Sneezing Cupko sneezing with some nasal discharge

Mike221 · Sep 24, 2017

Hello all,

Maybe a week ago I noticed Cupko sneezed couple of times in a row and then some nasal discharge came out his left nostril.
It got me worried a bit, so now we monitor him to see if it's happening more often and when.

So basically he is not sneezing more often than usual since we have him, which is 2-3 times per day maybe.
But I never before noticed any discharge from his nose.

That discharge does not appear every time he sneezes, just sometimes.
It happened 3 times so far in a week's time. There is no discharge if he does not sneeze.

Today it happened as soon as we put fresh hay in the cage which was dusty I think (bottom of the bag), so he sneezed like 6 times in a row and then a nasal discharge appeared.
It is always from a same nostril. First 2 times it appeared without being connected to fresh hay or dust.

Other than that he seems fine.
We noticed sometimes he has cold feet, temperature in the room is always at 21, so i don't think he is cold.
Also his voice when wheeking is cracking and sounds like somebody is torturing him, but he was like than since we got him(1 year ago).

We are not sure should we take him to the vet or just monitor him and give him extra vitamin c?
Is some nasal discharge normal when sneezing?? Discharge is here only when he sneezes.

I've read lots of threads on this forum, but I just want somebody's opinion on Cupko's situation.

Thank you

bpatters · Sep 24, 2017

Stuff coming out of one nostril is always a pain when trying to decide what to do. Is he sick? Does he have allergies? Did he snuff something up his nose? There's no easy way to tell.

Here's how I try to rule things in or out:

Is the discharge clear, white, or colored? If it's clear or white, it's not likely to be an infection. If it's yellowish or greenish, it definitely is, and a vet visit ASAP is in order.

Does he have any other symptoms? If not, it's not likely an infection, or if it is, it's very early, and you can watch a day or so and see if anything gets better or worse. If he does have other symptoms -- runny eyes, not eating, puffed up, etc -- then see a vet. Otherwise, keep watching.

I've just recently read, but can't remember whether it was here or at GL, of a pig with a similar situation. The vet gave the owner some sterile saline with instructions to put one drop in the affected nostril twice a day. This causes the pig to sneeze, and in that case, after a few treatments, the pig sneezed a bit of hay out the nostril and the problem disappeared.

If it were me, that would be the next thing I'd try.

Mike221 · Sep 24, 2017

Thank you very much for a quick reply.

Discharge is clear, like water.
We will keep watching him and see how it is for the next couple of days.

He was at complete check up like a month ago and it was quite stressful for him.
It is 30 min drive. He is king in his cage, but outside of cage he is so scared.
Took him couple of days last time to go back to being himself.

Mike221 · Sep 26, 2017

Update:

Yesterday Cupko didn't sneeze or have a discharge from the nose.
Today we left early in the morning to work, and once we came home in the afternoon I noticed some white stuff around his left nostril.
Here is the picture attached.
My guess is he did not wipe the discharge from the nose and it became that way. I don't know.
I think we will take him for exam.

Mike221 · Sep 28, 2017

Hello,

I would need an advice again. Thanks in advance.
Today Cupko visited exotic vet.

After the exam, vet said Cupko looks very healthy and there wasn't any nose discharge at the time of exam.
We noticed today afternoon both of his nostrils have a bit of discharge.

Vet offered us couple of options since something is definitely happening:

1. Sedate him, do the x-ray and blood work and then she would definitely know if there is any inflammation or any other problems

2. Try to do the blood work while Cupko is restrained and give him anti-inflammation drugs

3. Give him anti-inflammation drugs and we can monitor him at home. If things get worse then bring him back to do further exams.
Since the discharge is not yellowish or greenish, she does not want to prescribe antibiotics at this time.

So we decided for option 3.
We didn't want him sedated or doing the blood work since we read that could be risky.
Vet prescribed Metacam(Meloxicam 1.5 mg/mL).
Dosage: 0.55 ml(s) by syringe to mouth every 12 hours for FOURTEEN days.
So that is basically 1.1 ml(s) daily.

That seems to us like a huge dosage and for a long period.
Please we need advice on this.
Wherever we read online, the dosages for this medicine are smaller and it is usually used after major procedure or something.

Mike221 · Sep 29, 2017

We referred to Guinea Lynx website and based on the info there recommended dose of Metacam is 0.2 mg/kg.
Our vet prescribed around 1.6 mg/kg if I calculated right which is 8 times the recommended dose.

bpatters · Sep 29, 2017

I think you did the right thing in turning down the blood work. I'm not a big fan of unless a pig is really ill and the blood values are necessary to know how to treat the illness. But drawing blood from a guinea pig, unless you just need a drop and can clip into the quick of a nail, can be a hard thing to do.

Meloxicam has a wide dosage range. What you're undoubtedly seeing online the most of is when it's used for pain medication. It's really an anti-inflammatory, but it does have some pain relieving qualities. And in that case, it's usually given for a much shorter time, and in smaller quantities.

If he were mine, I don't think I'd give him anything. His symptoms are mild, he seems to be feeling fine. I'd just watch him like a hawk, and get him back in for an antibiotic prescription if he showed any real symptoms of a URI -- snotty nose, runny eyes, loss of appetite, etc. But you're there with him, and he's your pig, so you need to do whatever makes you most comfortable.

Mike221 · Sep 29, 2017

Thank you for opinion and advice again.

Like you said, his symptoms are very mild. That's why I'm not sure what to do/how to proceed.
Last 24 hours he did not have any discharge at all and he is very active in cage.
And the amount of Metacam he got prescribed is basically more liquid than the water he drinks per day.
So I don't want to drug him unless I know he really needs it or his symptoms worsen.

For the next couple of days we will not give him anything and just keep watching.

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Sneezing Cupko sneezing with some nasal discharge

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