Recurring Uri - Marmalade Heavy Breathing

[Mother Hubbard]

So got home from work to find Marmalade with noisy breathing, hunched up and very quiet. She's responsive, but it's clear she has another URI, she was eating perfectly fine, eating her Vit C tablets and veg etc, so I have removed her from her cage from Millie and Mowgli (where it's less stressful) and I'm giving her 0.2ml of Baytril with Avi-pro and started her on Critical care which she's taken no problem.

Does anyone have any idea's of why it's recurring, it was only around 7th Feb the last bout and of course prior to that i was dealing with fungal.

She's such a fighter and considering the vet suggested putting her down the last time, I'm a tad worried.

Any thoughts?
@helen105281 @furryfriends Excellent Adventure Sanctuary @Pebble
Thank you very much in advance.

 

[Pebble]

How much does she weigh and what is the description on your batyril bottle? I am concerned the dosage may be low and encouraging the selection of bugs with resistance to baytril

 

[Mother Hubbard]

Thanks Pebble, I have just weighed her, she 714g.
At her heaviest she was 910, on 22nd Feb she was 774g which was when she was getting over her last bout.

The bottle reads Small Mammal
4 x Baytrill 2.5% Oral, give 0.2ml twice daily.

 

[Pebble]

OK so first let's look at baytril dosages in general:
You've got the "normal" strength baytril (2.5% = 25mg/ml) and have been prescribed 0.2ml twice daily

Different vets have differing views on the best dose of batyril in guinea pigs. The guiding principles in the British Small Animals Formulary (the vets dosage handbook) do not give a specific recommended dose range for guinea pigs. A few vets will prescribe the low end dose for "rodents" of 5mg/kg - which would mean your piggie would receive 0.16ml. Many vets go for the upper dose for rodents of 10mg/kg (which would be 0.32ml for her weight) . However my vets and many others opt for a lower end bunny dose of 15mg/kg = 0.48ml for her weight.

So based upon her approx weight in Feb of 800g I would say that 0.2ml was a very conservative dose and could be the reason why she has developed more symptoms. It could also be this new condition is due to a different bug that is resistant to baytril, which has emerged following the previous "low strength" treatment. Based upon her current weight of approx 700g, then the 3 scenarios described above equate to current doses of 0,14ml, 0.28ml and 0.4ml

What best to do now?
You did not mention whether you have gone back to the vet with these new symptoms and been told to repeat the previous doses?
It is tempting to self-medicate if you have some baytril left but actually this could be doing more harm than good, especially given the previous low doses prescribed and the fact that we are seeing more and more bugs with baytril resistance causing URI's in guinea pigs (from culture results).

I think, if you haven;t already, then you should go back to the vet as a matter of urgency and talk about a different antibiotic, (as given the history you describe, it is doubtful that baytril will be effective in this circumstance - which, by the way, doesn't mean to say it won;t be effective at some later date with a different bug)

If, despite your efforts, your vet is reticent to prescribe another abx,... (or you are already acting on their instructions/dosages having consulted them again in respect of this second event) I personally would be looking to have a "final" serious discussion with them and if they don;t reciprocate then find a more cavy savvy vet.

 

[Mother Hubbard]

That's great thank you for the very comprehensive response. I'll get her back to the vet. I think I was looking for some confirmation in my mind about the situation. As always, very grateful.

 

[Pebble]

My pleasure. Thanks for the feedback and I'm glad my response has helped.
Good luck with the vets.
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