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Bladder stone success with Highcroft Vets

Pinki

Pinki

Junior Guinea Pig
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Not sure if this is the right part of the forum to post this...

Huge thanks to the team at Highcroft Vetenary Referals Exotic Department in Bristol! Our guinea is back after a successful removal of two huge bladder stones. Really excellent advice and care and surgery and communication.....and a really nice touch was encouraging us to also bring in her cagemates to keep her company so she doesn't get too disorientated. Highcroft have the ability to do blood tests onsite so there is no longer any "sending off" for results.

Truly quality care and expertise :)

Bladder stones are massively on the increase, it's such a pain. Thinking of boiling all water to remove the calcium as well as being more vigilant on diet!
 
I’m glad the surgery went well.

The advice for reducing calcium intake is to filter drinking water and feed grain free pellets and also keep pellets limited to one tablespoon per pig per day. A wetter diet (plenty of lettuce and cucumber) to provide additional fluid to keep urination strong and bladder flushing through.
High calcium veg not fed or only fed in very small, occasional amounts.
 
Wonderful news, I think that's the vet Bristol Rabbit Rescue and Friends use too.
Bladder stones are such a nightmare. I've never heard of boiling water to remove calcium, but I know you can use a water filter, which might be easier.
I hope your piggy makes a speedy recovery. :)
 
Thanks!

I just started another thread concerning water filters...they do not remove any calcium apparently!
 
So pleased to hear your piggie is doing well.
Highcroft have done 2 stone removals for me as well as several other surgeries, absolutely brilliant vets. I can't recommend them enough.
I've had a lot of bladder problems with my piggies, they all started a few months after going onto SS grain free pellets!
 
piggieminder said:
So pleased to hear your piggie is doing well.
Highcroft have done 2 stone removals for me as well as several other surgeries, absolutely brilliant vets. I can't recommend them enough.
I've had a lot of bladder problems with my piggies, they all started a few months after going onto SS grain free pellets!
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I think SS grain free contain a lot of soya and soya is high in oxalates so that might be what is causing the problems. I've never fed them because of this but do feed the normal SS in preference to other brands such as burgess because the SS calcium content is 6% as opposed to 8%. Mind you they rarely get any pellets in the summer anyway and only a couple of times a week in winter. My boy Arthur who had a bladder stone removed 2 years ago now gets 0 pellets (and only a tiny winy bit of broccoli on broccoli days) and so far has been fine ever since.
 
Pound Shilling & Pig said:
I think SS grain free contain a lot of soya and soya is high in oxalates so that might be what is causing the problems. I've never fed them because of this but do feed the normal SS in preference to other brands such as burgess because the SS calcium content is 6% as opposed to 8%. Mind you they rarely get any pellets in the summer anyway and only a couple of times a week in winter. My boy Arthur who had a bladder stone removed 2 years ago now gets 0 pellets (and only a tiny winy bit of broccoli on broccoli days) and so far has been fine ever since.
Click to expand...

Very interesting, thanks
 
Glad to hear your piggie is doing so well.
I have been using the SS grain free pellet but after reading this I think I’m going to stop buying pellets altogether. I was told by my boarders recently that my guinea pigs didn’t actually like them. I don’t know if they have changed them slightly lately but they were right, all four of mine are not keen at all and they hardly get any anyway at the best of times. Might as well save me pennies for some nice hay instead
 
Pound Shilling & Pig said:
I think SS grain free contain a lot of soya and soya is high in oxalates so that might be what is causing the problems. I've never fed them because of this but do feed the normal SS in preference to other brands such as burgess because the SS calcium content is 6% as opposed to 8%. Mind you they rarely get any pellets in the summer anyway and only a couple of times a week in winter. My boy Arthur who had a bladder stone removed 2 years ago now gets 0 pellets (and only a tiny winy bit of broccoli on broccoli days) and so far has been fine ever since.
Click to expand...
I now feed non soya pellets. Usually Verselle Laga or Burgess adult and less than a tablespoon daily. The vet I originally saw with my rainbow bridge piggies who had bladder problems advised against soya, she had seen a lot of guinea pigs with stones and kept notes of their diets. Sadly she left the surgery 2 years ago so I never got the hear more about her research, she was also suspicious of the connection of soya and hormone problems. That made sense with me as when I was having menopause problems my GP told me to try soya milk daily before resulting to HRT.
 
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