stitches still in afer neutering months ago?

[cavy slave]

Hi,

Have just got my piggies and managed to get puck (my neutered boy) on my knee for a bit of fuss last night. He was neutered back in June i understand.

When i picked him up i felt (what i thought) was a piece of hay stuck down there, so pulled a little to remove but it didn't budge, just pulled on his skin. :{

Upon closer inspection i found two threads (about 4mm long) i assume from his stitches protrouding from his skin, both with knots in. Is this normal so long after a neutering op? don't they remove stitches? :o
Never had a neutered boar before, so don't know what is 'normal' afterwards

any advice would be appreciated!
Thanks
Lindsey

 

[Shellza]

I wouldn't have thought that normal, but then I've never had a boar, so don't know about neutering them, but in other animals they would remove them as soon as its healed enough. My friends male rabbit was neutered and I think the stitches were removed a few weeks after ?/

 

[CiaraPatricia]

Stitches are usually removed a week or 10 days after operations, I'm sure. I've never gotten a guinea pig neutered though.

Unless they used dissolving stitches, but those would surely have dissolved by now. When by kitten got spayed the dissolving stitches were gone in 5 days.

If you can get a scissors to cut them out then I would do that, it's easy to do, but since these have been there so long it might be difficult or need the vet to do it. I'd wait first til other people reply who might have gotten piggies neutered before, in case I'm wrong.

 

[caviaporcellus]

I had mine neutered (almost) six weeks ago and I had to take him back after 10 days to get the stictches removed although the veterinary nurse said that they don't usually have to as the piggies normally chew them off.

I would suggest phoning up the vet practice that did it and asking them. Mine do not charge to remove the stitches; it is part of the 'package'.

 

[cavy slave]

Thanks for these replies, don't know who did it since it was done via the rescue i got him from. (literally only brought them home on friday, and he was neutered in june)

Will try and ring the rescue see what they say

Will also try and post a pic to see if its safe to cut them off with scissors

Thanks again
lindsey

 

[CiaraPatricia]

If you can get the tip of the scissors under the stitch then it should be safe to cut off. Just cut one bit and pull it out, it's easy

I had one cat spayed and we left it two weeks to take out the stitches (cos my mom was doing it cos I was just a kid, but she was busy) and the skin was growing over the stiches and we had to kinda dig them out :0 poor kitty. So I'm surprised this isn't like that, but maybe cos the cat spay was a bigger op? Now I take out all my animals' stitches though, and it's fine.

 

[Laura-CCC4]

This is something I had to query recently too. One of my boys was neutered on 16 June, six weeks later he still had stitches in - and still does now two months post op! I checked with the CCT and was told it can take anything from days to months for dissolvable stitches to dissolve. I have been told by other rodentologists that there is a risk of infection with stitches remaining in the skin for so long, so it's worth popping your boar along to the vet to have them removed anyway.

There are some types of suture thread/stitches that are not dissolvable and should be removed by the vet; this would ordinarily be mentioned by the vet to the owner but it's unknown in your case.

 

[cavy slave]

If you can get the tip of the scissors under the stitch then it should be safe to cut off. Just cut one bit and pull it out, it's easy

I had one cat spayed and we left it two weeks to take out the stitches (cos my mom was doing it cos I was just a kid, but she was busy) and the skin was growing over the stiches and we had to kinda dig them out :0 poor kitty. So I'm surprised this isn't like that, but maybe cos the cat spay was a bigger op? Now I take out all my animals' stitches though, and it's fine.

Thing is, i think that may be precisely the problem @) there is no stitch persay, just two ends sticking out :{ with nothing in between them.

vets so soon... sigh rolleyes

 

[CiaraPatricia]

Oh I see, hope everything goes well at the vets anyway. Let us know

 

[christine]

Have just had to take a piggie back to the vet to have "soluble " stiches removed. Trouble is if they stay in too long the skin grows around them making it more difficult to remove.

 

[flintstones]

I also took Milo to have his removed.

 

[Honeybunnies]

Hi Linsey

Puck was neutered at Gamston Vets4Pets and they should be dissolvable stitches..if still there in a couple of days I'd pop him to your vet..a vet nurse should be able to easily take them out

if you try to do it yourself be very careful not to catch his skin..best way is to ask another person to hold him..you gently pull knot out from skin and cut slowly against knot..make sure there is a gap between scissors and sking before cutting