URI/Upper Respiratory Infection How long should I expect him to be ill?

[Arielle72]

My little Tyler had crusty eyes, was lethargic, not eating well, and was sneezing. We took him to the vet and she put him on an antibiotic for an URI and gave us Critical Care. He's been taking the antibiotic for 3 days now. His eyes look better and he's not sneezing as much, but is still lethargic and not eating well. He does like the critical care and eats that pretty well. Of course, it is 100 degrees outside and 80ish inside, so maybe that has something to do with it. How long should I expect it to take for him to show major improvement? He goes back to the vet next week (Sat Jul 30) and keeps taking the meds until next Mon (Aug 1). Oh, he's 5 years old (we think since he was a rescue we aren't sure) and weighs 900g (2 pounds).

Also, the other piggy is in another room, can he catch it?

 

[Paula]

Theoretically, any bacterial infection is contagious, so yes, the other pig can catch it. It would help to change your clothes and wash your hands between handling them, but even at that, it's still possible. Probably not terribly likely, but possible.

I'd give it a few more days for complete improvement. It's good that he's showing signs of progress and it's possible that his decreased appetite has something to do with the antibiotic. What is it he's on? And are you also giving a probiotic 45 minutes to an hour before the dose?

 

[Onetwo]

Keep taking the ABs and keep feeding him by hand until his appitite improves. Starvation is what really gets these guys. If they dont eat enough their digestive track can start to die at around 12 hours. So be sure to keep handfeeding. Also did your vet prescribe a probiotic? If not you should start that asap so he doesn't get stomach upset and diareah. Acidophius is in a tab form at your local pharmacy. Get a bottle, cut a tab in half crush it and syringe feed it with a bit of apple juice inbetween the AB doses to build the good bacteria back up in his stomach.