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Anaesthesia

S

Sleepy-Pig

Junior Guinea Pig
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My pig had to be put under anaesthesia (injection) for teeth trimming earlier today. The vet gave him to us before he woke up and didn't give him the "wake up shot" or whatever the technical term for it is and he has been asleep since, for around 7 hours now. He is breathing but doesn't react to anything. How long does it usually take for a pig to come out without the "antidote"? I've been heating up his heating pad but it's night soon and I'm worried about what I should do...
 
Sleepy-Pig said:
My pig had to be put under anaesthesia (injection) for teeth trimming earlier today. The vet gave him to us before he woke up and didn't give him the "wake up shot" or whatever the technical term for it is and he has been asleep since, for around 7 hours now. He is breathing but doesn't react to anything. How long does it usually take for a pig to come out without the "antidote"? I've been heating up his heating pad but it's night soon and I'm worried about what I should do...
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Please contact your vet clinic or an out-of-hours vet ASAP! This should never happen!

Tips For Post-operative Care
 
Wiebke said:
Please contact your vet clinic or an out-of-hours vet ASAP! This should never happen!

Tips For Post-operative Care
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I just checked on him and noticed him starting to react when you tap near his eyes so that's definitely a good sign. I would love to call a vet but all the vets around my area have closed hours ago and the closest emergency(/out-of-hours I guess, no clue if it is) clinic is way more than an hour drive away and I have no ride :/
 
Jaycey said:
I'm quite concerned that they let you take your piggy home @Sleepy-Pig if he wasn't awake!

Give the out of hours vet a ring and they may be able to advise you on what to do. Otherwise your only option is to find someone to drive you to the vet so they can do something.
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Yeah I was really bummed they let him home when he wasn't even awake. I fully expected for them to keep him for a while but...

I'm trying to find their number so I can perhaps give them a call, luckily he seems to be starting to come out of it now and is blinking and moving his whiskers occationally. The breathing seems to be getting better too so I'm crossing my fingers. I will be keeping my eye on him for the night and making sure he stays heated so he doesn't get hypothermia. Hopefully his bowels aren't all fucked up after not eating for this long...
 
@Sleepy-Pig It's probably worth having handfeeding stuff at hand just in case he needs some support with eating whilst he's recovering.

It sounds positive that he's starting to react more now. I'll have my fingers crossed for him. Let us know how he gets on!
 
Your poor boy, why on earth did the vet hand him back to you why he was still under the anaesthetic? My vets keep them in all day! Your main priority now is to keep him warm and comfortable and get some food in to him but please make a complaint as your vet shouldn’t be discharging animals from their care in a comatised state!
 
Jaycey said:
@Sleepy-Pig It's probably worth having handfeeding stuff at hand just in case he needs some support with eating whilst he's recovering.

It sounds positive that he's starting to react more now. I'll have my fingers crossed for him. Let us know how he gets on!
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I have already gotten him some baby food to mix with mushed pellets and what not if he doesn't feel like eating the normal fresh veggies right away and some needleless syringes if I have to force feed him, hopefully not but you never know. I will definitely keep you posted on how he is doing.
 
Sleepy-Pig said:
Yeah I was really bummed they let him home when he wasn't even awake. I fully expected for them to keep him for a while but...

I'm trying to find their number so I can perhaps give them a call, luckily he seems to be starting to come out of it now and is blinking and moving his whiskers occationally. The breathing seems to be getting better too so I'm crossing my fingers. I will be keeping my eye on him for the night and making sure he stays heated so he doesn't get hypothermia. Hopefully his bowels aren't all fucked up after not eating for this long...
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Please also step in with offering syringe feed if he is not eating on his own once he is with it again. Don't just force food down for the sake of forcing it down, be careful that you only give as much fibrous feed as he can swallow. He has been a long time without any food and that can slow down the guts and cause GI stasis (full or partial). Like @Jaycey is saying, feeding little but often is important to keep the guts going. Your care at home can be as important as any vet care in the coming days.

We have got a step-by-step guide here. Mushed up pellets will do in an emergency as long as you cut off the syringe tip as shown in the guide.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
Tips For Post-operative Care
 
Claire W said:
Your poor boy, why on earth did the vet hand him back to you why he was still under the anaesthetic? My vets keep them in all day! Your main priority now is to keep him warm and comfortable and get some food in to him but please make a complaint as your vet shouldn’t be discharging animals from their care in a comatised state!
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I definitely will! It was so mind boggling to me that they would discharge him so soon. Sure my local vet (only vet I could get a time asap since he started having really hard time eating few days ago) has small spaces but man... this is just ridiculous.

Also about calling the emergency/out-of-hours vet number like someone mentioned earlier. The site specifically states that you shouldn't call if you don't have a legit emergency which I guess I don't have atm so idk if calling them would be ok.

Update on the pig too: He just started trying to lift his head so it's looking promising for now!
 
Wiebke said:
Please also step in with offering syringe feed if he is not eating on his own once he is with it again. Don't just force food down for the sake of forcing it down, be careful that you only give as much fibrous feed as he can swallow. He has been a long time without any food and that can slow down the guts and cause GI stasis (full or partial). Like @Jaycey is saying, feeding little but often is important to keep the guts going. Your care at home can be as important as any vet care in the coming days.

We have got a step-by-step guide here. Mushed up pellets will do in an emergency as long as you cut off the syringe tip as shown in the guide.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
Tips For Post-operative Care
Click to expand...

Thank you for the guide! I will definitely try getting him to eat at least mushed pellets asap and give him hay and water. Hopefully force feeding isn't necessary but if it is, it is.
 
Sleepy-Pig said:
I definitely will! It was so mind boggling to me that they would discharge him so soon. Sure my local vet (only vet I could get a time asap since he started having really hard time eating few days ago) has small spaces but man... this is just ridiculous.

Also about calling the emergency/out-of-hours vet number like someone mentioned earlier. The site specifically states that you shouldn't call if you don't have a legit emergency which I guess I don't have atm so idk if calling them would be ok.

Update on the pig too: He just started trying to lift his head so it's looking promising for now!
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I'm pretty sure a guinea pig not coming round promptly from anaesthesia counts as an emergency - or at least it should, and that's the important part. He should never have been sent home like that - you wouldn't send a person home in that state.
 
Update!
He woke up when I was about to call the vet and eating the mushed pellets rn so I'll be leaving the possible call to the morning. His motor skills are still a bit iffy and he is a bit weak but other than that, so far so good! He is getting more energetic every second! I will be adding some C-vitamin on the mush so he can get that going as well.

I'm going to leave him in the carrier and have him in my room so I can keep an eye on him during the night. Wish me luck with the pain meds tomorrow morning haha

Next update in about 10 hours if the night goes well.
 
Sleepy-Pig said:
Update!
He woke up when I was about to call the vet and eating the mushed pellets rn so I'll be leaving the possible call to the morning. His motor skills are still a bit iffy and he is a bit weak but other than that, so far so good! He is getting more energetic every second! I will be adding some C-vitamin on the mush so he can get that going as well.

I'm going to leave him in the carrier and have him in my room so I can keep an eye on him during the night. Wish me luck with the pain meds tomorrow morning haha

Next update in about 10 hours if the night goes well.
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Glad that he has woken up now and is eating on his own. That is the big crucial point.

Make sure that he keeps eating throughout the night and place some nice fresh hay, fresh herbs and some watery veg like cucumber in the carrier for the night. Keep checking on him at least once or twice during the night.
 
I can't believe your vet gave him to you like that. Glad your little man has woken up and is eating again. Let us know what happens and what the vet says.
 
So... I come with sad news.

The night went alright but this morning he stopped eating and he seemed weaker and more tired altogether. Couldn't get hold of the vet who we went to so we called our main vet who was kind enough to take us in at the end of the day even when he was fully booked. We all deemed that the best thing would be to have him put to sleep as it seemed like he may have suffered brain damage or something similar based on how stiff(best way to describe it) and uncoordinated his movements were even after the night. My vet was also nice enough to only make us pay the appointment fee and gave the general cremation for free too. He is such a great vet, I wish we could've gone to him in the first place but he was all booked the whole week so we did what we could. He was our last piggy so it's going to be really quiet in the house without his squeals for food breaking our ears haha.

Thank you everyone for the support in this situation. I've never had any responses on rat forums (yeah I'm a rat momma too) so the amount of concern and support here was heart warming. ♡

Rest in Peace Hapsu ?.?.2014-1.3.2019 ♡
 
I'm so sorry to hear this. Rest in peace little piggy.
 
I'm so sorry to read this sad news today, sending you virtual hugs, popcorn free little piggie.

But I'm also mad at your vet for putting you through this, my boy Tommy (on the left in my pic) had anaesthesia on Monday, when I called for an update at a pre arranged time he had come round but they wanted him to stay another hour with them to make sure everything was OK, I can't believe they sent him home before he was awake. :cen:
 
Sleepy-Pig said:
So... I come with sad news.

The night went alright but this morning he stopped eating and he seemed weaker and more tired altogether. Couldn't get hold of the vet who we went to so we called our main vet who was kind enough to take us in at the end of the day even when he was fully booked. We all deemed that the best thing would be to have him put to sleep as it seemed like he may have suffered brain damage or something similar based on how stiff(best way to describe it) and uncoordinated his movements were even after the night. My vet was also nice enough to only make us pay the appointment fee and gave the general cremation for free too. He is such a great vet, I wish we could've gone to him in the first place but he was all booked the whole week so we did what we could. He was our last piggy so it's going to be really quiet in the house without his squeals for food breaking our ears haha.

Thank you everyone for the support in this situation. I've never had any responses on rat forums (yeah I'm a rat momma too) so the amount of concern and support here was heart warming. ♡

Rest in Peace Hapsu ?.?.2014-1.3.2019 ♡
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BIG HUGS!

I am ever so sorry that it was not to be. Something was clearly not right; I've never heard of a recovery like this. :(

It is within your rights to make an official complaint to the operating vets. Hapsu should never have come home in the state he was in. You were at least experienced enough to cope, to have him seen and do the kindest thing, but many a new owner would have been totally overwhelmed. Even so, it is a traumatic experience for any loving owner! :(

You are welcome to post a tribute to Hapsu in our Rainbow Bridge section if you'd like at any point of time. It is there for those that would like to make use of it, but there is no obligation.

If Hapsu has a companion, here are tips on what you can do for them now and in the coming days: Looking After A Bereaved Guinea Pig

Thank you for letting us know. So often we don't hear back.
 
So sorry for your loss. Hapsu is now at the Rainbow Bridge and is making new friends and meeting up with old ones. He has his favourite food to eat and is popcorning and playing zoomies. The great thing about this forum is everyone rallies round with support for all members old and new.
 
Just read this thread. I’m so sorry that you lost your boy. That vet needs reporting! Sleep tight little Hapsu x
 
So sorry for your loss. RIP Hapsu.

What a sad story. I am so sorry that your vets put you through that. They should never have sent him home while still alseep.
 
So sorry for your loss. Such a traumatic time for you. Please be kind and look after yourself
 
So sorry for your loss. As someone who is training to monitor animals waking from anesthesia, it's essential vets don't discharge animals, particularly small herbivores, until they have eaten and pooed. I'm so sorry they let him out early, it's likely they didn't have overnight services, but he should have been transferred by them to a vets who did if he wasn't ready to go home yet. Really sorry to hear about your boy. Xx
 
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