to drink significantly more than those with plastic bottles and the health benefits of using glass over plastic are well documented.

http://www.cardiffguineapigrescue.co.uk/?page_id=222
 
I would strongly recommend looking for a better, guinea pig savvy vet and having him checked for stones as a priority.

I can also recommend using cystease. My Nerys, who has a chronic cystitis problem, is on it and hasn't had one single lot of antibiotics since she went on it over half a year ago.
The capsules are bladder coating food supplement for cats, but increasingly used for guinea pigs with bladder problems as well. They are prescription free, as the are technically not a medication: http://www.vetuk.co.uk/digestive-su...0-feline-cystitis-glucosamine-capsules-p-1146
 
pain when pooping is another sign of stones, also going thin on their back end is and fluffed up looking, i have to say the longer they are left the more damage they can do and can cause a blockage in the urethra which will kill him :(
 
Squeaking when pooing is another sign of either a stone or a bad UTI.

There are some excellent guinea pigvets in Surrey, but I don't know their name and I don't know whether you can get there. You could look for exotics vets in London - that is what guinea pigs and other small animals come under.
 
I see Anne O'Meara at Goddard Veterinary Group in Ewell, Surrey who is really good - not sure how far away this is from you?
Hope things get sorted soon
 
I've just had a huge bladder stone removed from a 3 year boy that came into my rescue. He had all the symptoms your boy has got. He's made a full recovery and I've since got him a young boar friend. Please find a piggie savy vet. It shouldn't cost £900 even in London!
Best wishes to you both. x
 
I see Anne O'Meara at Goddard Veterinary Group in Ewell, Surrey who is really good - not sure how far away this is from you?
Hope things get sorted soon

This a good vet and worth trying if you are in south london...if not (or you cannot make the journey) ...please let us know where you are so we can find someone else.

He has every chance of recovery for the grand price of approx £200.... with a cavy savvy vet.....please do not delay


x
 
We live in Middlesex in London, and are trying to find a vet that knows more on guinea pigs so that he can have the stone removed, thanks for your advice, and hopefully he will have the stone removed
 
his wee is now no longer as red, but he still squeaks when weeing/pooping. He has started eating more, but we still have to syringe feed him water a he wont drink by himself. Has anyone got any tips on how to get him to drink more because he does get dehydrated and we have to syringe the water often to him.
 
Mine do drink more since I got them a glass water bottle :)

We have spoken to our vet and guinea pigs that drink more have a significantly lower risk of bladder stones (an affliction that kills so many guinea pigs). Piggy’s that have glass water bottles seem to drink significantly more than those with plastic bottles and the health benefits of using glass over plastic are well documented.
http://www.cardiffguineapigrescue.co.uk/?page_id=222
 
£900 to get a stone removed! flamin hell,it would ber cheaper to bring him to me and i'll take him to our vet who's totally guinea pig savvy. How the hell do they justify that amount. get some pearl barley from any supermarket,brew it up,strain it and give it to your pig via its drinking bottle and give it the remaining mash to eat,it sometimes helps with uti's.

allan
rspca west suffolk branch.
 
Cucumber has a lot of water in it <3 What painkillers have you got him on? I know pigs can have 0.2ml of calpol (under 6 months old stuff) once a day.
 
Cucumber has a lot of water in it <3 What painkillers have you got him on? I know pigs can have 0.2ml of calpol (under 6 months old stuff) once a day.

You can give that dose twice a day and it really relieves the pig's pain. AP (former member) said in some monitored cases, you can give up to 0.4 ml twice a day. Then again, he was sometimes extreme in his dealings with pig-medicine but with an excellent track record, I am led to believe.
 
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