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Problems after piggy eye removal and neutering

krrn

krrn

New Born Pup
Joined
May 3, 2020
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Location
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Hi everyone,

I posted over a month ago asking for advice for my grieving sick pig after my other baby passed away. My vet kindly took her in with her own pigs and found a rescue that gave us a new friend for her. We have now had them both home for just over 3 weeks. This lovely boy has unfortunately been through a lot, he came to us with skin problems, half an ear missing, a ripped off nail and one eye. The week the vet got him in she neutered him and decided to redo his eye which she believed had been closed poorly a few weeks prior.

He is such a sweet boy who loves to chat and is very caring despite what hes been through, however I have noticed his personality totally change within the last week. Now he barely makes a sound and will run terrified from you if you so much as look at him. I could understand if he came like this but it seems to be recent and has made me wonder if he is feeling worse again?

Currently he is very itchy and pulls at the fur around his arms and sides (the vet said this could be due to the discomfort from surgery or stress). She said she found no skin problems on him despite bald patches on his back (where he cannot reach). His eye has been leaking a white pus which I clean every few days as this is quite traumatic for him. He also has a really hard patch of fur where his grease gland is.. I have oiled, washed and shaved the area but there's still a hard callousy part that may be bothering him.

Overall he has had 3 weeks of Baytril, 1 week of Septrin (just finished) and 4 shots for mites.

I'm sorry this is such a long post but I really dont know what to say when I take him back to the vet. I am so grateful for their help and that they found him for us but I think they are getting a bit fed up with me. I have taken him back a number of times as I am not happy with how he is progressing (much worse a week ago for example - crying non stop, peeing dark blood etc which has cleared) but each time I take him they say he is absolutely fine and just recovering from neutering. They last time I took him with a wet with pus yellow eye they said it looked fine... I really dont know what else to say to them, I think they think I am overreacting, but I do know this little guy is not happy.

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His eye today (almost 4 weeks after surgery)
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His back.
 
Hi and welcome

I am very sorry about the experience. Unfortunately the eye cavity will need reopening to allow the pus to come out and to have it flushed with some mild antiseptic like saline solution. A number of vets are now preferring to not stitch it shut for that reason.

The grease gland may need to have a closer look at as it can get growths in it.
Has the mites patch grown any further and has the itchiness subsided? It takes about a month for the fur to grow back after the mites have gone and the dead/devastated skin has been shed. the good news is that the mites have not been so bad that he has bit his skin bloody, so they should be gone now after 4 rounds and he should be feeling better in himself shortly.

Please switch from weighing weekly to weighing daily in order to monitor the food intake if you have any concerns that it is impacting on his appetite/wellbeing.
As soon you are sure that the mites have gone, please move him next to your girls for company through the bars; that should cheer him up no end!

Please have a look at our piggy whispering tips so you can tell you poorly boy that you love him and reassure him in his own language that he is welcome and treasured. Also respect that he doesn't like being approached from his blind side and that you want to work out a pick up ritual so he knows what is coming and brace for it. make sure that you have a big treat (like some fresh grass or a little of his favourite vet) at the end of any procedure so he learns that it is not all bad.
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig Safely
How Do I Settle Shy New Guinea Pigs? (contains tips on how to create daily rituals with the attendant calls)
 
I think I will have to call our other vets tomorrow morning (Simon in Northampton) who is not local to me but worth the travel as my local vet believes his eye is healing well. I had my suspicions as Coco is also puffing air out of his nose and rubbing it often - something that I read could be related to the eye?

Luckily the hair patches have remained the same, no further loss other than the biting at his arms. However, he is extremely itchy most of the day. He scratches and squeaks as he does and seems to only get relief when he sleeps. I feel so terrible for him being in discomfort. The vet said the itching is due to stress as he has the mite treatment though.. so I dont really understand it.

He is next to my girl at the moment but is feeling down and wont talk to her. He is a great eater and drinks more than any pig ive known but I will start the daily weighing anyway and read your links - thank you.
 
Oh its so distressing for you - I’m so sorry you are both going thru this. As you say he’s been thru so much and thank goodness you’re looking after him and giving him love - I think you are very intuitive and realise a second opinion is a very good idea - you are not happy and he isn’t and you need the reassurance that he will improve - from what I understand Simon is fantastic and will give you the best treatment for the little man. Stay strong and spoil him and follow the guides to talk to him and to handle him due to his sightloss.Take care and let us know how you both are - sending you both a BIG hug 🥰
 
krrn said:
I think I will have to call our other vets tomorrow morning (Simon in Northampton) who is not local to me but worth the travel as my local vet believes his eye is healing well. I had my suspicions as Coco is also puffing air out of his nose and rubbing it often - something that I read could be related to the eye?

Luckily the hair patches have remained the same, no further loss other than the biting at his arms. However, he is extremely itchy most of the day. He scratches and squeaks as he does and seems to only get relief when he sleeps. I feel so terrible for him being in discomfort. The vet said the itching is due to stress as he has the mite treatment though.. so I dont really understand it.

He is next to my girl at the moment but is feeling down and wont talk to her. He is a great eater and drinks more than any pig ive known but I will start the daily weighing anyway and read your links - thank you.
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If you can see Simon or Kim, that would be best! Please ring around 8 am in order to bag the emergency slot of the day if possible as your boy really needs to be seen as soon as possible.
 
I will do Roselina thank you and everyone for taking the time to comment. He is lucky to have a community who care so much about piggies and their wellbeing. I think he has not had the greatest start for the first few years, but I want him to have the best life he can now that he is in safe hands. Will be calling the Cat & Rabbit Clinic early tomorrow so I best get some sleep. Ill post a little update when we know what the next step is :)
 
So glad you're getting another opinion... that site of the eye removal does NOT look healthy. I hope you get some answers that get him on the road to feeling better! Poor little guy has clearly been through a lot!
 
Aw your poor little man, this is so sad. How can a vet say that eye is healing well? It looks very infected to me. Hope Simon or Kim can get him well again. Good on you for taking him in and giving him the very best care. Just to note Simon and Kim are on holiday for a fortnight after this week so try get him seen before they go x
 
krrn said:
I will do Roselina thank you and everyone for taking the time to comment. He is lucky to have a community who care so much about piggies and their wellbeing. I think he has not had the greatest start for the first few years, but I want him to have the best life he can now that he is in safe hands. Will be calling the Cat & Rabbit Clinic early tomorrow so I best get some sleep. Ill post a little update when we know what the next step is :)
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Any news on your poor little piggie? X
 
I am so, so sorry, not been on for a couple of days so I’d totally missed this! Really hope your little lad has been seen by Simon or Kim and is more comfortable now @krrn? :)
My Jess had her eye removed in October but thankfully we didn’t have any issues with hers like this, my RB chinchilla Pedro who had his removed the year before had a lot! He had to have a second op to remove the infected eyelids and tissue and his eye socket was left open which I flushed out every 4 hours for the first month or two, his eye was caused by an abscess and the infection was hard to get on top of.
Simon did the ops on both of them and the months of aftercare with Pedro, he’s a brilliant vet. Really hope he’s been able to help x
 
Hello Krrn how are you and your little boy ? I hope you managed to get to see Simon or Kim.
We are all here for you in anyway we can be - sending you a BIG hug 🥰
 
Hi everyone, its been a busy few weeks and I completely forgot to log back in to update the post so apologies to anyones messages that I missed. I managed to get Coco a last minute appointment with Kim before they went away for their holiday. She said that he appears to have a chronic infection in his eye and that the other antibiotics wouldn't be strong enough to touch it (Unfortunately I had asked my local vet about a month ago for Zithromax but they are hesitant to use it as they don't have much experience with it). So now Coco is on Zithromax for 2 1/2 weeks, and is continuing loxi and emeprid for this time too. She has him booked back in for the week they return to see how the eye is progressing. She also said that he has cystitis and gave him more treatment for the mites, which she does think have gone by now.

Since its been a few weeks after his treatments we have introduced him properly to my girl and they've now moved in together. Ive seen a much quicker rate of improvement in both of them now that they are together. He still hasn't fully regained his confidence, but will wheek when snacks are on offer :love:

The only recent issue was a case of impaction which I had the lovely job of clearing lol. Fingers crossed there wont be any need to redo his eye on his next visit to Northampton and he can just settle into his new life 🤞

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krrn said:
Hi everyone, its been a busy few weeks and I completely forgot to log back in to update the post so apologies to anyones messages that I missed. I managed to get Coco a last minute appointment with Kim before they went away for their holiday. She said that he appears to have a chronic infection in his eye and that the other antibiotics wouldn't be strong enough to touch it (Unfortunately I had asked my local vet about a month ago for Zithromax but they are hesitant to use it as they don't have much experience with it). So now Coco is on Zithromax for 2 1/2 weeks, and is continuing loxi and emeprid for this time too. She has him booked back in for the week they return to see how the eye is progressing. She also said that he has cystitis and gave him more treatment for the mites, which she does think have gone by now.

Since its been a few weeks after his treatments we have introduced him properly to my girl and they've now moved in together. Ive seen a much quicker rate of improvement in both of them now that they are together. He still hasn't fully regained his confidence, but will wheek when snacks are on offer :love:

The only recent issue was a case of impaction which I had the lovely job of clearing lol. Fingers crossed there wont be any need to redo his eye on his next visit to Northampton and he can just settle into his new life 🤞

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Brilliant news! He looks great and absolutely gorgeous! :love: So pleased it’s helped and he’s got himself a lovely lady :D
 
Hello Krrn that’s so lovely to hear ! What a beautiful pic. I’m glad they are together and I’m sure that will accelerate his healing. It’s great you got to Kim when you did as those anti biotics will do the trick. Sending you all BIG hugs 🥰
 
Thanks everyone, its so good to have a place to come and get other opinions when you are unsure what to do next. Hoping there is no more issues now as the poor guy has had a rough couple of months. Luckily he gets on great with Angel and they are quite happy sitting under their hidey chatting. Its the most relaxed ive seen her in a while 🥰

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