Hi all! I have a 6 year old boy named Pikachu. Before I start, I want to say that Pikachu did see the exotic vet today and has another appointment first thing in the morning. I'm just looking for some additional insight before we go back tomorrow.
This morning around 7AM I saw Pikachu acting 100% normal as usual while I got ready for work. Around 3PM, I went to see him and noticed he was laying half in, half out of his little hideaway which is on the highest level of his cage. His back half still inside with his front half hanging out and he was laying his head on the shelf. My boyfriend went to touch him to see if he was okay which startled him and he fell off the shelf all the way to the bottom of his cage. We noticed he wouldn't move, especially his back half and we were afraid he may have had a stroke and/or gotten injured from the fall. We called the exotic vet and they were able to get us in right away, so we got him there in about 30 minutes.
When we got him to the vet, she examined him and said he felt extremely full of gas which is probably why he wouldn't move his lower half from the pain. She also said he has a heart murmur but I suppose that's another issue for another time right now. They gave the poor guy pain medication and then took his temperature and it was really low. It was about 94 or 95 and should be around 100, so they got him under a heat lamp. Then they did an xray and could see that basically his whole GI tract is blocked up and not moving along, HOWEVER, Pikachu is still pooping completely normal. The vet almost did not believe us until she saw that he was making little poops on the table and in the container they had him in, and they look completely normal/healthy. The vet was also surprised at how sudden onset his condition is. He had been acting and eating/drinking completely normally until 7 hours before this post. In fact, last night (about 24 hours ago) we let him out for some play time and a dust bath and he was as energetic as any other time.
So basically, they couldn't determine why exactly his GI tract isn't moving along, yet he is still pooping normally. At this point it was past their closing time (we had an emergency visit and got to pay that extra $$$), so they sent us home with 4 oral meds, and an injectable pain medication. We have him in a temporary cage with a blanket and a heating pad underneath to keep him warm for now until we go back tomorrow morning.
Anyway, just wondering if anyone can offer some insight. Everything online regarding bloating and such refers to the chin not being able to poop also, so our boy seems to be a difficult case. Thanks in advance
This morning around 7AM I saw Pikachu acting 100% normal as usual while I got ready for work. Around 3PM, I went to see him and noticed he was laying half in, half out of his little hideaway which is on the highest level of his cage. His back half still inside with his front half hanging out and he was laying his head on the shelf. My boyfriend went to touch him to see if he was okay which startled him and he fell off the shelf all the way to the bottom of his cage. We noticed he wouldn't move, especially his back half and we were afraid he may have had a stroke and/or gotten injured from the fall. We called the exotic vet and they were able to get us in right away, so we got him there in about 30 minutes.
When we got him to the vet, she examined him and said he felt extremely full of gas which is probably why he wouldn't move his lower half from the pain. She also said he has a heart murmur but I suppose that's another issue for another time right now. They gave the poor guy pain medication and then took his temperature and it was really low. It was about 94 or 95 and should be around 100, so they got him under a heat lamp. Then they did an xray and could see that basically his whole GI tract is blocked up and not moving along, HOWEVER, Pikachu is still pooping completely normal. The vet almost did not believe us until she saw that he was making little poops on the table and in the container they had him in, and they look completely normal/healthy. The vet was also surprised at how sudden onset his condition is. He had been acting and eating/drinking completely normally until 7 hours before this post. In fact, last night (about 24 hours ago) we let him out for some play time and a dust bath and he was as energetic as any other time.
So basically, they couldn't determine why exactly his GI tract isn't moving along, yet he is still pooping normally. At this point it was past their closing time (we had an emergency visit and got to pay that extra $$$), so they sent us home with 4 oral meds, and an injectable pain medication. We have him in a temporary cage with a blanket and a heating pad underneath to keep him warm for now until we go back tomorrow morning.
Anyway, just wondering if anyone can offer some insight. Everything online regarding bloating and such refers to the chin not being able to poop also, so our boy seems to be a difficult case. Thanks in advance
