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Recovering After A Cat Attack

Hello.
Well I guess this be a massive shock to you and Tubs. Cats claws are razor sharp and the cuts will be tubs tryin to get away which is understandable poor little chap.
The healing process is underway and i can't add to what s been said. I send him massive hugs from my piggies. xx
 
Unfortunately the vet didn't give any gut support -- I'll be requesting some if needed. So far poos and wees are still fine, but I think this might reflect gut activity just before the attack so I'm still watching out. There are some tiny baby poos in the cage too, which may also be him -- he's still doing regular adult poos too.

I'm getting a minimum of 40ml CC into him, but usually around 55ml. He's so annoyed with me feeding him he's nipping me, which is the first time ever! Sorry little chap. He lost around 20g between yesterday morning and this morning, but that's the difference of a full bladder so I'm not hugely fussed. I've been giving him some Loxicom and it appears to be masking any pain, which is good.

He's still not a fan of moving, and his feet are getting quite red -- I wouldn't be surprised if he gets bumblefoot again, so may be doing Epsom salt baths tonight.

Finally, the thing I'm most worried about... Both of his eyes have been quite sunken in, especially the one with a bite right above it. I've been very vigilant about making sure he's hydrated (with Dioralyte), and the one which isn't injured looks normal-ish again but the other one is very sunken (no photo yet I'm afraid). Even worse, his eyes keep vibrating inwards -- the only way I can describe this is the opposite of a rat boggling, the eyes don't bulge outwards they withdraw inwards and I can see the mucous membranes. I've heard this can happen when a guinea pig is ill, but it's very distressing to watch.

I'm planning on getting another vet appointment maybe for this Wednesday, unless anyone thinks I should be going in earlier re: the eyes?
 
Sunken eyes are generally a sign of dehydration. I know you are saying you are keeping him hydrated but if there has been any blood loss, that could cause dehydration. I am worried about internal bleeding here. I think an earlier trip to the vet would be useful. Ask the vet if some sub cut fluids could be administered.
 
I agree with @furryfriends (TEAS) - the sunken eyes could be a sign of internal bleeding, which is not at all uncommon in the wake of an predator attack.

Please have him seen today as an emergency if that is possible!
 
Just got back from the vet; everything's looking good, his eye is fine, there was a hay seed in between his lower lid and the eyeball, so his eye kept trying to "shrink" away from it, hence the sucking inward. I can't believe I didn't see it before, really hoping that solves the issue. Still giving him as much Dioralyte as he'll drink.

He's still being fed CC but is really hating it! I'm hoping this bodes well. We are slightly reducing the amount of CC so he doesn't get completely dependent on handfeeding like last timel. During handfeeding we were also offering hay, which he was having quite the little munch on so I feel like reducing the CC is the right thing to do. Still plan to feed 12-16g morning, dinnertime, and before bed for next couple days -- just dropping the middle of the day feed.

His poops still look good, we are overdosing with Avipro. Some odd gut noises, but only 2 days of Baytril left.

I misread his weight from yesterday -- he apparently gained 3g overnight, which is good news.

I hope he keeps on the up-and-up. Next is to hope he moves around more (no bumblefoot), and hope we don't get abscesses from the catbites.
 
Just caught up with this. Poor little chap and poor you! What an amazing carer you are. It sounds like every day is progress. Healing vibes being sent nevertheless xx
 
More Tubs report...

Over the past couple days we have been reducing the syringe feed to encourage him to eat on his own; he had 18ml yesterday and his weight kept steady, we're going to lower to 16ml today and see how he gets on.

The only problem is, he's not keen on coming out of hiding and eating -- he doesn't seem to be in pain, just very frightened. I have to make sure everything he needs is within close reach. I've tried covering the cage top with fleece but he's still mostly stayed in one spot. Any ideas to get his bum moving? Even his ladies coming over to him doesn't send him off across the cage rumbling like he used to... Just a little on the spot rumblestrut.

His hay intake is nowhere near where it was -- he won't sit in the hay tray for any length of time (I think it's where the cat caught him initially). I have to leave little piles all over the cage for him. He also picks through hay and eats very little. He's a little more keen about oat hay, but still doesn't really eat much (not that it's a suitable feeding hay anyway).

As far as I can tell, he's not drinking either. He's always thirsty when I offer the syringe, it's the only thing he takes willingly. Bottle or bowl, doesn't matter.

It's his last dose of Baytril tonight, so I'm hoping his appetite increases afterward. In the meantime can I get an appetite stimulant from the vet (not a gut stimulant, his poos are just fine)? He's due to have an appointment tomorrow but since he was seen the other day I don't really think there's been much progress at all or change so don't know if it's worth going.

Wounds seem to be scabbing over, which I'd rather they didn't as I'm awfully worried about abscesses!

Wish he'd eat hay again and move around a little more!
 
Danielle Smith said:
More Tubs report...

His hay intake is nowhere near where it was -- he won't sit in the hay tray for any length of time (I think it's where the cat caught him initially). I have to leave little piles all over the cage for him. He also picks through hay and eats very little. He's a little more keen about oat hay, but still doesn't really eat much (not that it's a suitable feeding hay anyway).
Click to expand...

Could you move the hay tray to a different spot and see if that helps?
 
Have you thought about changing the hay tray? No matter how much you clean it it may still have the traces of cat scent on it. Also if you change it for another he may not associate it with the cat attack. Just a thought.
 
As soon as I posted the above, he immediately jumped into his hay tray and munched for about 10 minutes... I'll leave it for now as the hay tray is filled with 5kg of wooden cat litter!

His eye problem still remains. Here's some photos and videos; first photo is his eye "normally" for comparison. It's intermittent, so he has normal eyes sometimes and sunken eyes other times; he can cycle between both in 5 minutes or less! The shorter video gives an idea of his eye-sucking motions. He's as hydrated as we can get him (he ends up fighting the water syringe after 8ml or so, we soak his veg well but he doesn't eat as much of it as we used to). He's never been much of a drinker.

Vets appointment in the morning; I'm going if only to see if they know what's happening to his eyes. He can still see as far as I can tell.

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That’s a strange one. Could it be pain from his injuries?

Hope all goes well at the vets. And wishing Tubbs a speedy recovery.
 
Tubs update!

The vet was extremely helpful. After seeing the photos and videos, as well as noticing he is not blinking at all at the moment, we've come to the conclusion that it's likely the cat bite has done something to one of his nerves and the eyes withdrawing is a reflex to try and keep his eyes safe/get rid of foreign bodies. Either the swelling is pressing on it, and things will get better as healing happens, or he's like this forever. In any case, lubricating eye drops three times a day have made him more comfortable.

Due to the swelling, we have decided to put him on another 5 days of Baytril. I'm not so worried because his poos are looking perfect, and his guts are still working -- he pooed on me six times while I was syringe-feeding him this morning. We've also put him back on Loxicom in case the odd eyes are due to pain. I'm continuing to keep him hydrated.

He's rumbling about in his cage a little, but not really moving around as much as he used to yet. I keep going in the room and finding him somewhere different in the cage though. He's eating strands of hay here and there (not voraciously, but eating for himself at all is great), and he'll have tiny amounts of veg too.

Plan is to give him some floortime this weekend and see how he manages with it.

One this I'm a bit concerned about is all the cat bites have scabbed over but the skin underneath the bites feels solid, almost like a keloid. Should I be gently trying to remove the scabs and using something like Dermisol, or is it okay to leave things now?
 
Glad to hear that Tubs is showing signs of improvement. Poor thing must have been so traumatised.
Good on you for caring for him to lovingly and patiently - that will help him as much as the medical care.
 
It's really sad when I get him out the cage, he absolutely screams as soon as I try to pick him up :no:. When younger he proved wise to the "herd into a tube" or "entice into a box" way of picking up, but I think I might have to diligently teach it if I need to catch him three times a day!
 
Probably will have to teach him again. It'll take a lot of patience for him to get used to being picked up again and know that he isn't going to get hurt. Give him lots of cuddles, love and a piece of his favourite veg and talk to him soothingly. He'll eventually learn that being picked up is a good thing again.
 
Glad to hear Tubs is improving, poor piggy. Yiu are such a lovely caring and patient piggy slave, he is lucky to have you.
 
Update on Tubs. Scabs are falling off and fur is regrowing, though some patches of fur which fell off due to stress are not, so he looks a little raggedy. He's now largely back to his usual self; very much more skittish, but happy to sit out in the open and come mugging at the side of the cage for peaflakes. His eyes aren't as bad as they were, but they still tend to withdraw rather than blink -- he doesn't seem to need eyedrops any more though, plenty of lubrication so he must be blinking even a little. He's still eating and drinking okay (though the whole herd are eating a little less hay than they used to). His weigh-in tomorrow will tell me even more. I am so so proud of this little man, he's been through so much and smashed it all.
 
:DAww so good to hear Tubs is still recovering well. you've done fantastically getting him this far :nod: long may it continue. xx
 
Thanks for the update - good to hear Tubs is improving.
You’ve clearly worked hard caring for him.
 
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