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Round tummy

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Zofia

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Babe has always had a round tummy. She's slim round the ribs but then spherical at the back!

I took her to the vet about 6 mths ago to check she was ok. At that time her tummy was round and quite solid feeling. Weight was 950g (she's about 2 and a half yrs old). Vet said it was normal and just full of food (does not surprise me - she's top pig and gets the lions share).

I checked her at the weekend because she'd been quite sleepy (the heating was on so it could have been she was just a bit warm). Her tummy was the same shape and size as usual but is squishy now. It sort of feels like one of those squishy balls with goo and stuff in. I weighed her and she was still 950g.

Checked her again yesterday and she's the same, round, squishy and 950g. She's eating and acting normally as far as I can tell. My O/H says she feels full of air and is worried about her, especially because we had a hamster that had a massive tumour in his abdomen. I think she's just full of food like the vet said last time because she's eating ok and her size/weight has not changed - but I don't know why she's less firm than before (maybe she had more trump stuck before? Or maybe she's full of gas now?). Teeth are fine (the front ones anyway) and she doesn't seem uncomfortable if I press her tummy gently (no squeeking).

Any ideas? Is she normal? What are their tummies supposed to feel like?

Eric has a round bit to his tummy but it feels quite firm and Sadie doesn't have any round bits (she's so speedy I don't think she'll ever put on any fat weight).
 
How old is Babe?

It could be just her body shape - some sows, especially rex type ones get big bums once they reach adulthood without changing their body weight.

Here is a pic of my own greedy guts Nerys (complete with squishy bum, weighing in at a hefty 1350g)
IMG_5732_edited-1-2.jpg


Alternatively, if you are really worried about too much gas (and gurgling), you can just take her off any fresh food for a few days and leave her with lots of hay and some pellets - and plenty of fresh water. However, bloat is usually accompanied by a tight, painful tummy and needs to be seen by a vet asap.
 
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The time to worry about bloat (gas in the tummy) is....as I describe it...when the tummy feels like a balloon you want to burst! A more useful description is that it is tight/taut, a bit springy, the pig usually cries out and/or wriggles with the discomfort of having the abdomen palpated. The abdomen will look distended (swollen).

The pig can still be eating and pooping when suffering some levels of bloat, however you know it is serious (acute) when the pig is sitting hunched with hair puffed up, not eating, not pooping, not moving.

If you could post a picture it may help but just going on your description, I would hazard a guess that she's actually ok. One of my own pigs used to be nice and solid, a real chunk of a pig, but he's now got a bony feeling spine as his weight has dropped, giving him a squishy chubby belly.
 
Thanks for that guys. i think she probably is ok. they normally have one day a week without veg but I don't think they've had this break for a couple of weeks as I had more veg than normal.

She is part Rex. I don't think posting a picture would help as she has stupid frizzy 80s perm hair! (I tell her it's beautiful - but it really is ridiculous!)

As her shape and weight haen't changed I don't think I'll take any further action as yet. I'll keep giving her a gentle squish though to make sure she's not uncomfortable.
 
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