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Gut stasis causes

E

Evespiggles

New Born Pup
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Hi all!

My beautiful 3yo skinny pig Tess had bloat and gut stasis on Sunday night.

Thankfully we have an emergency out of hours vet service only 15 minutes away. She is on day 3 of painkillers and emeprid and is doing so much better, although her poops are still soft. She’s having critical care and also eating her hay happily.

The issue is we are not really sure what caused this. We changed their hay to one with dandelions about a month ago so have changed back to plain Timothy. Aside from that I can’t think of anything different, they haven’t eaten anything out the norm and she hasn’t appeared stressed about anything. She’s eating fine, but she even ate a treat at the vet when they offered so I think it’d take a lot to put her off her food!

I thought maybe her molars need checking (front ones are fine) but I just read that vets will only do this under sedation and I don’t want to subject her to that a) so soon after her last ordeal, b) there’s not really any indication that her teeth are the problem. I’m going to try and have a look myself, she is generally pretty tolerant so I guess I could look for any redness?

Has anyone experienced gut stasis? Did you ever find a cause? Can anyone think of anything else I should do?

Thanks from a stressed out pig parent!
 
Evespiggles said:
Hi all!

My beautiful 3yo skinny pig Tess had bloat and gut stasis on Sunday night.

Thankfully we have an emergency out of hours vet service only 15 minutes away. She is on day 3 of painkillers and emeprid and is doing so much better, although her poops are still soft. She’s having critical care and also eating her hay happily.

The issue is we are not really sure what caused this. We changed their hay to one with dandelions about a month ago so have changed back to plain Timothy. Aside from that I can’t think of anything different, they haven’t eaten anything out the norm and she hasn’t appeared stressed about anything. She’s eating fine, but she even ate a treat at the vet when they offered so I think it’d take a lot to put her off her food!

I thought maybe her molars need checking (front ones are fine) but I just read that vets will only do this under sedation and I don’t want to subject her to that a) so soon after her last ordeal, b) there’s not really any indication that her teeth are the problem. I’m going to try and have a look myself, she is generally pretty tolerant so I guess I could look for any redness?

Has anyone experienced gut stasis? Did you ever find a cause? Can anyone think of anything else I should do?

Thanks from a stressed out pig parent!
Click to expand...

Hi

I am very sorry. A full on sudden bloat/GI stasis is totally frightening in its speed and strength.

Severe bloat and/or GI stasis generally hits right out of the blue without any warning; it is all too often fatal in its severity. There is never any obvious cause and it is never anything you can brace for.

Nobody can say what is suddenly going utterly wrong in the gut (usually the caecum). Sudden full GI stasis (in my personal experience) tends to start with the gut going into overdrive with very noisy bloating for only a short while before falling eerily silent. Severe bloat is wave after wave of massive bloating; some of it hours, day or even weeks apart. Research into the digestive system is finally happening but we are just at the start of understanding it.
Wiebke's Guide to Tummy Trouble
Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)

If her front teeth are fine, then there won't be any overgrowth at the back - it is the back teeth that determine how the front teeth meet, not the other way round. Any bloating as a result of dental problems or oral thrush is basically caused by lack of food intake/malnutrition over quite length of time (especially hay); you will inevitably see signs like slower chewing, wet chin, loss of weight etc. before you get increasing digestive problems which usually start with funny poos as a reflection of an unbalanced and decreased food intake. But teeth don't cause sudden onset severe bloat and/or GI stasis.
Wiebke's Guide to Poops (includes some recent research into the digestive system)
Wiebke's Guide to Tummy Trouble

Please be aware that the gut can stay on the instable side for quite a while longer. But glad that your girl has made it through.
 
Thank you all she has been doing a million times better and then wet poops again today now emeprid has stopped :(

I’m going to see if vets can prescribe more for her, but how long should she be on it?

It’s very scary and I hate for her to be in pain :(
 
I have just calmed down from having a full-on freak out! So need to think rationally.

Okay all so my sweet pig finished her course of Emeprid on Friday morning. (She had been doing SO well, completely back to her normal sassy self - bossing about her siblings, scampering about and shouting for her food. Poos completely normal.

Then today I got in from work (14hr shift which is not helping my rational thinking) and she did a really wet poo and was straining to poo. Of course I freaked out :( Luckily there was some Emeprid left in the bottle so gave her another dose and after about half an hour she was fine and her poos returned to normal.

I called the vet and they won’t prescribe without seeing her (ofc out of hours massive bill, but I don’t think she can wait til Monday) but they seem a bit reluctant to prescribe a second week and really what is the alternative? I think they’re pushing for scans etc but I don’t really have the money (would have to get a credit card) and what are they likely to show? I wouldn’t put her through surgery. I think the vet thinks it’s kind of just postponing the problem but she seems happy and isn’t losing weight and I feel like if she had something really dire internally she would be more stressed.

I’m planning to take her in the morning, is there any advice for getting them to prescribe Emeprid? Do you think another week is enough?

Thank you so much for the fact sheets I have read them through. I’ve got some probiotic (fibreplex) and found some grain free nuggets (bunny bistro).
 
Evespiggles said:
I have just calmed down from having a full-on freak out! So need to think rationally.

Okay all so my sweet pig finished her course of Emeprid on Friday morning. (She had been doing SO well, completely back to her normal sassy self - bossing about her siblings, scampering about and shouting for her food. Poos completely normal.

Then today I got in from work (14hr shift which is not helping my rational thinking) and she did a really wet poo and was straining to poo. Of course I freaked out :( Luckily there was some Emeprid left in the bottle so gave her another dose and after about half an hour she was fine and her poos returned to normal.

I called the vet and they won’t prescribe without seeing her (ofc out of hours massive bill, but I don’t think she can wait til Monday) but they seem a bit reluctant to prescribe a second week and really what is the alternative? I think they’re pushing for scans etc but I don’t really have the money (would have to get a credit card) and what are they likely to show? I wouldn’t put her through surgery. I think the vet thinks it’s kind of just postponing the problem but she seems happy and isn’t losing weight and I feel like if she had something really dire internally she would be more stressed.

I’m planning to take her in the morning, is there any advice for getting them to prescribe Emeprid? Do you think another week is enough?

Thank you so much for the fact sheets I have read them through. I’ve got some probiotic (fibreplex) and found some grain free nuggets (bunny bistro).
Click to expand...

Hi

HUGS

I m very sorry that you are so stressed out. Please don't panic; your piggy can in a pinch wait until Monday for her emeprid even if she won't be all that comfortable; the lack of it won't kill her. Just space the last bit of the emeprid out.

A couple of my piggies were on a long term cocktail of emeprid, cisapride and metacam for a thickened lower intestine with IBS like symptoms. They lived for around to well over a year thanks to the medication. So yes, it can be used for the longer term. The problem is what is causing your piggy's issue and whether it is primary or secondary - i.e. caused by another underlying problem.

Have you also considered live microbiome transfer from a healthy companion? It goes by the not very appetising name 'poo soup' but when made correctly (i.e. made from just dropped poos, soaked and syringed as quickly as possible), it can be effective. The other advantage is that it is free and you can do 2-3 times daily. It mimics natural behaviour is recovering guinea pigs.
Probiotics & Live Gut Microbiome Transfer ('Poo Soup'); Recovery Formula Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links and Transfer Recipe
 
Wiebke said:
Hi

HUGS

I m very sorry that you are so stressed out. Please don't panic; your piggy can in a pinch wait until Monday for her emeprid even if she won't be all that comfortable; the lack of it won't kill her. Just space the last bit of the emeprid out.

A couple of my piggies were on a long term cocktail of emeprid, cisapride and metacam for a thickened lower intestine with IBS like symptoms. They lived for around to well over a year thanks to the medication. So yes, it can be used for the longer term. The problem is what is causing your piggy's issue and whether it is primary or secondary - i.e. caused by another underlying problem.

Have you also considered live microbiome transfer from a healthy companion? It goes by the not very appetising name 'poo soup' but when made correctly (i.e. made from just dropped poos, soaked and syringed as quickly as possible), it can be effective. The other advantage is that it is free and you can do 2-3 times daily. It mimics natural behaviour is recovering guinea pigs.
Probiotics & Live Gut Microbiome Transfer ('Poo Soup'); Recovery Formula Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links and Transfer Recipe
Click to expand...
I wonder if floating the intestine in shallow water would help to relieve the pain in colic and bloat. I don't think it would cure it, but it might bring temporary relief. Getting to a vet for emergency treatment is obviously the first response though as water will not save the piggy's life and you don't want to waste time messing about when you need to be at the vet with him or her.
 
Truffolo said:
I wonder if floating the intestine in shallow water would help to relieve the pain in colic and bloat. I don't think it would cure it, but it might bring temporary relief. Getting to a vet for emergency treatment is obviously the first response though as water will not save the piggy's life and you don't want to waste time messing about when you need to be at the vet with him or her.
Click to expand...

Hi

Floating won't help, I am sorry. It is nicely meant but please do not ever bring it up again as it will open quite can of its own worms.

Vibrating can - like from a massaging car seat (see the links I have added to my posts).
 
Hi all,

So she seemed loads better again last night (after the small dose of leftover Emeprid) and normal poos this morning.

This evening she seems ok still. Relaxed, hungry. Maybe very slightly subdued (she’s squeaking for food but maybe not as dramatically as usual). Her poos are not 100% normal, every so often one is small and she’s not pooing as much as she normally would. But they are dry which I think is a good sign.

The emergency vet is open all night so will remain vigilant. But she’s had 24hrs no meds and seems okay so all my fingers and toes are crossed that is no longer an emergency situation and can wait to see her normal vet tomorrow. She is having fibreplex and critical care still and I will keep up with that, although she’s still eating her hay fine and desperate for veg ( I’ve stopped veg until she’s better, I’m letting her have a tiny bite while the others have theirs).

Thank you for your help I was having a bit of a panic last night :eek: I think because I was so much sure she was better and seeing her not great again was so sad. She’s always been a robust, chatty pig it’s so upsetting to see her subdued. One of my others is a runt so I almost expect ailments with her, with this one though it came out of the blue.

She’s always had a sensitive tummy. I’ve had to be careful with the veg in the past. How were yours diagnosed with IBS?
 
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