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Poo Encrusted Feet!

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irene

irene

Teenage Guinea Pig
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west hempstead, new york
Hi all, haven't posted in a while but to make a long story short my adorable Cinnamon has chronic GI issue-loose poos, this has been going on for a long time and after many vet visits and bills we have decided to just treat symptomaticaly and reduce symptoms as much as possible. So my odd question is because she isn't that active she sits in her poo and urinates too and her feet become encased in Rick hard poo! I have to soak her in a basin for 30 minutes to be able to get it off and she cries, I think it's even interfering with the way her nails grow it gets so bad so fast that you can't even see her foot! Any suggestions?
 
I'm not sure how helpful my answer will be to you, but I will post anyway in the hopes that it may be.

I'd be very concerned about poo encrusting a pig's feet, if the issue is as persistent and serious as you describe. Even a micro cut on one foot can be the entry point for foecal bacteria, and then you may end up having to deal with a serious infection and/or pododermatitis. Plus, the more her nails grow in an abnormal shape, (possibly) the more uncomfortable walking will be for Cinnamon. So she will soiling her feet and not moving away.

My only suggestion is to check, possibly with another vet, the reasons why she isn't so active and also to try to find the root cause for the gut problems. A foecal float test can determine the presence of parasites, and then with a foecal culture, your vet can check what is the exact bacterial composition of her stool and if there is a proliferation of one type of bacteria, and also whether there are viruses or fungus. Microscopic examination of the stool can also be helpful for the same thing. In that way, you can target the exact cause for her gut issues, rather than just shooting in the dark.

Aside from this, you can try to stabilize the gut with probiotics and bio-sponge, which is at least readily available "across the pond".

I'm sure you are already doing some or even all of the things I suggested, and I'm sorry if my post is redundant. I just wanted to say from personal experience that it's very satisfying to treat a pig after a correct diagnosis, because we can than use the appropriate medication and the pig seems to improve overnight.
 
irene said:
Hi all, haven't posted in a while but to make a long story short my adorable Cinnamon has chronic GI issue-loose poos, this has been going on for a long time and after many vet visits and bills we have decided to just treat symptomaticaly and reduce symptoms as much as possible. So my odd question is because she isn't that active she sits in her poo and urinates too and her feet become encased in Rick hard poo! I have to soak her in a basin for 30 minutes to be able to get it off and she cries, I think it's even interfering with the way her nails grow it gets so bad so fast that you can't even see her foot! Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

Please change the pads/vetbed etc. that you have in her usual corner at least 2-3 times daily, and wipe her feet as often as you can to prevent the poos from sticking to her feet before they are too difficult to remove. it is rather painful and unpleasant to remove rock hard poos. I am currently there with my Nerys; it was hardest during the weeks she was suffering from back leg paralysis and the after effects of partial GI stasis when she couldn't move much and also couldn't clean herself.
Guinea Lynx :: Urine Scald
 
RosieMaia said:
I'm not sure how helpful my answer will be to you, but I will post anyway in the hopes that it may be.

I'd be very concerned about poo encrusting a pig's feet, if the issue is as persistent and serious as you describe. Even a micro cut on one foot can be the entry point for foecal bacteria, and then you may end up having to deal with a serious infection and/or pododermatitis. Plus, the more her nails grow in an abnormal shape, (possibly) the more uncomfortable walking will be for Cinnamon. So she will soiling her feet and not moving away.

My only suggestion is to check, possibly with another vet, the reasons why she isn't so active and also to try to find the root cause for the gut problems. A foecal float test can determine the presence of parasites, and then with a foecal culture, your vet can check what is the exact bacterial composition of her stool and if there is a proliferation of one type of bacteria, and also whether there are viruses or fungus. Microscopic examination of the stool can also be helpful for the same thing. In that way, you can target the exact cause for her gut issues, rather than just shooting in the dark.

Aside from this, you can try to stabilize the gut with probiotics and bio-sponge, which is at least readily available "across the pond".

I'm sure you are already doing some or even all of the things I suggested, and I'm sorry if my post is redundant. I just wanted to say from personal experience that it's very satisfying to treat a pig after a correct diagnosis, because we can than use the appropriate medication and the pig seems to improve overnight.
Click to expand...
Thank you! We have done all the stool studies including a culture and all was negative the next step would have to be more invasive and we've decided against that. Cinnamon was never a very active piggy but she still climbs up the cage side for food and can run for sure she just always was very relaxed and liked to lounge around!
 
Wiebke said:
Please change the pads/vetbed etc. that you have in her usual corner at least 2-3 times daily, and wipe her feet as often as you can to prevent the poos from sticking to her feet before they are too difficult to remove. it is rather painful and unpleasant to remove rock hard poos. I am currently there with my Nerys; it was hardest during the weeks she was suffering from back leg paralysis and the after effects of partial GI stasis when she couldn't move much and also couldn't clean herself.
Guinea Lynx :: Urine Scald
Click to expand...
Thank you I do change the pads a couple of times a day she doesn't stay in one place so have to change entire cage.Do you recommend anything particular to wipe her feet with? Or just a plain wet towel
 
Megan had poo feet often, she was an extreme special needs piggy and developed GI issues. We used to pop her feet in a food bowl of warm water, test the warmness with your elbow or tongue (somewhere sensitive) after 1 mi nor so the poo would be soft enough to gently remove. Sending you r little one lots of love x
 
Would something greasy like sudocream (baby nappyrash cream) just a thin smearing on her pads after they've been cleaned do the trick?
Just thinking if they're a bit greasy then the poops wouldn't stick as easily in the first place &hopefully be easier to wipe off generally as the cream would act as a barrier.

I'm not sure if gorgeous guineas in the UK would have an alternative cream or suggestion of something if they dont ship to the USA?

Some people use fragrance free baby wipes but I just use warm water on a paper kitchen towel to wipe my girls feet off with if needed.

Perhaps some guinea shampoo added to the water u soak her feet in would loosen the poops easier?

Dont suppose she has mobility issues due to arthritis or stomach pains because of the soft poops does she?
Have you tried a painkiller to see if she moves around more? (only trouble is meds like metacam can cause soft poops generally)
Maybe if she's moving around more
Her gut will settle a little?

Fingers crossed. Xx
 
I was also thinking along the lines of something moisturizing on her feet. Surely something like coconut oil can't harm her? Her skin should be very dried up from the alkaline urine, so coating it could protect it from microfissures (I'm not sure if that's the appropriate term) and at least make an infection less likely. It could also have the added benefit of making the poo less dry and sticky, but I'm not sure about that, I guess it should be checked empirically.
 
irene said:
Thank you I do change the pads a couple of times a day she doesn't stay in one place so have to change entire cage.Do you recommend anything particular to wipe her feet with? Or just a plain wet towel
Click to expand...

You could try gorgeous guineas foot ointment or ask your vet whether sudocrem is still OK to use on guinea pigs. So much has changed in terms of using human everyday meds on guinea pigs in the last few years.
 
Thanks to everyone I am looking into the Goegeous Guinea product but will take time to get I'm sure from UK to the states, is there any type of oil or cream that I could purchase over the counter at a pet store that would be safe?
 
My sow has dry skin on her rear feet, so apply coconut oil there following vet advice.

By the way, I didn't know Sudocream could be used on pigs, I will keep that in mind. Especially for this case, Sudocream sounds better than oil, because it has some antibacterial and antifungal additives, which can at least help protect Cinnamon's skin.
 
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