Vet Talwar's Medical thread

[4boipigs]

I didn’t see an ‘ears’ prefix so I went with the next best thing.

I noticed Talwar has some mildly dirty ears. I tried to get some good pics. He has spotty areas of debris in his ears and some little black ‘dots’. I did see him scratching his left ear but it is not bad by any means. His left ear is black so I can’t see any junk in there easily.

Should I book a vet visit or is this something to not worry about?

 

[ItsaZoo]

I would see a vet and get the ears cleaned and checked. I don’t mean to be an alarmist, but I recently lost Gidget to persistent ear infections and back-to-back URIs. She had a history of ear infections and was diagnosed with head tilt and permanent changes to her ear canals. Symptoms would start with a twitchy ear and quickly progress to inner ear infection and balance issues. A vet should check the ear canal, ear drum, and if they can’t see the ear drum, flush with an antibacterial and anti fungal to remove debris and make sure there is no pus or blockage.

 

[bpatters]

While you're at it, get the vet to show you how to clean the ears.

 

[4boipigs]

I checked Maple Leaf and Trishula, and they also have black gunk in their ears. I used qtips and went thru everyone's ears. Gungnir had a lot of reddish, thick build up in one ear. He is a teddie/sheltie and apparently ear build-up is common for them. I haven't checked my foster yet.

 

[4boipigs]

We went to the vet today. The issue hasn't gotten worse since the original post. Same amount of black junk and a little bit of scratching. Imagine my surprise when the dr said his ears were blocked! He had some yeast and bacteria in his ears, so we have meds now. I wish there was a way I could have known it was that bad and to not wait.

 

[4boipigs]

Poor Talwar does not like the ear drops. He completely FLIPPED OUT tonight. This morning he was fine but this time he went into a full blown panic like I was trying to kill him. He darted away faster than I could catch him, trying to jump the grids and go back into his cage. It was insane. How can I make him accept his fate? I'm guessing the sensation of the drops in his ears made him panic.

 

[ItsaZoo]

It’s not easy to put drops in their ears. I think the cold sensation is part of the problem. When I had to give mine ear drops I would wrap her in a towel and place her on a counter top. Then hold her up against me so one ear was exposed and quick put the drops in. Also, I used an eye dropper or syringe rather than the dropper bottle the vet gave me. The bottle dripped all over.

 

[Guinea Pig Papa]

Simon didn't like it either, I had to hold his head and massage the ear or he would start shaking his head. He didn't flip out quite like Talwar did, but he did start backing up until he hit a corner on the couch.

 

[4boipigs]

He did better this morning when I wrapped him up in my robe that he loves to hide in. He still panicked but did better when he was able to escape into my robe. His heart races so hard that I can feel it when I hold him. Maybe I'll try some treats next time. It has to be done twice a day.

 

[Guinea Pig Papa]

Treats would be a fantastic distraction. I would hazard a guess that it might completely eliminate his issue.

 

[4boipigs]

Treats didn’t work. He got too scared to eat. He is doing a bit better but last night he still vaulted off me and flew over the grids into his cage. He hates being out of his cage. Good thing it is temporary.

 

[4boipigs]

Vet said last week that his ears are fine now however he lost a lot of weight. I don’t remember what he was at the visit for his ears but now he is 860ish. It was enough weight to concern the vet. He is around a year and has always been small. He hasn’t had any behavior changes or anything to indicate he is ill. Will monitor for now.

Everyone else is a normal weight. As he is in a divided cage, there is no one to steal food.

 

[4boipigs]

Weight -
June 17: 904
July 28: 868

I did weigh him the other day but I got what it was in - in the 860 range I think. So I'll be weighing him more often and giving him more food. Of course I will return to our vet if the weight keeps dropping.

 

[Guinea Pig Papa]

36 g in 6 weeks is nothing. In fact 36 g in a week isn't really even a cause for concern.

 

[spy9doc]

I agree with GPP in that 36gm might just be a good poop or two. I've had cavies whose weight was yo-yo like, and others whose weight stayed about the same. I hadn't weighed Rafi in more than a month, and today he was within about 8gm. of where he was nearly six weeks ago. He rarely varies much.

All of us humans probably vary quite a bit from time to time.......I know I do. Cavies are no different.

As an aside, I've never had a cavy who would tolerate having their ears cleaned. Rafi has black ears and it's impossible to see much. Just learn how to clean them and where. You have to be quick because you likely won't get a second opportunity in the same session.

I suspect that one reason Rafi gets so upset is that I do ALL the grooming chores at the same time,.
I'm going to try only half the work in one session.......too much trauma at once.

 

[4boipigs]

May as well change the name on this thread to Talwar’s med thread…kiddo has had noisy breathing and increased respiratory effort. Wanted to act like it was nothing given his age but surprise! He has pneumonia. Luckily he is still acting normal otherwise - wouldn’t be able to tell he was ill if it wasn’t for his breathing.

 

[4boipigs]

So Taltal's meds won't be here til Tuesday most likely because they had to be compounded and the pharmacy was super slow to reply to me on Saturday. He is acting fine but I dislike him struggling to breath. It was suggested I could try a humidifer, which I do have (a brand new one we never used). Since they are under a table, I set the humidifer next to the cage and the mist hits the table and billows into his cage. No clue if it's actually helping. I am not leaving it on 24/7, just for half an hour or so. Can I do anything else to aid him?

 

[ItsaZoo]

When my Gidget had a URI and congestion, the vet told me to try a steam tent. I filled a dish pan with hot water and set it in the sink. Then I put towels in a dish drainer across the sink, put Gidget on the towels, and then draped a towel over the whole thing.

I kept one hand in there at all times and kept checking so she was getting steam but not overheating. I did this 10-15 minutes a couple times a day and it helped her breathe better.

 

[bpatters]

You can use a plastic box to make an inhalation tent. I always used a clear plastic filing box.

Put something absorbent in the bottom in case he pees, put some hay or snacks in, and run the nebulizer tube down into the box and tape it to the side. Put the pig in, and put a heavy folded towel over the top as a lid. Works like a charm.

 

[4boipigs]

@bpatters or @GuineaPigPapa (who I can't tag???), will you please change the title to Talwar's medical thread?

His meds finally shipped and should arrive tomorrow. I asked the vet for something to get him started, and we picked up some Sulfatrim. To elaborate on his diagnosis, our dr wanted to treat him as pneumonia possibly caused by bordetella. Our compounded meds are a baytril/doxy combo. Interestingly, she stated that furosemide would thicken his 'secretions' so she didn't give us any. I googled this as it was new to me, but it seems it is true that in human patients, furosemide is not recommended for pneumonia patients.

So, if he doesn't improve, I'll be back at the vet on Saturday. From there we may explore heart issues I guess. His heart was visible and the xrays were perfect aside from the fluid in his right lung.