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Terrified owner needing advice

J

Jenz87

New Born Pup
Joined
Aug 8, 2021
Messages
22
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185
Location
Scotland
Hello guys, sorry in advance for the lengthy post. I am just terrified, worried and extremely stressed. My guinea pig was being treated for blood in his wee which now seems to have resolved. The vets did an x-ray and ultrasound and found something attached to the bladder wall (this was about 2 weeks ago). Since then, despite medication, him eating some food and me syringe feeding him, he has continued to lose weight and I am beginning to feel his bones 😭. The vet had him in yesterday to check his teeth and filed them down slightly. The redid the scans and now think what they saw in the bladder is some kind of mass. He got discharged home at 5.30pm yesterday with various additional meda. Since then I have only been able to get him eating some grass and some herbs. He hasnt really shown any interest in hay and hasn't eaten any pellets. His poos are reduced, small and some are joined together in a string. He is also just laying around and not moving around. I spoke to the vet this morning and he said this is what he would expect the following day from anaesthetic. He will be 48 hours post procedure tomorrow around lunchtime. When should I start to see him eating more and getting better? Or should I be phoning the surgery again tomorrow? I don't want to give up on him and am finding this all extremely difficult. Please offer some advice until I can at least speak to a vet again tomorrow. Thanks
 
Sorry I'm new to pigs myself so have no advice. All I can do is offer my support. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable will come along after me.
 
Sorry to hear this. Hopefully someone knowledgable about health will respond soon. The vets won’t mind you calling them if you have concerns so please do- always better to raise things than suffer in silence.

There is a guide on this forum to stepping in and feeding them with syringe feed or mushed up pellets when they’re not eating enough and I’ll see if I can link it.
 
Jenz87 said:
Hello guys, sorry in advance for the lengthy post. I am just terrified, worried and extremely stressed. My guinea pig was being treated for blood in his wee which now seems to have resolved. The vets did an x-ray and ultrasound and found something attached to the bladder wall (this was about 2 weeks ago). Since then, despite medication, him eating some food and me syringe feeding him, he has continued to lose weight and I am beginning to feel his bones 😭. The vet had him in yesterday to check his teeth and filed them down slightly. The redid the scans and now think what they saw in the bladder is some kind of mass. He got discharged home at 5.30pm yesterday with various additional meda. Since then I have only been able to get him eating some grass and some herbs. He hasnt really shown any interest in hay and hasn't eaten any pellets. His poos are reduced, small and some are joined together in a string. He is also just laying around and not moving around. I spoke to the vet this morning and he said this is what he would expect the following day from anaesthetic. He will be 48 hours post procedure tomorrow around lunchtime. When should I start to see him eating more and getting better? Or should I be phoning the surgery again tomorrow? I don't want to give up on him and am finding this all extremely difficult. Please offer some advice until I can at least speak to a vet again tomorrow. Thanks
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Hi

HUGS

I am very sorry that the prospect is not looking all that great.

Please step in with syringe feeding support asap if you have a piggy that is losing weight and is not eating. The reduced poo output means that he hasn't eaten much for at least 1-2 days because that is how long it takes for any food to pass through the system.

Make sure that you look after your piggy first because caring for them and making them feel better in themselves as much as possible is within your power. What is not is the outcome of the check.
Always concentrate on what you can do before you give in to your fears and fixate on what is out of your control. Those things you can tackle once you know what you are up against. Waiting is the worst time because you feel helpless and powerless and your fears can over.

What I do in a situation like that is that I face the worst case scenario. I accept it and I a bear it for a short while. Then I tell myself "This is the worst that can happen. I can bear it. Anything else can only be better."

If you feel overwhelmed, sit down, try to calm yourself down while you imagine turning the energy of your fears in the cloud around you into a green band of gentle healing vibes you send to your boy. Your support counts. If you cannot be strong for yourself, then be strong for your boy.

Weight Loss Explained: BMI, Weighing, Poos and Feeding Support
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
Emergency and Crisis Care as well as Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment

My thoughts are with you.
 
Morning I am so sorry you're going through this how is he this morning? You should never worry about phoning your vet for advice 💙
 
I hope he is ok today. When I had a piggy have an operation the vet said they should be up and moving about by the following afternoon. If you are worried about him give the vets a call and see what they say. Sending healing vibes his way. ❤️
 
Small update:
Custard continues to accept syringe feeding. He has also been seen eating little amounts of veg and hay plus was showing an interest in his pellets (although didn't eat any). He had 2 fairly normal poops amongst some abnormal ones. Spoke to his vet who said considering he went through a minor dental plus has this ongoing bladder issue, he is happy that he is showing some interest in food and taking the syringe feeds. He has booked him in for a check up with another vet for this evening, plus he will see him again on Mon as planned. Hope he continues to improve. I can't face losing him. Not yet
 
Jenz87 said:
Small update:
Custard continues to accept syringe feeding. He has also been seen eating little amounts of veg and hay plus was showing an interest in his pellets (although didn't eat any). He had 2 fairly normal poops amongst some abnormal ones. Spoke to his vet who said considering he went through a minor dental plus has this ongoing bladder issue, he is happy that he is showing some interest in food and taking the syringe feeds. He has booked him in for a check up with another vet for this evening, plus he will see him again on Mon as planned. Hope he continues to improve. I can't face losing him. Not yet
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All the best. Since Custard has not lost all appetite, it is not yet time for the ultimte decision. Hang on in there.

What painkillers is he on?
 
He is on 0.38mg of metacam twice daily, but the vet said that could be doubled if needed and they can also try gabapentin or Tramadol if the metacam doesn't work
 
I'm so sorry, this must be so stressful but you're doing a great job. I'm glad he's getting on well with the syringe feeding, and I hope his appetite and digestion improve even more soon ❤️
 
I am wondering if he may be a bit bloated, as although he is skinny his tummy is really big. It feels soft rather than hard but his belly has been quite gurgly the last couple of days. Have been giving him gentle tummy massages to help with that but will see what the vet says this evening
 
Yes write down all your questions/ideas and hopefully things will soon be getting better 👍
 
I hope so. I have seen him picking at his hay and some veggies a little bit on my pet camera this morning but not really moving around other than to change his position
 
I am so very sorry to hear this and like you I would be terrified but you are doing the VERY best you can for piggy and we are all willing him a good and speedy recovery
 
Further update after my vet appt:

It actually went pretty well. He has maintained his weight from tue which is good, she saw that his poops are beginning to look more normal and she said he had good gut sounds. She told me to stop giving him 2 of the meds and see how I get on. And to reduce the syringe feed to twice daily from sun if he is beginning to eat a lot more. She said his mouth will still feel weird and that may well be making him less keen to eat. He has just got excited for his dinner (the first time since Tues) ,😁
 
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