Second opinion on vet's advice

[Goggle's Mum]

Hi everybody,

Hope you're well.

First some sad news: Porcella has now outlived her second cage-mate, my housemate's 6-year-old pig, Scarlett.

During Scarlett's last few weeks, Porcella lost a lot of weight, and doesn't seem likely to get better again. It's very sad, as she is only a little over four. She was a runt to begin with (around 700g), but went down to 490g, and when I took her to the vet last week she'd gone down to 480g.

The vet has prescribed baytril and anti-inflammatory painkillers. For reasons that don't need exploring at this juncture, neither my housemate nor myself plan to get any more cavies.

The vet has advised against re-homing Porcella, as she doesn't want her to get beaten up badly during the usual initial social behaviour. I also don't think it's fair on the new owner if she dies soon after re-homing.

Do other people on here agree with this? She has been on her own for a month now, and, although she seems a little lonely, is often in quite good spirits. Are there places in the world where sick pigs can go to live on their own but play with others during the day? (I wouldn't want to return her to the shelter, as it didn't seem they got played with much there.)

Just interested in people's thoughts in general.

Thanks!

 

[Poppy'sMum]

I am sorry to hear of the loss of your piggy

Last year we lost Poppy, she was a lone piggy after the death of her cage mate at the age of 4 1/2. Because we had never had a piggy live longer than 5 years we didn't want to get a younger one or go through the pain of losing one only to have to get another friend for the other surviving one. Because of this Poppy lived on her own, indoors until she was 7. We didn't expect her to live that long to be honest. She was a very small piggy & like you we were concerned that trying to pair her up with another would result in her being bullied, especially as she was so tiny & elderly. We had a previous pair where we did go to a rescue to try to find a friend for our remaining piggy when her friend died, but it resulted in the new piggy attacking ours when we got them home After that we were more reluctant to go through it again.

A lot of people wouldn't agree about keeping a piggy on their own & I don't recommend it as it's always better for them to have a friend but Poppy acted as if nothing had changed & had a lot of fuss & love from us. She was always kept indoors. I think it depends on the piggy's personality & whether they appear to be missing company.
Good luck with whatever you decide

 

[Goggle's Mum]

Thanks for your reply, and sorry to hear about Poppy. Just to clarify, I don't think Porcella is dying because she is old, but because she is very sick and losing a lot of weight.

Unless anybody has any good suggestions, I think she will have to remain a lone pig. :/ x

 

[suem]

I should have got another piggie for Bertie as a friend but I didnt. He is alone but I can see him from where I am sitting now. I talk to him a lot and get him out for cuddles. So I am sure your piggie will still have a lot of love even if she is alone.

 

[Pebble]

I'm sorry to hear she has lost so much weight She's only 4 so I think you;re right that it;s not an old age thing and thereofre there is an underlying health issue.

A sick guinea pig should never be introduced to new partner as they will most likely be bullied (or worse). Sick animals are often driven away from the herd and guinea pigs are no exception. Even a bonded pair can run into problems when one of them is sick. Also if you don;t know what is causing the problem it could be infectious and pass to the new partner which is why quarantine of 2 weeks is always recommended before re-bonding a piggie who has just lost a partner

As to why she has lost so much weight - if she is eating properly and taking in her normal amount of food each day then I would be looking for swollen lymph nodes, abdominal issues and blood test for white blood cell count, kidney and liver function. If there is a possibility that it is pain-related (fluffed fur, sitting in a corner, not eating so much) then possibly urinary tract or dental - and being prepared to support with syringe feeding.

Hope you manage to get to the bottom of her weight loss, that she recover and can then find a new friend.

x

 

[PottyForPiggies]

I hope that you get to work out what is wrong with Porcella; if she is the piggie in your avatar she's a beautiful lady!
I agree with not even considering finding a partnerpig while she is not well. My girl Treacle is 4, and about 6 weeks ago she had a spell of illness which never got accurately diagnosed. She lost over 100g, wouldn't eat or drink on her own and just hid all day. We gave her anti-biotics and syringe fed her mushed up pellets, and even water when she wouldn't do it herself. When she got better (the persistence paid off after a week of panic!) her usually submissive partner Bernadette threw her weight around and challenged her for dominance - she could sense that Treacle was weaker

I hope that you can find out what is wrong with her, and although piggies are not normally meant to be alone, some cope wonderfully well and I'm sure she will live out her life with care, love and affection should she stay that way. x

 

[Goggle's Mum]

Thanks for your posts, everybody.

It's good to see that there is a consensus about keeping her on her own.

Suem: sorry to hear Bertie lost a pig too, but he sounds well loved.

Pebble: the vet says it's definitely not dental, and she believes a blood test would kill her because she is so small. We think it's cancer, and she is on anti-inflammatory pain meds. I think I have enough experience now to know when they aren't going to get better.

Sapphire Dreams: the pig in my avatar is Goggle! Porcella was always the real looker

 

[PottyForPiggies]

Hehe, well either way she is beautiful! I had a piggie called Goggles when I was 11, she was gorgeous, totally white with black patches around her eyes