Quick fix for dusty bedding

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke I tried replying in a thread I searched regarding Olbas, but it said further posts were not allowed.

Isit safe to put a few drops of olbas on a couple of tissues and peg them to the outside of the cage so they can't eat it etc? Steaming works but I was thinking of a more time saving solution

It is the combination of the oil AND the moisture from the steam that helps with the breathing.
Please don't overlook how important humidity in the air is for your girl! So while it may be a nuisance, please continue for the time being until the problem is fully settled.

For the winter you may want to think about investing in an air humidifier for the piggy room to prevent any flare ups/sensitivity to dry air from the heating.

PS: We had to unfortunately lock some threads after just one answer to some people obsessively asking the same question over and over again in multiple threads when their persistence began to impact negatively on our regular members' own anxiety levels.

 

[Gadzy]

It is the combination of the oil AND the moisture from the steam that helps with the breathing.
Please don't overlook how important humidity in the air is for your girl! So while it may be a nuisance, please continue for the time being until the problem is fully settled.

For the winter you may want to think about investing in an air humidifier for the piggy room to prevent any flare ups/sensitivity to dry air from the heating.

PS: We had to unfortunately lock some threads after just one answer to some people obsessively asking the same question over and over again in multiple threads when their persistence began to impact negatively on our regular members' own anxiety levels.

That's exactly what I thought as everytime I used the steam she was better than using just the drops. I wonder if it is an air thing because she is always really good when she goes outside in the run with her friend. Breathing lovely out there right now.

I spoke to the vets and they are going to try her on a different antibiotic called Septrin? We are just trying to eliminate stuff, but it's worth a try isn't it? I've just bought some hay from haybox as well instead of the shop stuff to see. Septrin is ok instead of Baytril isn't it?

 

[Wiebke]

That's exactly what I thought as everytime I used the steam she was better than using just the drops. I wonder if it is an air thing because she is always really good when she goes outside in the run with her friend. Breathing lovely out there right now.

I spoke to the vets and they are going to try her on a different antibiotic called Septrin? We are just trying to eliminate stuff, but it's worth a try isn't it? I've just bought some hay from haybox as well instead of the shop stuff to see. Septrin is ok instead of Baytril isn't it?

Yes, septrin is OK. It is now licensed for guinea pigs under the UK brand name of sulfatrim (i.e. adult strength unflavoured septrin).

Air quality can definitely play a role. Some guinea pigs are much more sensitive to it. I would look at a humidifier for the room you keep your piggies in if it is no noticeable.

 

[Gadzy]

@Wiebke OK, so just been to the vets and I'm not sure if it's Septrin or not they have prescribed. It's called "Co-trimoxzole"

Picture below

 

[Gadzy]

**UPDATE ON FUDGE** time for a new vet?! Please read on...

Hello all, quick recap.

As you know my Fudge had an operation a few weeks ago to have an abscess capsule removed. The operation according to the vet went well although it was sat on top of alot of nerves. She was back with us the same day, but wasn't right and was kept in for three nights for monitoring in which they cleared an infection in the area of incision and her breathing was also dodgey at this time. When she came home she seemed fine for a week. I then noticed a breathing issue back again which was coming from her nose as you all know, and at times noticed heavy breathing. The vets listened to her chest and lungs and heart and said they could not hear anything so thought it was just a congestion thing and thought I was over reacting. She continued to get worse and as I showed in the video a few posts back you could see her breathing was by no means normal! The vets told me to get a nebuliser and do that daily and also use Bisolvon powder which neither really helped. She was also on two doses of Baytril a day. I carried on with this treatment for about a week and a half and after many sleepless nights monitoring her. The vets were adamant there was nothing on the lungs etc and couldn't see any distressed breathing which was nonsense because you could see in my video it was bad. They never saw her as bad as I did.

Therefore after a week and half I rang on Sunday and spoke to the emergency on call vet who wanted to just send me off to a specialist (baring in mind I've spent close to 600 already) after a discussion I suggested trying a different antibiotic as there was nothing to loose and things weren't getting better on the current treatment. The vet tried pretty much saying isit not worth putting the money towards the specialist instead of trying a new antibiotic. I put my foot down and she prescribed me Septrin to be replaced instead of the Baytril as a last chance saloon.

I am on around the 2nd to 3rd day of the Septrin and I haven't heard any breathing problems and she is as lively as ever and breathing much more shallow and of a normal rate (which is amazing). There was almost an immediate change after 24 hours of being on the Septrin.

I am very very happy she is more less back to normal and recovering now. However, why wasn't this my vets first port of call to try a different antibiotic? Why were they telling me to buy a nebuliser and palm me off to a specialist. Clearly there was some respiratory issue going on which the Septrin has helped. They told me numerous times there was nothing and the lungs sounded fine..I was the one on that Sunday which rang the emergency and put my foot down to try this new antibiotic. If I hadn't Fudge could of been in a very bad place or I would have been spending hundreds extra on a specialist. My other question is, do guniea pigs have to have a sound on their lungs for them to think it's a respiratory. I guess it wasn't the vets fault that Baytril wasn't working, but I just feel that should of been their first go to option before anything. I'm sure they felt I was overreacting, but I persisted. I was wondering what you guys think and if this was the vets fault? Baring in mind over the week and half of the previous treatment, I have changed bedding and hay and pretty much everything else.

At the end of the day I am VERY happy my Fudge is back on track and looking positive, but just questioning my vet.

@Betsy @Wiebke @eileen @Siikibam @Piggies&buns

 

[Wiebke]

**UPDATE ON FUDGE** time for a new vet?! Please read on...

Hello all, quick recap.

As you know my Fudge had an operation a few weeks ago to have an abscess capsule removed. The operation according to the vet went well although it was sat on top of alot of nerves. She was back with us the same day, but wasn't right and was kept in for three nights for monitoring in which they cleared an infection in the area of incision and her breathing was also dodgey at this time. When she came home she seemed fine for a week. I then noticed a breathing issue back again which was coming from her nose as you all know, and at times noticed heavy breathing. The vets listened to her chest and lungs and heart and said they could not hear anything so thought it was just a congestion thing and thought I was over reacting. She continued to get worse and as I showed in the video a few posts back you could see her breathing was by no means normal! The vets told me to get a nebuliser and do that daily and also use Bisolvon powder which neither really helped. She was also on two doses of Baytril a day. I carried on with this treatment for about a week and a half and after many sleepless nights monitoring her. The vets were adamant there was nothing on the lungs etc and couldn't see any distressed breathing which was nonsense because you could see in my video it was bad. They never saw her as bad as I did.

Therefore after a week and half I rang on Sunday and spoke to the emergency on call vet who wanted to just send me off to a specialist (baring in mind I've spent close to 600 already) after a discussion I suggested trying a different antibiotic as there was nothing to loose and things weren't getting better on the current treatment. The vet tried pretty much saying isit not worth putting the money towards the specialist instead of trying a new antibiotic. I put my foot down and she prescribed me Septrin to be replaced instead of the Baytril as a last chance saloon.

I am on around the 2nd to 3rd day of the Septrin and I haven't heard any breathing problems and she is as lively as ever and breathing much more shallow and of a normal rate (which is amazing). There was almost an immediate change after 24 hours of being on the Septrin.

I am very very happy she is more less back to normal and recovering now. However, why wasn't this my vets first port of call to try a different antibiotic? Why were they telling me to buy a nebuliser and palm me off to a specialist. Clearly there was some respiratory issue going on which the Septrin has helped. They told me numerous times there was nothing and the lungs sounded fine..I was the one on that Sunday which rang the emergency and put my foot down to try this new antibiotic. If I hadn't Fudge could of been in a very bad place or I would have been spending hundreds extra on a specialist. My other question is, do guniea pigs have to have a sound on their lungs for them to think it's a respiratory. I guess it wasn't the vets fault that Baytril wasn't working, but I just feel that should of been their first go to option before anything. I'm sure they felt I was overreacting, but I persisted. I was wondering what you guys think and if this was the vets fault? Baring in mind over the week and half of the previous treatment, I have changed bedding and hay and pretty much everything else.

At the end of the day I am VERY happy my Fudge is back on track and looking positive, but just questioning my vet.

@Betsy @Wiebke @eileen @Siikibam @Piggies&buns

Hi!

I am glad that your girl is finally better!

It is always easy in hindsight to know what the problem is. As I have told you before, your symptoms have been most unusual? Your vet has gone the practical route by eliminating the most common issues first. A swab and lab test as to which antibiotics your issue is reactive to would have been even more expensive and taken longer - and which antibiotics the particular variety of respiratory bacteria is most responsive to can also vary quite a bit.

Unfortunately resistance to some antibiotics in especially respiratory tract infections seem to becoming a lot more common in the very recent past. It may be likely that because pet shop babies are routinely put on antibiotics before sale. The other problem is that baytril is often prescribed for too short a course to really get on to top of the bacteria; all this goes into a vet's decision making.

A vet (and even you when your hold your ear against the chest, the throat or the nose) can hear breathing noises. They are of course a lot more clearly with a stethoscope and can be better located and judged as to how bad they are - i.e. a vet can hear whether they are dealing with a congestion in the nose, a throat infection or pneumonia (fluid filled lungs).

Unlike what so many forum members seem to think, a vet is more often a detective rather than am all-knowing god - especially in a badly under-researched species like guinea pigs. Diagnosing where a problem sits and then working out what is causing it and how to best treat it is often much trickier and more complex than you think; especially when you are dealing with a rather unusual problem like yours.

 

[Freya1234]

I’m glad to hear that Fudge is getting better

 

[Roselina]

I’m so glad to hear Fudge is much better - you instinctively could tell Fudge wasn’t right so well done for persisting in getting the right help. Take care

 

[Gadzy]

Hi!

I am glad that your girl is finally better!

It is always easy in hindsight to know what the problem is. As I have told you before, your symptoms have been most unusual? Your vet has gone the practical route by eliminating the most common issues first. A swab and lab test as to which antibiotics your issue is reactive to would have been even more expensive and taken longer - and which antibiotics the particular variety of respiratory bacteria is most responsive to can also vary quite a bit.

Unfortunately resistance to some antibiotics in especially respiratory tract infections seem to becoming a lot more common in the very recent past. It may be likely that because pet shop babies are routinely put on antibiotics before sale. The other problem is that baytril is often prescribed for too short a course to really get on to top of the bacteria; all this goes into a vet's decision making.

A vet (and even you when your hold your ear against the chest, the throat or the nose) can hear breathing noises. They are of course a lot more clearly with a stethoscope and can be better located and judged as to how bad they are - i.e. a vet can hear whether they are dealing with a congestion in the nose, a throat infection or pneumonia (fluid filled lungs).

Unlike what so many forum members seem to think, a vet is more often a detective rather than am all-knowing god - especially in a badly under-researched species like guinea pigs. Diagnosing where a problem sits and then working out what is causing it and how to best treat it is often much trickier and more complex than you think; especially when you are dealing with a rather unusual problem like yours.

That's very true and I'm sure most vets would use Baytril first by the sounds of other cases on here.

However, if they were adamant the lungs were clear etc and it was coming from the nose, is that still not URI of some sort?

I'm also paranoid now that the vets initially put Fudge on the antibiotics (Baytril) to help get rid of the abcess and I wonder if we used a different antibiotic the abcess would of went without the needing of surgery. However, it's done now and it's water under a bridge and the capsule was removed nicely.

 

[Roselina]

As Wiekbe said it’s always easy in hindsight - we all do the what if or why etc - As you said the most important thing is Fudge is better and it’s water under the bridge - enjoy the beautiful fudge and don’t worry

 

[Wiebke]

That's very true and I'm sure most vets would use Baytril first by the sounds of other cases on here.

However, if they were adamant the lungs were clear etc and it was coming from the nose, is that still not URI of some sort?

I'm also paranoid now that the vets initially put Fudge on the antibiotics (Baytril) to help get rid of the abcess and I wonder if we used a different antibiotic the abcess would of went without the needing of surgery. However, it's done now and it's water under a bridge and the capsule was removed nicely.

Unfortunately baytril is in most countries still the only licensed antibiotic for guinea pigs. In the UK sulfatrim (also known as septrin or bactrim) has been recently licensed. Any other antibiotics are unlicensed and many vets are reluctant to take recourse to them, especially general vets and exotics vets that haven't had much experience with guinea pigs. Like all rodent pets, guinea pigs are classed as exotics, so they don't feature much on a general vet's curriculum but they are also too pedestrian for the real exotic animals buffs...
So far, the push to get pet rodents into a general vet's curriculum has not been successful even though sales of esepcially guinea pigs have gone up a lot.

Can I also point out that the bacteria in your abscess are different ones to the ones in the respiratory tract. And that even the strongest antibiotic or combination of antibiotics may not necessarily be able to get on top of an abscess. if it can be safely operated out, then that is usually the better option.

Your problem could be a URI; it could also be a sinusitis or rhinitis as a secondary complication to a respiratory infection; but without tests we can only guess.

 

[eileen]

I'm pleased Fudge is getting better.good on you for standing your ground.If possible maybe seek out a piggy savvy vet and register . i have a nebuliser as it really helps if piggies have stuffy airways.You are a very caring owner.