This Is Not Good, Hoppsan Is Squeaking While Pooping...

[Hoppsan]

We noticed that Hoppsan had this quiet squeak while peeing a couple of days ago and the pee became white solid stuff after it dried. At first we thought it was bladder stone and rushed him to the vet, after x-ray and couple of tests, the vet confirmed that there is no stone and it looks like our lil dude is having UTI. We've got one antibiotic and one painkiller as below:



We had to syringe feed him because he's refusing taking them by himself. Now he rarely squeak while peeing but looks like he's in pain while pooping. The poop looks normal though, not soft nor smelly. I wonder if these medicines are making him constipated... The vet did suggest us to bland some processed sour milk (filmjölk) with the antibiotic medicine, but since I was still worried about his calcium intake plus he didn't like the taste or smell of this sour milk, we just gave him the medicine by itself which has a pleasant banana smell. We've gave him medicine for 5 days now(antibiotic twice per day and painkiller once per day), and we were told to give 7 days in total.

I wonder if this pooping pain will go away by itself, or should we syringe feed him a bit of sour milk just to help him pass stool? @Wiebke

 

[Wiebke]

Adult guinea pigs are lactose intolerant, so please do not give any milk products, especially not cows milk! Can you get hold of probiotics in a pet shop or online? A pinch about 1-2 hours after the antibiotic will do.
Please make sure that Hoppsan gets plenty of fluid. Can you get herbal bladder tea from a pharmacy in Sweden? I have made good experiences with syringing some to bladder piggies to help flushing out bacteria. It is diuretic, so you need to make sure that Hoppsan also has got plenty of water. Fibreplex and rough brown cardboard may also help. Sometimes UTI boars can be more prone to have ongoing pain when pooping and peeing.

The medications you have been prescribed are the ones we would recommend anyway (bactrim contains the same active ingredient as the septrin you see mentioned for our UK members for urinary tract problems). Sometimes, antibiotics can kill the appetite. The duration of the course is fairly short as bactrim/septrin usually takes a bit longer to work than baytril, but it is more effective. What is the dosage he is on?

 

[Hoppsan]

Adult guinea pigs are lactose intolerant, so please do not give any milk products, especially not cows milk! Can you get hold of probiotics in a pet shop or online? A pinch about 1-2 hours after the antibiotic will do.
Please make sure that Hoppsan gets plenty of fluid. Can you get herbal bladder tea from a pharmacy in Sweden? I have made good experiences with syringing some to bladder piggies to help flushing out bacteria. It is diuretic, so you need to make sure that Hoppsan also has got plenty of water. Fibreplex and rough brown cardboard may also help. Sometimes UTI boars can be more prone to have ongoing pain when pooping and peeing.

The medications you have been prescribed are the ones we would recommend anyway (bactrim contains the same active ingredient as the septrin you see mentioned for our UK members for urinary tract problems). Sometimes, antibiotics can kill the appetite. The duration of the course is fairly short as bactrim/septrin usually takes a bit longer to work than baytril, but it is more effective. What is the dosage he is on?

Thanks @Wiebke ! My husband just looked up the probiotics you've mentioned, seems it is contained in that processed sour milk the vet has suggested...But we can check further to see if it has a none milk based kind, also, the herbal bladder tea you've mentioned, are there any specific brands you would recommend? I'll give him a toilet paper roll right away if the cardboard could help! Hoppsan is drinking plenty and got extra veggies like green pepper and cucumber. He's dosage is 0.9mlx2 antibiotic per day and 0.37ml painkiller per day.

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks @Wiebke ! My husband just looked up the probiotics you've mentioned, seems it is contained in that processed sour milk the vet has suggested...But we can check further to see if it has a none milk based kind, also, the herbal bladder tea you've mentioned, are there any specific brands you would recommend? I'll give him a toilet paper roll right away if the cardboard could help! Hoppsan is drinking plenty and got extra veggies like green pepper and cucumber. He's dosage is 0.9mlx2 antibiotic per day and 0.37ml painkiller per day.

You can use any probiotic you can get hold off, but of avipro plus is being sold in Sweden, then that is the best to have home and ready for urinary piggies as it doesn't contain extra calcium. There are no bladder teas here in Britain; I bring mine home from Switzerland, so I have no idea what is available in Sweden! Something mildly diuretic would be ideal. It is sadly too early in the year for grass and dandelion. Cucumber and chopped stick celery as well as green lettuce are all mildly diuretic, too. Pepper is good for extra vitamin C. Just don't overdo diuretic stuff, so that the poo doesn't go soft or runny.

The dosage sounds like it is in the right ball park area, depending on Hoppsan's specific weight. I would recommend to split the metacam into two doses as the guinea pig metabolism is very quick.

 

[Hoppsan]

You can use any probiotic you can get hold off, but of avipro plus is being sold in Sweden, then that is the best to have home and ready for urinary piggies as it doesn't contain extra calcium. There are no bladder teas here in Britain; I bring mine home from Switzerland, so I have no idea what is available in Sweden! Something mildly diuretic would be ideal. It is sadly too early in the year for grass and dandelion. Cucumber and chopped stick celery as well as green lettuce are all mildly diuretic, too. Pepper is good for extra vitamin C. Just don't overdo diuretic stuff, so that the poo doesn't go soft or runny.

The dosage sounds like it is in the right ball park area, depending on Hoppsan's specific weight. I would recommend to split the metacam into two doses as the guinea pig metabolism is very quick.

Avipro plus looks promising, I'll also get him more roman salad and cucumbers (he only likes the crunchy skin, not the soft inside, picky pig!). As for the metacam, gee..he hates the smell of that stuff, one feed will make him grumpy already, I'll see what I can do...haha... Thanks again @Wiebke for your great advise!