Bloat recovery

[Bethan]

Hi all,

My beautiful boy Dylan (5.5 years old) has been going off his food over the weekend and stopped eating overnight. We have been syringe feeding recovery formula but didn’t seem to get his guts moving. His poops have been very soft too and not formed at all.

Rushed him to the vets this morning and it appears he may have bloat as his little belly is a bit firm / balloony and sounds hollow when tapped - he’s been given a gut stimulant, antibiotics, and been told to continue with the recovery formula and probiotics.

Just wondering if anyone has had pigs successfully recover from bloat? He’s quite happy in himself despite his ordeal and loves his “green soup” (recovery food), just not eating on his own yet.

Any advice / encouragements welcome and greatly appreciated

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear he isn’t well.
The recovery varies from piggy to piggy and depending on how bad the bloat is. It can also come in waves so they can appear to be feeling better but then go downhill again.

Has he been given a pain killer?
Make sure you weigh him daily so you can be sure he is getting enough syringe feeds each day.

The guide below details bloat further

Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)

 

[Wiebke]

Hi all,

My beautiful boy Dylan (5.5 years old) has been going off his food over the weekend and stopped eating overnight. We have been syringe feeding recovery formula but didn’t seem to get his guts moving. His poops have been very soft too and not formed at all.

Rushed him to the vets this morning and it appears he may have bloat as his little belly is a bit firm / balloony and sounds hollow when tapped - he’s been given a gut stimulant, antibiotics, and been told to continue with the recovery formula and probiotics.

Just wondering if anyone has had pigs successfully recover from bloat? He’s quite happy in himself despite his ordeal and loves his “green soup” (recovery food), just not eating on his own yet.

Any advice / encouragements welcome and greatly appreciated

Hi and welcome

Severe bloat can take days or even weeks to fully recover from and for the gut microbiome to fully settle and rebalance again eventually. I prefer to liken it to a tsunami - it comes in waves, which can be hours, days or even weeks apart and where the first wave many not necessarily be the strongest.
All you can do is hang on in there as much and for as long as needed. There is no set schedule to which it it runs and it can run the whole gamut from mild to potentially fatal at the very worst. Unfortunately, gut medication for rodents is very limited but still necessary. Please see a vet.

Please take the time to read these guides here for practical care and support tips:
Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures (including gut support products and live healthy microbiome transfer, which goes by the nickname of 'poo soup' - which is not quite as gross as it sounds if you make it correctly)

I am very sorry that I do not have nicer news. Severe bloat is unfortunately one of the nastier things you can come up against as an owner.

All the best!

PS: Please change your location to Rhondda Valley or South Wales for your own protection; this also allows us to place you better without a specific smaller village or town name mentioned since this forum is publicly visible to anybody. We have members from all over the UK and the world.
You can do so by clicking on your username on the the top bar, then go to account details and location. Thank you.

 

[Bethan]

I’m sorry to hear he isn’t well.
The recovery varies from piggy to piggy and depending on how bad the bloat is. It can also come in waves so they can appear to be feeling better but then go downhill again.

Has he been given a pain killer?
Make sure you weigh him daily so you can be sure he is getting enough syringe feeds each day.

The guide below details bloat further

Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)

Thank you for this! He has been given painkillers, a gut stimulant, antibiotics and instructions to continue with probiotic and syringe feeding for now. He seems to be doing better already following the gut stimulant but good to know that these issues can return! Thank you!

 

[Bethan]

Hi and welcome

Severe bloat can take days or even weeks to fully recover from and for the gut microbiome to fully settle and rebalance again eventually. I prefer to liken it to a tsunami - it comes in waves, which can be hours, days or even weeks apart and where the first wave many not necessarily be the strongest.
All you can do is hang on in there as much and for as long as needed. There is no set schedule to which it it runs and it can run the whole gamut from mild to potentially fatal at the very worst. Unfortunately, gut medication for rodents is very limited but still necessary. Please see a vet.

Please take the time to read these guides here for practical care and support tips:
Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures (including gut support products and live healthy microbiome transfer, which goes by the nickname of 'poo soup' - which is not quite as gross as it sounds if you make it correctly)

I am very sorry that I do not have nicer news. Severe bloat is unfortunately one of the nastier things you can come up against as an owner.

All the best!

PS: Please change your location to Rhondda Valley or South Wales for your own protection; this also allows us to place you better without a specific smaller village or town name mentioned since this forum is publicly visible to anybody. We have members from all over the UK and the world.
You can do so by clicking on your username on the the top bar, then go to account details and location. Thank you.

Thank you. We have seen a vet this morning before I posted this. He has been given painkillers, a gut stimulant, antibiotics and instructions to continue with probiotic and syringe feeding for now.
He seems to be doing better already following the gut stimulant but good to know that these issues can return.
Also thanks for the heads up about location - changed it now!

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you. We have seen a vet this morning before I posted this. He has been given painkillers, a gut stimulant, antibiotics and instructions to continue with probiotic and syringe feeding for now.
He seems to be doing better already following the gut stimulant but good to know that these issues can return.
Also thanks for the heads up about location - changed it now!

All the best. Good that he has got his meds. Keep massaging and follow our care advice. It is always an anxious time but you have to manage as things develop.

PS: I have my own Dylan (now 6 years) and have had a Bethan from 2012-14 as an emergency intake all the way from the Channel Islands.

My piggies have all Welsh names.

 

[VickiA]

Our forum bloat guides have saved many piggies lives - including several of my own over the years. Hang in there.

 

[Bethan]

All the best. Good that he has got his meds. Keep massaging and follow our care advice. It is always an anxious time but you have to manage as things develop.

PS: I have my own Dylan (now 6 years) and have had a Bethan from 2012-14 as an emergency intake from the channel Islands.
View attachment 206600 View attachment 206601
My piggies have all Welsh names.

Aw they’re both beautiful!
Thanks for the advice. My Dylan is just so precious to me I want to ensure he’s comfortable. He’s munching on hay as I type this

 

[Bethan]

Our forum bloat guides have saved many piggies lives - including several of my own over the years. Hang in there.

Thank you! Trying to be positive. He is munching away on his hay as I type. Hope we caught it early enough. The medicine seems to have done him wonders so far.

 

[Wiebke]

Aw they’re both beautiful!
Thanks for the advice. My Dylan is just so precious to me I want to ensure he’s comfortable. He’s munching on hay as I type this

If he's munching on hay, then that is a very good sign. Hopefully, he has a milder form and will stabilise again over the coming days.

 

[Princess Dustmop]

I had a piggy survive an episode of bloat. She didn't finish her lettuce the night before, she was a bit quiet in the morning, and by early afternoon she was on her side and clearly miserable. We rushed her to the vet and dropped her off (I had a dentist appointment). The vet started by giving her some injections of B12 at certain acupuncture points, though when it wasn't working quickly enough she called for permission to give her anaesthesia so she could drawn some of the air out, which we, of course, granted. Between drawing out a fair amount of air and the pile of poo and piddle that came out as soon as she was under, it was a successful treatment. Her wake up went smoothly, and she decided to eat the hay that the techs had put in with her to nest in. When we picked her up (after my dentist appointment), the vet gave her the odds of "greater than 0" and helped us make a follow-up appointment at a different exotics vet for the following day, as she wouldn't be available (I think it was a Saturday). She was tired, but she seemed relatively chipper, and (to the vet's surprise) was able to lift up on her back feet to clean her face with both front paws (the vet had gotten some critical care on her chin). We took her home and gave her critical care every 2-3 hours. She looked much better the following day, but we still took her to the follow up appointment. They were shocked by her bloat x-rays and agreed she was doing very well and would come through just fine. We continued critical care for a few more days until her diet could return to normal, and there might have been another follow up or a phone call with her primary vet that I don't remember.
She was around five-and-a-half or six at the time (I'd have to look at her files), and she lived to be just over seven before passing away from old age.

 

[Bethan]

If he's munching on hay, then that is a very good sign. Hopefully, he has a milder form and will stabilise again over the coming days.

He’s eaten hay by himself quite a few times now and drank water too! I am still syringe feeding to be sure he’s getting enough - thankfully he loves it. He seems happier in himself already and his poops are almost back to normal - so I hope he’s just had a mild case!

 

[Bethan]

I had a piggy survive an episode of bloat. She didn't finish her lettuce the night before, she was a bit quiet in the morning, and by early afternoon she was on her side and clearly miserable. We rushed her to the vet and dropped her off (I had a dentist appointment). The vet started by giving her some injections of B12 at certain acupuncture points, though when it wasn't working quickly enough she called for permission to give her anaesthesia so she could drawn some of the air out, which we, of course, granted. Between drawing out a fair amount of air and the pile of poo and piddle that came out as soon as she was under, it was a successful treatment. Her wake up went smoothly, and she decided to eat the hay that the techs had put in with her to nest in. When we picked her up (after my dentist appointment), the vet gave her the odds of "greater than 0" and helped us make a follow-up appointment at a different exotics vet for the following day, as she wouldn't be available (I think it was a Saturday). She was tired, but she seemed relatively chipper, and (to the vet's surprise) was able to lift up on her back feet to clean her face with both front paws (the vet had gotten some critical care on her chin). We took her home and gave her critical care every 2-3 hours. She looked much better the following day, but we still took her to the follow up appointment. They were shocked by her bloat x-rays and agreed she was doing very well and would come through just fine. We continued critical care for a few more days until her diet could return to normal, and there might have been another follow up or a phone call with her primary vet that I don't remember.
She was around five-and-a-half or six at the time (I'd have to look at her files), and she lived to be just over seven before passing away from old age.

Thank you so much for this. It’s given me some hope. My boy is 5 and a half too. He seems to have picked up so fast after the guy stimulant they gave him. It’s unbelievable! X