Recurrent bladder infections

[loopytheone]

My pig Meg is 3 1/2 and it looks like she has yet another water infection. This is either the fifth or sixth one she has been treated for and I was wondering if anybody had any advice on how to help prevent them.

I currently keep her an sawdust and change out the wet bits every other day. She used to live on Vet bed until a couple of years ago, when she started getting bladder infections. I thought changing her to sawdust, which I can change and keep clean easier, would help but it doesn't seem to have made a difference. The last bladder infection she had was only about three months ago.

They clear up with antibiotics but usually present with blood in the pee, and with her having wet fur around her back end. She was scanned for bladder stones when she was ~2 and they didn't find anything, but I keep her on a low calcium diet anyway just in case. That doesn't seem to have any effect on how often she gets bladder infections either.

Any advice, piggy friends?

 

[Wiebke]

My pig Meg is 3 1/2 and it looks like she has yet another water infection. This is either the fifth or sixth one she has been treated for and I was wondering if anybody had any advice on how to help prevent them.

I currently keep her an sawdust and change out the wet bits every other day. She used to live on Vet bed until a couple of years ago, when she started getting bladder infections. I thought changing her to sawdust, which I can change and keep clean easier, would help but it doesn't seem to have made a difference. The last bladder infection she had was only about three months ago.

They clear up with antibiotics but usually present with blood in the pee, and with her having wet fur around her back end. She was scanned for bladder stones when she was ~2 and they didn't find anything, but I keep her on a low calcium diet anyway just in case. That doesn't seem to have any effect on how often she gets bladder infections either.

Any advice, piggy friends?

Hi! There is a condition, which has become a lot more common over the last decade which we currently call interstitial cystitis (IC). It is a recurring non-bacterial inflammation of the bladder walls which doesn't react much or not at all to antibiotics or recurs soon after antibiotics are but presents with the same symptoms. The intensely red stained urine is typical for it; it is actually not blood although traces of blood can present.
Since nobody knows yet what is causing it, it can only be diagnosed by default (no bladder stones or sludge and no or very little bacteria in the urine) after all other issues have been excluded. For the same reason, we can at the moment only manage the symptoms, but not cure it. Many general vets have not heard of it; they treat it as a resistent UTI (urinary tract infection).

The good news is that it will eventually go away on its own, that it doesn't lead to bladder stones or lasting damage and that it doesn't shorten life expectancy. The bad news is that 'eventually' is somewhere in the region of 1-3 years. it is not getting

Treatment as it is with metacam, which is not just a painkiller but also an anti-inflammatory.
We also recommend strongly to use a glucosamine-based cat food bladder supplement called cystease or a derivative to help protect the natural coat of the beleaguered bladder walls.
Thirdly, here are our diet recommendations, which remove any potential trigger foods like lettuce, root vet or grain ( present in many pellet brands). Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

More information on IC via this link here: Links - Interstitial Cystitis - Guinea Lynx Records

PS: My Nerys had around 3 years of what was eventually diagnosed and treated as IC but then lived another 3 years without any bladder issues to the good old age of 8 years, just as an example.

 

[loopytheone]

Okay, thank you for your advice!