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Haypoke in boar w/ cataracts?

4boipigs

4boipigs

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I noticed my cataract pig who is estimated to be 6 yrs old had red in the whites of this eye, and I can see a blood vessel cutting across his eye. No discharge and acting normal. We can get to the vet on Friday assuming they have availability. I'm just so frustrated with my poor boys, especially after my disappointing vet visit with my boy who was peeing blood.
 

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Sorry your boys got himself in a pickle. Eyes are classed as an emergency, and I assume the same would go for him even if he has cataracts. Could you try getting him in tomorrow with a general vet?
 
I am not sure, because we are supposed to get ice here which is too dangerous to drive in. If it doesn't ice, I work a 12 hour day and am off work Friday...luckily I work at a vet, but we don't normally see piggies. I'll have to see if the doctor is okay with see him. I much rather see our normal exotics vet. I do have some drops that were prescribed to my other guinea pigs (in December for conjunctivitis) but I'm not sure it's right for him. It's ketorolac tromethamine.
 
:agr:
He needs to be seen by a vet, I appreciate severe weather really wont help the situation though! An injury to an eye is classed as urgent and can be seen by a general vet as eyes are the same in all species. Please dont put anything in the eye if it was intended for another animal/diagnosis. If it is due If it is a haypoke, then inside the eyelid also has to be checked as there can sometimes still be hay stuck where only a vet can find it - one of my boys got himself a haypoke and the vet found a 1cm grass seed wedged under his eyelid. The injury had only occurred less than an hour before I saw his eye looking watery and cloudy and he was taken immediately to the vet but because the seed was wedged, it was scratching his eye every time he moved.
 
I wonder if you could try smiling sweetly (and possibly baking something) and getting a work vet to take a look for you? Kill two birds with one stone and saves an additional trip out in bad weather. I think for vet purposes, eyes are eyes and a more general vet is fine, you don’t need an exotic.
 
Agree, my vet did treat haypoke with simple eye ointment and metacam after assessing the damage with the dye. The quicker they start treatment, I mean literally within a day, the better their chances are. I know some piggies who lost their eyes because of something that could've been treated and it will cost more to remove eye than treat haypoke.
It seems like US vets aren't very open to treat Guinea pigs, unless they're specialist in exotics? It must be frustrating. Hope it works out x
 
The doctor says Little Bear has a rather nasty ulcer. She did an eye stain for him. She made it sound urgent and if we don't keep up on the meds, then he would need the eye removed. Naturally she wasn't hopeful of doing such a thing on a 6yr old pig. We were given an eye lubricant I have to give every 2 to 4 hours, and 2 medications to use for the next week. I think I can give him the eye lub on time but I'm concerned on what to do overnight. The vet made it sound as if this is a long term thing. I've seen posts on here of pigs with eyes shriveled up and basically useless that were revived by medication. I hope this is the case for us.

The vet sounded really upset but I literally only noticed this eye issue yesterday.
 
I don’t know what others do but I think it’s okay to not wake in the night to apply the eye lubrication.
 
Mine have both had nasty eye ulcers and have ever been given lubricant but their eyes have healed just fine. I’d do it last thing at night and first thing in the morning.
 
Siikibam said:
I don’t know what others do but I think it’s okay to not wake in the night to apply the eye lubrication.
Click to expand...

You're probably right. I just want the best for him. He is one of my boys someone abandoned in a fried chicken box last October, so I refuse to let him suffer more. I just hate that he has to go thru this.

He was squinting his eye more today and has white discharge. Yesterday his eye was just red. I'm glad I was able to get him into the vet today.
 
I need help giving this eye ointment that helps keeps his eye moist. His eye looks worse and worse. He won't let me apply the ointment and cries in pain. He's a biter too. He keeps jerking his head away so I get the ointment all over his fur
 
Can you wrap him up so his paws can’t escape?
 
His paws aren't the issue, it's him turning his head away and the ointment not wanting to go in his eye. It's like a gel ointment. I'm supposed to get it in his lower eye lid but he is in pain and moves his head away and cries. The ointment gets on his fur instead. I was able to distract him a bit with food. I'll ask the vet in the morning if they have something else to use. I don't want to hurt him anymore and his eye is looking so much worse than yesterday. He is starting to have green eye discharge also.
 

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I meant wrapping him up so he can’t squirm. Do you have someone who could help you? Does he have any painkiller? Perhaps you could try after it’s kicked in. Sorry, sounds difficult. You’re doing well.
 
Hmm. I have managed it by sitting on the floor with my knees up and then putting the pig on my lap with the affected eye outwards and the other side pressed against my tummy. I’ve held the head by my fingers gently against my body too And then used the other hand to squirt the ointment. That other hand is kind of braced by my knees. Basically there isn’t really anywhere for a piggie to wriggle to!

I have to say though it was easy to start with as they clearly felt dreadful. As they felt better they got more feisty! I haven’t had the lubricant, it was antibiotic ointment I gave but the principle is the same.
 
I was able to distract him with a carot this morning (its 5am here). The eye drops are no issue. This eye ointment/lubricant just won't get onto his eye. He feels it because he flinches and moves away, but the ointment doesn't really come off the tube or the qtip. All it is, is a petroleum/mineral oil ointment. I'll see if I can get eye drops instead. That would be much easier. I just feel dreadful that if I can't get this in his eye it won't get better...and my area is supposed to have nasty weather (where I live, snow and cold weather isn't something locals are familiar with) and I doubt I could get him to an emergency vet in 6 inches of snow.

He's still acting "fine" but his eye must really hurt.
 
His eye doesn't appear to be getting better. I'll call the doctor tomorrow and see what they think. As stated in my other post the weather is going to be bad and where I live is not familiar with snow- plus the temps with be in the teens (-9 celcius?). It is being advised not to travel. I can't handle his getting worse and then the vet isn't open or the roads are too unsafe. :(

He is still 'acting fine' but his eye hurts even with metacam.
 

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