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Not Eating Guinea Pig was treated for UTI, now isn't eating, pooing etc. on Critical Care

maceyandginger

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My guinea pig Ginger (2 years old) has been sick for about 4 weeks now.
It started out as a UTI. We noticed blood in her urine. We took her to see the vet straight away and they put her on a course of three days/3 injections of antibiotics to clear the UTI up.

The Uti cleared up however we noticed a lethargic and non eating and pooing pig (Normally a constant eater) so we took her back to the vets. Over the space of two weeks Ginger was getting injections of pain killers, injections to aid digestion and help her tummy, being syringe fed Critical Care and she was staying and being monitored overnight in the vets a few of those nights.

Vet allowed us to take her home and gave us Critical care and syringes but advised that she was still not eating very much or passing any poos. We got her back about a week ago and as soon as I held her she ate a bit of celery for me and through the evening and started to produce some poos and urine. She continued to eat small amounts but still remained lethargic.

She was whimpering a bit a few nights ago so I lay her ontop of a luke-warm hot water bottle. This worked wonders as she had diahrea straight after. I know diahrea is dangerous for pigs but giving the circumstances I thought this was an improvement.
She has been lying on me every day after work and being very affectionate. a bit like a cat, waddling over to me and cuddling into my arms and sleeping.
She has stopped eating the past two days so we are really forcing the critical care into her. Still not pooing very much however it's mushy like when she does.

I have updated the vet but they don't seem too worried.

Ginger used to be the fatter one compared to her sister Macey but now she's smaller :(

I love my babies so much and ever since she got sick i've been non-stop at the vets and contacting them.

I am assuming she has taken a bad reaction to the initial antibiotic, I'm fearing the worst and need reassurance. Do I need to take her to another vet or wait it out and see if she recovers on her own?

Cara
 

HannibalLecter

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What kind of antibiotics was she on? Is she bloated?
I would take her to another vet as the current one isn't concerned about this serious situation.
 

maceyandginger

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I'm not sure the name of the antibiotics. She was given 3 injections over the space of 3 days for the uti. Then I brought her back and she was bloated and gassy. She has given injections to help stimulate her stomach and pain relief too. She isn't bloated anymore, I smelt some gassy smells so pretty sure she was passing wind (bless). The vet have been brilliant with her so far, sorry if I made it seem like they weren't concerned. I was just wondering if these symptoms seem normal in the recovery process or whether maybe getting a second opinion would be advisable.

Thanks for the quick response!
 

HannibalLecter

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Call & ask what antibiotic it was, it may have been penicillin based which is dangerous to pigs.
You can give her infant simethicone drops to reduce the gas & bloat, and probiotics in the form of split human acidophilus capsules or Benebac gel to restore her gut flora.

Keep handfeeding her the way you have, and weigh her daily to ensure it's enough to keep her weight stable.
https://www.guinealynx.info/weigh.html
 

maceyandginger

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Hi again,
Just wanted to give you an update. Unfortunately over the weekend Ginger passed away :(
On Thursday we took her to another vet for a second opinion. He did all the same checks the previous vet did, and came to the conclusion the source of the problem could have been one of three things 1. Bladder/Kidney stones 2. Gastric stasis or 3. Slightly overgrown teeth. They suggested surgery to fix her teeth (before treating the other possible causes), which I thought would be risky considering how weak Ginger had become. The vet insisted and we had her booked in for Monday to being a week long stay at their clinic.
I continued to force feed Ginger over the next two days with Critical Care and a syringe, and by Saturday morning she had declined so much that I was sure she wouldn't make it through the rest of the weekend without instant help. I took her to an emergency vet who diagnosed her with pneumonia (third vet, third diagnosis). This vet didn't seem to optimistic, and wanted to give her a steroid inject of some description. I decided that she would have the best chance of survival if she spent the weekend at the vet clinic, under the professional care and attention of their vets and veterinary nurses, but unfortunately a few hours into her stay with them I got the call to say she had passed away.

I am truly heartbroken. I loved her so much and haven't stopped crying since hearing the news. I wasn't prepared for her death at all, especially from hearing so much that she was fine, and I thought if she was fit for surgery she must have been on the road to recovery. It's more upsetting because we caught the UTI instantly, over a month ago but it seems she was given the wrong treatment which she never recovered from. Part of me wishes I took care of the UTI myself naturally, maybe then we would still have our baby.

Thank you for the advice and sorry for the sad response :'(
 

HannibalLecter

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I'm so sorry for your loss.
There is no way to take care of a UTI through natural methods & you did everything right on your end, she should have been given a different antibiotic if she didn't recover fully, as well as a probiotic & there should have been further examinations on what was wrong early on. Overgrown teeth is a possibility as she has been sick for so long & didn't eat properly, but most likely not the original cause of these issues.

If she was given a penicillin based antibiotic the first time, it may be worth finding out & informing that clinic to make sure it doesn't happen again if you feel strong enough to do so. It may just be that she was sensitive to antibiotics overall. Again, you did everything right for her.
 
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