Acting odd after vet & treatment

[Short Shadow]

Hello All,

Little Gio had a nasty cyst form under his chin. It was like it popped up over night and we got in him to the vet next day. Long story short, it was 4 weeks of trying to get rid of this thing. 2 vet visits, us having to help drain it at home and then giving him antibiotics with a syringe. It's gone now and he's off the antibiotics but I've noticed his personality has changed. Eating, drinking and bathroom business is normal but he is more reclusive than before. Sits back in the corners of the cage where we can't easily reach him. He doesn't have any interest in his people, doesn't want to say hi, interact or really be touched by us. He runs away to hide which isn't like him as he's the most social of my piggs.

Has anyone seen this type of behavior after vet visits and treatment? This is the first time he's gone through something like this and think he could be a little traumatized, maybe just really mad at us, or both. Today is the 4th day completely off antibiotics, not seen the vet and no poking/pushing on him.

We've been taking him out, holding him for different lengths of time, then put him back. Or take him out for floor time or play on the bed, then put him back, hoping this would make him comfortable with us again.

Thank you in advance

 

[Wiebke]

Hello All,

Little Gio had a nasty cyst form under his chin. It was like it popped up over night and we got in him to the vet next day. Long story short, it was 4 weeks of trying to get rid of this thing. 2 vet visits, us having to help drain it at home and then giving him antibiotics with a syringe. It's gone now and he's off the antibiotics but I've noticed his personality has changed. Eating, drinking and bathroom business is normal but he is more reclusive than before. Sits back in the corners of the cage where we can't easily reach him. He doesn't have any interest in his people, doesn't want to say hi, interact or really be touched by us. He runs away to hide which isn't like him as he's the most social of my piggs.

Has anyone seen this type of behavior after vet visits and treatment? This is the first time he's gone through something like this and think he could be a little traumatized, maybe just really mad at us, or both. Today is the 4th day completely off antibiotics, not seen the vet and no poking/pushing on him.

We've been taking him out, holding him for different lengths of time, then put him back. Or take him out for floor time or play on the bed, then put him back, hoping this would make him comfortable with us again.

Thank you in advance

Hi and welcome

Firstly, for your own protection, please remove the postcode from location in your account details (accessed by clicking on your username on the top bar) in order to prevent it from appearing with every post you make; you have added it in accidentally in a public spave.
It would however be great if you please added your country/state, province or UK county to help us tailor our advice and support to what is revelant and available where you are (vet access, medical brands, climate etc. vary quite a lot around the world) but no more detailed that that. We are a UK based forum but get enquiries from all over the world. Without knowing where to roughly place you, our advice will be on the general basic level that fits everywhere.

Have you been monitoring the weight of your boy daily throughout? At least three quarters of what a piggy eats in a day is hay, which is usually the first impacted when they are in pain; especially when they are in pain when chewing because it is silica in the hay that keeps the back teeth ground down. You cannot control that by eye only. Lack of food, combined with a strong antibiotic impacting on the gut microbiome as well as on abscess bacteria can cause loss of appetite. In my own experience with a recurring dental root/jaw abscess, it is the harder foods, like hay fibre, which are dropped first.
If the antibiotic has not been fully effective against the abscess, then pain in the jaw may still be there. Did your vet prescribe a painkiller and what antibiotic for how long did they prescribe (at which dosage)? Has the abscess hole been kept open and flushed for as long as possible in order to allow the abscess to heal from the inside out?

Please step in with support fibre (preferably hay based) in order to keep up the weight and keep your boy going; this is important; weighing daily at the same time on your kitchen scales will give you instant feedback on how well your piggy is eating. You can tailor and plan the appropriate support level for the coming day by weighin first thing in the morning. I would also strongly recommend to supplement with a probiotic in order to support the gut microbiome; our medicating/syringe feeding guide contains a chapter with practical tips.

If you haven't got any recovery formula handy, please mush up pellets but follow the tips on how to prep the syringe tip in order to allow the much rougher fibre bits to pass - they are the bits you are really after.

Please take the time to read these very practical guides for getting your piggy through a very rough spot. They contain all the little practical tips that we cannot pack into every post. You will find them very helpful.
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures (includes weighing advice, support products, how to improvise etc).

Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment (all-in-one crisis support thread)