Lump surgery

[Lukejhull]

Hello, our little piggie George is around 4 years old and I noticed like a small spot/lump near his bum the other day when he was running around, he is eating and drinking and popping normal so don't think it's bothering him at the moment.

Took him to vets today as concerned and they said it's on the inside as well but not very big at the moment and went on to tell me it will probably grow without surgery which costs £200 and a further £100 if we want to find out what the lump is.

Obviously I don't want to sit and allow it to get worse and to let him suffer so we have booked him in for tomorrow for surgery me and my partner are both terrified now as thinking what if he doesn't survive the surger or if something goes wrong , I know it's out of my control now but feel I have made the best decision as don't want to allow it to get worse as it doesn't seem to be bothering him at the minute

 

[Wiebke]

Hello, our little piggie George is around 4 years old and I noticed like a small spot/lump near his bum the other day when he was running around, he is eating and drinking and popping normal so don't think it's bothering him at the moment.

Took him to vets today as concerned and they said it's on the inside as well but not very big at the moment and went on to tell me it will probably grow without surgery which costs £200 and a further £100 if we want to find out what the lump is.

Obviously I don't want to sit and allow it to get worse and to let him suffer so we have booked him in for tomorrow for surgery me and my partner are both terrified now as thinking what if he doesn't survive the surger or if something goes wrong , I know it's out of my control now but feel I have made the best decision as don't want to allow it to get worse as it doesn't seem to be bothering him at the minute

Hi!

Please take a deep breath!

Lumptectomy is generally not a high risk operation and has a very good recovery rate, especially if the lump is still small. Most lumps in that are area are harmless, so your chances for a problem-free procedure are good. Where your lump is sitting means that it is not anywhere near any major organ, which makes usually for a much more straight forward and qicker operation; the less time your piggy is under, the easier the recovery as a rule of thumb.
Here is our post-op care advice in case you need it: Tips For Post-operative Care

If it does help you, my two oldest piggies that needed an operation (and have come through it well) were 6 years Tesni whose sebaceous cyst right next to the genitalia burst and got infected, making for a somewhat trickier operation due its location and Hafren, whose large cyst under observation unfortunately put on another sudden growth spurt and promptly burst while my operating vet was on summer holiday so she had to wait another two weeks for its removal just short of her 7th birthday. By the time it burst, the cyst was about 5 cm/2 inches big.

Here is a picture of my old lady Hafren on the day after the operation with her rather impressive scar - which was much bigger than yours will be. It had knitted fully within two weeks and the hair had grown back within a month or so.

 

[Lukejhull]

Thanks for the advice and sharing your experience I am still worried as I know things can go wrong but didn't know about the rate or success hoping he is fine as he is really cared for more so after losing our other pig 2 years ago hoping I've spotted it early and it's fairly simple to correct will keep update

 

[Bill & Ted]

Try not to worry, my Ginger has just recovered from surgery 10 days ago and she has been absolutely fine. She had a very small cyst on her hip and a wart below her eye and I had the choice of leaving both, to see if they got bigger or get them removed. If you leave them they can get big and surgery can then make the remaining skin very tight and not as easy to sew up, plus you never fully know what these lumps are until they are out.
I think you are doing the right thing for your boy, have a good read at the post op guide it’s really good and let us all know how he gets on. Hope he sails through his op tomorrow x

 

[Lukejhull]

Update

George had his op today and we have been told it went really well and he was with the vets 8:45 until 17:30 have given us some pain relief medicine and some antibiotics to be syringe fed twice a day starting tomorrow

Got him home and replaces wood shavings with a fleece blanket as advised he is not moving much and has been in a corner since I have left him with my partner to go to work on hoping the anaesthetic is wearing off but I do need him to eat and drink something tonight if he is still in corner In morning I'll have to syringe him some water and food

Not sure what else I can do at moment I'm getting updates from my partner if he starts being more alert

 

[Bill & Ted]

Yes, get syringe feeding as soon as you can to keep his tummy working. If you make the mushed pellets/critical care quite wet then he should get hydration from that too. Also tempt him to eat with a few of his favourite veggies and leave a dish of mushed pellets in his cage or dry plain porridge oats
Hope he is perkier tomorrow once the aesthetics have worn off

 

[Lukejhull]

He has some veggies in cage but not touched them yet my partner's said he has come out of his house now and gone for a couple of nuggets but quickly gone back in so I'll see in morning if he has eaten anymore if not I'll syringe him when I get home

 

[Lukejhull]

Got him booked back in to see a vet/nurse today as he hasn't really eaten much overnight he had a small amount of veg this morning and poos look normal however he is making noise while pooping but he should be eating by himself at this point , tried syringe feeding him some mushed pellets this morning but hardly taking it and turning away

 

[Freela]

Have they given him any pain relief? Some pigs won't eat if they are uncomfortable at all. Others will power through no matter what. One of our past pigs wouldn't eat if she was even a little uncomfortable... she would eat and drink once given metacam, even for fairly minor discomfort that probably would not have affected our other pigs.

 

[Lukejhull]

Yes been given Baytril 0.6ml twice a day and also Rheumocam 0.28ml once daily
Started on them this morning

See what they say he is there at 15:45 today just worried as me and partner are both working tonight so can only leave him food and water in cage and hope he eats it

 

[weepweeps]

I hope your piggy starts to feel better soon

 

[Bill & Ted]

Ask the vets to syringe feed him if they can as it’s so important that he eats x
Hope he is a lot better when you pick him up

 

[Lukejhull]

They have just checked him over said the wound is ok still bit swollen but expected they have fed him a little bit and give a sachet of recovery mix and told me to mix about a spoonful rather than a full packet and give him that and hopefully he will start eating on his own soon enough she also gave him an Injection for his gut I think so before I leave for work tonight I'll mix a bit of that recovery food and really try get him to take it along with his 2nd dose of antibiotics for today and hopefully by morning he will of eaten off his own back

 

[Bill & Ted]

he really needs support feeding if he is not eating on his own. The gut stimulant should make him hungry so please syringe feed him as much as you can ideally 15 ml every 2-3 hours until he is eating for himself x

 

[Wiebke]

Got him booked back in to see a vet/nurse today as he hasn't really eaten much overnight he had a small amount of veg this morning and poos look normal however he is making noise while pooping but he should be eating by himself at this point , tried syringe feeding him some mushed pellets this morning but hardly taking it and turning away

Please weigh him on your kitchen scales once daily. Keep in mind that the poo output is running a day or two behind the input and likely still reflects the pre-op state; you usually get a gap and then some funny poos when the internal conveyor belt output reaches that stage.

Please step in with syringe feeding regularly; you adjust the amount and frequency by a) weighing and b) feeding more often throughout the day and if necessary once in the night to keep the weight as stable as possible. Keep in mind that 80% of the daily food intake is hay, hay and more hay. You cannot judge that by eye; hence the importance of weighing. If you look just at the veg and pellets, you basically only take an afternoon snack and the dessert into account but not breakfast, lunch and dinner, which reflect the hay intake.
Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

Weight - Monitoring and Management
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pigs Safely

Contact your vet clinic if he is not picking up.

 

[Lukejhull]

His poos have gone really small at the minute and broken he is still making a little noise when he is trying to but our vet said that's fine will be a little sore, I've only seen him nibbling on hay once yesterday and doesn't seem to still be eating much he is quite alert still and eager to escape me and also desperate to get back to the cage he is fighting the medicine syringe and also the recovery mix but I've just managed to get him to take some bit messy but at least he has taken it

 

[Wiebke]

His poos have gone really small at the minute and broken he is still making a little noise when he is trying to but our vet said that's fine will be a little sore, I've only seen him nibbling on hay once yesterday and doesn't seem to still be eating much he is quite alert still and eager to escape me and also desperate to get back to the cage he is fighting the medicine syringe and also the recovery mix but I've just managed to get him to take some bit messy but at least he has taken it

Please hang on in there and make sure that you are getting at least 40 ml, ideally 60 ml of syringe feed into him over the 24 hours (a healthy piggy eats the equivalent of 90-120ml in a day); you will need to feed little but often. Unfortunately, when it is as bad as this, every single syringeful is a fight, but you need to stay tough and push through it because your feeding care can make the difference between life and death.

PLEASE control the weight via your kitchen scales (which are about £/$ 10-15 from any larger supermarket. The poo output is running well behind events and showing that he has eaten even less than he should yesterday and the day before. Your immediate aim is to get the minimal amount for survival into him and then work up from there.

 

[Bill & Ted]

His poos have gone really small at the minute and broken he is still making a little noise when he is trying to but our vet said that's fine will be a little sore, I've only seen him nibbling on hay once yesterday and doesn't seem to still be eating much he is quite alert still and eager to escape me and also desperate to get back to the cage he is fighting the medicine syringe and also the recovery mix but I've just managed to get him to take some bit messy but at least he has taken it

You’ll be surprised at how expert you will become at syringe feeding. You may find it easier if you put his bottom into your tummy and hold his head with one hand and use the syringe with the other, he has less chance of moving away then. Hang in there, you are keeping him alive by syringe feeding, view it that you are doing it for his best interests x

 

[Lukejhull]

Yeah I've watched a couple videos online and found I kind of have to grab his face which covers his eyes and not giving him the option to squirm or move his head and eventually he gets it in very slowly as I dont want to put too much down at once started weighing today as well scales said 1243grams but he is quite big for these scales so barely fitting on them so unsure if reading is accurate

 

[Wiebke]

Yeah I've watched a couple videos online and found I kind of have to grab his face which covers his eyes and not giving him the option to squirm or move his head and eventually he gets it in very slowly as I dont want to put too much down at once started weighing today as well scales said 1243grams but he is quite big for these scales so barely fitting on them so unsure if reading is accurate

Have you got a bowl, cardboard box or hidey that you can turn upside down to fit on the scales and tare?
Have a look at the videos in this link here; it features several options: How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pigs Safely

If you struggle with the head hold method, here is another way you can control an uncooperative piggy with one hand and your upper body so you have got the other one free for the syringe. Try different approaches and then settle on the one that works best for you. It will get easier again once your boy is starting to feel better and is starting to eat on his own again.


PS: Keep in mind that baytril/enrofloxacin (the most commonly prescribed antibiotic) is about the most foul tasting stuff imagineable. But please do not try to taste it; humans do not tolerate it.

 

[artcasper]

It's very hard those first few days after an operation... my diary recently had her ovaries removed and boy - it was a tough 2 weeks to get her eating again... but I kept at it and it got easier.. I found it easier to syringe feed with daisy in a bowl..that way she couldn't wriggle too much.. Good luck x

 

[Lukejhull]

Thanks everybody for all advice, got some gut stimulant from vet yesterday oral solution so hopefully be upwards form here , he was drinking more water yesterday and getting some hay ... Still not going for much veg a the minute but glad he is on the hay, I know he is not weak as he is putting plenty of resistance up at medicine time for such a small guy he is pretty strong

 

[Bill & Ted]

Aw, he sounds like he is on the mend, keep weighing him daily and keep a keen eye on what he eats, hay is the main and best thing for him so that’s great, you can give him extra syringe feeds to top him up until he eating his normal amount x

 

[Lukejhull]

It's been such a while now I totally forgot to finish the post off George recovered fine thanks to all for advice and assistance, he is still going strong and back to his usual self so again a massive thanks