Guinea pig ill - vet doesn't know what's wrong

[oisin]

My boar got castrated on the 21st, he was fine until today. He was squealing in pain, pushing his legs up and squealing when held or needing a bowel movement. He's stopped eating (on and off)/drinking and is puffed up. His poos look normal, but he's obviously in pain and not well.

Vet had a look at him and said she doesn't know what's wrong, even got a second opinion, they've given him painkiller and anti inflammatory but it's not really working.

He's gone from completely fine to very unwell and I don't understand what's wrong. Has this happened to any of you? Do you have any clue what it could be that I could ask the vets to check for?

 

[Claire W]

I am very sorry Has your vet checked for bladder stones or a very bad UTI? If he has a bladder stone, he’ll need surgery to remove it or if he has a UTI, he’ll need antibiotics. Of course, it could be something completely different but squeaking in pain when urinating or pooing could be a sign and is often what a vet checks for first x

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.

I would advise that you follow our emergency and home care advice - step in with urgent syringe feeding of recovery feed or mushed pellets (if you haven’t already done so). Switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh him daily, each morning, so you can monitor that you are getting enough syringe feed into him in each day. You are aiming for a minimum of 40-60ml in each 24 hour period but he needs as much as it takes to stop any weight loss.

What dosage of metacam is he on?
Is it twice a day?
Is it dog or cat version?

Did the vet consider an infection or that an abscess may be forming in the area?

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example

 

[Wiebke]

My boar got castrated on the 21st, he was fine until today. He was squealing in pain, pushing his legs up and squealing when held or needing a bowel movement. He's stopped eating (on and off)/drinking and is puffed up. His poos look normal, but he's obviously in pain and not well.

Vet had a look at him and said she doesn't know what's wrong, even got a second opinion, they've given him painkiller and anti inflammatory but it's not really working.

He's gone from completely fine to very unwell and I don't understand what's wrong. Has this happened to any of you? Do you have any clue what it could be that I could ask the vets to check for?

Hi

Have your vets checked for an internal full or burst abscess, a hernia or potential gut adhesion from a swelling at the back of the operated area?
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example

Please step in with emergency round the clock feeding care. What painkiller at which strength (cat 0.5 mg/ml or dog 1.5 mg/ml) and what dosage have you been prescribed? General vets often opt for the low end and not top end.

 

[oisin]

I’m sorry to hear this.

I would advise that you follow our emergency and home care advice - step in with urgent syringe feeding of recovery feed or mushed pellets (if you haven’t already done so). Switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh him daily, each morning, so you can monitor that you are getting enough syringe feed into him in each day. You are aiming for a minimum of 40-60ml in each 24 hour period but he needs as much as it takes to stop any weight loss.

What dosage of metacam is he on?
Is it twice a day?
Is it dog or cat version?

Did the vet consider an infection or that an abscess may be forming in the area?

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery

Hi

Have your vets checked for an internal full or burst abscess, a hernia or potential gut adhesion from a swelling at the back of the operated area?
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example

Please step in with emergency round the clock feeding care. What painkiller at which strength (cat 0.5 mg/ml or dog 1.5 mg/ml) and what dosage have you been prescribed? General vets often opt for the low end and not top end.

I've rung back up and have an appointment at 17:45, he's currently got 0.4ml of meloxaid to be given once a day orally, it doesn't seem like it's done too much. He seems to be getting worse, I hope this next visit yields more answers

 

[oisin]

I’m sorry to hear this.

I would advise that you follow our emergency and home care advice - step in with urgent syringe feeding of recovery feed or mushed pellets (if you haven’t already done so). Switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh him daily, each morning, so you can monitor that you are getting enough syringe feed into him in each day. You are aiming for a minimum of 40-60ml in each 24 hour period but he needs as much as it takes to stop any weight loss.

What dosage of metacam is he on?
Is it twice a day?
Is it dog or cat version?

Did the vet consider an infection or that an abscess may be forming in the area?

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example

I will give him some emergency care now, I've rang vets again and he has an appointment for 17:45, he is currently on 0.4ml of Meloxaid to be given orally once a day, it hasn't really seemed to do too much at the moment.

 

[oisin]

I am very sorry Has your vet checked for bladder stones or a very bad UTI? If he has a bladder stone, he’ll need surgery to remove it or if he has a UTI, he’ll need antibiotics. Of course, it could be something completely different but squeaking in pain when urinating or pooing could be a sign and is often what a vet checks for first x

I have rung vets again and hopefully they will do more tests and today (although they took him to another room) seemed to be physical exams instead of anything more extensive, so I will ask them to check for certain things. He's gotten worse so I'm hoping to fix it soon x

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m glad you’ve got him another appointment, particularly if he is getting worse.

Is that 0.4 ml of cat or dog version? This makes a difference as cat version is three times weaker than dog. A lot of general vets tend to underdose piggies.
Once a day is not enough for guinea pigs - they need their pain meds every 12 hours.
When did he have his dose of painkillers?

Fingers crossed for him

 

[oisin]

I’m glad you’ve got him another appointment, particularly if he is getting worse.

Is that 0.4 ml of cat or dog version? This makes a difference as cat version is three times weaker. A lot of general vets tend to underdose piggies.
Once a day is not enough for guinea pigs - they need their pain meds every 12 hours.
When did he have his dose of painkillers?

Fingers crossed for him

This is the dog version, he had his meds at approximately 12:30

He's eating now and acting relatively okay again, it's really confusing me, as five minutes ago he was puffed up, refusing food and somewhat lethargic

He's always been strong willed but I don't quite understand it

 

[Merab]

Just offering support for you

 

[Claire W]

I have rung vets again and hopefully they will do more tests and today (although they took him to another room) seemed to be physical exams instead of anything more extensive, so I will ask them to check for certain things. He's gotten worse so I'm hoping to fix it soon x

I hope you have managed to see the vet again and have some answers? Good luck x

 

[PiggyPoo]

Aww sorry to hear he’s unwell. How old is he? Xx

 

[Katie1988]

Awww poor boy! Out of interest was the castration done for health reasons or to put him with a female?

From experience, most vets are completely useless when it comes to guinea pigs... They have to do an additional course in exotic animals so it's not learnt as a standard in vetinary. I suggest you take your boy for a proper assessment with a vet who has experience with exotic animals, preferably guineapigs.

It sounds like your boy may have picked up an infection after the surgery or has developed a bladder stone/blockage.

Wishing a speedy recovery! Good luck!
Katie

 

[joanneswift813]

Hi, so sorry to hear about your boy slightly different but also related I think so will hopefully be helpful - our boy Desmond recently had bladder stones and had surgery to remove them. Within 2 months more had formed (not uncommon as far as I understand things), there were things we could improve further in his diet so put him through surgery again. Sadly he didn't recover from the surgery, but the vet had said that the bladder wall had stuck itself to the abdominal and gut lining as it was healing. Could there be a chance it's the same thing? The vet only found this out through the second surgery, but perhaps it would show on a scan if this is the problem?

He'd also not been eating as much, I think due to the pain. To ease his pain whilst pooing (prior to second surgery), we gave him fibreplex to ensure his poos were soft enough. This really helped him. It's 1ml 3 times a day per kg of bodyweight, it's meant for rabbits but is safe for guinea pigs. It's easier if you mix it in a bit of water. Once he was more comfortable pooing, he started eating more again. It really made a difference to his comfort.

He was on painkillers as well, and they didn't really touch it much. The fibreplex was the thing that made the biggest difference, then the pain killer was starting to work because pooing was less difficult in the first place.

Hope that helps good luck to you and your boy