Injury Swollen and sore back foot

Amy262 · Mar 6, 2013

My piggie, Cinnamon, had a swollen and sore back foot this morning. I noticed when I went to give them their veggies that she was under the ramp. The other two girls came right away, when normally she is always the first one. She did follow the other two, but I noticed she was favoring the right back leg. I picked her up and examined her foot and noticed that it was swollen on the heel. I had to leave to go to work, but my husband took her to the vet (God bless him, because he told me before we got the piggies that he didn't want to be responsible for them and that it was my job to handle them). He had today off, though...and although he tolerates the piggies, he definitely loves me! In any event, the vet had surgeries in the afternoon, so my husband had to get her in this morning. He left her there because they needed to do X-rays and the doctor had other patients to see. Well, they called me after the X-rays and told me that they didn't see a fracture, but there was definitely soft tissue damage. They said it could be from running up the ramp or from one of the other piggies nipping her (but I didn't see any bite marks). They are putting her on an antibiotic in case it is from a bite and is infected, and also a pain reliever. They said if it doesn't get better then they will suspect an infection and possibly an abscess and it might have to be lanced.

. I'm at work right now and will post pictures when I get home. Meanwhile...$176.00 later...I'm hoping that the antibiotic is all it takes. I hate the thought of her having to have her foot lanced.

There are two ramps in the cage and the one that goes from the lower floor to the middle floor has a rubberized base. I think I'm going to switch it back to carpet. I'm wondering if the rubberized flooring is too slippery? It's the kind that they sell at Home Depot by the foot. I've bought the same kind in carpet by the foot...it has a tread to it.

Amy262 · Mar 6, 2013

Ok...here is a picture. You can see how swollen her heel is. The vet tech said he was pretty sure it was from a bite and is infected. He mentioned cellulitis. Anyone have any experience with this? She is now on Baytril and Metacam (for pain). Any advice is appreciated.

Amy262 · Mar 6, 2013

Also...their cage is a C&C cage with fleece throughout. I don't see any puncture wounds in her foot...I just don't understand how this could have happened??

R5 plus · Mar 6, 2013

Don't know, but hope it gets better soon.

Amy262 · Mar 6, 2013

She seems to be eating fine, but one of the other girls is pestering her (mounting, following her...just irritating her). Should I separate her while her foot hurts? Or would that cause problems with have to reintroduce her to the other two??

foggycreekcavy · Mar 6, 2013

Can you put up a grid divider? So they pigs are separate but together?

Amy262 · Mar 7, 2013

I could do that. I could leave a larger portion of the cage for the other two, which would include part of the lower floor wnd the upper floors (3 floor cage), and then leave a smaller portion of the cage for Cinnamon. She has been going up and down the ramp, even with the injured foot. She is not stepping on the injured foot at all. But, I'm thinking it might be better to keep her off the ramps for now, also. Poor thing...I still don't understand what caused this. There is no evidence of a bite wound, but the vet tech that talked to me said that is what most likely caused it and that it is infected. I guess if there is a small bite wound and she steps and walks through her litter box (and other poops throughout the cage on the fleece), then it would be easy for it to get infected.

If the grid divider is there, but they can still see and smell each other, does that avoid the whole reintroduction time?

bpatters · Mar 7, 2013

The grid divider sounds like a good idea, but you may still have some drama when you put them back together. I had to separate one of mine for a week after she had surgery, and did it with dividers. There was still lots of chattering at each other and some nosing off for a couple of days when I took the grids out, even though I thoroughly cleaned the cage before putting them back in it.

Amy262 · Mar 7, 2013

I've been at work today and they have been together all day. I told my husband to keep an eye on things before he left to go to work this afternoon and to call me if there were any major problems. I never heard from him, so I'm hoping all was well. I'm going to watch them when I get home and see how they are acting. If things have settled down, then I'll just leave them together.

I called the vet again today and mentioned to them that I noticed her foot also looked dry and flaky. She had a fungus on her ear when I first got her. It was also dry and flaky. I asked them if they thought if they dry flakiness could be fungus and if that could have caused the swelling. The vet tech said it is always possible, especially if it caused a crack in the skin. He said I could use the anti fungal medication on her foot. I have plenty left from last time. I just hope this heals fast! I feel so badly for her.

Amy262 · Mar 8, 2013

I kept an eye on the piggies the entire time before I went to bed last night, and they seem to be doing ok together. Cocoa (the one who was messing with Cinnamon), seems to have settled down and isn't pestering her. So, for now, I will just keep them together to save the headache of having to do a reintroduce. Cinnamon is eating fine. She is still very much favoring that foot and doesn't seem to be putting any weight on it when she walks around. It looks like it might be slightly less swollen this morning.

Is this the start of bumblefoot? And can bumblefoot happen to a guinea pig who is housed on fleece? I've looked through pictures and looked through all the info on guinealynx, and I don't see any pictures that look quite like the problem Cinnamon is having. It is just a swollen heel with dry flaky skin. No open wounds.

Amy262 · Mar 12, 2013

Just an update: Cinnamon is doing tremendously better. She is still on the antibiotic and I'm using the anti fungal medication on her foot. The swelling has decreased significantly, and she is back to using that foot when she walks and runs around. She absolutely HATES when I put the medicine on her foot...poor thing. I have to rub it in really well to keep her from licking it off. There is still a bit of flakiness on that foot, but it seems to be getting better as well. I was supposed to take her back to the vet on Saturday, but they told me that if she seems to be improving that the follow up appointment would not be necessary. As expensive as this vet is, I think I'm going to skip the visit. I'll make that decision on Friday, though.

I'm relieved that she is doing better! I was really worried that she wouldn't be able to walk on that foot again. The way she was favoring it was very concerning. I'm still thinking that the flakiness was caused by fungus, and that the fungus caused the foot to swell, rather than the swelling being caused by another one of the girls nipping her. I can't be 100% sure, though.

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Injury Swollen and sore back foot

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