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Weight Loss Still eating but losing some weight

mercurybubbles8

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The post was helpful - it's exactly like what is happening to Olive. She has her checkup the end of September, so I hope everything is good until then.

Did you do anything special to help with the weight loss? Did the oats help?
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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He didn't care for the oats either. The only difference now is that he gets Critical Care twice a day instead of just at night mixed with his cookies. I KNOW it's high in calcium, but he only gets less than a tablespoon in the morning and he gobbles it down like nobody's business. Just the regular checkups every 4 weeks, and the usual vegetables. Keeping his molars planed has helped his weight stay somewhat stable, we just needed to get to a point where everything fell in line and into a routine.
 

mercurybubbles8

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I just wanted to post as update.

3 weeks ago Olive went in for her follow up. She was still on the light side, but her teeth looked great, so the vet said to feed her critical care twice per day for 2 weeks. She took it no problem, but at the check, she still lost a little, so we took some blood to do some work.

And then today, I got a call from the vet saying that all the blood work and her symptoms point forward hyperthyroidism! Finally, a diagnosis. I'm going to get her medicine tomorrow and then she'll have to have more blood work in 4 weeks to see if things improved. I hope for the best.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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I'm happy to hear that you finally have a diagnosis, [MENTION=28823]mercurybubbles8[/MENTION] ! I'm happy you've kept on top of this. Please do let us all know how her treatment goes.
 

mercurybubbles8

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So it’s been awhile and Olive still struggles. I’ve been taking her every month for blood work and her levels are still elevated so we’ve been increasing her medication pretty far (methimazole).
The medication she’s on is oil based though, so along with the medication and having to feed her every few hours to keep her weight up, we’re constantly battling diarrhea and other poop related issues so she’s on benefactor 2-3 times a day as well as pedialyte when it gets bad. I even have her on a guinea pig camera so I can check in on her on my cellphone from work. Right now, her poops are pretty small, but there’s a good amount of it. I have another vet appointment Saturday for more blood work.
its so sad that she used to be so fat and now is super skinny and even though she eats, it’s a challenge to keep the weight on. I’m lucky enough I got the pig with the rare thyroid disorder.
My favorite part though is that her medication has to be specially made and is mailed to me. She has a client file under her name at the pharmacy and her names on medication bottle. She really is like a child.
 
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