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Refusal to eat on his own - Ringo

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Diana

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Hello Everybody,

I'am despirate!

Around a month ago my one year old guinea pig stopped eating and drinking, rapidaly lost half of his weight. We imidiately took him to his vet, we soon discovered that he had an abcess on his jaw and that prevented his eating. We imidiately started hand feeding and in two days he put back 20% of his weight.

This was all around a month ago.

Currantly he is strong and alert. He plays and eats his hay. But thats it... he refuses to eat his pellets (they still have to be hand fed via seringe) He also refusas to drink his water.

We dont know what else to do... if we stop hand feeding him he just starves and makes no effort to eat.

His vet has suggested that we do an Ex-Ray, but she also feels helpless, as we all do, helpless and frustrated.

Any ideas as to what might be going on with Ringo or suggestions as to what else we can do?

Thank you :(
 
Diana said:
Hello Everybody,

I'am despirate!

Around a month ago my one year old guinea pig stopped eating and drinking, rapidaly lost half of his weight. We imidiately took him to his vet, we soon discovered that he had an abcess on his jaw and that prevented his eating. We imidiately started hand feeding and in two days he put back 20% of his weight.

This was all around a month ago.

Currantly he is strong and alert. He plays and eats his hay. But thats it... he refuses to eat his pellets (they still have to be hand fed via seringe) He also refusas to drink his water.

We dont know what else to do... if we stop hand feeding him he just starves and makes no effort to eat.

His vet has suggested that we do an Ex-Ray, but she also feels helpless, as we all do, helpless and frustrated.

Any ideas as to what might be going on with Ringo or suggestions as to what else we can do?

Thank you :(
Click to expand...

Hi & welcome to the forum :)

Can you give us a rough idea of where you are as we may be able to recommend a cavy expert vet in your area?
Has the abscess gone now & has your vet given him any medication, if so what was he given? :)
 
Poppy'sMum said:
Hi & welcome to the forum :)

Can you give us a rough idea of where you are as we may be able to recommend a cavy expert vet in your area?
Has the abscess gone now & has your vet given him any medication, if so what was he given? :)
Click to expand...

Hello

Thank you so much for your answer. I'am in Portugal (Europe). Yes his abscess is gone he was given 2 diferente medications each twice a day for around a week. As well as additional liquids to prevent dehidration. His jaw muscles are strong and he can chew, he has just decided that he doesnt want to.
 
It may be that the abscess has regrown or the infection has gone further; they can be very stubborn.

A guinea pig vet in this country has researched using zithromax (azithromycin) for stubborn abscesses in rabbits and guinea pigs where normal antibiotics don't work. Perhaps your vet would like to contact him via fax for more information on what she can do?
His name is Simon Maddock, and here is the link: http://www.inorthamptonshire.co.uk/profile/457491/Northampton/Cat-and-Rabbit-Care-Clinic/

Sending you HUGS.
 
Wiebke said:
It may be that the abscess has regrown or the infection has gone further; they can be very stubborn.

A guinea pig vet in this country has researched using zithromax (azithromycin) for stubborn abscesses in rabbits and guinea pigs where normal antibiotics don't work. Perhaps your vet would like to contact him via fax for more information on what she can do?
His name is Simon Maddock, and here is the link: http://www.inorthamptonshire.co.uk/profile/457491/Northampton/Cat-and-Rabbit-Care-Clinic/

Sending you HUGS.
Click to expand...

I will be sure to talk about that with our vet.

Thank you so much!
 
Wiebke said:
PS: I am sure that you are hand feeding and weighing him daily already? Please add 1/8 of a vitamin C tablet to your feed once or twice daily and make sure that he is getting enoguh fluids, too. Your determined care can help make the difference in pulling him through.

http://www.guinealynx.info/handfeeding.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/weigh.html
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I am weighing him daily yes and counting his poops ;) and checking if he urinats. He doesnt seem to get over 520g/550g (he originaly weighed +/-800g, he's a small piggy). I will add the vitamin C to his feed, I had not thought of that. I also check that he is chewing on his little chew toy, and that he is. His chews it relentlessly ;) so I think thats a good sign. We hand feed him twice in the morning, afternoon and at night and when ever he asks for it. He's a spoiled little boy and has us nicely trained, he will call if he wants more even if we've just fed him 10 minutes ago. The same with his water. We generally feed him untill his decided that his had enough its around 6 to 8 medium seringes, this is at each feeding. We use to wake up every 2 hours at night to do his feeding too but his vet says that we dont need to any more. I also regularly massage his jaw, and he seems to like that.

What gets to me is that he doesnt seem sick in any way, shape or form... he's comunicative, playful, grumpy at times, he jumps around and runs around his mansion, he gets ontop of his little house when he want to be picked up, he eats his hay and these little lemon pellets that he so likes. He makes a mess of the other pellets (but doesnt eat them). He even pushes his ball around the mansion, before he became sick he ignored his ball.

The only thing that he's not doing is eating on his own and drinking on his own. I even tried tricking him with his water... I put the seringe in his mouth with water and tried swoping it with his water bottle and as soon as he felt the water bottle he quickly stepped back looking at me crossly when i put the seringe with water back in his mouth he quickly accepted. I tried this several times and always with the same outcome. Ive also tried giving him his food less processes (not so liquid, grainy) and he just spat it all out again looking at me with his angry eyes. Imediatly i gave him a seringe of his food fully processed and he sucks on it like a baby.

I truelly think that he's gone back to being a baby...
 
just a thought but maybe if he had a friend with him how was eating and drinking normally he would learn/copy that he can do it to? have you tried a water bowl as well?
 
It took my Hywel quite a while to get his weight back after his neutering post op infection earlier in the year. Zithromax (which I happened to have at home for Hywel's predecessor, who'd just died) and determined nursing by the rescue lady saved his life over the weekend until he could be seen by the specialist in Northampton, no thanks to the vets who'd operated on him and would not even give an antibiotic because they had no idea what they were dealing with!

Some piggies are also not very keen on coming off sloppy food. If he is still active and behaving normally, then that is actually a good sign - it means that he hasn't got an acute infection. That is usually heralded by loss of appetite/weight loss and apathy.

You could try offering a bit of pureed or grated veg and herbs for a change, but hay based feed is best for his guts. You can put a bit in a dish and see whether he likes to lick it on his own. Grass, fresh coriander or parsley are often the things they will eat first. The important thing is that his back teeth are kept ground down evenly (hay is the best thing), that will keep the front teeth sharpened.

You can also add a pinch of probiotics to the Critical Care you are feeding him to help getting the gut flora working again. Another thing is poo soup - mushed fresh poo from another healthy piggy that contains all the right good bacteria. It is yucky, but piggies on the mend will actually pick up their friends' poos as fresh as possible (you can see them sticking their nose up a bottom!) and most will love poo soup!
 
Last edited:
lauralucy said:
just a thought but maybe if he had a friend with him how was eating and drinking normally he would learn/copy that he can do it to? have you tried a water bowl as well?
Click to expand...

Hello,

He had a friend (father) with him and his father died two weeks ago. We became very spectical about his behavior but if anything we think he has just become more playfull and comunicative.

He does have a water bowl and he just messes it all over and two water bottles . He also has his dry pellet bowl and a bowl with his growned up wet pellet mix. He doesnt touch any of them. He has his hay ball and a hay cube those he eats and he has a bowl for his fresh veggies and he nibbles on those too but eats very little of them.
 
mine have a water dish to and they drink out of it more after they have put a poop or two in it mallethead

it obviously tastes better for them
 
Wiebke said:
It took my Hywel quite a while to get his weight back after his neutering post op infection earlier in the year. Zithromax (which I happened to have at home for Hywel's predecessor, who'd just died) and determined nursing by the rescue lady saved his life over the weekend until he could be seen by the specialist in Northampton, no thanks to the vets who'd operated on him and would not even give an antibiotic because they had no idea what they were dealing with!

Some piggies are also not very keen on coming off sloppy food. If he is still active and behaving normally, then that is actually a good sign - it means that he hasn't got an acute infection. That is usually heralded by loss of appetite/weight loss and apathy.

You could try offering a bit of pureed or grated veg and herbs for a change, but hay based feed is best for his guts. You can put a bit in a dish and see whether he likes to lick it on his own. Grass, fresh coriander or parsley are often the things they will eat first. The important thing is that his back teeth are kept ground down evenly (hay is the best thing), that will keep the front teeth sharpened.

You can also add a pinch of probiotics to the Critical Care you are feeding him to help getting the gut flora working again. Another thing is poo soup - mushed fresh poo from another healthy piggy that contains all the right good bacteria. It is yucky, but piggies on the mend will actually pick up their friends' poos as fresh as possible (you can see them sticking their nose up a bottom!) and most will love poo soup!
Click to expand...

OOhh poo soup! I must give that a try. I have already tried all those other soups but he prefers his pellet muck to all the others. He truelly loves it. It stinks and looks aweful but he eats it vigorously. I also mix some baby veggie pure and he knows when its in there, he automatically eats less and makes funny faces when he's eating.
 
Diana you sound like you are doing a great job nursing your piggy. I would go with the x-ray to see what's happening inside his jaw - good suggestion by your vet.

In the meantime just keep up the good work, syringing. My sister had to assist her rabbit after he had a jaw absess for the rest of his life, they can be stubborn to get rid of.

Go for the x-ray, then more antibiotics if necessary (with a probiotic) and take it from there.
 
Lisajazz said:
Diana you sound like you are doing a great job nursing your piggy. I would go with the x-ray to see what's happening inside his jaw - good suggestion by your vet.

In the meantime just keep up the good work, syringing. My sister had to assist her rabbit after he had a jaw absess for the rest of his life, they can be stubborn to get rid of.

Go for the x-ray, then more antibiotics if necessary (with a probiotic) and take it from there.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much ") I really feel like a failure :0 My baby is sick and I cant seem to get him better. Ive phoned our vet and we doing the x-ray today.
Thank you so much :)
 
Diana said:
Thank you so much ") I really feel like a failure :0 My baby is sick and I cant seem to get him better. Ive phoned our vet and we doing the x-ray today.
Thank you so much :)
Click to expand...

Things like this can really hit you but you are definitely not a failure, infact you are a very responsible and caring owner!

Post to let us know what the x-ray said wont you?
 
Best of luck for the x-ray! You are doing really well - abscesses in a jaw are one of the nastier things a piggy can come down with, so you are doing fine! It is very much a matter of patience and keeping on top with an abscess.
 
Thanks so much for all the support! :)p

His abscess is gone pow-pow

The vet said that his back teeth however seem abit long and that might be why he's not eating. Shame my baby can't chew and I though he was just being a baby :... She asked for a couple of days to get a second opinion as to the x-rays. She'll phone us and let us know if his teeth need to be filed down or if we can try something a little less invasive. -c

Ringo bit the vet during the x-ray :red naughty my little boy isn't he?!

In the meanwhile I'll leave you all a photo of my little boy playing in my shoe after we got home from the vet today. x)

P1010074.jpg
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Firstly hi and welcome Diana, your hubby and little Ringo to the forum :)
Really worry to hear about you loosing Ringo's daddy and his abscess pow-pow
I think you're doing a wonderful job of his feeding and care x)
Once you have his molars (back toofies) sorted out he might like to start to try softened pellets that you can gently pop into the side of his mouth ........ you could also chop up his hay as that's great for keeping toofies ground down.
All the best with Ringo he is absolutely gorgeous x)xoxo

Glynis, Velvet and Onyx x
 
Aww....he's gorgeous, x) glad to hear the abcess is gone. I do hope the vet can help with his teeth. x
 
Great news Diana and he's so gorgeous!

Good luck with the teeth - you'll get them sorted soon I'm sure.

x
 
Great news that the abscess is gone!

Hopefully, you can get the teeth sorted.
 
So our vet just phoned. His going in on Tuesday :...

Shame my poor baby :0

Hopefully this will sort out his problem and soon soon he'll be jumping around again :(|)
 
To all of you who tried to help I am so very grateful! God bless you all!

Ringo had his operation and is doing great! My little piggy is up to a whopping 650gr and growing -c

Getting him off wet food is being a challenge but now when he asks for his wet food we give him veggies instead. So far its been enough to distract him rolleyes lets hope it keeps on working pow-pow

He´s back to his grumpy old self :<>

So thanks to everyone who got me out of my panic mode :{
 
Great to know that Ringo is doing fine!

I hope that you can post a picture of him at one point, now that he is back to his old self again!
 
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