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Poorly Gp, How Do I Look After Her

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Tomsmum

Tomsmum

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so Ginger has a suspected respiratory infection :( she has had an injection of antibiotics and I have 4 days worth to give her. She is very still and unlike herself. How do I care for her please?

Do I put her back in the hutch with her sister? Or keep her in the carry cage?

I have given her some grass which she has eaten, though more slowly than usually.. What else?


Any ideas gratefully received, we are so worried about her
 
Tomsmum said:
so Ginger has a suspected respiratory infection :( she has had an injection of antibiotics and I have 4 days worth to give her. She is very still and unlike herself. How do I care for her please?

Do I put her back in the hutch with her sister? Or keep her in the carry cage?

I have given her some grass which she has eaten, though more slowly than usually.. What else?


Any ideas gratefully received, we are so worried about her
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What antibiotic is your girl on?

Please keep her indoors and if necessary bring her sister indoors; keep her comfy and warm, but not hot. Especially in view of the weather we are about to have! If the sister has caught the infection, this will already have happened, but if she has a fully working immune system, she should be able to fight it off.

Start topping her up with syringe feed and water and weigh her daily at the same time in the feeding cycle. Up to 80% of the daily food intake should be hay, so seeing her nibbling on a little bit grass can be very deceptive. The need to breathe comes before the need to drink and thirdly the need to eat.
Additionally, antibiotics can have an appetite dampening or even killing effect, especially baytril. You can bolster that by adding a bit of probiotic to the syringe feed or give a pinch sprinkled on some veg if you piggy is still eating. Poo soup made from syringing the bit of water in which you have soaked some fresh healthy poos from a companion can also help to get all the right stuff into her. It is a bit gross, but it mimics guinea pig behaviour. Also give her 1/4 -1/8 of a human vitamin C tablet (if you wish, you can dissolve it in 1 ml of water and syringe directly) to boost the immune system.

Place a bowl with steaming water near the cage, but not so close that the hot steam can burn the delicate lungs. Replace that regularly; that will help to ease her breathing. If you wish, you can add 1-2 drops of olbas oil, but please do not add vicks (noxious to guinea pigs).

Here is our illustrated step-by-step guide. It also contains tips of what you can do with what you have got handy in an emergency. Information of probiotics etc. is at the end: Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
 
They are not outdoors but in the garage with a radiator on, so not too cold! for in the house I only have the travel cage - is that not too small for two GP's for any length of time?

No idea which antibiotic - didn't think to ask

Thanks for all the info - will give her some hay and see if she eats it and then if not try a syringe feed.
 
Tomsmum said:
They are not outdoors but in the garage with a radiator on, so not too cold! for in the house I only have the travel cage - is that not too small for two GP's for any length of time?

No idea which antibiotic - didn't think to ask

Thanks for all the info - will give her some hay and see if she eats it and then if not try a syringe feed.
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Weigh her daily before her dinner, so you know whether she is eating enough. It is important to keep her weight up as much as possible, so she has the strength to fight her illness.

If the hutch is warm and out of drafts and weather, then it is fine.
 
Tomsmum said:
How much water should I try to give her?
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As much as she will take. Do not give more than 1/3 - 1/2 of a syringe in one go and ideally let your piggy suckle from the syringe if she still has got some appetite left. otherwise follow the recommendations in the syringe feeding guide.
 
Thanks everyone, she is seeming quite a lot brighter this morning and we have had some normal squeaks and no more of the scary noises.. Will keep a close eye on them both for a few days though
 
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