Can a neuter cause impaction?

[Pantalaimon]

I had my three year old boar neutered two weeks ago. He has always had a bit of an issue with collecting debris in his perineal sac (hair and stuff, enough that it smells and forms small hairballs) I thought this would improve with neutering but it seems to have got worse. He now gets poos stuck, to the extent where I pick him up and if I put a finger just below his grease gland (on what would have been the back of his testicles) I can feel a hard mass around 1-2cm. By carefully looking into the sac I can see a lump of mushed faecal pellets, I was able to very carefully remove most of this with a cotton bud but there are a lot of little crumbs left. He is still able to defecate normally as the pellets can just about pass behind the ball.

Should I be concerned by this?
I wonder whether he is just designed in a way that makes him prone to this or whether it is due to his very sedentary behaviour. Since his neuter he has just spent all of his time in a specific fleece tunnel, only coming out for food, spot cleans or when physically removed, he has not been moving around the cage to go to different beds or hiding spots. This could also be due to a change with windows being kept open and blinds shut making the room more open to the outside but much darker.

This may be absolutely nothing but I just wanted to see if there was anything I could do.

 

[piggl]

Assuming you meant to type impaction, then generally speaking he should be less likely to be affected by impaction, especially as he is still quite young and now nuetered.
His sedentary behavior may make it more likely to aid impaction but should not create impaction. Impaction is mostly seen in boars as they get older and those muscles weaken, making poop harder to pass then creating a blockage/backup.

Boars do love to get all sorts stuck in that area with their constant bum dragging, but impaction is, as I said, a deterioration of muscle rather than bum dragging.
Was he always very sedentary or is this just after surgery? I am wondering because if he is maybe in pain or some sort of discomfort causing either the 'relaxation' of those muscles or his lack of movement.

Have you spoken to the vet about this? Is he on any medications and if so what dosage?
I have never neutered a boar so could not tell you whether this is "normal", I have dealt with a case of impaction but in a much older and frailer piggy.
There is a bit about impaction in this guide - Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths

 

[Wiebke]

I had my three year old boar neutered two weeks ago. He has always had a bit of an issue with collecting debris in his perineal sac (hair and stuff, enough that it smells and forms small hairballs) I thought this would improve with neutering but it seems to have got worse. He now gets poos stuck, to the extent where I pick him up and if I put a finger just below his grease gland (on what would have been the back of his testicles) I can feel a hard mass around 1-2cm. By carefully looking into the sac I can see a lump of mushed faecal pellets, I was able to very carefully remove most of this with a cotton bud but there are a lot of little crumbs left. He is still able to defecate normally as the pellets can just about pass behind the ball.

Should I be concerned by this?
I wonder whether he is just designed in a way that makes him prone to this or whether it is due to his very sedentary behaviour. Since his neuter he has just spent all of his time in a specific fleece tunnel, only coming out for food, spot cleans or when physically removed, he has not been moving around the cage to go to different beds or hiding spots. This could also be due to a change with windows being kept open and blinds shut making the room more open to the outside but much darker.

This may be absolutely nothing but I just wanted to see if there was anything I could do.

Hi

I am sorry

Impaction is one of the rarer post-neutering op complications:
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example

Here is our impaction care guide link. A somewhat more restricted very regular mainly hay/grass based diet can help to mitigate symptoms and can in mild cases make the symptoms even disappear for a while. Hopefully things will improve on their own again eventually.
Impaction - How To Help Your Guinea Pig.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Assuming you meant to type impaction, then generally speaking he should be less likely to be affected by impaction, especially as he is still quite young and now nuetered.
His sedentary behavior may make it more likely to aid impaction but should not create impaction. Impaction is mostly seen in boars as they get older and those muscles weaken, making poop harder to pass then creating a blockage/backup.

Boars do love to get all sorts stuck in that area with their constant bum dragging, but impaction is, as I said, a deterioration of muscle rather than bum dragging.
Was he always very sedentary or is this just after surgery? I am wondering because if he is maybe in pain or some sort of discomfort causing either the 'relaxation' of those muscles or his lack of movement.

Have you spoken to the vet about this? Is he on any medications and if so what dosage?
I have never neutered a boar so could not tell you whether this is "normal", I have dealt with a case of impaction but in a much older and frailer piggy.
There is a bit about impaction in this guide - Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths

Thank you for replying. He has always been quite lazy and not moved much but it seems to have increased since neutering. I can’t tell if it’s that though or if it is due to heat, change in environment with the windows open (he is quite sensitive to noises still and there are a lot of birds nesting around the outside of the room) or if it is actually discomfort.
He had 0.6ml of loxicom twice daily for five days after his surgery. The wound (it was a single one further up on his abdomen) healed well and all that remains is a big scab in one spot and a hard ridge under the skin.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Hi

I am sorry

Impaction is one of the rarer post-neutering op complications:
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example

Here is our impaction care guide link. A somewhat more restricted very regular mainly hay/grass based diet can help to mitigate symptoms and can in mild cases make the symptoms even disappear for a while. Hopefully things will improve on their own again eventually.
Impaction - How To Help Your Guinea Pig.

Thank you.
I was not aware that this could happen. Will it now be an issue for the rest of his life or does it potentially improve as the area continues to change?
If not, is there anything that can be done to help with it?
I am just concerned that it is uncomfortable for him to live with as well as he hates having it cleaned (I must say, I don’t particularly enjoy it either!)

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you.
I was not aware that this could happen. Will it now be an issue for the rest of his life or does it potentially improve as the area continues to change?
If not, is there anything that can be done to help with it?
I am just concerned that it is uncomfortable for him to live with as well as he hates having it cleaned (I must say, I don’t particularly enjoy it either!)

Hi

Impaction in neutered boars will never get really bad since the anal sac will contract in the abscence of the testicles and the formless mass cannot build up to the degree it does in full boars.

The worst neutered boar I had with natural old age impaction (about 10% of all older boars are affected, neutered or not) needed about a chickpea sized mess working out about every 2-3 days; he did have some muscular dystrophy at his back end, though, not helped by being stuck in a hamster cage for several years. It took weeks to build him up so he could walk more than a yard without his back end giving way to being able to walk longer distances and eventually even run and jump.
My other neutered impaction boars just needed twice weekly checking and if needed help. That is truly minor compared to full boars.

Your boy will get used to it even if he won't like it. Give him a treat to munch while you do or afterwards as well as plenty of fuss and praise for being a good boy.

Our dietary tips in the impaction guide are the best measure of mitigating impaction.

PS: It may worth keeping an eye out in case it is a developing pain issue (abscess or infectious swelling) that could be pushing on the gut in the area where the poos are formed when being pushed out.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Hi

Impaction in neutered boars will never get really bad since the anal sac will contract in the abscence of the testicles and the formless mass cannot build up to the degree it does in full boars.

The worst neutered boar I had with natural old age impaction (about 10% of all older boars are affected, neutered or not) needed about a chickpea sized mess working out about every 2-3 days; he did have some muscular dystrophy at his back end, though, not helped by being stuck in a hamster cage for several years. It took weeks to build him up so he could walk more than a yard without his back end giving way to being able to walk longer distances and eventually even run and jump.
My other neutered impaction boars just needed twice weekly checking and if needed help. That is truly minor compared to full boars.

Your boy will get used to it even if he won't like it. Give him a treat to munch while you do or afterwards as well as plenty of fuss and praise for being a good boy.

Our dietary tips in the impaction guide are the best measure of mitigating impaction.

PS: It may worth keeping an eye out in case it is a developing pain issue (abscess or infectious swelling) that could be pushing on the gut in the area where the poos are formed when being pushed out.

Thank you so much for this information.
I already check his nether regions every week when I weigh and do health checks so I will just increase this to 2-3 times per week to make sure there isn’t a bad build up.
That’s awful to think someone kept a guinea pig in a hamster cage.
I will read the diet information in the impaction guide, I have already changed their diet recently (reduced pellets, slightly reduced veg, daily grass/forage).

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you so much for this information.
I already check his nether regions every week when I weigh and do health checks so I will just increase this to 2-3 times per week to make sure there isn’t a bad build up.
That’s awful to think someone kept a guinea pig in a hamster cage.
I will read the diet information in the impaction guide, I have already changed their diet recently (reduced pellets, slightly reduced veg, daily grass/forage).

Daily grass (grass fibre is encouraged, whether that is fresh growing or dried as hay) and forage are fine. The stinking poo mess can just be a bit of a tummy upset from too much fresh food as well, though. Just see how it goes.

What helps with impaction is feeding always at the same time, not varying your diet and emphasizing grass fibre so fresh grass is fine in that respect.

Hopefully, the problem settles more as the anal sac contracts. You are currently in the time frame where any infectious complications are most commonly coming up. Hence my advice in the post-op neutering guide to keep a close eye on the undercarriage ideally every day or two until 4 weeks after which the risk of immediate post-op complications diminishes somewhat.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Daily grass (grass fibre is encouraged, whether that is fresh growing or dried as hay) and forage are fine. The stinking poo mess can just be a bit of a tummy upset from too much fresh food as well, though. Just see how it goes.

What helps with impaction is feeding always at the same time, not varying your diet and emphasizing grass fibre so fresh grass is fine in that respect.

Hopefully, the problem settles more as the anal sac contracts. You are currently in the time frame where any infectious complications are most commonly coming up. Hence my advice in the post-op neutering guide to keep a close eye on the undercarriage ideally every day or two until 4 weeks after which the risk of immediate post-op complications diminishes somewhat.

Thank you, I will continue checking him as I have been and if I see any changes I will take him straight back to the vet. The vet did the neuter via a single large incision on his abdomen rather than a small one on either testicle, I suppose this makes him slightly less susceptible to infection as it should keep it away from the ground and yuck slightly.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you, I will continue checking him as I have been and if I see any changes I will take him straight back to the vet. The vet did the neuter via a single large incision on his abdomen rather than a small one on either testicle, I suppose this makes him slightly less susceptible to infection as it should keep it away from the ground and yuck slightly.

All the best. Keep an eye out for any swellings and a sudden loss of appetite/weight. Abscesses can form well inside on the operation site, not just on the surface.