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Gwen's Sore Feet - Start of Bumblefoot? Heart?

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We have reached a milestone! It has been 6 months since Gwenny started treatment for her heart problem (it was 23 February when she started the diuretic, and 6 March when she started the benazepril). She is a reformed pig, bright eyed, no longer a quiet loner. Now she is looking so well, I can really appreciate how ill she was for a long time before I really noticed that her behaviour was actually abnormal, and not just some strange behavioural quirks. I have no doubt that if she didn't start her heart meds when she did, we would have lost her, and I am so immensely proud of my special girl to still be here, and doing so well, 6 months on.

Thanks to everyone who offered support over the past six months, it means such a lot to know that there are people that care. And Gwen is still loving her pink fluffy bed, even if she does have to share it with her friends!

And my heartfelt thanks goes to someone who was there for me and Gwen on a medical level when we really needed her help - she probably doesn't want to be named but I know she reads the thread and she knows who she is. Gwen would not be here had she not offered her help and support, I am eternally grateful for everything she has done to help me and my piggies.

Kisses for everyone from my lovely Gwenivere:

GAug2.jpg


xx
 
We have reached a milestone! It has been 6 months since Gwenny started treatment for her heart problem (it was 23 February when she started the diuretic, and 6 March when she started the benazepril). She is a reformed pig, bright eyed, no longer a quiet loner. Now she is looking so well, I can really appreciate how ill she was for a long time before I really noticed that her behaviour was actually abnormal, and not just some strange behavioural quirks. I have no doubt that if she didn't start her heart meds when she did, we would have lost her, and I am so immensely proud of my special girl to still be here, and doing so well, 6 months on.

Thanks to everyone who offered support over the past six months, it means such a lot to know that there are people that care. And Gwen is still loving her pink fluffy bed, even if she does have to share it with her friends!

And my heartfelt thanks goes to someone who was there for me and Gwen on a medical level when we really needed her help - she probably doesn't want to be named but I know she reads the thread and she knows who she is. Gwen would not be here had she not offered her help and support, I am eternally grateful for everything she has done to help me and my piggies.

Kisses for everyone from my lovely Gwenivere:

GAug2.jpg


xx
 
Wonderful news Laura

I missed your posts on Gwen initially...and am so glad she is doing so well.

x
 
So nice to hear of such wonderful progress - you definitely deserve this success, with all the effort you've put in, tirelessly. Gwen is so fortunate to be one of yours.

She looks (and sounds) like such a beautiful piggy and I'm glad that her 'true' character is now coming out, now that she's feeling so much more comfortable.

Well done you! And well done Gwenny for being such a fighter and so brave x
 
Glad to hear she is doing so well. A brilliant example of what can be done.
Laura your dedication is amazing
Becca
 
Great to hear little Gwen is doing so well Laura, she looks a real sweetie - sending gentle ear scratches to a special lady.x)x)
 
It's only because I updated saying she is doing so well, that it's all gone a bit awry again. Whenever I say things are perfectly fine, you can guarantee someone somwhere changes it for me. mallethead

Gwenny has had a bit of a rollercoaster and I am very concerned about her at the moment.

Gwenny has seen Vedra twice in the past ten days. First was on 24 September, as I noticed lots of hair thinning on her underside. I felt it was more likely to be hormonal alopecia, as opposed to mites or fungal. Vedra agreed, there are no live parasites on Gwenny so Gwen had one hCG injection. Still no real improvement on the hair thinning but early days, hair takes a while to grow back in. :)

Vedra also saw her today. Before I explain more about why, I need to fill in the blanks regarding her heart condition.

Her symptoms started creeping back in again, mainly rocking back and forth as she breathes. Vedra also picked up on "mild cardiac congestion" on 24 Sept. As such, her heart meds have increased again to 1mg 2x daily, still on furosemide 2x daily as well. However, this is not enough, the signs suggest she is advancing further into congestive heart failure (CHF). It's always been a real possibility, heart conditions are managed not cured. So, she is also starting a new heart med, to be given in addition to the others - Vetmedin (pimobendan) was very strongly advised for Gwenny after seeking the personal advice of an experienced member of Guinea Lynx.

Now, todays visit was about her back leg. Around two weeks ago I noticed she had quite stiff back legs/hips, so I started her on Nurofen 0.2ml 2x daily. This seemed to help. But a couple of days ago I noticed she was limping on the back leg and it was very swollen. By Saturday evening she could not walk on it at all. Because she's generally pretty weak from the CHF, walking on three legs lasted all of five minutes, she has just not got the strength at all - she has been reduced to twisting her hips so her painful and swollen leg is not touching the floor, and just dragging her back end. Totally heartbreaking sight, and a familiar one as one of my past girls Lottie did just the same.

GwennyLegs3Oct.jpg


The swollen hind leg:

GwennySwellFoot3Oct.jpg


Vedra diagnosed a joint problem, unrelated to heart although the heart problem really does nothing to help.

Treatment plan:
- Massage pad for 20 minutes, 2x daily for life;
- High dose Vit C daily;
- Joint supplement (Vedra forgot the name but I suspect it was Vitapet RA Joint Formula) for several weeks;
- Prednisolone (steroidal anti-inflammatory) - 0.5mg 2x daily for 10 days.

Plus, of course, her heart meds. I am also giving some syringe-feeds to boost her strength, and some SubQ fluids as she's not drinking, and it is vital she gets the fluids given she's on a diuretic. And Reiki healings too, which she loves given she's a lovely cuddler.

If anyone has any spare healing vibes, they would be much appreciated, I am just hoping her treatment for her joints kicks in very fast as it's a lot of strain on her heart to be dragging herself around.
 
Awww, poor wee Gwenny! She is so lucky to have such a dedicated person to care for her!

All sorts of healing vibes and imaginary dandelions from her Swedish friends!
 
Loving the imaginary dandelions Petra - will have to go find some real ones to make it up to Gwenny now! Thanks also Karina, "Oh God" is just about what I said when I saw she was no longer able to walk.

I am trying not to fret too much about her given she is bright in herself, she is still my Gwenny girl...but I can't help worrying. The same problem didn't end well with Lottie, her heart gave out after a week or two of dragging herself around, as she was weakened by her hyperthyroid problems. With Gwenny having a definite heart condition, she is also not really strong enough to be doing this, the sooner she is back on her feet the better.

The Prednisolone is one of the more heavyweight type painkillers/anti-inflammatories e.g. next step up from NSAIDs like Nurofen, Rimadyl, Metacam. So fingers crossed it kicks in very fast and gets Gwenny back up on her feet again. It even feels like my heart is crossed, like I am crossing my fingers, as I hope so much that I can get her sorted quick!
 
I'm so sorry to hear about Gwenny being so unwell at the moment 8... It's absolutely heartbreaking for you :( All you can do is what you are already doing for the little sweetheart and that is by loving her and taking the best care of her with seeing the right experts and her having the best possible treatments. I will be praying for her so much :) I hope the medications soon start to reduce the swelling and discomfort in her leg x
 
Hi Laura

Oh Goodness - Poor Gwenny....and poor you.....it never rains does it?

Muffin the heart pig has quite substantial oedema in all four paws. While they are very swollen, (and have been since she went on heart meds) she still manages to scratch (occasionally sprint) around (and can still see off the boys if she wants to).

She has been on heartmeds for a year and atm is only showing signs of increased wee and rough coat (fungal bath for her next weekend)

What struck me about Gwenny's photo is the redness in just one of her feet - and the fact she can;t put weight on it. I'm "going out on a limb here" (sorry for the pun) but I would seriously think about a penetrating antibioitic (possibly zithro in this case?) in addition to all the other treatment (which i fully concur with) if there is no improvement within 36 hours...as a preventative measure. Gout/arthritis/inflammation is obviously a companion to heart probs/poor circulation - but infection can set in because of poor circulation and with just the one limb being affected in such a way I personally would be "on my guard".

Big Hugs Hun
x
 
I so hope she improves for you. She's so similar to my Sukie (in my avatar), who I lost at Christmas. She didn't have the leg issue, but with hindsight I think she had a heart problem (and she breathed just like Gwenny), and her poor feet used to be a constant problem by the end.

All paws are crossed for the lovely Gwenny x
 
Thanks for your thoughts Pebble, will bear those in mind, I do appreciate your input. I haven't any Zithromax and TBH chances of getting it are very low, but I do have Baytril if needs be...if it got to the stage where I might suspect infection, would Baytril be better than nothing, or as good as nothing? (If you get my drift)

The pig I mentioned who had this same mobility problem before was Lottie, she did have a joint infection, difference was she had a scab on the hock, which Vedra pulled off and released a lot of pus (and left an almighty crater in Lottie's foot). Lottie had a lot less treatment than Gwenny though, she had hyperthyroid and had to come off the thyroid meds (Neo-Mercazole (carbimazole)) in order to have Rimadyl. I changed nothing else, not even cage space, was not advised to. Only thing I really did medically, was the Rimadyl, I simply knew no more at that stage.

This time around, with Gwenny, I am doing much more, I have learnt from the experience with Lottie. Gwenny has the massage pad, limited cage space, joint supplements, and I put forward the suggestion of Prednisolone (next step up from an NSAID like Rimadyl) after advice from a friend, luckily Vedra agreed.
 
Not every infection gets to vent to the outside. I'm thinking bone/joint because of poor circulation - and more specifically because of the heart problems a possible Strep (pneumoniae) as this can hit both heart and joints/bone....

Baytril might work providing the strep isn;t resistant. All my pigs carry baytril and septrin-resistant staph and strep as normal flora in their guts/repiratory tracts so we tend not to resort to those antibiotics now whatever the porblem. Did the last piggie you gave baytril to respond favourably? If the answer is yes then you might still be Ok - but with a herd and lots of piggies getting antibioitics for various conditions over a period of time then it would not be surprising if antibioitic-resistant flora build up.

If zithro is difficult to get hold of...I would disucss an INJECTION of long acting oxy-tetracycline - Beechie had this for bad abcesses from cervical lympadenitis in his mouth/cheek (normally a strep infection) and it did the job grand after one injection where baytril wouldn;t touch it.........

If you have probs re anitbiotics then let me know....I will ask my vet to ring your vet.........(or get you a prescription if poss)

x
 
Oh Piggie Poo!

Tried to edit but got locked out for over half an hout!

Meant to say - pred is not just anti=inflammatory. Because it is a steroid it is immunosuppressive and therefore can aid spread of infection (hence why I have been harping on about antibioitics/infection...sorry ...didn;t make myself clear...brain jumped one step ahead ...)

So......before you give pred to Gwenny - make sure you have a back up antibioitic treatment regime ready and waiting "to go" in case she needs it going forwards........

Not trying to scaremonger - just performing a risk assessment and being pro-active about mitigating risk .....
x
 
Thanks for your thoughts again Pebble, much appreciated, certainly learnt something new and there is lots to think about.

Gwenivere says, "Good Morning" to all her friends.

MorningGwenny7Oct.jpg


She had three doses of Prednisolone, but no improvement at all. She seemed a bit worse if anything, appetite decreasing and hair puffed up. Her leg was still extremely painful, even a feathery touch was even for her to scream out. I contacted a friend and Vedra yesterday, both agreed to stop the Prednisolone, and Vedra prescribed Rimadyl instead. So she's on 5mg 2x daily.

She had her first dose last night (would ordinarily wait 24hrs between steroid and NSAID, but given the severe pain Gwenny was obviously in and serious concerns over whether she would be ok, I decided to just wait until 12 hours between doses). I am glad I did dose her last night, she has already improved. I can touch the leg, even poke it about a bit (gently of course!) without her crying out. I just get a normal, pain free reaction from the leg. She is brighter in herself too, she spent much of yesterday and last night eating and drinking by herself, and she's much brighter in her eyes as well.

I had no idea Pred was not a painkiller, only an anti-inflammatory, so that's something I learned there yesterday.
 
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