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Poorly Piggie ?

Amy Westland

Amy Westland

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Sep 7, 2014
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Location
Manchester
Treacle hasn't been looking good since yesterday and today he's been very lethargic so I took him away from his piggie friend and had him in my room for a few hours to Keep a closer eye on him and all he wanted to do was sleep and while he was upstairs he never went to the toilet which was unusual as he is usually a pooing machine which had me worried... I think he might be constipated or something is there any suggestions on what to do to help him?
 
Amy Westland said:
Treacle hasn't been looking good since yesterday and today he's been very lethargic so I took him away from his piggie friend and had him in my room for a few hours to Keep a closer eye on him and all he wanted to do was sleep and while he was upstairs he never went to the toilet which was unusual as he is usually a pooing machine which had me worried... I think he might be constipated or something is there any suggestions on what to do to help him?
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Hi! Please have your piggy seen as an emergency asap! this is a life and death matter!
Lethargy and no poos is either a symptom of gut stasis, heart failure or organ failure - it is VERY serious.
List Of Life And Death Out-of-hours Emergencies
 
I can't get to a vet till tomorrow (it's 11:35pm) and no where is open, I'm panicking ...is there anyway I can make him comfortable before then ?
 
Amy Westland said:
I can't get to a vet till tomorrow (it's 11:35pm) and no where is open, I'm panicking ...is there anyway I can make him comfortable before then ?
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Take him back to the cage, keep him as comfy and warm (but not hot) as you can. You can try to syringe feed and water, but if he is either very apathetic and struggles to swallow or struggling well in excess to his weak state, then there is unfortunately nothing more you can do for him. :(
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

You can usually get the contact number of an out-of-hours service from your vet's phone message or via googling for your area.
 
It's not constipation... the vets not sure what it is. Given him a shot of of steroids and antibiotics and has given me some oral antibiotics to start tonight. Could possibly be an infection or a neurological disease ....
 
Amy Westland said:
It's not constipation... the vets not sure what it is. Given him a shot of of steroids and antibiotics and has given me some oral antibiotics to start tonight. Could possibly be an infection or a neurological disease ....
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All the best!

PS: Please avoid any more steroid injections. In rodents, they slow down the organs. It is unfortunately a common mistake that general vets not familiar with small furries make.
The Problems With Steroids And Why They Shouldn't Be Used.

Please continue to syringe feed, little but often and to offer as much water as he will take to keep him alive. He must be running on empty by now. Did your vet check for gut movement and noises? You are aiming at 40-60 ml over 24 hours or as close as you can come to keep him going.
Not Eating And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding
 
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