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Guinea pig fell from table

naguya

naguya

Junior Guinea Pig
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I already took him to the vet to get checked, it is Bijou (boar). Vet told there was nothing wrong to him, and prescribed metacam (5 days) and dipyrone (7 days). He did some tests pulling on his legs, toes and neck and said everything was fine and I should not worry. But I'm really worried.

I always cut their nails on floor with them in my lap, but there was this nail I couldn't cut it at all, so to give his leg more support, I put him on the table with me in front of him, but a child passed by screaming outside and he got scared and jumped off the table and I could not catch him (about 1 meter).

Right now he is walking normally and eating. But I know that prey animals hide if something is wrong. The only thing different I'm noticing is that he's cleaning himself more than usual.

What can I do? I feel terrible ☹️ I'm monitoring him but I'd like to do something more for him.
 
You've done what you can by taking him to the vet. I've had a few falls like this, especially with young pigs that tend to leap without looking. Obviously you want to avoid it, but I've never had a pig be injured from falling so far.

They move incredibly fast when they're startled and sometimes they are just impossible to catch! Definitely keep this pig away from edges until he matures and calms down a bit, but try not to worry too much, he is probably fine.
 
naguya said:
I already took him to the vet to get checked, it is Bijou (boar). Vet told there was nothing wrong to him, and prescribed metacam (5 days) and dipyrone (7 days). He did some tests pulling on his legs, toes and neck and said everything was fine and I should not worry. But I'm really worried.

I always cut their nails on floor with them in my lap, but there was this nail I couldn't cut it at all, so to give his leg more support, I put him on the table with me in front of him, but a child passed by screaming outside and he got scared and jumped off the table and I could not catch him (about 1 meter).

Right now he is walking normally and eating. But I know that prey animals hide if something is wrong. The only thing different I'm noticing is that he's cleaning himself more than usual.

What can I do? I feel terrible ☹️ I'm monitoring him but I'd like to do something more for him.
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Hi

I am very sorry. You cannot prevent piggies from spooking at sudden noises at the most inconveniet of moments. It happens to every owner sooner or later.

Please take a deep breath. Chances are very good that he hasn't done himself any damage if he is able to move around normally. Many blind jumps actually don't result in injuries; it very much depends on the landing and the surface.

Just keep an eye out for today. Please try not to hover the whole time because you are rather unlikely to notice any problems and only make ourself unwell with lots of panics. Any obvious injuries would have shown up pretty straight away. If he is taking unwell, you will notice pretty quickly anyway but please do not expect it.
 
Just to add that if he's cleaning himself that's a good sign, as it takes a lot of flexibility, so if he had an injury or pain he would probably be unable to do it.
 
Thank you everyone, I still feel terrible for what happened, I will never put him on the table again or on any surface with a reasonable height...

He didn't scream when he fell, but the vet told me to monitor and return if he gets worse. He has been eating and drinking water, I haven't noticed any changes when he walks. When I fed him greens just now, just before he was vocal when he heard I cutting them.

The only thing I forgot to mention was that it looks like when he fell he bit his lip. But the teeth are intact.
 
naguya said:
Thank you everyone, I still feel terrible for what happened, I will never put him on the table again or on any surface with a reasonable height...

He didn't scream when he fell, but the vet told me to monitor and return if he gets worse. He has been eating and drinking water, I haven't noticed any changes when he walks. When I fed him greens just now, just before he was vocal when he heard I cutting them.

The only thing I forgot to mention was that it looks like when he fell he bit his lip. But the teeth are intact.
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It doesn't sound like he has taken any lasting damage if he is moving around normally and wheeking for his food! Keep a casual eye out for today but please do not worry and do not feel bad.

These things happen; of course you have a shock and are feeling somewhat jittery in the wake. You can never be in full control and you only set yourself up for a big fail if you do - which is frankly not helping you or your piggies. These things come under the chapter of life lessons: things you can only learn the hard way. Take them on board, try to avoid comparable situations and move on. ;)
 
Wiebke said:
It doesn't sound like he has taken any lasting damage if he is moving around normally and wheeking for his food! Keep a casual eye out for today but please do not worry and do not feel bad.

These things happen; of course you have a shock and are feeling somewhat jittery in the wake. You can never be in full control and you only set yourself up for a big fail if you do - which is frankly not helping you or your piggies. These things come under the chapter of life lessons: things you can only learn the hard way. Take them on board, try to avoid comparable situations and move on. ;)
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Yes, lesson learned, in a bad way, but in an unforgettable way. I am just looking at him sometimes from afar (can't help myself) but I am giving him proper space.

When we returned from vet yesterday he ate a little and then he went to sleep (he wasn't very active), right now, he seems his normal self (he is running, walking and kicking Momo off from some hideys)...

I was reading in the other posts from this theme and I didn't see any vet prescribing dipyrone, is it alright to keep giving him this medicine?
 
naguya said:
Yes, lesson learned, in a bad way, but in an unforgettable way. I am just looking at him sometimes from afar (can't help myself) but I am giving him proper space.

When we returned from vet yesterday he ate a little and then he went to sleep (he wasn't very active), right now, he seems his normal self (he is running, walking and kicking Momo off from some hideys)...

I was reading in the other posts from this theme and I didn't see any vet prescribing dipyrone, is it alright to keep giving him this medicine?
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Dipyrone (Metamizole) is an analgesic (anti-inflammatory and painkiller). I haven't seen it used in guinea pigs before but your vet will have opted for it because it is especially good with any swellings and bruises after an awkward fall.
There are only very few medications actually licensed for guinea pigs; vets often use different products, depending on what they have in stock at their clinic that are safe to use in rodents. They will likely have checked before prescribing or know that this class of meds is safe.

We come across new stuff all the time; and not just new brand names from generic medications.
 
Wiebke said:
Dipyrone (Metamizole) is an analgesic (anti-inflammatory and painkiller). I haven't seen it used in guinea pigs before but your vet will have opted for it because it is especially good with any swellings and bruises after an awkward fall.
There are only very few medications actually licensed for guinea pigs; vets often use different products, depending on what they have in stock at their clinic that are safe to use in rodents. They will likely have checked before prescribing or know that this class of meds is safe.

We come across new stuff all the time; and not just new brand names from generic medications.
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Thank you! Since it was on ER he doesn't has much experience with guinea pigs, I rushed into a 24hrs ER vet. This vet (he is an dog/cat orthopedist) told he could attend him because he was experienced with dogs/cats falling and fractures.

I don't know if he checked or not the medication, but so far Bijou is accepting very greatly the medication and no side effects.
 
naguya said:
Thank you! Since it was on ER he doesn't has much experience with guinea pigs, I rushed into a 24hrs ER vet. This vet (he is an dog/cat orthopedist) told he could attend him because he was experienced with dogs/cats falling and fractures.

I don't know if he checked or not the medication, but so far Bijou is accepting very greatly the medication and no side effects.
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Just relax. If he is running around, he is definitely not in pain!
 
Sending you hugs. Accidents happen, he sounds fine. I hope you can relax a bit now and stop worrying quite so much about him.
 
Update: Bijou is doing greatly! I am so happy nothing serious had happened to him. He is truly his normal self by now, lots of popcorn and wheeking! The tiny bruise in his lip is almost entire healed, I am keeping the medications as the vet prescribed. Lesson learned, never put them on a table again for whatever reason! Thank you to everyone who helped me through this worrying time!

(Right now, Bijou on the right side taking a nap but alert to everything, while on the (left) side Momo, completely unaware to everything).

IMG_20241012_132110089_HDR~2.webp
 
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