Hair Loss Fungus or mites?

[mimipig]

Hi just checking in again. Her poops are very small and irregular shapes this morning. Some pee is still coming out, checked her bottom is wet. I got the pedialyte but didn't give any yet, she is still drinking water and her bladder is so full so I just wanted to check again that I should be giving her the extra liquid?

I'm also unsure when I should go to the ER, should I just take her in today just in case, even if pee is still coming out? I'm sure they will have to sedate her to do the catheter and she has her surgery coming Tuesday so it would be a lot for her in a short amount of time. Should I just take her in though? I really don't want to wait too long Thanks for any help

 

[bpatters]

If it were me, I wouldn't take her in as long as urine is still passing from her bladder. That means there's not a complete obstruction.

There's no guarantee that pushing the stone back up into the bladder will fix things, and even if it does, there's nothing to keep the stone from falling back into the urethra. That's a last-ditch maneuver, and you don't want to do it unless it's necessary.

If her bladder is full and she's still drinking, then no, don't force the fluids. But keep an eye on things -- you don't want her to get dehydrated with surgery coming up.

Is there any possibiity they could do the surgery on Monday rather than Tuesday?

 

[mimipig]

I see what you mean yeah the stone could just move back to where it is now When I saw the vet friday she said the earliest time available is Tuesday, she checked all her surgery schedules (our vet only does the guinea pig surgeries monday/tuesday so I guess there's limited space). I'll call first thing tomorrow morning though to double check if there is any space opened up. I'll keep watching that at least a little pee is coming out and make sure she gets enough to drink. Thanks again bpatters

 

[spy9doc]

If it is of any comfort, I previously had a sow who had both a stone and bladder sludge. We managed to flush out the sludge with syringing copious amounts of unflavored Pedialyte over a weekend, but no luck with the stone. Unfortunately, the stone lodged in her urethra and stayed embedded in the wall until she died. Other than an occasional UTI, it didn't seem to be problematic for her.

It can be less of a problem for sows because their urethra is shorter and wider than a boar's. Should this occur in my boys, it definitely would be a major issue.

 

[mimipig]

Thanks for sharing your experience spy9doc Mimi showed the bladder sludge on an xray we had done of her a while ago so the stone isn't completely unexpected, it did appear all of a sudden though because she had no symptoms that I noticed until Thursday. I just hope she makes it until Tuesday now. She looks so uncomfortable sitting all hunched up

 

[spy9doc]

You're welcome! Somehow our piggies always seem to have health issues on a weekend.......not unlike we humans. I know that it's difficult to see her so uncomfortable, but so long as she's passing urine, she should be o.k. Doesn't make it any easier that we feel so helpless!

 

[mimipig]

Yeah seriously! Always seem to have bad luck with them getting sick on weekends and feeling so helpless But this forum is always so helpful, especially you and bpatters, which does make it a lot easier!

 

[mimipig]

Hi again, just wanted to give an update on Mimi. She made it to her surgery and it went well They got the big stone out of her and the sludge in her bladder. She's home and just on some additional pain meds and a course of antibiotics. Thanks again for the advice. If anyone has post-surgery tips for her healing process to go smoothly I'd love to hear!

 

[bpatters]

http://www.guinealynx.info/postop.html

And a dose of probiotics 60-90 minutes after every dose of antibiotics.

Also, if the pain meds are supposed to be given only once a day, split the dosage in half, increase it by just a bit, and give it twice a day. There's no pain med I know of that's used in guinea pigs that will hold them for 24 hours, no matter what the drug literature says.

 

[spy9doc]

Also, if the pain meds are supposed to be given only once a day, split the dosage in half, increase it by just a bit, and give it twice a day. There's no pain med I know of that's used in guinea pigs that will hold them for 24 hours, no matter what the drug literature says.

Same as with humans. You get that big bolus of medication when it first takes effect, and then it always seems to wear off too long before the next dose. That's how I take (and recommend taking) any pain medication, just as you recommend.

 

[mimipig]

I was doing the pain med just once a day, so I'll switch to twice a day then! Is there a recommended probiotic? I've never given her one before and not even sure what to look for.

 

[wheekermommy]

I was doing the pain med just once a day, so I'll switch to twice a day then! Is there a recommended probiotic? I've never given her one before and not even sure what to look for.

When my male was recovering from surgery and on antibiotics I got benebac. You can get it in powder or paste, I think most prefer the paste since it is easier to dose. My male hated it so I got the powder and would sprinkle it on a carrot. My girls would lick the paste off my finger so to each their own. I ordered mine on amazon but some pet stores have it.

Hope your piggy is feeling better soon!

 

[bpatters]

Benebac is what I use. I like the gel, and have never had any problems with pigs eating it.

But you need it now, so if you can't find it, then get plain acidophilus or kyodophilus and sprinkle it on veggies.

 

[mimipig]

Oh wow I actually have some Benebac, I forgot what it was. I have 4 tubes that are 1g each, its the gel. I double checked and they don't expire until 2019, how much should I be giving her, 1g tube a day?

 

[bpatters]

I'd give half a tube after every antibiotic dose.

 

[spy9doc]

Why not order Bene-bac from Amazon? Buying it by the large syringe is much more cost effective and easier to administer. You can buy one syringe or a package of three. Free shipping is offered and whether you have a Prime account or not, it is likely to be delivered within 2-3 days,

https://www.amazon.com/Bene-Bac%C2%AE-Probiotic-Pet-Syringe-Safety/dp/B00F0W2DNU/ref=sr_1_3?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1469798622&sr=1-3&keywords=benebac

 

[mimipig]

The benebac I had was purchased from amazon, I had just forgotten I had it from before and what exactly it was. Mimi is done with the antibiotics/probiotics now. She recovered from her bladder stone surgery really well, and was eating and drinking normally right afterwards for about 4-5 days. However then she stopped eating and drinking altogether. She started losing weight quickly and got dehydrated, and I brought her back to the vet on Thursday 7/12. They gave her fluids, and said that it was her teeth which is what I suspected because she has recurring dental problems, and she had been pawing at her mouth/smacking her mouth around a lot. They were able to do the tooth burr the following day, Friday so that was just yesterday. She came to alright and we have been attempting to feed her critical care and pedialyte. She is not able to eat or drink on her own at all. She is obviously hungry and interested in food, I give her fresh veggies 2x a day and she always comes to the bowl and pushes things around, but is not able to get anything into her mouth and chew it. Even if I give her something long and skinny like a rolled up piece of lettuce and push it into her mouth, she can't/won't chew it or eat it. It's been 4 or so days now that she hasn't eaten veggies hay or pellets or drank water. She got fluids at the vet again yesterday after the dental, but I believe she's still dehydrated because she's not producing hardly any poop/pee. The little poop she does make is still dry and hard, and pee is dark and small. I'm really worried that she's slipping away. I'm doing all I can, going in and caring for her all day trying to syringe feed at least 50-60 ml of the critical care + baby food. She doesn't like it at all I have tried 5 or more flavors and combos at this point. She spits out at least half of what I squeeze in her mouth. Same with the pedialyte, I am syringe feeding it but most of it just comes right out of her mouth.

Sorry for the very long post. Just wanted to give you guys an update and of course looking for any advice at this point on keeping her strong enough to bounce back from her teeth being done, until she is hopefully able to feed herself again. I'm getting worried as she doesn't seem to be making any progress on eating for herself, and seems to be getting worse/making even less effort to try to eat the other food, always unsuccessful....Thanks in advance

 

[spy9doc]

Perhaps you already know this, but you MUST force feed her! You are a fully-grown adult and she is a 2lb cavy.........they call it "force feeding" for a reason. In addition to Critical Care, you need to be syringing Pedialyte (the generic will do and is much less expensive) to adequately hydrate her.

With syringe feeding, put the syringe in her mouth from the side and behind her front teeth......then aim it for the back of her mouth. Allow her to bite down on the syringe if she wishes. It may seem cruel, but you may have to hold her mouth closed until she swallows it. Just be careful not to choke her. Are you attempting to put too much food in her mouth at once? That may be the reason that she's spitting it out.......perhaps she has a fear of choking? We really can't know what is going one without being present.

Some cavies react poorly to dental work. A cavy's mouth is SO small that it isn't uncommon for the Vet to nick her mouth or her throat. I had that happen once and she confessed to having to cauterize his throat to stop the bleeding. Chester couldn't eat on his own for a month! I thought we were going to lose him after that, but my "miracle boy" recovered pretty well.

I understand what you are going through and know how difficult the situation may seem. Whether she likes it or not doesn't matter. However, remember that you are literally fighting for her life and need to do everything you can to get food and drink into her.

All the best......

 

[bpatters]

Ditto [MENTION=19714]spy9doc[/MENTION]. She's GOT to eat if she's going to survive. She'll think you're killing her by force feeding her, but you're not. You're saving her life.

 

[mimipig]

Thanks so much for all the tips I really appreciate them. That's so scary what happened to your Chester, I'm happy to hear he pulled through. I am giving her the pedialyte, I think I'll use it instead of water to mix with the critical care too. I just found some 100% watermelon juice too that I might try to see if she likes but I know I shouldn't give her too much sugar but am just concerned with her getting enough to eat/drink period

I haven't used strong force on her besides holding just behind her head and putting the syringe in her mouth, I have to be quick as she moves her head back and forth to try and avoid it. I put it in the side of her mouth and stick it a little ways back behind her teeth. I try to alternate sides. She's good at using her tongue to push the food out right away I'll try to see if I can get her mouth to hold shut as you say, she's really squirmy with her head and moves it side to side quickly to avoid me. I've been continuing to put 3 syringe fulls per sitting at least of the 6ml size syringe of critical care, and going back and doing that every couple hours. I know a lot of it is coming out of her mouth. I do the 6ml syringe in about 4-5 portions/squirts in her mouth and I try to do it not too suddenly so it won't kind of squirt back out. I've been giving her the pedialyte in between each syringe of critical care, how many mls should I aim for of it?