The Wrong Choice?

[Joannajars]

i posted yesterday about my boy seeing the vet over not eating and drooling, he wouldn’t keep critical care down either. Today he went back and they sedated him in order to do X-rays and found that his back teeth were sharp and causing pain so failed them down, initially he woke up okay from the anesthetic and the vet told us to collect him, before we could he had a seizure and passed away. Vet suspected it was caused by a blood clot. I wanted to know if other would have made the same choice to have him sedated for X-ray etc.. I’m just very confused and upset. He was only a year old and he was such a special pig.

 

[Julie M]

So sorry for your loss.

 

[eileen]

I'm sorry for your loss.x I'm really sorry but i would maybe ask to speak to the vet.maybe check how guinea pig savvy your current vet is.i find it makes a big difference going to a vet that treats many guinea pigs simply because they have experience.i have no answers for why your piggie passed.it maybe he had a reaction to the general anesthetic,or was going into gi stasis,but i cannot assume,and I'm sorry that this has happened,tragic.you made the right choice,it is not your fault and you must not blame yourself.x

 

[miowmix]

Hi Joannajars I am very sorry for the sudden loss of your pig. I have previously had two pigs with dental/bone problems and they regularly had to have GA for work on the back teeth etc. I knew there was a risk but still chose for them to have the work done because the alternative was that they would not be able to eat and would be in pain. So please don't feel bad about it, it was just bad luck.

 

[sport_billy]

I am really sorry for your loss. You made the correct choice, he needed the Sedation for the x-ray and to check the back teeth. It is not your fault.

So sorry

 

[Wiebke]

BIG HUGS!

I am so sorry; problems can happen, especially when a vet is not very experienced with small animals.

Most scans and x-rays are sharper when taken under at least light anaesthesia, especially as they often need to be take in two different positions to pin a problem down.

You have made the right decision as without any treatment your boy would have slowly and very painfully starved to death. Like I suspected, his tongue was trapped, which is why he could no longer swallow. Without being able to eat, he would have gone into GI stasis (his guts would have stopped working) in a matter of days. Please don't feel guilty! You have done everything a good owner should do. What has happened what out of your control and is not your fault!

 

[Merab]

So sorry for your loss. Sometimes people have an unexpectedly bad reaction to anaesthetic- maybe this is true of piggies too.
You did your best & that is all anyone can do.
Please don’t blame yourself.

 

[Beans&Toast]

So sorry that you lost your beautiful boy.

You made the right choice.

One of my pigs Toast required multiple dental work and xrays, which meant putting her under anesthetc every few months. I knew there was a risk but it was either that or her teeth over grew and she wouldn't be able to eat.

I'm so sorry it ended the way it did. I understand why you feel guilty but you made the right choice to have the x-ray.

 

[Freela]

I'm really sorry for your loss. For what it's worth, I don't think you made the wrong decision. Pigs often get anesthesia for dental procedures. There's always an inherent risk to anesthesia, and you just unfortunately ended up on the wrong side of the statistic. You really had no choice, as dental problems don't go away on their own and he would have passed much more slowly and unpleasantly had you not tried to help him eat normally. ((HUGS.))

 

[Joannajars]

Thank you all for your kind words. I am truely heartbroken the only ease of the pain is that he is no longer suffering. The vet we saw is very piggy savvy as it is a university vetanry surgery and so they have specialist vets in most animals. We were offered the X-rays yesterday however due to the risk we decided to give painkillers and see if there was improvement first, obviously there was not and so he had them done today. I can’t help but think that If he’d had them done yesterday while he was stronger this may not have been the outcome

 

[Merab]

What if? is a natural part of grieving
Human or piggy loss we always wonder if we had done this or that would things be different.
Be kind to yourself as you work through your grief.

 

[Beans&Toast]

View attachment 79193 Thank you all for your kind words. I am truely heartbroken the only ease of the pain is that he is no longer suffering. The vet we saw is very piggy savvy as it is a university vetanry surgery and so they have specialist vets in most animals. We were offered the X-rays yesterday however due to the risk we decided to give painkillers and see if there was improvement first, obviously there was not and so he had them done today. I can’t help but think that If he’d had them done yesterday while he was stronger this may not have been the outcome

What a beautiful piggy.

It's so easy to think things like "maybe if I'd done this or that". I still do after losing Toast. Maybe if I'd had her seen sooner.. But I try not to go down that path, it doesn't help and it just makes you feel worse. You gave him the care he needed and did what was best for him. Unfortunately things go wrong sometimes and there's nothing anyone can do to fix it. It's heartbreaking I know but you absolutely did the right thing, I would have done the exact same in your situation.

 

[Flutterby]

I am so sorry for your loss x

 

[Freela]

Awww, what a lovely boy he was. ((HUGS.)) I think it's so normal to do the 'what if?' game when something bad happens. It's so easy to second-guess ourselves. I know I have second-guessed myself whenever I lost a piggie (what if I had gone to a different vet? What if I had quarantined a sick pig faster?) Ultimately, though, we have to be kind for ourselves. We didn't have the benefit of hindsight. We did the best we could with the information we had available. Ultimately, you made your decisions out of concern for him and what would be best for him, you got him care from a competent and experienced vet, and very unfortunately things did not go as planned, but that's not your fault and your decision-making process was sound and based on concern for his well-being and that's the best that you could do. ((HUGS)) and be kind to yourself. I know it's hard.