dishrag hog - Tex is sick... again
- Thread starter smhufflepuff
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lauralynne
Chinnie Maid
How is Texie doing?
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
He's a bit floppy. Like Satin when she was recovering after sedation, but with a touch more spunk. It's not altogether different than how he arrived here from Texas.
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
We'll be calling his doctor tomorrow. I don't think meds are doing the trick. I just found him out in the open under the light again.
Not sure we can safely get more info on him though... What to do...what to do? Consult the doc, I guess...
Not sure we can safely get more info on him though... What to do...what to do? Consult the doc, I guess...
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
Okay... guess who was wide awake and running around his cage after so much time off? Running so much he has bloody feet...
Yeah... that's Tex.
I can barely hold him and type. He's busy exploring... everything.
Yeah... that's Tex.
I can barely hold him and type. He's busy exploring... everything.
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
Funny thing... he's just started an 8-day vacation. So I have a message into girldoc describing what's up with Tex.
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
Yeah, seriously, doc is not allowed to have a personal life. Or, rather, yes he can, but it needs to be on the hedgehogs' timetable.
Girldoc is optimistic that the meds are finally kicking in... seems to be within the window of medical possibility. Sooo... we'll hang tight, hope he continues to look good this evening.
Girldoc is optimistic that the meds are finally kicking in... seems to be within the window of medical possibility. Sooo... we'll hang tight, hope he continues to look good this evening.
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
found the problem... looks like his left eye is about to pop out of his head.....
momenteller
Well-known member
Just saw Jonathan's post on FB. 
I'm so sorry, poor Tex! Sending good thoughts...
I'm so sorry, poor Tex! Sending good thoughts...
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
For anyone following the adventures of Mr. Tex Buckaroo Hufflepuff at 2am:
We're back from the e-vet. Little man scratched his cornea. His eye settled back into place; he can blink and no longer looks like he has graves disease of the left eye. But wow, what a raggedy-looking ulceration. For the time-being, we have pain meds and eyedrops to address the ulceration. Bigger question though: what caused this all to happen in the first place? He's all tender behind his ear - fuffs at me when I touch it. He's down to 420g from 450g at the beginning of the week.
Just gave him his meds and he's munching on kibbles like nothing happened.
Little man is a rollercoaster.
Doc, come back!!!
We're back from the e-vet. Little man scratched his cornea. His eye settled back into place; he can blink and no longer looks like he has graves disease of the left eye. But wow, what a raggedy-looking ulceration. For the time-being, we have pain meds and eyedrops to address the ulceration. Bigger question though: what caused this all to happen in the first place? He's all tender behind his ear - fuffs at me when I touch it. He's down to 420g from 450g at the beginning of the week.
Just gave him his meds and he's munching on kibbles like nothing happened.
Little man is a rollercoaster.
Doc, come back!!!
I have to really wonder about an inner ear infection or something causing the ear to be painful.
When Cooper had his inner ear infections, he was very tender around his ear, and would scratch at it a lot. Occasionally would miss the ear and scratch around his eye, I was worried he would scratch the eye itself and cause damage there... thankfully he didn't.
Cooper also twitched his ear a lot when he was trying to rest, it was just painful.
When Cooper had his inner ear infections, he was very tender around his ear, and would scratch at it a lot. Occasionally would miss the ear and scratch around his eye, I was worried he would scratch the eye itself and cause damage there... thankfully he didn't.
Cooper also twitched his ear a lot when he was trying to rest, it was just painful.
Nancy
Hooked on Hogs
Gad, poor little Tex. He just can't catch a break.
An ear infection often throws them off their food too because it hurts to crunch. Also shaking their head, tilting their head, twitching their ear as Julie mentioned, and Roll dug his ear bloody.
I don't know if you remember when our Emma dug her eye out. We never did figure out why and she had no symptoms of anything before hand nor after.
Sending him continued prayers.
An ear infection often throws them off their food too because it hurts to crunch. Also shaking their head, tilting their head, twitching their ear as Julie mentioned, and Roll dug his ear bloody.
I don't know if you remember when our Emma dug her eye out. We never did figure out why and she had no symptoms of anything before hand nor after.
Sending him continued prayers.
Dragonflye
Well-known member
Awww, poor little guy. Sending healing thoughts.
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
Thanks everyone for your comments and well wishes for Tex. Little man can certainly use any and all positive vibes. I'm hoping this is all pointing to an inner ear infection that the meds are addressing.
I took Wednesday through Friday off work and sat with him for hours on end... day and night. Yeah... I am that concernd about this little boy. He didn't shake, twitch, scratch, or otherwise do anything differently with his ear that would lead me definitively down the track of ear infection. On top of which his doc took a good look at his ears on Sunday and they looked healthy from what he could see with his little otoscope.
But, still, I've been thinking ear (while also worrying about the possibilities of brain infection that doc mentioned and tumors): the leaning against his cage wall while eating; not wheeling; the slightly reddened spot behind his one ear and fuffing at me when I touched it last Saturday night.. It all did prompt me to bring him back to his vet Sunday morning. Of course, by morning, it looked (and he behaved) completely normally. Well "normally" for his current state... the lethargic self. Just, again, nothing ear-related detected during the visit.
And then last night he was looking pretty good... Even a touch increased energy... He looked a little pink behind his ear, but so subtle that I couldn't tell if I was just "seeing" my projected worries onto the spot or if there was something there. HD looked too... Still didn't point to "there's a problem" until I checked on him right before my bedtime.
Thought I'd give him and extra snuggle and then trundle off to bed. Instead, there he stood at ~11pm, scratching just above his bulging eye. I couldn't see his eyelids on that side; just that tiny angry red spot where his upper eyelid should have been that prompted the whole e-vet epiosode (so far, I'll give a thumbs up to the emergency vet at AEC in Novi). And, aside from his eye looking torn up (the doctor dyed it and looked carefully... it's like he tore off the outer layer of his eyeball in a spot rather than outright gouging himself), he was behaving completely normally there and again at home today.
He took his regular antibiotics and eyedrop like a champ this evening. I'll get up in the wee hours of the morning to get him his Metacam. I'm hoping that it will address not just the eye that I have to imagine hurts like the dickens (I had a fingernail to the cornea in '84... still hurts just thinking about it), but will also address whatever pain/irritation may be going on with his ear that caused the scratching in the first place.
Other than these past two nights, he's been eating his kibbles pretty well. And I've been giving him baby food (sometimes meat; sometimes veggie) so that I know he has food in his belly before giving him meds.
A super-happy: this morning I found a poopflake in his wheel. One entire poopflake. You know: when they've run over the same poop so many times that it's flattened almost paper-thin... like fish food, except it's hedgie poop? Fortunately, I haven't gone so overboard that I framed it or anything... just washed it down the sink when I WASHED HIS WHEEL!!!! The first time in weeks that it really warranted me bringing it down to the sink and giving it a scrub Mind you, it wasn't his regular mess by any means... we're talking about a single, solitary poopflake. But, you know what? I'll take that and celebrate it.
I took Wednesday through Friday off work and sat with him for hours on end... day and night. Yeah... I am that concernd about this little boy. He didn't shake, twitch, scratch, or otherwise do anything differently with his ear that would lead me definitively down the track of ear infection. On top of which his doc took a good look at his ears on Sunday and they looked healthy from what he could see with his little otoscope.
But, still, I've been thinking ear (while also worrying about the possibilities of brain infection that doc mentioned and tumors): the leaning against his cage wall while eating; not wheeling; the slightly reddened spot behind his one ear and fuffing at me when I touched it last Saturday night.. It all did prompt me to bring him back to his vet Sunday morning. Of course, by morning, it looked (and he behaved) completely normally. Well "normally" for his current state... the lethargic self. Just, again, nothing ear-related detected during the visit.
And then last night he was looking pretty good... Even a touch increased energy... He looked a little pink behind his ear, but so subtle that I couldn't tell if I was just "seeing" my projected worries onto the spot or if there was something there. HD looked too... Still didn't point to "there's a problem" until I checked on him right before my bedtime.
Thought I'd give him and extra snuggle and then trundle off to bed. Instead, there he stood at ~11pm, scratching just above his bulging eye. I couldn't see his eyelids on that side; just that tiny angry red spot where his upper eyelid should have been that prompted the whole e-vet epiosode (so far, I'll give a thumbs up to the emergency vet at AEC in Novi). And, aside from his eye looking torn up (the doctor dyed it and looked carefully... it's like he tore off the outer layer of his eyeball in a spot rather than outright gouging himself), he was behaving completely normally there and again at home today.
He took his regular antibiotics and eyedrop like a champ this evening. I'll get up in the wee hours of the morning to get him his Metacam. I'm hoping that it will address not just the eye that I have to imagine hurts like the dickens (I had a fingernail to the cornea in '84... still hurts just thinking about it), but will also address whatever pain/irritation may be going on with his ear that caused the scratching in the first place.
Other than these past two nights, he's been eating his kibbles pretty well. And I've been giving him baby food (sometimes meat; sometimes veggie) so that I know he has food in his belly before giving him meds.
A super-happy: this morning I found a poopflake in his wheel. One entire poopflake. You know: when they've run over the same poop so many times that it's flattened almost paper-thin... like fish food, except it's hedgie poop? Fortunately, I haven't gone so overboard that I framed it or anything... just washed it down the sink when I WASHED HIS WHEEL!!!! The first time in weeks that it really warranted me bringing it down to the sink and giving it a scrub
Mind you, it wasn't his regular mess by any means... we're talking about a single, solitary poopflake. But, you know what? I'll take that and celebrate it.
smhufflepuff
super-duper hedgiepig
Okay... next piece: I've been watching Tex stand in my hands differently these past few weeks. Initially, I made note of it and regarded it as more of a preference. I'm thinking of it as less of a preference now... his back legs are decidedly more stiff. He appears to have full (near full?) range of motion, but it's not as fluid as with his front legs. He has more of a crescent-shape to his rear end... not all the time.. but enough that I can't dismiss it as just a passing body habitus. And there's the unsteady gait, etc... He appears less lethargic, but there's so much that's just "off"...
Hasn't had kibbles for the better part of a week... we're onto Blue Buffalo chicken today. He'll only eat it from my fingers. Just like the baby food - 2 years and he'll eat it from an oral syringe, but not from a dish. Funny little guy. I just hope I'm giving the amount right since he's turned those decisions over to me! This morning he was down to 410g. I think I need the equivalent of a mother hedgehog for him to suckle from. Where's a good wet nurse(hog) when you need one?!
Talked with his doctor today (girldoc) and we're going to go ahead with blood work on Thursday.
In retrospect, I'm thinking I should have saved that one poopflake :/
Hasn't had kibbles for the better part of a week... we're onto Blue Buffalo chicken today. He'll only eat it from my fingers. Just like the baby food - 2 years and he'll eat it from an oral syringe, but not from a dish. Funny little guy. I just hope I'm giving the amount right since he's turned those decisions over to me! This morning he was down to 410g. I think I need the equivalent of a mother hedgehog for him to suckle from. Where's a good wet nurse(hog) when you need one?!
Talked with his doctor today (girldoc) and we're going to go ahead with blood work on Thursday.
In retrospect, I'm thinking I should have saved that one poopflake :/
Raindog
Well-known member
Dear Tex,
Oh sweet little hedgie, I hope you start feeling better soon. Sending you lots of love and prayers.
Oh sweet little hedgie, I hope you start feeling better soon. Sending you lots of love and prayers.
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