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Dental Little piggie eating super slowly, less and small poops

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andthislittlepiggie

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So, took one of our little piggies to the vets today. He was eating soooooo slowly, stopped eating hay etc.
After reading 'the internet' I got the impression it was urgent piggie vet visit.

So, just picked him up after some dental work. Still not eating. Fingers crossed the little fella starts eating again soon x
 

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He will need to be syringe fed if he isn’t eating for himself. Weigh him daily as it is the only way to know you are getting enough syringe feeds into him - if he loses weight, then you need to feed more often. In a complete loss of appetite/inability to eat you need to syringe every couple of hours, Aiming for at least 60ml of feed in a 24 hour period.

Has he been prescribed some pain relief?

The guides below explain -

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
 
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Yeah, I'll weigh him now. The vet said he was eating straight away after waking up! So they didn't provide any medication. However 3 hours since getting home he is rooting around for food, but not touching it.

I'll pick up the syringe tomorrow.

Cheers for the links. I'll get the note pad out! Lot to make sure I get right
 
andthislittlepiggie said:
Yeah, I'll weigh him now. The vet said he was eating straight away after waking up! So they didn't provide any medication. However 3 hours since getting home he is rooting around for food, but not touching it.

I'll pick up the syringe tomorrow.

Cheers for the links. I'll get the note pad out! Lot to make sure I get right
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It may be that he is feeling sore but a piggy in pain, particularly mouth pain, won’t want to eat.
if he isn’t and hasn’t been eating then you can’t wait until tomorrow to syringe feed him - mush up some pellets with water and offer them to him on a spoon now in the absence of a syringe. Get a 1ml syringe tomorrow as it is easier with a small syringe.
 
So. update. Took him back to the vets last night, as I couldn't get the little fella to eat.
Picked him up today, they told me he was eating hay, carrot, apple. And were syringe feeding him without issue.....

Got home!

1. We some medication for his gut, 0.6ml. Can not get the little guy to stay still
2. Syringe and powder food. Again, just can't get him to eat from the syringe. He has become very wriggly! :-(

Managed to see him eat two 'treat' items. But not ideal.
The vets were telling us they were able to syringe feed him without bother

Bit upsetting so far, as he has lost so much weight. Have to try some alternative methods to get him to eat very the syringe
 
No, no hay. Thats the worst bit really. We go him eating a gem lettuce leaf! But he hasn't touched the hay

I'll give the FB video a watch :-) Thank you so much x
 
Yes, not eating hay is the problem. The syringe feeding replaces the hay he isn’t eating. Unfortunately eating the lettuce doesn’t really mean anything as there is no nutrition in it and lettuce is merely a snack.

Keep up with weighing him daily as it is your only way to know he is eating enough and syringe feed him regularly.

Unfortunately so few vets know how to do a dental properly (they Aren’t trained in guinea pig dentals) and a badly carried out dental can sadly make things worse.

could you add your county to your profile as it makes it easier for us to tailor our advice
 
Manage to use the syringe. The FB video was really useful. Only managed 6ml of food. But I'll get some more in later this evening.

One of those, holding him tightly isn't a pleasant experience, but know its the right thing to do x
 
Hi Sorry to bump... my little boy just had dental done 2 weeks ago now and I am still syringe feeding him (no still not eating hay going for a check up tomorrow. It was a real struggle at 1st but the lady at a rescue showed me how to syringe feed. She just wrapped him in a towel and calmly fed him.... she didnt have to hold his head. Now he just stands there and takes it straight from my hand....... I'm not sure if its a good thing as its been a couple of weeks now and he seems to go back and forth with eating. Anyway hope this helps x
 
Yin said:
Hi Sorry to bump... my little boy just had dental done 2 weeks ago now and I am still syringe feeding him (no still not eating hay going for a check up tomorrow. It was a real struggle at 1st but the lady at a rescue showed me how to syringe feed. She just wrapped him in a towel and calmly fed him.... she didnt have to hold his head. Now he just stands there and takes it straight from my hand....... I'm not sure if its a good thing as its been a couple of weeks now and he seems to go back and forth with eating. Anyway hope this helps x
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your piggy really should be able to eat for himself long before now if the dental was done properly. the Fact he isnt suggests there is still something wrong in the mouth. And unfortunately without the abrasive action of hay, teeth will overgrow. Let us know how he goes at a check up
 
andthislittlepiggie said:
Manage to use the syringe. The FB video was really useful. Only managed 6ml of food. But I'll get some more in later this evening.

One of those, holding him tightly isn't a pleasant experience, but know its the right thing to do x
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6ml is fine, most piggies will only take little and often which is why you need to feed every couple of hours.
 
So! Been managing to get him 10ml of syringe critical care mix every 4 hours. Bit of a battle. I hold the piggie, my wife uses the syringe! Not sure how I'd manage it alone. Still no eating hay since Saturday. We have another vet appointment tomorrow. He seems to struggle 'eating' - We have managed to get him back up a few grams of weight. Hoping for a huge change tomorrow where upon he'll be eating hay!
 
So. Been back and forth with the vet over the week!
We had one day we were able to syringe feed, but following day, just couldn't do it. Even with two of us, one holding and the other with the syringe, he was too wriggly, and so back at the vets over night for a few days......

And with that. He is off to a 'specialist' tomorrow for some x rays etc. / tests. As he hasn't eaten hay for a week. Is this a result of the dental work 6 days ago? Plus he has stopped pooping as of yesterday. So poor fella is on a loads of meds and tomorrow some more tests

The problem becomes....what next. We have been lucky to both be at home this week to feed him, but we need to get back to work. So if he isn't better on Monday. Not sure what to then do. We can keep him at a vets to syringe feed him, however the then ugly word of money comes into play....

Not that it matters that I'm a 38yr old guy. But I never thought I'd see the day I'd be so upset about a guinea pig. However I do love the little guy (and understand why people love their pets), and him and his buddy piggie Seb, both gutted he is ill and don't really know what to do :-(
 
andthislittlepiggie said:
So. Been back and forth with the vet over the week!
We had one day we were able to syringe feed, but following day, just couldn't do it. Even with two of us, one holding and the other with the syringe, he was too wriggly, and so back at the vets over night for a few days......

And with that. He is off to a 'specialist' tomorrow for some x rays etc. / tests. As he hasn't eaten hay for a week. Is this a result of the dental work 6 days ago? Plus he has stopped pooping as of yesterday. So poor fella is on a loads of meds and tomorrow some more tests

The problem becomes....what next. We have been lucky to both be at home this week to feed him, but we need to get back to work. So if he isn't better on Monday. Not sure what to then do. We can keep him at a vets to syringe feed him, however the then ugly word of money comes into play....

Not that it matters that I'm a 38yr old guy. But I never thought I'd see the day I'd be so upset about a guinea pig. However I do love the little guy (and understand why people love their pets), and him and his buddy piggie Seb, both gutted he is ill and don't really know what to do :-(
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I’m sorry to hear he is still struggling.

As I mentioned earlier, a bad dental can make things worse and there is only one vet in the uk who really knows his stuff - Simon at cat and rabbit clinic in northampton. With simon‘s ability, piggies are given dentals without anaesthetic and are often able to eat again pretty much straight away. If your piggy isn’t able to eat then either there Is still a dental problem or he is experiencing pain which is preventing him from wanting to eat. Is there any way you can get to Northampton?

If he isnt pooping then it is as a direct result of not eating. he needs to be getting 60-90ml of syringe feed in a 24 hour period to keep his system going.

have you been weighing him daily?
 
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So.....Picked up Bruce from a different vets today!

The long and short of it is. He needs to get eating by thursday says the vet. As the only options are further surgery, or 'that other option

My worry now is. I can not syringe feed the little guy on my own. I try and he is so wriggly, I feel If I am too firm I could cause some injury. With my wife back at work on monday. I've 3 days to syringe feed him (he won't eat from a spoon / bowl)

Really upsetting, as eat different vet tell me how they pick him up and it's not a problem to feed him (not sure what I@m doing wrong) - Its horrible to think my inability now to feed him will be an issue.....
 
You have to be firm. Wrap him in a towel and get the syringe into his mouth. I know it’s not nice, but he simply must eat, he will become very poorly if he doesn’t get a good amount of syringe feeds each day
 
Has anyone suggested you go to the most experienced piggie dental vets in the country? If you can get there then the best vets for your piggie is Simon or Kim Maddock at the Cat and Rabbit Clinic in Northampton. You aren’t that far away, they do conscious dentals so no nasty General Anaesthetic required, and very reasonably priced I.e. £60 per dental plus a one off registration fee of around £40. They will tell you if your piggie has a dental problem and do the dental there and then, it takes about 10-15 minutes. You don’t need any referrals either, just give them a call. they are both away on holiday at half term so call early at 8.00 am for an appointment.
You are not alone, owners travel from all over the country, I travel from Cornwall, 300 miles away 😄 I had major problems with local vets doing poor dentals with my Ted, actually making him far worse than he was before. You won’t be disappointed x
 
Hi :-)
So the wife has turned into the Guinea-pig whisper! She has managed to WFH this week and is able to feed the little fella on her own! What a difference

Saying that. Big picture. Nothing has changed. Still on the crucial care syringe feed. Little to no poops.

Giving him water and he is on pretty much every med the vet could give. We have a check up on Friday.
We are on Annual leave next week. So I think we will try and get in at the Northampton vets. As a one last chance. We have come this far. Got to do everything we can. Of course there is a point where feeding every few hours when we work is difficult

The little fella doesn't appear to be in pain. His weight has become stable after he lost plenty. Still won't eat hay either. All a bit upsetting for us and of course the little guy x
 
I’m glad you’re able to get food into him. If his weight has now stabilised then that shows he is getting a good amount of critical care.
a piggy who can eat will eat hay, so there is likely Still something wrong for him to not want to eat it. definitely try to get to Northampton.
 
Piggies&buns said:
How are things going @andthislittlepiggie ?
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Sorry. Been STRESSFUL!

So. Great news. Little Bruce is eating hay, off the critical care! I even managed for the last week to syringe feed him. Have to say, our other guinea pig - (not that he was ill), but you just put the syringe near his mouth and he'd eat no worries! Typical


Alas. We went to Northampton. And so far so good. And thus the ......x2 vets. Nearly £800 in vet fees, two sets of dental work. One trip to Northampton and problem solved. It's been over a week since Bruce has been 'normal' - His weight is stable :-)
 

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andthislittlepiggie said:
Sorry. Been STRESSFUL!

So. Great news. Little Bruce is eating hay, off the critical care! I even managed for the last week to syringe feed him. Have to say, our other guinea pig - (not that he was ill), but you just put the syringe near his mouth and he'd eat no worries! Typical


Alas. We went to Northampton. And so far so good. And thus the ......x2 vets. Nearly £800 in vet fees, two sets of dental work. One trip to Northampton and problem solved. It's been over a week since Bruce has been 'normal' - His weight is stable :-)
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Glad Bruce seems to be sorted! That's why Simon and Kim Maddock of Cat & Rabbit Care Clinic are the best! They are my piggies' vets too and we live in North Wales. :tu:
 
great pleased for you and Bruce, at least you know where to go if his teeth start playing up again, the Maddock‘s are super vets x
 
Brilliant news, glad he’s back to eating well.
One of my rainbow bridge piggies had a dental operation at the local vet which still didn’t get him to eat his hay. After seeing the Maddock’s he was right as rain. Don’t go anywhere else for teeth, or you’ll end up feeling like you’ve wasted your money as you drive to Northampton with your tail between your legs! 🤣
Simon and Kim really are amazing!
 
Bill & Ted said:
Hope little Priya is doing well x
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She's doing great. Her discharge notes say she has to have strict rest for 10 days! She's been jumping up on the worktops in the kitchen and going through the fridge looking for food! 😂FB382AA5-094B-4B18-83CD-7B3C7762AB7B.png
 
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