Urine Confused, stone pig

Shauna St Peter · Dec 5, 2016

I have 2 pigs, both 4 years old now. One of them, Harley, started making unusual noises about 4 weeks ago. Initially I thought it was respiratory related and took her to the vet right away. Turned out she had a bladder stone....after doing some research online I was terrified of the things I read. The vet took an X-ray and said the stone was in her urethra and it might be possible to pull out. After waiting overnight for the results, the vet called and told me they were able to pull it out and no surgery was necessary. I was so relieved. I've read that stones have a high tendency to come back but I was just happy she was okay.

As soon as I brought her home she was acting perfectly normal -- eating, drinking, ect. Her urine was still a little pink butter vet said that was normal since she was very irritated. She was given pain medication and antibiotics which she finished without a problem. She has a follow up appointment a week later, still pink urine and painful noises when she pees. They said it was normal since they had to pull the stone out and it was still irritated . Okay .....3 weeks post procedure ... Still pink pee and her pain noises became more frequent and louder. I admitted her into the vet for emergency after a bad night of hearing her squeal in pain every time she peed. They did another X-ray and said there were no stones or infection. While I was very relieved .. I wasn't given a reason for the blood and pain. The only thing the vet said is she was irritated and gave me more pain medication for her. 4 weeks now ...still pink urine and squealing in pain every time she pees. I'm really getting worried since it doesn't seem to be going away and the pain medication really doesn't seem to help. The exotic vet I take her to is very popular and the only one in the area. She has another check up on Saturday but they don't seem to be able to do anything else. Isn't it harmful for her to be losing this much blood ?? And shouldn't her pain be going away if there's no stone or infection ????

miniver · Dec 5, 2016

She should not be having that much pain if the stone has passed. I'm not surprised there is still some blood. It took my sow over a month for the blood to clear up. She was still passing a lot of sludge that was causing irritation. She was on a combination of antibiotics, pain meds and an anti-inflammatory.

Two things stand out. An x-ray may not see all types of stones and I don't know how they determined that there was no infection. Tests for infections involve growing a culture and that just isn't done over night. I suggest you get a complete urinalysis and ultrasound.

What tests did the vet perform? What are the names of the medicine she was prescribed? What is her diet? Where are you? (someone may be able to help you find another vet for a second opinion).

Stone pigs are a challenge but they can have long, happy, pain free lives. This forum is an excellent resource for dealing with these issues.

Shauna St Peter · Dec 5, 2016

I can't recall the vet's exact words, but I had asked if she needed to be put back on antibiotics and she had said something along the lines of there being no signs of infection. I know she was sedated and another X-ray was done to rule out more stones. The vet did say they might need to flush out her bladder again. She is on 0.25 ml of Meloxicam once a day which seems to do nothing to stop her pain when urinating. She is give 1/8th cup of Oxbow pellets a day and unlimited timothy hay. After her stone, i changed her vegetables a bit, and now she eats Red/Green leaf lettuce, bell pepper, and cucumber or carrots every night.

I live in Indianapolis and the vet I see is about 40 minutes north of me and the only one in the area I've ever heard of. As I said, her next appointment is on Saturday. I've had my pigs 4 years but this is the first time they've had any medical issues so I find myself unsure of what to ask for at the appointments, I just feel like the vet is not doing enough to figure out what is causing the continued pain/bleeding.

I've had her in a separate cage so that I can monitor her pee since I am terrified she will develop another stone and become blocked. Other than her pee being pink/bloody it doesnt appear to have a gritty consistency? I'm not sure if that is something that would happen with bladder sludge.

sallyvh · Dec 5, 2016

Shauna St Peter said:
She is on 0.25 ml of Meloxicam once a day which seems to do nothing to stop her pain when urinating.

How much does this pig weigh?

I would ask the vet about increasing her Metacam, especially since it doesn't seem to be helping. The dose just seems very low to me.

My stone pig (who currently has a UTI) gets .26ml of 1.5mg suspension Metacam twice a day. She does weigh 1350grams though. However, I have had a pig before who only weighed around 700 grams on .2ml twice a day.

For her diet; veggies and hay look fine but I would suggest cutting or reducing pellets. They can be a major source of sludge and stones.

She could have continued sludge now which is causing irritation, urinary infection and pain.

From experience with my sow (she's 6 and has had stone/sludge/UTI combos at least 5 times in the past 2 years) we always take X-rays to rule out stones, we will do subQ fluids plus courses of Metacam and Sulfatrim. A huge thing is to increase her liquids, whether through syringing water or unflavored Pedialyte.

Good luck with her, bladder problems are not fun and can be challenging and frustrating to manage.

Shauna St Peter · Dec 5, 2016

Her last visit, she weighed 785 g, she has lost some weight throughout all of this even though she seems to be eating normally. I read that cutting pellets can help, I used to give them an unlimited supply before, not knowing that they should only have a certain amount per day. Now they get a measured amount which they don't even finish most of the time. I added a water bowl in their cage in addition to the bottle feeder, although they tend to just dump it and play in it >.<

miniver · Dec 5, 2016

sallyvh said:
I would ask the vet about increasing her Metacam, especially since it doesn't seem to be helping. The does just seems very low to me.

I would agree with that. Meloxicam worked great for my sow but she was taking it twice a day. The antibiotic was once a day. She needed a second round of treatment before things were back to almost-normal.

There is a lot of "terrifying" information on the web. Try looking at the Guinea Lynx site. Many of us are on that site as well. It's a very trustworthy, detailed source of information.
https://www.guinealynx.info/stones.html

sallyvh · Dec 5, 2016

I would definitely see about increasing her dose and splitting it into twice a day.

My stone big can really only have a small pinch of pellets (like 5-10 pellets) each day or it causes sludge and irritation.

Our latest UTI I believe was caused by her eating critical care, she was sick and needed syringe feeding.

The pain could very well be causing her to eat less. And it may be a good idea to add an additional water bottle to the cage. Having a couple in different locations can influence them to drink a little more. Also wetting her veggies.

bpatters · Dec 5, 2016

I wouldn't separate her. Separating a pig that's used to living with other pigs is stressful for them. And if you see pink urine spots, they're 99% sure to be hers.

Call EARPS (earps.org) and ask who they'd recommend as a vet.

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Urine Confused, stone pig

Shauna St Peter

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miniver

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