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Inner Ear Infection

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Mali's Mum

Mali's Mum

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Hi all,

Honor has been suffering form a recurring ear infection for a few months. First of all she was given two antibiotics (one banana smelling one and the other was a capsule that i had to add to water), she picked up after a month of these and put on 200g in weight and we thought all was fine. However the head tilt returned. This time our lovely vet Glen took an ear culture and we should hear the results today (He has prescribed 0.75ml of Zithromax day in the meantime as it is stronger).

She's doing ok, lost a little bit of weight but Glen isn't concerned as Zithromax can be hard on the tummy (i give her some Avipro plus 1.5 hours after her antibiotics) and fibreplex in the morning and evening. She eats very slowly (and selectively) and half the amount of my other two, so i give her her veg separately, She sometimes enjoys Critical Care in quite a thick paste but other days doesn't want any. However, she picks at her hay, dandelion salad and redigrass all day.

I guess I am asking if there is anything else i can do for her?

Thanks Claire and Honor

Last Night ...
last night21.webp
 
Bless her, sounds like Glen had got it all under control though. Zithromax is excellent, the dose seems a bit low compared to what Simon as prescribed Tim but it is linked to weight so maybe that's why. Is she on any kind of pain relief or anti-inflammatory?

The banana antibiotic would have been Septrin.
 
helen105281 said:
Bless her, sounds like Glen had got it all under control though. Zithromax is excellent, the dose seems a bit low compared to what Simon as prescribed Tim but it is linked to weight so maybe that's why. Is she on any kind of pain relief or anti-inflammatory?

The banana antibiotic would have been Septrin.
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She only Weighs around 820g (was 850g when Glen saw her) so maybe that's why?

He game me Loxicom (Hope that's how you spell it) so she gets that once a day too.

I am just a bit concerned about her appetite but i suppose i wouldn't want to get much is if was feeling poorly and my head was tilted to one side.
 
That could be it, Tim is about 1000g now I think, though he is with Debbie so am not 100% sure.

Loxicom is good. You could ask Glen about splitting the dose maybe so she has it twice a day? with their fast metabolism pain meds can wear off pretty quickly.

You could try adding in Metatone, it's a vitamin tonic you can get in the supermarket and it gives them a bit of a boost and can in some cases helps stimulate the appetite. Dose is 0.5ml once a day for 1 week and 0.3ml once a day for a second week.
 
helen105281 said:
That could be it, Tim is about 1000g now I think, though he is with Debbie so am not 100% sure.

Loxicom is good. You could ask Glen about splitting the dose maybe so she has it twice a day? with their fast metabolism pain meds can wear off pretty quickly.

You could try adding in Metatone, it's a vitamin tonic you can get in the supermarket and it gives them a bit of a boost and can in some cases helps stimulate the appetite. Dose is 0.5ml once a day for 1 week and 0.3ml once a day for a second week.
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Oh great, I will try that.

When should i give her that? Its so confusing trying to work out when is best to get her all her potions! :eek:

C x
 
She can have that with her antibiotics in the morning, it doesn't really matter.
 
Great, I'll get some of them.

Any idea how long the Zithromax takes to work?

Here's hoping the ear culture comes back with something, Glen said there is a chance nothing will grow in the lab.

C x
 
How long has she been on it? I think it can take a few days to kick in at least.
 
I would have hoped it would have started to have an effect but I am not sure, Tim is on his for 4 weeks but he had a retrobulbar abscess. You could ask Glen about a dose increase maybe? My Barney was on 0.8ml when he was on it earlier in the year but at the time he was only about 750g as he was very poorly.
 
I'll ask Glen, she probably is picking up and i am being paranoid. The last time it took a month for her to seem well again.

Glen said she will be on it for at least 3 months so a long road ahead.

How much pro biotic should she had after the Zithromax? - just now i only give her about 1ml.

C x
 
That's a long course, I can see why though, maybe that's why he has dosed as he has. I would give as much as she will take, mine have as many syringes as they want. Usually works out at at least 5ml a day, maybe more.
 
Hi, ear infections can be troblsom to controle , but your vet seam to be very comperdant ! By the way

if you were using a probiotic like Fibraflex, is a very
Safe pro biotic , and it has a mesuring ring at the back of it to deliver the corect dose , also when delivery syringe is finished , it
Makes a very usfull styinge feeder ,
I always save my empty fibraplex syringes in case l ever need to syinge feed .
 
Hi

Just a wee update on Honor - good news that the infection is sensitive to Zithromax so we are on the right antibiotic but she's looking really miserable!

I phoned Glen this morning but he's on holiday, the other vet just stated that as the antibiotic is working we should persevere even though she doesn't look like she's getting better. He prescribed some Biolaptis (Hope that's the right spelling) to add to her water but she doesn't drink much so I think I'll have to syringe it which she hates. She's obviously not eating when I'm not around (which is to be expected apparently) I make sure she's around 820g before I go to bed by giving her favourite veg/hay but she's always around 800g by morning.

I have ordered a large variety of hay which should arrive soon so hopefully that will keep her going.

We're back to see Glen this time next week - I just feel helpless for her. :(
 
Biolapis is a probiotic, I would definitely syringe this separately as it needs to be given an hour or so after the Zithromax so you can't control that if it is in the bottle.

Are you syringe feeding? Did you ask the vet about the Loxicom and splitting the dose? what dose is she on? there may still be a pain response.

All pigs react to Zithromax differently, it made my Barney miserable but Tim has been on it for a couple of weeks and is his usual self apparently.
 
helen105281 said:
Biolapis is a probiotic, I would definitely syringe this separately as it needs to be given an hour or so after the Zithromax so you can't control that if it is in the bottle.

Are you syringe feeding? Did you ask the vet about the Loxicom and splitting the dose? what dose is she on? there may still be a pain response.

All pigs react to Zithromax differently, it made my Barney miserable but Tim has been on it for a couple of weeks and is his usual self apparently.
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How much should i syringe after an hour or so? she hates syringing! i never see her drinking water so no point in putting it in her bottle.

I am not syringe feeding yet as she is still eating. She's very picky someday s she wolfs down kale and lettuce but like this morning she wouldnt touch it.

Shes on 0.3ml of Loxicom and said i could split the does if need be but doesnt think the ear pain should be an issue now, just her tummy. I usually give her the Loxicom and Fibreplex in the morning then the Zithromax in the evening with her veg. then an hour or so later i giver her her probiotoc and Metatone.

Got her some hay and redigrass 'cookies' that she still enjoys but just in little amounts.
 
It would be the same as I said for the Avipro I think as it is basically the same thing, just a different brand.

Is she maintaining her weight?

Is it dog Loxicom? Sorry so many questions.

I was just thinking she could be feeling generally lousy so having her pain relief twice a day may perk her up a bit.
 
helen105281 said:
It would be the same as I said for the Avipro I think as it is basically the same thing, just a different brand.

Is she maintaining her weight?

Is it dog Loxicom? Sorry so many questions.

I was just thinking she could be feeling generally lousy so having her pain relief twice a day may perk her up a bit.
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She is maintaing between 800g before food and 820g after her breakfast/dinner but she used to be 850g before she got ill again.

No idea what kind of Loxicolm it is. Will check tonight though X
 
If it is the cat one it may be a very low dose, but if it is the dog one it is reasonable.

Great that she is maintaining her weight.
 
Thanks Helen.

How much Biolapis should i syringe her a day bearing in mind i work 9-5? she's never been a pig that really drinks anything. Doug said put a pinch on her veg but i tried that with the Avipro and she ate round it!
 
I think spaced throughout the day is good but I would leave the dose after the antibiotic and do 3ml at bed or in the morning so it is not to close to the antibiotic. Fibreplex is good too but is also a probiotic (and I think a prebiotic too). I would only use that if her poos need firming up.
 
helen105281 said:
I think spaced throughout the day is good but I would leave the dose after the antibiotic and do 3ml at bed or in the morning so it is not to close to the antibiotic. Fibreplex is good too but is also a probiotic (and I think a prebiotic too). I would only use that if her poos need firming up.
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Great thanks. So I don't need to giver the probiotic strictly 1-2 hours after the antibiotic? It can be 3 to 4 hours after?

Her poos are fine so I'll stop the Fibreplex for now. She's still
Maintaining her weight. I thought she would have lost loads today considering how poorly she looked this morning.
 
Yes as long as it is at least an hour apart from the antibiotic (i.e not at the same time).

That's great she has good poos and is maintaining her weight ok.
 
Thanks so much Helen. What would me and Honor do without your help.

Eating some critical care off a spoon just now.

image.webp
 
Any time. That's a lovely photo, her eyes look bright.
 
helen105281 said:
Any time. That's a lovely photo, her eyes look bright.
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Well she weight 798g this morning and i was a bit disheartened as that's the first time she's been in the 700g's but she was only 810g when i put her to bed last night so that's not a huge jump (She normally loses around 20g overnight). She took 3.5ml of the biolapis before bed (pretty willingly) and i gave her 2ml this morning with 1.5ml of loxicolm (I'll give the 2nd half tonight) so hopefully that might help. She enjoyed some basil and mint this morning and was eating Dandelion Salad when i left. Just not in her usual amount.

Think i'll start syringing Critical Care to give her a wee bulk up.
 
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