Tip: offer syringed water even if you feel your pigs don't need it

[cookie_ladyfriend]

I have come to this forum a few times when I felt desperate and needed help for my pigs, so I felt it important that I share this tip that I've accidentally stumbled into.

tldr: offer syringed water, more frequently and greater amounts than you would think they'd need.

story:

My sweet girl Pepper (5.5 years old) went from 1100g to ~830g, over the course of six months, having regular spells of going into her hidey and wincing in pain. We could not find the real issue, even going so far as to sedate her to do a teeth inspection. She did have teeth issues which the vet deemed impossible to treat, but I felt this was not the true cause. It broke my heart to watch her health and weight dwindle, while not being able to do anything about it.

She suffered from recurring bloating that seemed to come out of nowhere, and couldn't be tied down to too much veg. During these, she would swell up like a balloon, and once a day (overnight generally) would poop a tiny stringy poop. Very unhealthy looking. Standard bloating treatment (gripe water, activated charcoal, benebac gel, massage the gut) did work, but took considerable effort. I'm sure many of you know this better than I do.

Through all this, she always had access to water, and when she was lethargic, I moved the 2nd and 3rd bottles close to her, and lowered them so she wouldn't have to reach. I even gave her a bowl, which she looked at with complete disinterest. I watched her (awkwardly) drink from the bottles. My point is water never seemed like it would be an issue.

Symptoms started piling up. She's always had a head tilt, but it became much more pronounced. Her left eye began to get gunky. A few weeks later, her left front paw seemed to stop working. I thought it could be a soft tissue injury, but it did not heal. And a few days ago her left back paw mostly stopped working (I noticed it sticking out at weird angles from her body), on top of the worst case of bloating she's experienced. I was beside myself. I took her to my bed and put her on my chest and cried and apologized to her. I thought for sure I would have to make a hard decision to do what's right for her.

I continued treating the bloating, and syringed her some charcoal water that accidentally had too much charcoal powder. So I returned with a 1ml syringe of water, and she gulped it down. I gave her another, and another. Eventually I switched to my 100ml syringe and she drank EIGHTY ml. I could not believe it. Straight up glug glug glug, almost like I was just funneling it into her little mouth. I kept giving her as much water as she wanted, and she seemed to want endless amounts. And the water seems to have revitalized her in a way that is blowing my mind. Her gut seems to have completely recovered, she is pooping like she did years ago, her coat looks healthier, and for the first time in almost a year, she ate hay for the entire day. When I heard her shriek at me for food, I literally wept at how wonderful it was to hear her voice again. And she has been more vocal since then than in a really long time.

I made this water discovery three days ago, and have been syringing water to all my pigs ever since. Pepper continues to drink from the syringe like she's been in the desert. She still has problems, but guys, I have not seen her wince in pain for for 48 hours. Her mobility is still limited, but her energy is 100% changed for the better. I don't know how much time this bought us, but to see such a simple solution bring about such a drastic turnaround to me feels like an absolute miracle, for which I am so grateful.

I really hope this info helps someone else.
Also, please never force them to drink. She drank because she was thirsty.

 

[Truffolo]

Thank you for sharing this, it is very interesting. I'm glad to hear that Pepper is better and enjoying her food again I want to practice some syringe feeding with water as soon as I can as I think getting them used to the syringe is a good thing. If it is away of offering more accessible hydration (if they want it) that is a good thing too.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi

I am very glad that you have got your piggy out of overdosing on charcoal, which is very fluid absorbent and can lead to dehydration if done inexpertly at home and that Pepper has made a full recovery.

Key with watering piggies off their food is always drinking voluntary and not just squirting water into a piggy's mouth because overhydration can be deadlier than dehydration; not to mention the risk of any fluid or food going into the airways. That is why vet inject fluid under the skin and not orally.

I offer water very frequently in between syringe feeds as I'd rather they drink little but more often (meaning that they are not becoming all that deydrated) and with those who have lost both appetite and the need to drink I drizzle in just a very little water after every syringe; enough that they still have the strength to swallow but not enough to go up the nose or down into bronchia or lungs.
The need to drink comes before the need to eat, by the way, so a piggy that is still eating partially will also drink on their own as well and will not need to have any water forced into them.

May I also emphasise again that while the need to also water a piggy off their food is paramount in order to avoid dehydration, your case and the massive amount of water drunk are not representative of normal syringe feeding support during illness and that as a forum we do not support the use of charcoal on spec at home because of the inherent risks, which you have illustrated.