Infection Not sure what to do

[Hank and Michelle]

I have a 9-10 month old boy that was diagnosed with an ear infection (possibly) and a bit of a messy eye back in October. He was treated with antibiotics and probiotics. I took him in because he had a head tilt and I read that is a good indicator of infection.
Just a heads up, this is going to be long winded, I'm sorry in advance. Anyway, he cleared up well. So I took him back to a different exotic vet January 31st because he started walking in circles!!!! My original vet was unable to see me for a few days... This new vet did an x-ray of the affected side of his head to see if it was a tooth problem. It looked fine. She prescribed gentamicin for his eye (for 2 wks.) and Chloramphenicol for 20 days. Stopped on day 11 because he was getting way worse and I assumed it was those antibiotics... Ended up going to an ER vet at 10 PM that was an hour away because he was completely limp. I thought he had passed on the way down but my son said he was still kind of moving. Got there, said vitals and heart beat were just fine. At that point he went from 730g to 661g. Said to start feeding him cc, which I already had but I was being to gentle and not "forcing" him to eat. That's all they did and he seemed alert when they brought him out. He kept getting worse over the weekend. Got in to see my original vet this past Tuesday for a quality of life exam. He is now 561g!!!! She could not see into for his mouth very well because he had a piece of red pepper in the back of his mouth that she could not get out, but she said that his teeth looked good. Oh yeah, and by then, he had pus? Coming out of his ear and wax that morning. I gently cleaned in out and put the findings in a baggie to bring her. She prescribed . 30ml of Sulkaprim 2x/day. .20ml metacam 1x/day for pain and Ofloxacin 2x/ day and gave us Sherwood emergency kit. Started that on Tuesday. Here's my point, I think the pepper piece was stuck in his throat but Tuesday night we thought he was dying. So we called yesterday morning to have him put to sleep in the afternoon... Here's the suckier thing! He must have cleared the pepper piece, ( by the way, he has not lost interest in food!!) He snapped out of the almost dead state and ate on his out slowly, it looks like he has a hard time chewing. I also got quite a bit in him with the syringe. He had energy and was standing up right and was even wheeking for the produce bags. Kale, Romain and parsley. Today we got up and he has no energy, can hardly walk, still eating kale and lettuce but has not tried to eat his pellets or hay like all of the other days. Is this normal for them to seem to be feeling better then look awful again? He has his follow up appointment tomorrow. We cancelled his appointment yesterday because he was looking so good!! I'm sorry for the length of this, but I just wanted to put it all out there! Any idea if this is "normal"? Good one day and crappy the next?

 

[bpatters]

Have any of the vets done a good dental exam on him? With side and top skull x-rays? I'd want someone to rule out spurs on the molars and/or elongated roots, given his lack of interest in pellets and hay. And an x-ray might be able to confirm whether his ear is still infected, and if so, how badly.

The up and down recovery is not normal -- a good recovery should be steadily increasing improvement. But things can be ok one day and worse the next. It sort of depends on what's causing the problem.

How much food are you getting into him? The rule of thumb for feeding a guinea pig is 100 cc. of recovery food for every one kilogram the pig weighs. Adjust down a bit if the pig is eating any hay and pellets, and up or down for the weight. Many pigs die of illnesses they could otherwise survive because they're not getting enough to eat.

 

[Hank and Michelle]

Have any of the vets done a good dental exam on him? With side and top skull x-rays? I'd want someone to rule out spurs on the molars and/or elongated roots, given his lack of interest in pellets and hay. And an x-ray might be able to confirm whether his ear is still infected, and if so, how badly.

The up and down recovery is not normal -- a good recovery should be steadily increasing improvement. But things can be ok one day and worse the next. It sort of depends on what's causing the problem.

How much food are you getting into him? The rule of thumb for feeding a guinea pig is 100 cc. of recovery food for every one kilogram the pig weighs. Adjust down a bit if the pig is eating any hay and pellets, and up or down for the weight. Many pigs die of illnesses they could otherwise survive because they're not getting enough to eat.

They have NOT done any top of the skull x-rays. Just the one on the side of the head he is tilting on and all was clear on that one. He is only . 5kilograms. Tiny little guy. I have really been pushing the food the past couple of days. He probably got 40ml yesterday. He ate some kale, romaine and was trying to nibble hay and a couple pellets. He seems worse for the wear after I feed him with the syringe, like limp, lays down on his side. This morning I only got 2.5ml before he started almost gagging and then became limp. We have a follow up/ quality of life appointment this afternoon. At this point it seems much more humane to put the sweetie down. It's such a sad situation. I feel like it's a tooth thing as well!!! I'm not a vet so I rely on them to actually care and really try to figure out what is causing this. I read articles the say that they should be testing him to see what the kind of bacteria is causing the illness and I did ask her to check his mouth. 1000.00 and 3 doctors!! All the whole this little dude is suffering and now his cage mate is going to be lonely and sad.
Thank you for your help and thoughts.

 

[Hank and Michelle]

Have any of the vets done a good dental exam on him? With side and top skull x-rays? I'd want someone to rule out spurs on the molars and/or elongated roots, given his lack of interest in pellets and hay. And an x-ray might be able to confirm whether his ear is still infected, and if so, how badly.

The up and down recovery is not normal -- a good recovery should be steadily increasing improvement. But things can be ok one day and worse the next. It sort of depends on what's causing the problem.

How much food are you getting into him? The rule of thumb for feeding a guinea pig is 100 cc. of recovery food for every one kilogram the pig weighs. Adjust down a bit if the pig is eating any hay and pellets, and up or down for the weight. Many pigs die of illnesses they could otherwise survive because they're not getting enough to eat.

Also a side note, when I feed him he kind of gags... I am not going to far in. I can here him try to swallow and then after the torture, he falls super limp and has an even worse time with balance... Any ideas why this might be happening?

 

[bpatters]

Balance problems are very often due to ear infections. But he could be going limp because the feeding is more exertion than he can handle.

Poor little guy. If I were going to place a bet on the problem, I'd bet on overgrown molars that are trapping his tongue. But any decent vet should have seen that immediately if that's actually the problem.

 

[Hank and Michelle]

Balance problems are very often due to ear infections. But he could be going limp because the feeding is more exertion than he can handle.

Poor little guy. If I were going to place a bet on the problem, I'd bet on overgrown molars that are trapping his tongue. But any decent vet should have seen that immediately if that's actually the problem.

We put him to sleep this evening. He is not suffering anymore. She did check his teeth again before hand and she that his teeth were good. My heart hurts. I already miss his happy personality. He was a warrior and fought hard to survive this

 

[bpatters]

I'm so sorry you lost him.

 

[Anawilliam850]

It sounds like your guinea pig has been through a lot with various health issues and treatments. It's not uncommon for guinea pigs to have ups and downs in their health, and it's not unusual for them to have good days and then suddenly appear to be feeling poorly again.

It's possible that your guinea pig is experiencing some pain or discomfort from the treatment he's receiving, or it could be a result of the underlying condition that's causing his symptoms. It's important to keep monitoring his behavior, appetite, and energy level closely, and to keep in touch with your vet about any changes in his condition.

During your follow-up appointment, your vet will be able to assess your guinea pig's overall health and determine if any adjustments need to be made to his treatment plan. In the meantime, make sure he's getting plenty of rest, and continue to offer him his favorite foods to encourage him to eat.

If you're concerned about his condition or have any questions or issues with the treatment, don't hesitate to reach out to your vet. They are the best resource for guidance and advice in managing your guinea pig's health.

 

[Guinea Pig Papa]

It sounds like your guinea pig has been through a lot with various health issues and treatments. It's not uncommon for guinea pigs to have ups and downs in their health, and it's not unusual for them to have good days and then suddenly appear to be feeling poorly again.

It's possible that your guinea pig is experiencing some pain or discomfort from the treatment he's receiving, or it could be a result of the underlying condition that's causing his symptoms. It's important to keep monitoring his behavior, appetite, and energy level closely, and to keep in touch with your vet about any changes in his condition.

During your follow-up appointment, your vet will be able to assess your guinea pig's overall health and determine if any adjustments need to be made to his treatment plan. In the meantime, make sure he's getting plenty of rest, and continue to offer him his favorite foods to encourage him to eat.

If you're concerned about his condition or have any questions or issues with the treatment, don't hesitate to reach out to your vet. They are the best resource for guidance and advice in managing your guinea pig's health.

@Anawilliams850

Your advice, while appreciated, is not always correct or timely.

Please read through all the comments before posting a reply. This little fella was too far gone and was suffering. He was put to sleep days ago.

 

[Hank and Michelle]

It sounds like your guinea pig has been through a lot with various health issues and treatments. It's not uncommon for guinea pigs to have ups and downs in their health, and it's not unusual for them to have good days and then suddenly appear to be feeling poorly again.

It's possible that your guinea pig is experiencing some pain or discomfort from the treatment he's receiving, or it could be a result of the underlying condition that's causing his symptoms. It's important to keep monitoring his behavior, appetite, and energy level closely, and to keep in touch with your vet about any changes in his condition.

During your follow-up appointment, your vet will be able to assess your guinea pig's overall health and determine if any adjustments need to be made to his treatment plan. In the meantime, make sure he's getting plenty of rest, and continue to offer him his favorite foods to encourage him to eat.

If you're concerned about his condition or have any questions or issues with the treatment, don't hesitate to reach out to your vet. They are the best resource for guidance and advice in managing your guinea pig's health.

Thank you for replying to my post. So sadly, we had to put my sweet Hank to rest last Friday. He was in such bad shape and was suffering. It breaks my heart that he was miserable. He was a warrior and tried hard to keep going. I miss him. Time takes to long when you lose a loved one... Pet or person!!

 

[Guinea Pig Papa]

Thank you for replying to my post. So sadly, we had to put my sweet Hank to rest last Friday. He was in such bad shape and was suffering. It breaks my heart that he was miserable. He was a warrior and tried hard to keep going. I miss him. Time takes to long when you lose a loved one... Pet or person!!

It doesn't matter how long we have them, there's just never enough time. He was so young and fought so hard. And it really isn't fair.

Rest in peace at the Rainbow Bridge, Hank. You'll make a lot of new friends there.

 

[Hank and Michelle]

It doesn't matter how long we have them, there's just never enough time. He was so young and fought so hard. And it really isn't fair.

Rest in peace at the Rainbow Bridge, Hank. You'll make a lot of new friends there.

 

[Hank and Michelle]

Thank you from both me his piggie mama and his best friend and roommate Harley.

 

[janarbeth]

Sorry for your hamster, what did you do at last?

 

[Hank and Michelle]

Sorry for your hamster, what did you do at last?

He was a guinea pig... We had him put to sleep.