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Diarrhea after syringe feeding

jennag446

jennag446

New Born Pup
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Does anyone know what I should do? My piggie was diagnosed with GI Stasis on Sunday (5 days ago), and we’ve been syringe feeding her three times a day since (it was recommended by the vet). Yesterday and today, she’s had green diarrhea, which is the color of the liquids she’s been getting. It’s odd that she went from not pooping at all to having diarrhea in a matter of days. Is this normal? Her vet is on vacation and won’t be back in the office for a few more days, so I don’t know who to ask.
 
If your piggy has liquid diarrhoea that is an emergency. She needs to see a bet as soon as possible. Have a look at the link below and see which vet you can get to.
Guinea Lynx :: GL's Vet List
 
I hope you can get her seen by a different vet as soon as possible 🤞
 
jennag446 said:
Does anyone know what I should do? My piggie was diagnosed with GI Stasis on Sunday (5 days ago), and we’ve been syringe feeding her three times a day since (it was recommended by the vet). Yesterday and today, she’s had green diarrhea, which is the color of the liquids she’s been getting. It’s odd that she went from not pooping at all to having diarrhea in a matter of days. Is this normal? Her vet is on vacation and won’t be back in the office for a few more days, so I don’t know who to ask.
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Hi!

Please see a vet; your piggy may need gut stimulants as well as sub-q fluids against dehydration.

Keep in mind that the diarrhea is NOT caused by the fibrous syringe feed (which is actually very much what the gut needs) but by a thoroughly upset gut microbiome not working. Bloating or diarrhea can happen in the wake of a GI stasis, depending on what underlying issues have been causing it.

My Beryn suffered from bloating issues in the wake of a partial or very short full GI stasis in January; most likely caused by an intense short pain event (sciatica? blood clot?) as she also developed temporary back leg paralysis on the following day. She has made a full recovery.

Please add probiotics to the syringe feed and keep on feeding as much as she will take. If you have a healthy companion, correctly made 'poo soup' (i.e. transfer of live healthy cavy gut microbiome) can also help in addition to the bene bac. You can find more information on that in the links below.

Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide (for amounts and frequency)
Probiotics, Recovery Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links

All the best! It is always an anxious time with a GI stasis piggy.
 
We’re getting her into the vet tomorrow, I’ll update you guys once she goes!
 
I've syringed a few piggies (one was for many weeks) and poops were never runny. If anything they were smaller and dryer than usual. Good luck at the vets x
 
Wiebke said:
Hi!

Please see a vet; your piggy may need gut stimulants as well as sub-q fluids against dehydration.

Keep in mind that the diarrhea is NOT caused by the fibrous syringe feed (which is actually very much what the gut needs) but by a thoroughly upset gut microbiome not working. Bloating or diarrhea can happen in the wake of a GI stasis, depending on what underlying issues have been causing it.

My Beryn suffered from bloating issues in the wake of a partial or very short full GI stasis even in January; most likely caused by an intense short pain event (sciatica? blood clot?) as she also developed temporary back leg paralysis on the following day. She has made a full recovery.

Please add probiotics to the syringe feed and keep on feeding as much as she will take. If you have a healthy companion, correctly made 'poo soup' (i.e. transfer of live healthy cavy gut microbiome) can also help in addition to the bene bac. You can find more information on that in the links below.

Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide (for amounts and frequency)
Probiotics, Recovery Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links

All the best! It is always an anxious time with a GI stasis piggy.
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Should I give her a bath? We’ve never given the pigs baths before because we know it isn’t good for them. But, she has diarrhea all over her back side. What would be the best way to clean her?
 
Just a bum bath... a shallow bowl of warm water, lower her in rear-first and slosh it about the bottom. If she's really poopy give her a second rinse in fresh water. Lift her out and lower her onto a warm towel to soak up the excess... I don't rub, I just blot dry. Try not to get her tummy too wet as it's hardest to dry out because they lay on it! I personally don't use shampoo or blow dry because the skin is so sensitive, but after blotting off as much water as possible I put them somewhere warm to dry off - not on bedding like shavings or paper-bits which might stick, but on fleece or dry towel is better. But they need hay present all the time to chew at so eventually she'll get bits stuck in it!
 
Update: We took her to the er vet three hours ago since her regular vet is booked until the end of the week. So far they haven’t told us anything. I’ll give another update once we get more answers! i’m guessing they’re going to do x rays
 
jennag446 said:
Update: We took her to the er vet three hours ago since her regular vet is booked until the end of the week. So far they haven’t told us anything. I’ll give another update once we get more answers! i’m guessing they’re going to do x rays
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Fingers crossed!
 
Update: Really bad news :( Mini’s x rays showed she has severe osteodystrophia, which is a genetic condition that means her bones are dissolving. The vet said that if she doesn’t start eating on her own, she’ll pass in the next few days. We’re going to get pain and mobility meds for her, that might give her a chance at a longer life, but she still won’t live as long as she should. I’m really disappointed.. Mini was my first pig
 
jennag446 said:
Update: Really bad news :( Mini’s x rays showed she has severe osteodystrophia, which is a genetic condition that means her bones are dissolving. The vet said that if she doesn’t start eating on her own, she’ll pass in the next few days. We’re going to get pain and mobility meds for her, that might give her a chance at a longer life, but she still won’t live as long as she should. I’m really disappointed.. Mini was my first pig
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BIG HUGS

I am very sorry for getting the worst possible news. Is she a shiny satin piggy?
OD is generally tied to the satin gene and cannot be bred out; but it is now making increasingly the jump into the wider population due to the uncontrolled commercial mass breeding, whether that is for petsore chains or by backyard breeders. :(

You can find more information on osteodystrophy in the links at the end of our breeds guide in the chapter about satin guinea pigs, which you may find helpful. OD is one of the two worst entirely human-made genetic diseases in guinea pigs (the other are the so-called lethal piggies caused when two defective roan genes are inherited).
Here is the link: What-breed-are-my-guinea-pigs? Picture-guide-to-common-pet-breeds

You may also find this guide here helpful in the coming days. It doesn't make easy reading but it will make navigating the practical and ethical questions you are facing less daunting: A Practical and Sensitive Guide to Dying, Terminal Illness and Euthanasia in Guinea Pigs

I sincerely hope that the guides will help you understand what you are facing and will many any necessary decisions easier on you.
 
Yes, she actually is a satin piggy. She was just given a motility shot for her gi tract, so hopefully that will get it going. I wasn’t prepared at all for this news
 
It is always a terrible shock when the vet tells you something like this. As a piggy keeper of some years I know only too well the heartbreak of trying to do everything right but life throwing a curveball. When you have to start making welfare decisions for your lovely piggy it feels sometimes that there are no right answers, but we still try our best to make sure they have a decent quality of life for as long as we can because we love them so much.

I know very little about OD but I wonder whether the vet x-rayed Mini just because she was a satin? I can't find anything that says about diarrhoea being a symptom of OD... perhaps it is related but perhaps not. Mini doesn't know she has a genetic condition; she only knows that her tummy is bothering her so if you can get on top of the diarrhoea you will hopefully have a bit of breathing space. It seems that OD can eventually affect the teeth which can lead to piggies avoiding harder food, which might then cause the guts to slow down, so offering the soft syringe food can help a hungry piggy eat again. Will she eat it on her own from a bowl or does she have to be fed with the syringe? If I have to syringe feed I make up a fresh batch every morning (and evening if they eat it all!) but because we don't store it in the fridge (it will chill piggy's tummy) we discard it before it starts to deteriorate. I sometimes use boiled and cooled water from the kettle but usually just the bottled water we usually give them to drink is fine.

I hope you can get on top of Mini's tummy upset x
 
Oh no. I'm sorry you got this sad news. What a shock. You are doing all you can for Mini. I hope you can get on top of her digestive issues and have lots more time with her to keep showing her the love you feel for her. Take care. ❤️
 
Free Ranger said:
It is always a terrible shock when the vet tells you something like this. As a piggy keeper of some years I know only too well the heartbreak of trying to do everything right but life throwing a curveball. When you have to start making welfare decisions for your lovely piggy it feels sometimes that there are no right answers, but we still try our best to make sure they have a decent quality of life for as long as we can because we love them so much.

I know very little about OD but I wonder whether the vet x-rayed Mini just because she was a satin? I can't find anything that says about diarrhoea being a symptom of OD... perhaps it is related but perhaps not. Mini doesn't know she has a genetic condition; she only knows that her tummy is bothering her so if you can get on top of the diarrhoea you will hopefully have a bit of breathing space. It seems that OD can eventually affect the teeth which can lead to piggies avoiding harder food, which might then cause the guts to slow down, so offering the soft syringe food can help a hungry piggy eat again. Will she eat it on her own from a bowl or does she have to be fed with the syringe? If I have to syringe feed I make up a fresh batch every morning (and evening if they eat it all!) but because we don't store it in the fridge (it will chill piggy's tummy) we discard it before it starts to deteriorate. I sometimes use boiled and cooled water from the kettle but usually just the bottled water we usually give them to drink is fine.

I hope you can get on top of Mini's tummy upset x
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On top of Mini’s diarrhea, she has been hunching and dragging her back side. I thought that it could be because her stomach hurt her, since I always hunch my stomach when it hurts. The vet said that her OD was strongly affecting her hips, knees, and spine, which explains why she drags her back legs.
 
Update: Mini has passed. This morning she was the worst we’ve ever seen her. She could not move herself at all. In her last moments, she tried to drag herself out of her hidey, so I helped her get out of it. Then, she fell over and passed away :( It was so hard to watch. It’s like she wanted to be around the other pigs when she died
 
Sorry for your loss, you did all you possibly could have.

If it's any comfort, sick guineas that have been previously moving little, do often start moving again, often oddly, just before they pass - it is generally involuntary. A vet said to me, after I arrived with an already dead piggy, that by then they are "out of it" so not aware of pain or fear, or suffering. I hope that may be of some comfort to you too x
:hug:
Rest in peace Mini xx 🌈
 
I'm so sorry for your loss and all this shock. You did so well to try and find what was wrong with Mini 💕

My lovely girl Zara passed last week and she dragged herself out of the hidey to the bars on her final morning. She might have been remembering that in the morning everyone usually gathers at the bars to get veggies, or she might have been looking for company, but there is also an instinct to crawl right away from the herd to die and she might have felt this was her time. I have seen this before in poorly piggies who feel the end is coming - my friend's piggy did the same when she got very old. Zara had a difficult night prior to this but by the morning was breathing more regularly and slowly so I let her stay home to die rather than going to the vets. Mini was in comfortable and familiar surroundings, and there is a lot to be said for that. Rest in peace little girl x
 
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