buckingpigs
New Born Pup
Hello,
I am currently in university and unfortunately came home today to find one of my boars quite lethargic, puffed up, and uninterested in food. He was hunched over in front of the hay feeders and when I refilled it, he did show some interest but quickly turned away and just walked off to his hidey. I picked him up after that and just checked him to make sure he was alright. There was no discharge from eyes, mouth, or nose, his stomach was soft, and he didn’t feel skinny at all. I did find a very small cyst on his back if that is of any importance, but besides that, nothing else. I checked on him a couple of hours later since he was still refusing to eat any vegetables, hay, or pellets, and wasn’t drinking. When I checked him again, his stomach was still soft but I noticed when I moved him that it sounded like there was definitely liquid in there. I also did the light flick test and I believe that it sounded hollow and also had some liquid sounds too. To just double check that this sound was abnormal I checked my other pigs and they are definitely not producing the same noises, I will say, however, their stomachs felt the exact same compared to his, which is to say they are soft and not at all hard. This happened about 2 hours ago from posting this, and I did some research and gave him a belly massage but so far there hasn’t seemed to be any improvement.
I am hoping that a vet will be able to take him in tomorrow since it is after-hours at every vet within my county and I have not seen any 24-hour vets that specialize or even treat exotics, but in the worst case scenario where he might pass in the next day or so I am just wondering how to keep him comfortable over the night. He has not been acting the worst I’ve seen with pigs and has some interest in what’s happening around him, but he just won’t eat or drink water. One of my questions is how I should mix his Critical Care as I’ve heard he shouldn’t have too much water (though if anyone knows more about this I would like to know), and if there are any other methods I should try to keep him comfy. I know he must be in a lot of pain right now, but I’d really like anything to help.
For some further background information, he is turning 4 in a month and a half and I do own his father and did own his mother before she passed (admittedly wasn’t very well-versed in pigs and was told my girl was a boar, clearly wasn’t). When she passed, the vet couldn’t figure out what happened but I do remember she was seizing a lot and I’m not sure if she was going through some sort of organ failure in the case that this might be a genetics issue. He hasn’t had any health issues other than this. I also haven’t been taking care of them as I am in university a few hours away, but my sister said she didn’t notice anything abnormal when she left for school today (about 6 hours before I got home) and told me he’d been eating and drinking just fine yesterday. He gets hay, 1/8 cup of pellets per day, and normally leftover pig-safe vegetables from dinner. I believe he had some spring mix yesterday night, and again, his cagemate has not been having any problems whatsoever. I also know sometimes dogs can pass illnesses and I do have a dog that occasionally gets close to my pigs (I don’t let him interact with them at all in or out of the cage and he’s only near them if monitored, but he does sometimes walk past the cage or sniff the bars). Another thing I should mention is I did see him pooping around the time I got home and I checked his cage and so far there haven’t been any abnormal droppings or urine colors. As I am writing this, I have him on my bed just to monitor him and double check symptoms for this post, and he is just sitting hunched over and puffed up. I really want my sweet boy to get better.
Any help would be greatly appreciated as I try to sort this out, thank you very much to anyone who replies. I’ll also try and get updates for those willing to help.
I am currently in university and unfortunately came home today to find one of my boars quite lethargic, puffed up, and uninterested in food. He was hunched over in front of the hay feeders and when I refilled it, he did show some interest but quickly turned away and just walked off to his hidey. I picked him up after that and just checked him to make sure he was alright. There was no discharge from eyes, mouth, or nose, his stomach was soft, and he didn’t feel skinny at all. I did find a very small cyst on his back if that is of any importance, but besides that, nothing else. I checked on him a couple of hours later since he was still refusing to eat any vegetables, hay, or pellets, and wasn’t drinking. When I checked him again, his stomach was still soft but I noticed when I moved him that it sounded like there was definitely liquid in there. I also did the light flick test and I believe that it sounded hollow and also had some liquid sounds too. To just double check that this sound was abnormal I checked my other pigs and they are definitely not producing the same noises, I will say, however, their stomachs felt the exact same compared to his, which is to say they are soft and not at all hard. This happened about 2 hours ago from posting this, and I did some research and gave him a belly massage but so far there hasn’t seemed to be any improvement.
I am hoping that a vet will be able to take him in tomorrow since it is after-hours at every vet within my county and I have not seen any 24-hour vets that specialize or even treat exotics, but in the worst case scenario where he might pass in the next day or so I am just wondering how to keep him comfortable over the night. He has not been acting the worst I’ve seen with pigs and has some interest in what’s happening around him, but he just won’t eat or drink water. One of my questions is how I should mix his Critical Care as I’ve heard he shouldn’t have too much water (though if anyone knows more about this I would like to know), and if there are any other methods I should try to keep him comfy. I know he must be in a lot of pain right now, but I’d really like anything to help.
For some further background information, he is turning 4 in a month and a half and I do own his father and did own his mother before she passed (admittedly wasn’t very well-versed in pigs and was told my girl was a boar, clearly wasn’t). When she passed, the vet couldn’t figure out what happened but I do remember she was seizing a lot and I’m not sure if she was going through some sort of organ failure in the case that this might be a genetics issue. He hasn’t had any health issues other than this. I also haven’t been taking care of them as I am in university a few hours away, but my sister said she didn’t notice anything abnormal when she left for school today (about 6 hours before I got home) and told me he’d been eating and drinking just fine yesterday. He gets hay, 1/8 cup of pellets per day, and normally leftover pig-safe vegetables from dinner. I believe he had some spring mix yesterday night, and again, his cagemate has not been having any problems whatsoever. I also know sometimes dogs can pass illnesses and I do have a dog that occasionally gets close to my pigs (I don’t let him interact with them at all in or out of the cage and he’s only near them if monitored, but he does sometimes walk past the cage or sniff the bars). Another thing I should mention is I did see him pooping around the time I got home and I checked his cage and so far there haven’t been any abnormal droppings or urine colors. As I am writing this, I have him on my bed just to monitor him and double check symptoms for this post, and he is just sitting hunched over and puffed up. I really want my sweet boy to get better.
Any help would be greatly appreciated as I try to sort this out, thank you very much to anyone who replies. I’ll also try and get updates for those willing to help.
I noticed my sweet Stein’s health was rapidly declining even with massages and critical care every few hours. His stomach looked as if it was expanding and upon pressing down I could just tell that it wasn’t right. I decided to call around and luckily found a vet that was open 24/7. My poor boy had to be put to sleep and I’ve just gotten home. I’m devastated as I’ve had him since he was born but just wanted to thank everybody for the advice and sweet messages. I’m at home cuddling with his cagemate and dad, my Piglet as I write this. 
