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Respitory Infection - Reassurance Please?

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LB14

LB14

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi all,

I'm really new to this forum as I stumbled across it whilst vigorously googling! (as you do!)

I've got 3 guinea pigs, and my first piggy Gus has been unwell. Runny nose, crusty eye, wheezy and rattly breathing. Last weekend was when this started, and it wasn't very noticeable at first, just a little noise here and there that I'd not been overly concerned about. as he's sneezed and coughed before when guzzling his food, so I'd brushed it aside and carried on as normal as he was acting normally.

When I took him to vet on Monday, he had gone downhill really really quickly and I'd noticed he was just laying around, not eating much, and the wheeze etc was very obvious. So I called my vet who saw him pretty much straight away.
She checked him over very thoroughly, was extremely concerned and gave him 3 injections on the spot. Gut stimulant, anti-inflammatory for his high temperature, and antibiotics as she suspected a bacterial infection.

Next day he was back first thing to check the temp had reduced and he was more alert etc.
So far so good. So she sends us home with oral antibiotics (2.5 x Baytril Oral Solution 2.5% - 0.35ml once daily).
First 2 days he's eating a bit more, back to his jumping about and socialising with the other pigs through the bars and generally sounding a lot clearer.
Today he's back to snuffling, crackling, laying around and not being interested in anything. Currently he's wriggled his way under a blanket on the couch that I'd placed him on top of as he usually loves this. He doesn't feel overly hot and has eaten today for definite. He also snapped at me earlier when I moved him which is VERY unusual for Gus as he's the most affectionate piggy I've ever had.

So with this in mind, I'm concerned. But I just have never had to care for a sick pet before and I feel like I'm blind and not sure if I'm doing things right or not!.

He's got plenty places to hide, he's got lots of hay, GP pellets, leafy greens, fresh water, and his cage is in a quiet place so he's not getting distressed by the kids. He's spent a lot of time clambering up to my shoulder and snuggling in which he has always done since I got him and has been getting lots of love etc.

Is there anything else I should be doing!?

Apologies for the ramble but I'd hate for anything to happen to the wee guy as he's so special to us all here.
 
Hi welcome to the forum, am sorry he is so poorly. I have a few questions:

Are you giving probiotic aswell as the Baytril?
Did the vet say if there was any fluid on his chest and is his breathing laboured?
Is he pooing ok?
Is he eating?

If there is fluid he will also need diuretic from the vets, together with extra fluids to maintain the electrolyte balance (Dioralyte is good for this).

If it is all in his nose Bisolvon would help to shift the mucous which you would need to get from the vets. Also steam therapy may help, using once of these with 2 drops of Olbas oil (hold over the nose in 5 second bursts)

http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-Easy-Breathing-Steam-Inhaler_1400961/

If you don't have one you could put boiling water in a bowl next to his cage with the Olbas oil in it.

If he is not eating you will need to step in with syringe feeding, have you done this before?
 
Antibiotics can take a few days to work, but if you think that he was improving, but is now worse again, then I would (personally) take him back to the vets asap. It sounds as if he was very poorly, and piggies can go downhill quickly. You say that he snapped at you and this was unusual - perhaps he is feeling uncomfortable.

You are doing absolutely everything possible - so please don't blame yourself. It may be that the infection is resistant to Baytril and another antibiotic is needed.
 
helen105281 said:
Hi welcome to the forum, am sorry he is so poorly. I have a few questions:

Are you giving probiotic aswell as the Baytril?
Did the vet say if there was any fluid on his chest and is his breathing laboured?
Is he pooing ok?
Is he eating?

If there is fluid he will also need diuretic from the vets, together with extra fluids to maintain the electrolyte balance (Dioralyte is good for this).

If it is all in his nose Bisolvon would help to shift the mucous which you would need to get from the vets. Also steam therapy may help, using once of these with 2 drops of Olbas oil (hold over the nose in 5 second bursts)

http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-Easy-Breathing-Steam-Inhaler_1400961/

If you don't have one you could put boiling water in a bowl next to his cage with the Olbas oil in it.

If he is not eating you will need to step in with syringe feeding, have you done this before?
Click to expand...


Thanks for the reply :

I had absolutely no idea about giving probiotics?
The vet said she could hear fluid on his chest so gave him the 3 initial injections then sent me home with the Baytril.
He's pooing fine, and is eating albeit less than he was.
I've syringe fed him and my other boar Duke, after they had their castration op as they both weren't eating well for a day. I had syringe fed them recovery food that the vet gave me home.

I've not got a steam inhaler but will definitely try the Olbas oil in water. When he is breathing its almost like you or I trying to talk with a tickly throat if that makes sense. Only difference being we could AHEM and clear our throat whereas he can't. That's the only way I can describe the noise.
 
Jerrybelly said:
Antibiotics can take a few days to work, but if you think that he was improving, but is now worse again, then I would (personally) take him back to the vets asap. It sounds as if he was very poorly, and piggies can go downhill quickly. You say that he snapped at you and this was unusual - perhaps he is feeling uncomfortable.

You are doing absolutely everything possible - so please don't blame yourself. It may be that the infection is resistant to Baytril and another antibiotic is needed.
Click to expand...

Thank you,

Yes he's never snapped at me before, he used to try bite my chin when we first got him but I trained him out of that and ever since he has always been affectionate. So it was very very unusual for him to snap at me. He seems more relaxed again this morning so I'm confused.

I'll give the olbas oil etc a try today and see how we go. Ive no qualms at all about rushing him back to a vet, but thankfully he's more alert this morning and it just seems like he's trying to get some rest so I'll keep a really close eye on him.

Thank you for taking the time to reply
 
If the vet has said he has fluid on his chest, you must get diuretics from the vet to clear it, this is very important & could save his life. Make a note of everything Helen has said & contact your vet again to ask for the diuretics. It is important to replace the fluid as Helen says. Baytril is not the best antibiotic for URI (Upper respiratry infections) I would recommend you contact an Exotics vet who is more likely to prescribe better ones for this sort of situation. Whereabouts are you in Scotland? There are a couple of very good Exotics vets there if you check our vet locator at the top of teh page :)
 
I fully agree with the measures that helen has recommended. Baytril can be sometimes not enough to cut through the respiratory infection and you may need a stronger one if that is the case and he is not getting better. A diuretic in case of chest congestion and bisolvon powder for the nose can help easy the breathing so your boy has got more energy to for drinking/eating and healing. The need to breathe comes before the need to drink and thirdly the need to eat.

Please weigh your boy daily at the same time to check on his food intake and if necessary top him up with hand feed if his weight is still low or continuing to go down.
For that, you can mush up some pellets in boiled, cooled water and syringe him that. Cut the tip off a 1ml syringe just below where it widens and feed half a syringe at one go (that is about a mouthful, so you won't be in danger of things going down the wrong way and causing more trouble). You can add some probiotic into the hand feed which you need to change at least twice daily. Otherwise, you give about a pinch about 1-2 hours after the antibiotic, either in a veg or syringed dissolved in a bit of water. Please also offer plenty of water or at first dioralyte to make sure that he is not dehydrated (see the need to drink!). You can also syringe him 1/8 of supermarket vitamin C tablet dissolved in 1ml of water nce or twice daily to help his immune system. Give him as much hand feed as he'll take in one go (usually about 10-20ml) several times a day and, if he is poorly and off his food, throughout the night as well.
 
Hi :) It never even dawned on me that was probiotic!

I use this in the guinea pigs water, as I had got them from Pets at Home and they recommended it be used daily to keep them healthy as their body doesnt absorb Vit C much. So I use this already :)

He is definitely drinking plenty also and I was told that until he is better to offer him his favourite treats - ie carrot, cucumber, apple etc more than I would normally give him so that he is at least eating. That said he is eating lots of hay, and the kale & brocolli is getting eaten also so I'm quite happy with the fact he is actually eating
 
Thank you very much for your input folks, there is a lot of useful information and I feel a lot better about how to deal with Gus. I also feel a lot more knowledgeable and armed with info to get my point across to the vet if needs be.

I actually feel humbly ignorant and realise that pets really can become so sick! I don't think many people take this into account when getting a pet and sadly there are too many that see a pet becoming ill as an issue.
Guinea pigs are by far my favourite animal and they are such a big part of our family so rest assured I'm going to do everything I can to get this wee guy back to full health.
 
Great you are already using it. One thing to mention, I know it says to put it in the water but the quality deteriorates pretty quickly when put in the water bottle. Also when on antibiotics the probiotic needs to be give at least an hour after the antibiotics as they affect each other, so for now at least I think it would be better to syringe the probiotic directly into his mouth.
 
hi how is he doing today, i completely agree with everyone's comments, this weather ain't helping.
some other tips, do you have vapour rub, if so rub some on the sides of his cage walls, when you have a bath or shower take him in the bathroom with you shut windows and doors and this steams their faces, i have done this.
the anti-biotic my piggies love is septrin, it smells of banana, my last piggie to become ill spike, had pneumonia, the vet gave me antibiotics for 2 weeks, but i had to keep him on them for up to 4 weeks, he is fine now apart from, he now has a ear infection, pro biotics use either pro-c from pets at home, or avipro which you can get from the vet.

hope this helps, keep us updated on his progress
good luck and healing vibes from donna, candy(cat), piggies, mica, ruby, luke, cookie, hammy, gizzie, sammy, biscuit, wally, roddy, tazzles, callum, jerry, auggie, rocky, harry, tod, spike, ben, benji, alvin, ted, buddy, rebel. x
 
Hiya :)

Well this morning he still sounded a bit snuffly so I done the little tub of hot water with a few drops Olbas Oil in. Sat it on the floor and held him up against my chest like normal. Enough for me to be able to smell it, but not be overpowering for Gus.

And instantly he was breathing much better! It's so obvious a thing to do I hadn't thought of it myself so thanks to you guys for that tip.
We have vet tomorrow and I'm holding out until then as he's still eating, drinking etc. I THINK he may have lost a little weight but can't be sure on that as my scales aren't as accurate as I would like to be confident about what he weighs. So we'll find that all out tomorrow.
For now he seems content that he can breathe right again so hopefully he gets to regain a bit of strength instead of being so tired out trying to get a good breath x
 
Just an update.

Vet has said his chest sounds clearer but she can still hear some upper respiratory infection further up? She said the olbas oil is a great idea and has sent me home with another week of Baytril, and also Bisolvon - one pinch twice daily to food.

His weight has gone from 0.85kg to 0.79kg so that is a concern and he's to go back in a week to get another check and to see how his weight is.
Today he's the most active he's been for a while so I'm feeling more relaxed about him getting better.

How much of a concern would you guys say the weight loss is? I'm not that clued up on how much is too much
 
That's good that you have been given Bisolvon, it's great stuff and should really help if it is all in his nose.

I would think the weight loss will be linked to him choosing to breathe rather than eat.
 
Just an update really,

Gus has started eating again and picking up and for a few days has been improving. Last night however he was in his cage making a complaining noise (only way I can describe :D ) that he usually does when Duke annoys him. You know, that back himself into a corner and wheek loudly thing?
So I thought they were just disagreeing as you do. This morning picked him up to get him sorted with his antibiotics, gave him a quick check and noticed where his bottom is, is a huge hard lump :eek: I touched it, and he was not a happy piggy!

So I call the vet and explain and they say bring him down today (appointment 2:50pm). I feel like one of these parents who take their children to a doctor with a runny nose lately! But he's sore :(
He's lying around and shifting from leaning on one side, to the other as if really uncomfy.

He was neutered I think it was about 6 weeks ago now and has had no problems with that so I'm doubtful that is the issue although it is around that area.

Does ANYONE have any experience with this? So I know what to expect roughly when I go see the vet again today x
 
I know there have been cases on here of pigs with lumps after neutering but I am not sure of the timescales. Sounds very painful though bless him.
 
Each time he has had vet they have given him a thorough check, and never seen anything. Just find it odd, as he was there only 2 days ago and there was nothing obvious :(
 
No, he's been mostly cosied up to Duke & Daisy now that they are back together and they've been getting on absolutely fine. We've kept a really close eye on him. I've checked around the lump as best I can without distressing him and it's right around where he would wee and poo :/ He's been kept indoors for now so can't say it would be a sting of sorts from the garden
 
Ok, I would see what the vet thinks as it is difficult to say. Could be a cyst possibly.
 
Finally home :( The vet wasn't happy with how sore Gus was so they sent me to their larger practice.

Vet there was the original vet who dealt with his infection etc a few days back, so she was surprised too I think.

They admitted him for an xray and said it could be hernia or abcess, so after xray they said they didn't think it was a hernia therefore wanted to operate to see what was going on.

Vet just off the phone, said they opened him up and he had a huge abcess that was full of nasty pus and they had to clean it and flush it out etc. Said that the wound has been left open a little and they think its been caused by the sutures from his castration.
So she's given him an injection of Baytril, a few other things and is going to take him home tonight to give him intensive care. She's going to syringe feed him, and tempt him with his food etc and give him more antibiotics.

All in all, they have been great. They've said next 24 hours are critical as he wasn't pooing but hopefully his gut starts moving properly and that sorts itself out.
I'll be updated in the morning and if he's coped ok tonight will get to bring him home. x
 
Oh bless, wishing Gus a speedy recovery & healing vibes being sent from the girls & I
:nod:
xx
 
Thanks guys :D He's home and was so well looked after! Feel really lucky to have such caring vets!

He's got a wee war wound and is currently living the life of Riley in a specially made home full of fleecey blankets and toys while he recovers. On 3 medications and is already bouncing about and chatting away. What a difference from last week!
 
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