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Emergency Unwell guinea piggy - lethargy, not eating and bloating.

MrsC2017

MrsC2017

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
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Location
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Hiya,
So we got up this morning & Rodney, 1 of our males is under the weather, didnt come for food as normal and just stayed hiding under the slope in his part of the house. We Offered differant food & he refused. Just lay there.
So I Seperated him from the girls till I got in from work this afternoon.
When I got home looked like he hadnt moved from where he was layed this morning. He had done toilet & was just lying in it. So I Took him out cleaned him with a wipe & his wee tummy was making allsorts of gurgling & not nice noises. He hadnt really touched the food I had left for him so I cut up an apple (his favourite) and he grabbed a bit to eat but after taking one small bite he wouldn't touch anymore of it.
Was really worried so called vet who checked him over, no urine infection, no temperature, no lumps or bumps, but defo bloated & off food, said could be a gastro problem, so gave him liquid zantac & high protein pellets to be mushed up. If any worse overnight tmrw straight bak, or if no worse or better in couple days to go bak, so will see how he gets on. Eyes are still bright & hes trying to move when you hold him. Otherwise he just lays there looking ever so sorry for himself. My poor Rodney,
Anyone any ideas what could be going on ? . 😔 x
 
MrsC2017 said:
Hiya,
So we got up this morning & Rodney, 1 of our males is under the weather, didnt come for food as normal and just stayed hiding under the slope in his part of the house. We Offered differant food & he refused. Just lay there.
So I Seperated him from the girls till I got in from work this afternoon.
When I got home looked like he hadnt moved from where he was layed this morning. He had done toilet & was just lying in it. So I Took him out cleaned him with a wipe & his wee tummy was making allsorts of gurgling & not nice noises. He hadnt really touched the food I had left for him so I cut up an apple (his favourite) and he grabbed a bit to eat but after taking one small bite he wouldn't touch anymore of it.
Was really worried so called vet who checked him over, no urine infection, no temperature, no lumps or bumps, but defo bloated & off food, said could be a gastro problem, so gave him liquid zantac & high protein pellets to be mushed up. If any worse overnight tmrw straight bak, or if no worse or better in couple days to go bak, so will see how he gets on. Eyes are still bright & hes trying to move when you hold him. Otherwise he just lays there looking ever so sorry for himself. My poor Rodney,
Anyone any ideas what could be going on ? . 😔 x
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Hi!
Please step in with syringe feeding and watering support asap to keep the guts moving. Mushed pellets will do until you can ge hold of recovery formula as long as you cut off the syringe tip as show in the guide.
This is absolutely VITAL if you want to be in with chance of pulling your piggy through! The poo output reflects what has gone in 1-2 days before and not what has happened today.
Please ALWAYS syringe any medication directly for best effect. Guinea pigs are not cats or dogs. They have a multiple of taste buds compared to them and double that of humans so that trick won't work.
Not Eating, Weight Loss Over 50g And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

There can be a wide number of reasons. A scan or x-ray may help to show up what is going on inside the body. has he checked for GI stasis (no gut movement) and acute heart failure?
It can lead to apathy very quickly, as I know myself and can be combined with bloating issues.
Bloat, Gi Stasis ( No Gut Movement) And Not Eating

However, all we can do is guess as much as you do without a hands-on examination and without any scans.

Fingers very firmly crossed!
 
Thank you. Wiebke,
I started giving syringe feeding and water since I got in this afternoon.
I mushed up the food the vet gave me for him and he started to take it, so yeah fingers definitely crossed he pulls through.
Will see how he goes the wee soul. X
 
MrsC2017 said:
Thank you. Wiebke,
I started giving syringe feeding and water since I got in this afternoon.
I mushed up the food the vet gave me for him and he started to take it, so yeah fingers definitely crossed he pulls through.
Will see how he goes the wee soul. X
Click to expand...

Please take the time to read the various guides I have linked in. You will hopefully find them helpful.
 
Poor Rodney I hope he gets better soon. I had to syringe feed Christian after his op every 2-3 hours day and night and it was exhausting so I know what you are going through @MrsC2017! Keep going even if he is difficult and doesn't want it. The first day the max I managed to get into Christian was 3.5ml every 2 hours then it went up to 9ml a couple of days later. Christian always told me he had had enough by putting his foot up and when he wanted more he would squeak. You'll soon get used to what Rodney is telling you. Just keep going it is difficult but sooooooo worth it. Christian and I had a love hate relationship before his op now we are both much closer and he means the world to me and I know he feels closer to me than he did before.
 
Wiebke said:
Please take the time to read the various guides I have linked in. You will hopefully find them helpful.
Click to expand...

Yeah I have started reading through them already, also I Appreciate all your advice & you taking time to answer. Thank you so much. X
 
Betsy said:
Poor Rodney I hope he gets better soon. I had to syringe feed Christian after his op every 2-3 hours day and night and it was exhausting so I know what you are going through @MrsC2017! Keep going even if he is difficult and doesn't want it. The first day the max I managed to get into Christian was 3.5ml every 2 hours then it went up to 9ml a couple of days later. Christian always told me he had had enough by putting his foot up and when he wanted more he would squeak. You'll soon get used to what Rodney is telling you. Just keep going it is difficult but sooooooo worth it. Christian and I had a love hate relationship before his op now we are both much closer and he means the world to me and I know he feels closer to me than he did before.
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I will do Betsy thank you so much. I have had to do this b4 for Rodney when he had a urine infection after a wee op last year. He really fell out with me but we did get him healthy again. Just hope he pulls through again. He's a wee fighter, so fingers crossed hes gonna be ok. X
 
Merab's Slave said:
How is Rodney today?
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Hi Merab's Slave,
He's actually perked up today. Was out for a feed this morning & got his Zantac, so just seeing how he's going, but he's loving all the attention from his 2 girls since he got bak. I think they missed him too. Was alot of noise & sniffing & chating till late last night when he got bak. But he's so much better than yesterday. Thank you so much for asking after him. Xx20180619_174758.webp20180619_174826.webp20180619_174016.webp
 
rhymer said:
Hope little Rodney is doing OK. Sending you hugs.xx
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He's doing better today thank you rhymer, just a matter of keeping an eye on him & see how he goes, but he's eating again & up and about. So fingers crossed.X
 
MrsC2017 said:
Hi Merab's Slave,
He's actually perked up today. Was out for a feed this morning & got his Zantac, so just seeing how he's going, but he's loving all the attention from his 2 girls since he got bak. I think they missed him too. Was alot of noise & sniffing & chating till late last night when he got bak. But he's so much better than yesterday. Thank you so much for asking after him. XxView attachment 89379View attachment 89378View attachment 89380
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Glad to hear that he is better! Please continue with his zantac for some days and continue to monitor his weight/food intake and top him up with extra feed if necessary. Be very careful with veg.


It can take days and weeks for the digestion to settle fully down after bloating, so please contact your vet promptly if there is returning or recurring problem.
 
Wiebke said:
Glad to hear that he is better! Please continue with his zantac for some days and continue to monitor his weight/food intake and top him up with extra feed if necessary. Be very careful with veg.


It can take days and weeks for the digestion to settle fully down after bloating, so please contact your vet promptly if there is returning or recurring problem.
Click to expand...

I will do no probs. He's to be on Zantac for nxt 5 days vet said and hes getting Excel Dual care prebiotic support nuggets to be softened for syringe feeding. So see how he goes Wiebke, vet said any doubts go straight bak so thays the plan for nxt while and see how he does from there, but am glad he's perked up a little. He had a little floortime while I cleaned his cage today so all good for moment. X
 
MrsC2017 said:
I will do no probs. He's to be on Zantac for nxt 5 days vet said and hes getting Excel Dual care prebiotic support nuggets to be softened for syringe feeding. So see how he goes Wiebke, vet said any doubts go straight bak so thays the plan for nxt while and see how he does from there, but am glad he's perked up a little. He had a little floortime while I cleaned his cage today so all good for moment. X
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Keep him with his group as much as possible unless he is being actively bullied; that is much less stressful for him - needs the support of his mates more than ever! I even leave piggies in heart or multi-organ failure as much with their mates as they wish to.
If they remove themselves from the group, then it is OK to separate. As long as they don't, keep them together and even take them to the vet with one or two companions. The same goes for operation recovery. ;)
Tips For Vet Visits

All the best!
 
Y
Wiebke said:
Keep him with his group as much as possible unless he is being actively bullied; that is much less stressful for him - needs the support of his mates more than ever! I even leave piggies in heart or multi-organ failure as much with their mates as they wish to.
If they remove themselves from the group, then it is OK to separate. As long as they don't, keep them together and even take them to the vet with one or two companions. The same goes for operation recovery. ;)
Tips For Vet Visits

All the best!
Click to expand...
Yeah he's been back in with his girls since last night when we got home. He was only away a short time but they're making such a fuss of him & he's loving every minute of it. Its unusual for them to lie together sleeping anytime but you can see they're doing it in the pics I posted earlier, was really touching to witness how affectionate they're being towards him. Little cuties the lot of them. 😁 x
 
Update on Rodney -
Still comming on well and comming out more getting back to his wee self again. Still on meds & dual care for next few days but doing better each day. Fingers crossed doesnt happen again, but been reading alot of the advice & info threads & stories so learned alot in last few days and took it all onboard to best help Rodney for future. X
 
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