My sick piggie

[eroomlorac]

Here is the first thread on my new piggies.

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11107

My dark colored little piggie is still thin and still not eating on her own. She is gaining weight very slowing but that is probably due to handfeeding. She gets fed 5 times a day as much Critical Care as she'll eat, which is usually about 8 ml. I leave a bowl of Critical Care in her cage as she seems to sometimes lap it up. Her teeth look okay and she is very young so I don't think it's root elongation. I took her to the vet again Monday and her x-rays showed the obstruction is gone. It was probably seeds and lack of fiber that obstructed her. But she is still not eating. I started adding some Vit. C in with her Critical Care. I'm also adding pumpkin in with her Critical Care, too. The vet says she doesn't appear to be in pain, and I agree, she doesn't. I am going to continue to hand feed her until she either improves or begins to lose weight again. I may have to opt to have her euthanised if she doesn't start eating on her own. I don't know what else to do. Does anyone have any ideas or experiences that might help me and my beloved little piggie.

 

[Sasha]

I'm so sorry about your piggie, Carol. I hope she will pull around. I don't have any advise as I am not familiar with them, but I know some added acidophilus to the CC could help with the gut issues, if you were not already doing that.

Good luck with her!

 

[eroomlorac]

No, I am not doing that but I will get some acidophilus on the way home from work in the morning. She is on STD antibiotics and Reglan from the first vet visit. The vet suggested continuing the Reglan for a few more days and run the full course of the antibiotics. The vet prescribed antibiotics because she said sometimes bacteria starts to grow in the belly if there stasis. Maybe the little piggie does need acidophilus from taking the antibiotics. I just wish so bad she'd get well.

 

[Essentia]

You may want to feed her CC with the added acidophilus, but cut back on the amount a little each day. I had to hand feed Buttons (chinnie) for 2 weeks when he was on Baytril and he go a little addicted to the CC. For the next week I had to cut back to basically nothing to get him to eat on his own, but he did. Her belly is probably pretty full from the CC so she isn't hungry enough to eat on her own.

That's the only thing I can think of if the obstruction is gone.

 

[tunes]

Carol, ask Megan for the name of a good GP forum. I'm pretty sure she knows a couple. Much like here, their focus is on their own breed of animal, so you may find a lot more help there than here.

I don't think I would cut her back on the critical care just yet. If she's still so thin, she needs it and it doesn't sound like she's eating very much anyway. 8 mL isn't enough to sustain a chin for one feeding, let alone a whole day. But I would definitely find a board that specializes in GPs and see if they can offer more insight.

 

[eroomlorac]

Okay, I will do that, Tunes. Just to clarify, she is getting about 8 mls 5 times a day. More if she'll eat more. She is not a full grown piggie. I don't know her exact age but she is definitely not full sized. She is pretty small, I'd say about 3 months or so. (?)


I have been referring to www.guinealynx.com Kristy recommended www.paw-talk.com but I can't join them because I use hotmail for my email. They will not permit you to register if you use a 'free' email. *shrugs*

 

[tunes]

Paw-Talk is a nice forum, but it's too spread out for me. They want to discuss every animal under the sun. I think you would be better off going to a forum that is just GPs rather than everything but the kitchen sink.

Guinealynx is where Meanie referred me to when I had questions about Emo. Since part of her rescue is GPs, I figured that was a good one to start with.

 

[eroomlorac]

Thank you, Tunes. I have been reading guineapiglynx quite extensively. Piggie is still very thin but she definitely looks perkier. Just now she ate 12 mls of Critical Care with pumpkin and Vit. C in it. Then we snuggled and I talked to her for a little bit. When I put her back in her cage she stopped and put her front paws on the bowl of greens I have in there. She didn't eat any but she did look a little more interested than I'd ever seen.


Thank you for your suggestions.

 

[Chinnies]

When Henry had his gut problems, Bene-Bac was his best friend. It helped put him back on track quite quickly. It was amazing. He had been so scrawny and sickly.

What food and veggies are you trying to feed them? You may need to shop around in order to find something she'll like. However, she could just not have her appetite back from her problems she had and will likely turn around soon.

You're doing a great job! Hang in there. There were several nights where I would wonder if I was doing the right thing for my little guy but it all turned out okay and he is the happiest piggie.

 

[CutiePieAcres]

Sounds like your doing all the right things and you just have to keep up with it. Other things I offer are oats and cilantro or green leaf lettuce or a small slice of apple. Anything you can get them to eat on their own will help move things along and the fresh veggies are sometimes just too tempting. Romaine lettuce will give them extra hydration you can even soak it in water. Obviously keep trying to offer pellets and hay, its probably something she inst used to and while its so much better for her guinea pigs get hooked on the junk seed diets. I hope she feels better soon, sounds like you found her just in time.

 

[eroomlorac]

I have been offering her kale, parsley and spring greens (from the bagged lettuce area in the produce section). I have read those are all higher in Vit. C. I also leave a bowl of moistened pellets and pumpkin in her cage at all times hoping she'll lick at that. I'll just keep at it. After I feed her we gently rock in the rocking chair and we have a little talk. She is absolutely adorable.

Thank you all for all your help.

 

[CutiePieAcres]

sounds good! The only green I don't offer any of my pigs is parsley because of the super high oxalic acid content. Red bell(sweet) pepper is really great for Vit. C content but some pigs don't really like it.

 

[Chinnies]

Try to offer her some green [bell] pepper. They are a hit around here and nearly every other cavy owner I've spoken with doesn't have a single pig that will turn their nose to it. Our pigs shriek all night long if it's not included in their nightly veggies.

Also make sure you're offering plenty of hay. She might be nibbling at it, even if you don't see her. Try doing a mixture of Oxbow Western Timothy and Orchard Grass. The orchard grass has a bit of a sweeter smell and is usually very enticing!

It's obvious that she's not used to all the delicious things you are giving her, so it may take her some time to realize that what you are giving her is her food. Our pigs were the same way for awhile (gotta love those crappy, seeded bags that people feed their pets!).

 

[Sasha]

I'm not sure if piggies are as sensitive to sugar as chins are but Bene-bac contains dextrose and sucrose. May be better to just get a high cell count powder acidophilus/lactobacillus and add it to the CC that she is already eating to eliminate any of those extra ingredients that Bene-bac includes.

 

[Chinnies]

Pigs are sensitive to sugar; however, my vet was the one who recommended the Bene-Bac to me since his case was such a dire one. We had tried a few other solutions first, but when they didn't work she told me to put him on Bene-Bac. Obviously, you need to use less than what is recommended on the bottle, but it worked wonders for him. Every time his tummy gets upset [he's a "special" pig and will always have this issue] we sprinkle a small bit of BB on his veggies and it's cleared up the next day.

I only recommend BB so highly in special cases because it saved my little guy's life.

 

[eroomlorac]

sounds good! The only green I don't offer any of my pigs is parsley because of the super high oxalic acid content. Red bell(sweet) pepper is really great for Vit. C content but some pigs don't really like it.

Yikes!! I have been giving her and her 'sister' parsley. I'll stop that immediately. I do have two green peppers I will try with them. They do have hay available at all times, pellets and the sick girl gets a bowl of moistened pellets in between feedings.

Thank you, everyone, for all your great ideas and suggestions.