Help! Guinea Pig Suffered Compound Fracture

[DCC892]

Hi,

I'm a new guinea pig owner. So I was playing with my guinea pig, letting her jump off my hand and onto the floor. She did great the first few times, then the last time I think she landed wrong and hurt her leg. We took her to the vet and took an Xray. Her left thigh is fractured in two places. The vet said she might die in surgery since she's so small and we can't give her any pain medications for the same reason. He also added that it has a 50/50 chance of healing on its own but she'll be in pain. I asked the vet if the injury is fatal to which he said it shouldn't be, but it will be uncomfortable for her. So I don't know what to do! In the meantime, she still walks fine with her broken leg tucked up and she's still eating and drinking like normal. Also she's not chewing on her bad leg and hasn't made any painful squeals since ~20 minutes after the incident actually occurred. What is the best course of action? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Swissgreys]

I am sorry, but she definitely needs to be on some form of pain medication.
I know of someone on here who had a guinea pig with a broken foot, and they also had it specially strapped with tape to support the leg.
Your poor piggie must be in so much pain right now - you really need to find a vet who will show you how to strap the leg and prescribe pain medication.

 

[VickiA]

@DCC892 where are you situated?

Your piggy needs proper assessment by a piggy savvy vet. If you've ever broken a bone you will know the pain. Pain relief should be possible - she really should not be left with an un-set leg with no pain relief. Please get a second opinion.

 

[GPTV]

as the others have said please get her some pain relief, she must be in agony. she may go off of her food due to the pain & this will start a whole new ball of complications rolling. other signs of pain are hunched up appearance, hiding & fur all sticking up,puffed out not laying flat as it should do if smooth coated.
guinea pigs are prey animals & so always try & hide signs of weakness or ill health for fear of being picked out.

also guineas have the frame of a potato on very small legs, jumping any more than a few inches voluntarily up or down should be avoided where possible as their body weight puts excess strain on the legs & back. they also have quite delicate spines for such a robust looking animal (this is why harnesses are to be avoided too because of spinal injury).

if you are in the UK there is a recommended cavy savvy vet guide on the bar at the top of the screen. i think you could do with a second opinion from a different vet, even at the same practice if they are cavy savvy. this will mean the xray is available for the other vet to see immediately or ask them to email you a copy of the image & you can show a different vet of your choice.

i would be worried about the bone digging into the flesh & causing internal bleeding or movement of the fracture it needs to be stabilized somehow i would think.

I'm sorry your new guinea pig ownership hasn't quite gone to plan & you haven't got to enjoy her for very long so far. but please get her seen again as a matter of urgency by a different vet, even a general vet can prescribe painkillers (usually metacam/loxicom) so it doesn't have to be an exotics vet for that. but the leg sounds like surgery will be needed so i'm afraid she will need a specialist i expect for that .

healing vibes by the bucket load for your little one & hope you can get her sorted for a full recovery. xx

 

[annaa]

Sorry to hear what has happened to your poor piggy deffinately go and get her seen by another vet, as far as I'm aware there is no reason she can't have pain relief medication as the give you a dosage adjusted to weight.

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

Guinea pig savvy vet asap! Your piggy will be in a lot of pain.

Why on earth were you encouraging her to jump?

 

[Adelle]

Can only agree with the above- pain relief/anti inflammatorys are regularly prescribed to guinea pigs, so you definately need to find a piggy savvy vet. Metacam/ loxicom is usually the choice of drug- the dose varies, my vet usually prescribes 0.4ml cat metacam once a day or 0.1ml/4 drops dog metacam once a day for an average 1kg pig. Vets usually stick around this figure but it can vary.

As also mentioned, guinea pigs are not like hamsters and dont climb/jump from things to amuse themselves, as I'm sure you now know. Please dont play these sorts of games with any pig, and allow her to play on a secure flat floor with guinea pig toys and hay, once she is fully healed.