Gut stasis / serious bloating

[Deleted member 151640]

Hi everyone, i have my first piggy with gut stasis. I noticed last night he was lethargic/not eating, which is very unusual for him but it was 1am so had to go to bed.
Woke up this morning to around half the food left (i have two boars, he is the older more dominant of the two and eats the most) and a very lethargic piggy. I picked him out of his cage and even while being sat next to his cage no wriggling no squealing nothing.

Had a little cry, haha, then phoned the vet. I got the last appointment available and rushed him
in. Thankfully our vet could hear a little gut movement, but did decide that gut stasis was the most likely cause of his ill health.

We came home with critical care, loxicom - 0.45ml once a day and Emeprid - 0.75ml twice a day.

He had his medicine and his first feed of around 8ml almost 3 hours ago. Once being put back in his cage he placed himself in the smallest hide in he corner and i don’t think he’s came out since.
I cant watch them all the time but for the past hour he hasn’t moved so i’m assuming he isn’t eating hay, while he had a little last night.

He weighs 1150lbs and is a 5 year old male, our vet gave us a general idea of how much to feed him but now i’m a little unsure. I read he can get around 3tbsp a day at the most and fed every two hours, but i am weary i may not be here to notice and he’ll eat half a ton of hay and i’ll give him way too much critical care. When given veggies or nuggets they will be watched so i can take on board how that’s going.

I think i’m going to try give him another feed now, I have also been having to remove poop from his sac as he can’t seem to get it all the way out. I’m just keeping my eye on him and was wondering if there’s any advice that would help, thanks.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.

Step in with daily weight checks. That is the only way to know how much feed to give. It will tell you whether he is eating anything independently or whether he is totally relying on your syringe feeding. You can’t go by the packet telling you to give 3 tbsp a day though.

You are aiming for 40-60ml per day (it may well take more to keep his weight stable but in a poorly piggy it can be difficult to get more in hence the 40-60ml amount needed as a minimum). A healthy piggy would eat the equivalent of approx 100ml a day.

While gut stasis itself isn’t painful, the reason behind the stasis in the first place may well be. Piggies need pain meds twice a day ideally given their faster metabolism.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)

 

[Deleted member 151640]

I’m sorry to hear this.

Step in with daily weight checks. That is the only way to know how much feed to give. It will tell you whether he is eating anything independently or whether he is totally relying on your syringe feeding. You can’t go by the packet telling you to give 3 tbsp a day though.

You are aiming for 40-60ml per day (it may well take more to keep his weight stable but in a poorly piggy it can be difficult to get more in hence the 40-60ml amount needed as a minimum). A healthy piggy would eat the equivalent of approx 100ml a day.

While gut stasis itself isn’t painful, the reason behind the stasis in the first place may well be. Piggies need pain meds twice a day ideally given their faster metabolism.

Thanks.

I will try to aim around 70ml a day as he isn’t eating hay and just now only had a couple bites of cucumber but will keep an eye.

As the vet only prescribed it once a day, surely i should stick to that? But i don’t want him in pain obviously.

He’s just had another feed only taking 8mls so he’s had 16ml today, i’ve also found he’s a biter, i assume being held and force fed is quite frustrating. I had a look at one of the links you sent but haven’t seen the other two. Will look now

Also as writing this he has came out of his corner and started eating a willow stick (just plain wood bought from an online store reccommend by my vet) so that’s something as he’s basically been in that corner since 7pm last night.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks.

I will try to aim around 70ml a day as he isn’t eating hay and just now only had a couple bites of cucumber but will keep an eye.

As the vet only prescribed it once a day, surely i should stick to that? But i don’t want him in pain obviously.

He’s just had another feed only taking 8mls so he’s had 16ml today, i’ve also found he’s a biter, i assume being held and force fed is quite frustrating. I had a look at one of the links you sent but haven’t seen the other two. Will look now

Also as writing this he has came out of his corner and started eating a willow stick (just plain wood bought from an online store reccommend by my vet) so that’s something as he’s basically been in that corner since 7pm last night.

the licensing for cat metacam has meant it is often prescribed in lower doses and not often enough for piggies actual needs.
You can only go by what your vet tells you based on the clinical need at the time (as I say stasis itself isn’t painful) but we always mention that cavy savvy vets will prescribe it twice a day (piggies metabolise meds in around 12 hours) and in higher doses (some exotics and specialist vets still also prescribing dog metacam.)

 

[Deleted member 151640]

the licensing for cat metacam has meant it is often prescribed in lower doses and not often enough for piggies actual needs.
You can only go by what your vet tells you based on the clinical need at the time (as I say stasis itself isn’t painful) but we always mention that cavy savvy vets will prescribe it twice a day (piggies metabolise meds in around 12 hours) and in higher doses (some exotics and specialist vets still also prescribing dog metacam.)

Okay, yeah we don’t have any excotic vets around where i am unfortunately, but i’ll keep an eye on him for signs of discomfort/pain.

I was also wondering if i should be syringe feeding some water, i haven’t seen him go to the water bottle at all but then sometimes i don’t catch him but obviously as he’s ill i should be on top of it more.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Okay, yeah we don’t have any excotic vets around where i am unfortunately, but i’ll keep an eye on him for signs of discomfort/pain.

I was also wondering if i should be syringe feeding some water, i haven’t seen him go to the water bottle at all but then sometimes i don’t catch him but obviously as he’s ill i should be on top of it more.

Thanks for your help!

Yes offering a little water with a syringe feed is a good idea. Be careful to only offer though - youve got to be careful to not press water into his mouth as you don’t want him to aspirate

 

[eileen]

you can ask your vet if he will increase the metacam dose,to twice daily.as above guinea pigs can metabolse things very fast.when a piggy has gut stasis it can take more time for the medicine to get passed the stomach and absorbed in the small intestine..ive had a few guinea pigs with gut stasis,I'm my experience it can be very painful for guinea pigs.it can be a secondary issue to another problem.eg pain in the body.getting as much food you can get in your guinea will help to keep the guts moving.do not worry if you see weird poos over the next two days,as it will take time for the guts to stabalise.i am sorry you are going through this.

 

[Deleted member 151640]

you can ask your vet if he will increase the metacam dose,to twice daily.as above guinea pigs can metabolse things very fast.when a piggy has gut stasis it can take more time for the medicine to get passed the stomach and absorbed in the small intestine..ive had a few guinea pigs with gut stasis,I'm my experience it can be very painful for guinea pigs.it can be a secondary issue to another problem.eg pain in the body.getting as much food you can get in your guinea will help to keep the guts moving.do not worry if you see weird poos over the next two days,as it will take time for the guts to stabalise.i am sorry you are going through this.

Thanks, i have another question if you don’t mind.

My boy had his first pain meds at 8am and at 1pm after his second feed he was more perky, he ate the equivalent of a thin slice of cucumber.
Then from then till his next feed he had eaten some hay and some of his wood chew. Once he had finished his feed (at 4pm) he ate about a 3inch bit of orange bell pepper. He even ate a couple nuggets once he got back in the cage.

He’s had 24ml in total and was planning to give him his next feed at 8pm as he is eating his hay and i forsee him eating his vegatables later.

He also moved around a bit more but still enjoying to lay and rest.

Or should i continue to aim for 40-60ml. Also in terms of increased painkillers my vet is closed until monday and as we still have painkillers it wouldn’t be classed as a emergency so i will hope it’s not too bad for him as it is mild stasis as he wasn’t bloated.
Thanks

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks, i have another question if you don’t mind.

My boy had his first pain meds at 8am and at 1pm after his second feed he was more perky, he ate the equivalent of a thin slice of cucumber.
Then from then till his next feed he had eaten some hay and some of his wood chew. Once he had finished his feed (at 4pm) he ate about a 3inch bit of orange bell pepper. He even ate a couple nuggets once he got back in the cage.

He’s had 24ml in total and was planning to give him his next feed at 8pm as he is eating his hay and i forsee him eating his vegatables later.

He also moved around a bit more but still enjoying to lay and rest.

Or should i continue to aim for 40-60ml. Also in terms of increased painkillers my vet is closed until monday and as we still have painkillers it wouldn’t be classed as a emergency so i will hope it’s not too bad for him as it is mild stasis as he wasn’t bloated.
Thanks

If a piggy is not eating enough hay then this is why you syringe feed. Syringing replaces the hay they are not eating for themselves. Hay is 80% of the food intake. The daily weight checks tell you when they are eating enough hay for themselves.
While it is good he is eating some veg and nuggets, doing so does not mean you stop syringe feeding. You only stop syringing when you are certain they are maintaining their weight on hay intake.
Veg and nuggets only make 20% of daily food intake.

 

[Deleted member 151640]

If a piggy is not eating enough hay then this is why you syringe feed. Syringing replaces the hay they are not eating for themselves. Hay is 80% of the food intake. The daily weight checks tell you when they are eating enough hay for themselves.
While it is good he is eating some veg and nuggets, doing so does not mean you stop syringe feeding. You only stop syringing when you are certain they are maintaining their weight on hay intake.
Veg and nuggets only make 20% of daily food intake.

Thanks for your reply, i do not plan to stop feeding him but i just feel confused on how i would tell if he is maintaining without stopping the critical care.
Either way i’m going to do 40-50mls today and continue to monitor as i want his gut moving anyway.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks for your reply, i do not plan to stop feeding him but i just feel confused on how i would tell if he is maintaining without stopping the critical care.
Either way i’m going to do 40-50mls today and continue to monitor as i want his gut moving anyway.

Definitely need to continue for now. Your weight check tomorrow morning will tell you whether you are on the right track

 

[Deleted member 151640]

Definitely need to continue for now. Your weight check tomorrow morning will tell you whether you are on the right track

Thanks!

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks!

Hi

Your first priority is to slow down and then to stabilise the weight loss.
You can only ever start gradually reducing the support feed once the weight is really stable or picking up again. Keep in mind that with gut issues there could be still some gassing around.

You use the daily weigh-in first thing in the morning to manage the transition phase from round the clock support feeding in piggies with total loss of appetite to top up feeding recovering but not fully recovered guinea pigs. Keep in mind that eating veg and pellets doesn't say anything about a piggy eating their 80% of hay fully again.
You can reduce the number of syringe feeds to 4 and then 3 a day if your piggy is taking 15-20 ml in one session without needing much prompting. If the weight keeps going up, then you can try and see whether she is able to maintain her weight fully on her own. Recovered piggies will also often show less interest in syringe feed (unless they have taken a real liking to it).

Our feeding and medicating guide has more information on how to best manage the fluid recovery phase: All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

 

[Deleted member 151640]

Hi

Your first priority is to slow down and then to stabilise the weight loss.
You can only ever start gradually reducing the support feed once the weight is really stable or picking up again. Keep in mind that with gut issues there could be still some gassing around.

You use the daily weigh-in first thing in the morning to manage the transition phase from round the clock support feeding in piggies with total loss of appetite to top up feeding recovering but not fully recovered guinea pigs. Keep in mind that eating veg and pellets doesn't say anything about a piggy eating their 80% of hay fully again.
You can reduce the number of syringe feeds to 4 and then 3 a day if your piggy is taking 15-20 ml in one session without needing much prompting. If the weight keeps going up, then you can try and see whether she is able to maintain her weight fully on her own. Recovered piggies will also often show less interest in syringe feed (unless they have taken a real liking to it).

Our feeding and medicating guide has more information on how to best manage the fluid recovery phase: All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Hi , i’ll make sure to keep an eye on his recovery/weight and make choices from there.

We’re struggling with 8ml in a sitting as he’s hard rejecting the syringe and biting but i’ll keep going as i know he needs it.

Just to make it clear i do understand that veggies are a very small portion so i won’t change what i’m doing for that it’s just that he was completely rejecting for a while. Sorry if it came off wrong

Thanks for your reply

 

[Wiebke]

Hi , i’ll make sure to keep an eye on his recovery/weight and make choices from there.

We’re struggling with 8ml in a sitting as he’s hard rejecting the syringe and biting but i’ll keep going as i know he needs it.

Just to make it clear i do understand that veggies are a very small portion so i won’t change what i’m doing for that it’s just that he was completely rejecting for a while. Sorry if it came off wrong

Thanks for your reply

Please keep on support feeding at this stage.

It is a great sign that your boy has started to show interest in food again; it means that the is on the way to recovery now - that is the first big hurdle jumped.

The rest will hopefully follow over the coming week but you are not there yet. But he has the will to live and will get there. I would however be cautious with veg and check for signs of bloating. With a more serious espisode like yours, it can take a while for the microbiome to settle down fully and bounce back again - usually weeks rather than days although he should hopefully be able to eat normally much sooner.

 

[Deleted member 151640]

Please keep on support feeding at this stage.

It is a great sign that your boy has started to show interest in food again; it means that the is on the way to recovery now - that is the first big hurdle jumped.

The rest will hopefully follow over the coming week but you are not there yet. But he has the will to live and will get there. I would however be cautious with veg and check for signs of bloating. With a more serious espisode like yours, it can take a while for the microbiome to settle down fully and bounce back again - usually weeks rather than days although he should hopefully be able to eat normally much sooner.

Ok, I'm sorry for asking so many questions but i have another.

Today he has had 42ml of critical care, i’ve seen him eat hay a couple times but he’s still a bit tired and his poops are either tiny or not there.
He gets his veggies and his nuggets in the evening which i haven’t done yet. It will be weighed and watched the whole time to see if he eats it and i was planning to give him another ten if he isn’t interested in veg because if he won’t eat his veggies i know he won’t eat his hay.

Is the correct way? He only got diagnosed this morning and only started today his medication and the critical care. He’s was down around 150-200lbs when he was weighed this morning. He’s also since having his first medication at 9am started interacting with his cage mage and apart from tiredness acting normal and it’s throwing me off. (he perked up a couple hours later so maybe the painkillers kicked in)

I won’t stop support feeding because i know how delicate they are and i want to get his gut moving, i’m just scared to over feed because what if tomorrow he acts normal and i give to much critical care.

Either way i’m going to be keeping an eye on him and weighing him each morning before thinking about what i want to do. The only thing i’m sure on is that he’ll get atleast 20-40ml of critical care tomorrow even if he’s acting normal and weighing better, for his gut.

I’ve owned guinea pigs for decades but i’ve never had to support feed or came across GI stasis.

 

[Merab]

Holding you in my thoughts

 

[Deleted member 151640]

Holding you in my thoughts

 

[Deleted member 151640]

Okay well they’ve just been fed and he’s eaten his piece of romaine lettuce and a bit of a cucumber, then had some hay and when i put down nuggets he went and is now eating nuggets.

It went from this morning thinking i was going to lose him very soon by how lethargic he was and how he hadn’t eaten in around 16 hours which is so unlike him. My only thought is that maybe it was either really mild stasis or he had been dealing with it for a few days and the painkillers and antibioctics just helped him over the edge.

Don’t get me wrong i’m pleased but i’m just a bit confused, he’s had 42ml of critical care today to make up for what he’s lost but if he’s eating now is there any point in continuing if he’s eating on his own?

@Wiebke Sorry to tag you but you said to continue support feeding but does he need it if he’s eating on his own? Or for maybe the next day or two do i give him 10ml twice a day as it’s full of probiotics and nutrients.

While i was typing this he has stopped and gone back into his corner having only had a few nuggets which pre last night would never have happened before. So maybe i don’t know what i’m on about haha.

I most likely have to wait till morning to give him a chance and see, i will update in the morning but still want to post this as i’m curious. Thanks

 

[Wiebke]

Okay well they’ve just been fed and he’s eaten his piece of romaine lettuce and a bit of a cucumber, then had some hay and when i put down nuggets he went and is now eating nuggets.

It went from this morning thinking i was going to lose him very soon by how lethargic he was and how he hadn’t eaten in around 16 hours which is so unlike him. My only thought is that maybe it was either really mild stasis or he had been dealing with it for a few days and the painkillers and antibioctics just helped him over the edge.

Don’t get me wrong i’m pleased but i’m just a bit confused, he’s had 42ml of critical care today to make up for what he’s lost but if he’s eating now is there any point in continuing if he’s eating on his own?

@Wiebke Sorry to tag you but you said to continue support feeding but does he need it if he’s eating on his own? Or for maybe the next day or two do i give him 10ml twice a day as it’s full of probiotics and nutrients.

While i was typing this he has stopped and gone back into his corner having only had a few nuggets which pre last night would never have happened before. So maybe i don’t know what i’m on about haha.

I most likely have to wait till morning to give him a chance and see, i will update in the morning but still want to post this as i’m curious. Thanks

Please continue with your full feeding support. Your boy is by no means stable nor is he eating fully. Three quarters of what a piggy eats is hay - and that is what your syringe feeding is stepping in for. Just a bit of veg and a few pellets is just in the way of a couple of snacks; hay covers the equivalent of human breakfast, lunch and dinner.
You are basically trying to cut down to just one small main meal without checking whether he is actually eating lunch and dinner on his own. I hope that this puts the issue into perspective. The road to recovery is in some way the most difficult to manage when it is more in the way of an up and down and not necessarily a straight forward up.

I fully appreciate that you are tired and fed up - we all are by this stage and you have my full sympathy - but it is crucial that you do not throw all toys out of the pram too early just because you finally have the finish line in sight. You need to be patient until you actually cross it because it won't be a quick sprint and you won't have reached it until you have actually crossed it. There is no quick pram sprint; you have to keep pushing it step by step until you get to the line.

 

[Deleted member 151640]

Please continue with your full feeding support. Your boy is by no means stable nor is he eating fully. Three quarters of what a piggy eats is hay - and that is what your syringe feeding is stepping in for. Just a bit of veg and a few pellets is just in the way of a couple of snacks; hay is human breakfast, lunch and dinner.
You are basically trying to cut down to just one small main meal without checking whether he is eating lunch and dinner on his own. I hope that this puts into perspective. The road to recovery is in some way the most difficult to manage when it is more in the way of an up and down and not necessarily a straight forward up.

I fully appreciate that you are tired and fed up - we all are by this stage and you have my full sympathy - but it is crucial that you do not throw all toys out of the pram too early just because you finally have finish line in sight. You need to be patient until you actually cross it because it won't be a quick sprint and you won't have reached it until you have actually crossed it.

I apologise for all the back and forth, i’ve woken up this morning to veggies left and nuggets left meaning he probably hasn’t eaten much since last night as he loves his nuggets.

I need to stop getting ahead of myself, this is my first time and i’m quite an anxious person and it’s not doing myself any favours. Thanks for your patience and understanding.

He will be weighed and today i will aim for around 50-60ml as he seems to be taking bits of hay but not the usual. Maybe even a bit more would be great but we struggle to get 5-8ml in one sitting.
I will continue to offer him some veggies and nuggets but mainly keep and eye out for his hay consumption/general well-being.

 

[Deleted member 151640]

I have a 5 year old boar who got diagnosed with mild gut statis on Saturday the 5th of March.
He has had 0.75ml of Emeprid twice a day - 0.45ml of Loxicom once a day and since last Thursday 0.12ml of Cisapride twice a day.
He has also been on 30-40ml of critical care the first few days of his illness, last Wednesday I tried to wean him but he was unstable so since last Friday he has been on 20-25ml a day.
He was prescribed the Cisapride after we had a case of mild bloat the start of last week.

Fibreplex was ordered over the weekend and he had his first 1ml last night and another 1ml this morning with his 10ml of critical care.
Over the weekend he showed his first signs of really being better, gaining weight after losing around 30-40g at the end of last week, and pooping much more normally.
Unfortunately this morning he is back down to 1101g after his highest being 1128g yesterday morning, while still pooping as far as I could see.

Last night there was much less poops after his morning cleaning being his best one yet (poop looking normal in good amounts) and this morning there were few small orange poops. He was hunched up, looking like he was in some sort of discomfort/pain, and refusing to take his medications where he was doing much better over the past week with taking them. Once I finally got them in he was refusing his critical care which had the fibreplex in it, I tried my best but I would say he got around 6-7ml of critical care and a good bit of his fibreplex. (He ate it fine last night)
He was doing nervous on and off shaking the whole time, even when I tried feeding him in his room where he stays. I put him back in and he sat hunched for a bit then went back to eating hay like normal. (He is normally very confident and getting into everything but this morning he just wanted to wrap himself up in his towel and hide)

He has been eating hay, veggies, nuggets and drinking water. Again as there was a lack of poops this morning his lowered weight is even more worrying as he should be full of poop.

I have run out of Emeprid (last one this morning) and I am about to run out of the Loxicom and the Cisapride. Critical care is running sort of low but I have enough for at least of today and tomorrow.
I am thinking I want a vet appointment as opposed to just re-ordering his medication so we can check out his gut movement etc. I am not sure of when they will next have an appointment but my dog is already in at 2pm today so I am hoping they may be able to slot us in after, but I can not phone until after 12pm for personal reasons.

Hes really got us on a rollercoaster, one second looking like hes getting much better and the past two times the next morning hes back to being really sick again.
I was recommended upping the Emeprid but I did not feel comfortable doing it without my vets insight, and he was looking better when I was first recommended.

I am trying my best for him, just looking for any ideas or advice that would be helpful.

 

[Deleted member 151640]

I’ve been to the vets with my dog and he’s suggested we come in for some investigative work.

So we’re heading in tomorrow to see how he’s getting on, fingers crossed it’s nothing too serious.

 

[piggieminder]

Good luck tomorrow. Sending your boy lots of healing vibes.

 

[Merab]

Hope all goes well tomorrow

 

[VickiA]

Hope all goes well tomorrow at the vets

 

[Deleted member 151640]

I have made about 20 posts about this but here we go, just looking for a well wish or any advice, haha I need it, not so sure about him though.

5 year old boar having been diagnosed with gut stasis on the 5th of March. He has around two days of looking like hes better then another drop, he is still eating/moving and has been since the first initial vet appointment.

2 weeks tomorrow since we first started medication.
After this visit today we are on 0.22ml of Loxicom (dog stuff so its around 3x what he was getting before even on the "smaller" dose) once a day, 1ml of Emeprid twice a day and 0.12ml of Cisapride 3 times a day aswell as 2ml of fibreplex a day and 20-25ml of critical care.
Previously he was on .75ml of Emeprid and .45ml of Cat Loxicom. Fibreplex was just started this Tuesday (after recommendations from members on here) and we have had our first one or two cow pat like poops alongside normal ones so I am not too concerned so far about that and the vet suggested we keep on with that.

After the two weeks we had our lowest weight yet at 1101g today when he started around 1145g at the start of this which is technically in the safe amount but as he is sick and not getting better its more of a worry, and his poops are on and off so it may be an elevated number.
He peed twice on the vet, haha. He has 1 week more of medication use before we look into investigative work which would have him under anesthesia and as he is 5 and has previous issues with URI's and pneumonia I am very wary so I have my fingers and toes crossed this works for us, he is just so strong and loving.

So far we have paid around £150 in total and if this doesn't work it will be around another £150-250, and as we all know it is quite tough times right now so I am really hoping this works out for him.

I want to thank you all for the support and advice through this, when I mentioned the fibreplex the vet stated that she wanted to give it to us anyway but couldn't since they had run out and when I mentioned the lovely people on this forum and upping it to 1ml she said that would be a good idea and we went through with it, so I appreciate you all very much.

I will insert a picture of him, mainly because I just think he is too cute not the be shown haha. (very old picture when they used to be on sawdust pre-URI, plus they have been inside and not in their hutch for the past 5 months due to the cold in Scotland)

 

[Piggies&buns]

Yes you did post it, we ask that posts about the same issue are kept to the same thread instead of new threads being started each time. Your post has been merged with your original thread.
We ask this so that all information is kept in one place and we can see the advice that has previously been given.

 

[Piggies&buns]

You’re doing all you can with the medications, daily weight checks and syringe feeding.
If his weight starts to go down, then increase the amount of syringe feeds he is getting.

Fingers crossed for his recovery