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Broken Leg

H

Higgins

New Born Pup
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Didcot, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom
We have recently just bought 2 guinea pigs and stupidly let my 2 year old alone with him for a couple of seconds. Unfortunately he has been dropped and broken his leg! I took him straight to the vet and they confirmed it was a break and gave him pain relief. The vet has said that we can xray and aputate or xray and splint it. I was just wondering if anyone had experienced this and how their guinea pig recovered after each procedure? Thank you in advance.
 
I’m sorry your piggy was injured. There have been some piggies on here who have had a leg amputated. They recovered and adapted well to being three legged. I don’t know about splinting nor have any experience. When are you taking him back? And how is he on his leg? And what’s the pain relief dosage? I would perhaps try splinting before considering amputation. If it can be aligned properly and heal well. What adaptations have you had to make to his housing for now?

As said though, I’ve no experience. I would also consider weighing him once daily at the same time just to make sure he’s coping okay and pain isn’t putting him off. I hope he’s better soon.
 
Which leg has been broken, a front leg or a back leg? So sorry this has happened.
 
Oh dear. I’m so sorry this accident has happened. I really hope the break heals with splinting. 🤞Please make sure his pain relief is adequate. There are piggies on the forum who have broken a leg and been ok and also some who had to have an amputation. Keep us posted.
 
I have another appointment booked to see the vet on Monday to see how he is responding to the medication. He hasn't been moving too much and is eating and drinking fine and taking the medication (0.18 of loxicom) . I think we will have an xray done to assess the damage and take it from there. Just want to make sure we make the right decision.
 
This thread might be useful
Looking after guinea pigs with limited or no mobility

I would definitely have an x-ray done to see exactly what you are dealing with.
We have had members with piggies splinted joints when a break isn't too bad (well aligned), but the splint can be difficult to keep on and needs to be well padded. The good news is this is easier with a front leg as the splint or support bandage won't get covered in pee!
 
So sorry this has happened, do hope your little piggie recovers fr9m this break x
Is this dog or cat Loxicom it seems rather a low dose of painkiller, although what weight is the piggie?
 
I had an 8yr old piggy who had her broken back leg pinned and had an external fixator for a while until it healed. I wasn't given the splint or amputate options just pts or this complex surgery. The vet was an orthopaedic specialist.

Molly became a superstar at the surgery because this procedure hadn't been done on a small furry there before. After it healed she continued to have a happy life with a slightly stiff leg, she bunny hopped sometimes.

I would try with a splint if the x Ray looks good for that option, you can always amputate or have a more complex procedure if the splinting doesn't work.
 
Swissgreys said:
This thread might be useful
Looking after guinea pigs with limited or no mobility

I would definitely have an x-ray done to see exactly what you are dealing with.
We have had members with piggies splinted joints when a break isn't too bad (well aligned), but the splint can be difficult to keep on and needs to be well padded. The good news is this is easier with a front leg as the splint or support bandage won't get covered in pee!
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Thank you
 
Timmy had a broken leg from his time before rescue in an overcrowding situation. I don’t believe any action was taken but his leg healed and you couldn’t tell even when we got him. Poor boy must have been in such pain 😭
 
Posyrose said:
I had an 8yr old piggy who had her broken back leg pinned and had an external fixator for a while until it healed. I wasn't given the splint or amputate options just pts or this complex surgery. The vet was an orthopaedic specialist.

Molly became a superstar at the surgery because this procedure hadn't been done on a small furry there before. After it healed she continued to have a happy life with a slightly stiff leg, she bunny hopped sometimes.

I would try with a splint if the x Ray looks good for that option, you can always amputate or have a more complex procedure if the splinting doesn't work.
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I leaning towards the splint. We will have to go to an exotic animal specialist for that though as the vet doesn't do it.
 
Tigermoth said:
Timmy had a broken leg from his time before rescue in an overcrowding situation. I don’t believe any action was taken but his leg healed and you couldn’t tell even when we got him. Poor boy must have been in such pain 😭
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Aww poor thing. Did he have a limp when it was broken or did it go unnoticed for a while?
 
Higgins said:
Aww poor thing. Did he have a limp when it was broken or did it go unnoticed for a while?
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He was from a fairly typical neglect story. He was found in a shed after an old lady died. Turned out she had lots of pigs, many pregnant etc. Not an untypical story. When he was checked in to the rescue they documented that he had a healed broken leg. It feels funny, it’s a bit thick, but otherwise we wouldn’t know. (Jenny was from the same rescue and was pregnant but she was bonded with Timmy and ended up with us)
 
Tigermoth said:
He was from a fairly typical neglect story. He was found in a shed after an old lady died. Turned out she had lots of pigs, many pregnant etc. Not an untypical story. When he was checked in to the rescue they documented that he had a healed broken leg. It feels funny, it’s a bit thick, but otherwise we wouldn’t know. (Jenny was from the same rescue and was pregnant but she was bonded with Timmy and ended up with us)
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So glad it doesn’t affect him now poor lad. The agony he must have been in :(

Really hope your little boy is ok and heals well bless him @Higgins ❤️ x
 
Tigermoth said:
He was from a fairly typical neglect story. He was found in a shed after an old lady died. Turned out she had lots of pigs, many pregnant etc. Not an untypical story. When he was checked in to the rescue they documented that he had a healed broken leg. It feels funny, it’s a bit thick, but otherwise we wouldn’t know. (Jenny was from the same rescue and was pregnant but she was bonded with Timmy and ended up with us)
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How lovely that he has a loving home with his mate now.
 
I'm so sorry this has happened. Little children don't understand and the bigger ones feel just awful if they realise what has happened 😢
Keep an eye on his eating as if they are in pain they often don't eat so much - a hungry pig is a happy pig. You have been given quite a modest dose of loxicom (although at least you got the 1.5mg/ml dog version and not the 0.5mg/ml cat one!) for your little man but is that once or twice a day? If they have only said to give it once it might be worth contacting your vet tomorrow and asking if you can give it twice a day (ie every 12 hours) as piggies can cope with this very well x
 
Free Ranger said:
I'm so sorry this has happened. Little children don't understand and the bigger ones feel just awful if they realise what has happened 😢
Keep an eye on his eating as if they are in pain they often don't eat so much - a hungry pig is a happy pig. You have been given quite a modest dose of loxicom (although at least you got the 1.5mg/ml dog version and not the 0.5mg/ml cat one!) for your little man but is that once or twice a day? If they have only said to give it once it might be worth contacting your vet tomorrow and asking if you can give it twice a day (ie every 12 hours) as piggies can cope with this very well x
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Yes we have to watch him like a hawk around the cage now.
The vet told me to give it every 24 hours. I will phone tomorrow and see what they say. I have been monitoring his eating and he is straight to the bowl when I put it in. I have felt so guilty, I am giving him lots of yummy vegetables. He really loves it when I put grass in though! 😂
 
I’m sorry to hear this. I hope he is ok.

Be careful with veg - don’t overdo it suddenly as that can cause tummy upsets ( veg should be one cup/50g per day). It’s hay he needs to be eating a lot of so ensure you weigh him weekly as part of routine care but daily when there are health concerns so you can ensure he is getting enough fibre (you can’t judge hay intake by eye). In a poorly piggy, hay intake is usually the first thing that drops off which given it is their main food source, is a problem.
 
I would try and get him an appointment with a more experienced vet as soon as possible. You don’t want the leg to start healing before they can see to it. I’ll link to recommended vets below and hopefully you can find one to see him.
Recommended Guinea Pig Vets
 
Higgins said:
He really loves it when I put grass in though! 😂
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Yes they go nuts for the fresh grass! Mine get a pile every morning and they sit and wait for it, staring at you... like that bit in Hitchcock's "The Birds". It's like they're trying to use telepathy! Grass is good for keeping the teeth in shape and keeping the digestion going too. Mine are used to getting a heap - piggies that haven't had grass before have to be introduced gently to protect their tummies from overindulgence (like me and cream cakes!) And then they spend a couple of hours sleeping it off so I don't get pestered till lunchtime 😊 I hope your little chap is feeling OK this morning x
 
So sorry to hear about your piggie. Hope he is ok.
There is a really informative post / thread on here under the title 'Limping' about a brave wee pig named Milton who broke his leg and had a splint and then his leg amputated. You can use search tab on top RHS to locate it.
I found it very helpful at the time as my wee boy had a nasty bite wound on his leg resulting in a very tricky abscess and the vet had suggested amputation.
Thankfully he made a full recovery and the surgery was not required.
Good luck 🤞
 
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