Rescued piggie underweight

[Piggiefamily]

Hi. I just brought home a gp of a co-worker. I have been told he is 3 yrs and has lived alone his whole life. I don't think he has been deliberatly mistreated but I think he is extremelly underweight and lacking some vitamins. This poor boy seems to have been through some hard times.
Tommy says hi...

I also think he has some issues with his paws maybe because he didn't have enough vitamins:

Any advice in how to help him (immediately) the best is much appreciated. I am planning in booking an appointment at the vets next week.

 

[Bill & Ted]

Poor little man, he does look so thin, good on you for taking him into your care x
Plenty of good hay is a must, a little bit of fresh clean grass, herbs and veggies too, don’t over do it, see how his tummy accepts it, little bits at a time. You can also give him some good quality pellets, about a tablespoon a day. Weigh him now, then once a week and hopefully his weight will gain steadily over time, keep a record, always good for when you think they may be poorly, as they soon go off their food.
Once he is settled perhaps he could go boar dating and choose a friend at a local rescue?
Tommy you are very handsome x

 

[Nassala]

Maybe a nail clip? Their feet/toes can start bending to accommodate overly long nails, although they don't look too bad in the photo.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi. I just brought home a gp of a co-worker. I have been told he is 3 yrs and has lived alone his whole life. I don't think he has been deliberatly mistreated but I think he is extremelly underweight and lacking some vitamins. This poor boy seems to have been through some hard times.
Tommy says hi...
View attachment 119502
I also think he has some issues with his paws maybe because he didn't have enough vitamins:
View attachment 119503
Any advice in how to help him (immediately) the best is much appreciated. I am planning in booking an appointment at the vets next week.

Ouch! Poor boy!
Have you weighed him yet? He looks extremely small and underweight for his age. Please have him seen on Monday soon as you can. Make sure that the vet also checks his back teeth for overgrowth.

Please put him on hay (so he eats it); the more the better. It is very likely that hasn't had much of it.
If he struggles to chew, step in with syringe feeding; in that case it is very likely a long standing dental issue that may have impacted further on his body, including digestion etc. In this case, @furryfriends (TEAS) can help you best.
Here are more tips in the chapter on underweight: Weight - Monitoring and Management
Vitamin C supplement is something you may want to give straight away.

 

[Piggiefamily]

I just weighted him and he is 728g. OMG! I am so shocked.
There was hay and pellets in the cage, which is absolutely tiny by the way, but I don't know how often they were topped up.
Just looking at him and then to my smaller piggie Pippa is such a difference. She is a smal gal and never goes over 1006g/1010g. And supposedly they are the same age.
I have given him some veggies with vitamin C and he munched away. Now he is in the hay rack eating away. He just seems woobly and weak since he eats a bit and then rests, eats another bit and then lies down.
Def I am booking an app at the vets asap...

 

[Bill & Ted]

Aw, let us all know how he gets on, poor little Tommy x

 

[Wiebke]

I just weighted him and he is 728g. OMG! I am so shocked.
There was hay and pellets in the cage, which is absolutely tiny by the way, but I don't know how often they were topped up.
Just looking at him and then to my smaller piggie Pippa is such a difference. She is a smal gal and never goes over 1006g/1010g. And supposedly they are the same age.
I have given him some veggies with vitamin C and he munched away. Now he is in the hay rack eating away. He just seems woobly and weak since he eats a bit and then rests, eats another bit and then lies down.
Def I am booking an app at the vets asap...

All the best! Hopefully plenty of good food will give him back some strength. Make sure that he eats mainly hay (which also contains vitamin C, by the way) to steady his guts and teeth, and not too much veg and pellets.

If my experience with my Dylan is anything to go by, it is also likely that his muscles have atrophied (especially at the back) from long term lack of exercise. Dylan couldn't walk a yard without his back legs giving way and him having to resort to hopping; his bum end was very thin after two years in a hamster cage. It took me all summer with daily free roaming to build up his muscles but he still has a rather stiff gait.
Yours sounds weak/starved/malnourished on top of that.

Definitely a vet check!
All the best!

 

[Piggiefamily]

Thank you all for the advice. Now he's sleeping in hubby's lap which thankfully is as crazy as me for gp's. He's a biggest slave then me.
I am really worried about this little guy but doing my best to help him recover. Once he is stronger i wanna see if I can bond him with my other boar (benny). Or should I try to bond them straighaway? Maybe it will help him recover faster? I am afraid he will get picked on since he is frail and weak.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you all for the advice. Now he's sleeping in hubby's lap which thankfully is as crazy as me for gp's. He's a biggest slave then me.
I am really worried about this little guy but doing my best to help him recover. Once he is stronger i wanna see if I can bond him with my other boar (benny). Or should I try to bond them straighaway? Maybe it will help him recover faster? I am afraid he will get picked on since he is frail and weak.

I would have your boy vet checked first and discuss the advisability of a quarantine with them.
Importance Of Quarantine

Once your boy is allowed contact, please put the two cages next to each other so the boys can get to know each other, stimulate each other and hopefully make friends through bars before you try any direct bonding.

 

[Piggiefamily]

So just some update about Tommy. He has been to the vets and it seems he has an old middle ear infection which might explain the fact he is so woobly and can't really walk in a straigh line. But there are other options to explain this, like neurological issues. I also asked the vet if he thinks he is blind (since this was my first impression) but it is difficult to tell since there is some response to objects on his way and he does seem to avoid them. For the good news: he has been gaining weight so he is now at 790 (around 70g more) and internally all seems in order with no lumps or bumps that we can feel, also his teeth are good and trimmed.
At this point I felt the best thing to do is to let him gain more weight and get stronger and then try a course of antibiotics for his old infection since the vet doesn't seem to think there is any pain and since it has been left for so long it might not even have a huge improvement. Neverthless I was given some drops to help breakdown the crusty substance that he has inside (which might or might not help).
In the meantime he has also sucessfully bonded with Benny and after a few days of incessant humping from Benny, they seem to have settle and are now best mates.


Sorry about the the pic but it was the bedt I could get. The brown one is Tommy and Benny is following him around. Piggy love!

 

[Bill & Ted]

Aw, that’s great news, I’m sure Benny will cheer up Tommy and encourage him to eat. They will both love their new companion

 

[Betsy]

You have done a wonderful thing taking on this neglected (if not intentionally) piggy. I'm sure he'll thrive given a good diet and a friend. Hopefully with your love, care and attention he will be a happy piggy soon. He does look all skin and bone bless him.

 

[Piggiefamily]

Thank you everyone for the kind words.

 

[Bill & Ted]

Keep us all informed how little Tommy gets on, he is such a cutie, hopefully he will thrive now he has you and his new friend Benny x