Luna has stopped pooping

[Honey22]

My 4 year old Luna has suddenly stopped pooping or they are very tiny.

We took her to the vets last Friday and they couldn't find anything wrong with her, she hasn't lost any weight (we weigh her weekly and now onto daily) but not really been her usual self since all that hot weather we had. They checked her temperature, teeth, bladder, bowel and couldn't find anything at all.

During the hot weather (she is an indoor piggie), she was in the living room with blinds and curtains closed with a small fan in the room, made sure there was water (though she doesn't drink it) and fresh veg at all times. We are working from home so were able to regularly check on them to make sure they were ok (she has a cage mate Chip).

Since Friday, I have been hand feeding her Excel Dualcare special nuggets and Emeraid. I am lucky that she does like her food and has been taking nearly 8-10ml every time I feed her, so getting a min of 40ml a day down her. I am using probiotic drink too to try and help her guts (her stomach is very soft at the moment so no bloat and I can here it gurgling). When I put her back into the cage she instantly goes for a wee (so no problem there), but she just isn't pooping at all or if she does its 5 very little ones (these are dark in colour and not stringy at all - just normal poops but very small). We are taking her back to the vets tonight at 5.45pm because we aren't happy at all with her.

Does anyone have any more ideas for me to help her or anything I should be asking the vet tonight please? I am thinking of asking for either an x-ray or a scan to see if they can see if there is anything there.

I forgot to say, she is eating hay but I have to put it next to her bed to entice her to eat it (she has always been a very lazy piggie unlike any of the others we have had). She is wolfing down her veggies (I give her these after she has been syringe fed as I need to get that down her first) only lettuce, cucumber, carrot and red peppers (nothing gassy). Thank you in advance.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this. It sounds as if you are doing all you can for now with the daily weight checks and syringe feeding, and having her seen by the vet.
Fingers crossed and do keep us updated. I hope she is ok.

 

[Swissgreys]

I am sorry you are going through this - it is always difficult when there is no clear diagnosis.
How long has this been going on for?
Normal poo output tends to be 24 - 48 hours behind, so what you see today is a reflection of how much she was eating a day or two ago.
It sounds like you are getting a decent amount of food into her, but if this has only been happening for a day or two then it might take a while for you to see an improvement.

An x-ray is a ways a good idea if you aren't sure.
That and teeth would be the other obvious problems to check, but you say she hasn't lost weight which is strange.

good luck at the vet tonight - I hope you get some answers.

 

[Wiebke]

My 4 year old Luna has suddenly stopped pooping or they are very tiny.

We took her to the vets last Friday and they couldn't find anything wrong with her, she hasn't lost any weight (we weigh her weekly and now onto daily) but not really been her usual self since all that hot weather we had. They checked her temperature, teeth, bladder, bowel and couldn't find anything at all.

During the hot weather (she is an indoor piggie), she was in the living room with blinds and curtains closed with a small fan in the room, made sure there was water (though she doesn't drink it) and fresh veg at all times. We are working from home so were able to regularly check on them to make sure they were ok (she has a cage mate Chip).

Since Friday, I have been hand feeding her Excel Dualcare special nuggets and Emeraid. I am lucky that she does like her food and has been taking nearly 8-10ml every time I feed her, so getting a min of 40ml a day down her. I am using probiotic drink too to try and help her guts (her stomach is very soft at the moment so no bloat and I can here it gurgling). When I put her back into the cage she instantly goes for a wee (so no problem there), but she just isn't pooping at all or if she does its 5 very little ones (these are dark in colour and not stringy at all - just normal poops but very small). We are taking her back to the vets tonight at 5.45pm because we aren't happy at all with her.

Does anyone have any more ideas for me to help her or anything I should be asking the vet tonight please? I am thinking of asking for either an x-ray or a scan to see if they can see if there is anything there.

I forgot to say, she is eating hay but I have to put it next to her bed to entice her to eat it (she has always been a very lazy piggie unlike any of the others we have had). She is wolfing down her veggies (I give her these after she has been syringe fed as I need to get that down her first) only lettuce, cucumber, carrot and red peppers (nothing gassy). Thank you in advance.

Hi!

Are you using your kitchen scales to monitor the food intake because you cannot control by eye just how much hay your piggy eats but it makes around 80% of the daily food intake. How much feeding support are you giving?
A healthy piggy eats between 90-120 ml in a day (more in the prime of life, less in older piggies); about about 70-90 ml of that is hay; which is what you are replacing with the syringe feed.
The poo output says that there is too little coming through but that the gut itself is moving, even if it may still be somewhat slower than normal. Please keep in mind that it is reflecting what has gone in a day or two before, depending on how quick the gut moves.

Heat stroke and heat exhaustion can cause GI stasis (the gut is stopping to work fully or partially) and that can linger. It can also impact on other organs and bring to the fore underlying issues.
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating

I hope that this will help you to better understand what is going on and help you to make the most of your vet visit. I would recommend to ask for gut stimulants as long as your piggy is not eating any hay.

 

[Honey22]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I will be taking everything on board that you have said. However, I am sure that the piggies do it on purpose....... since lunchtime today, Luna is pooping for England - just none stop - I've never been so relieved - PHEW!

We are still taking her to the vets tonight and will be continuing what we are doing until I am absolutely 110% certain she is eating by herself enough :-)

 

[Flutterby]

Hope she continues to poop, let us know how she gets on at the vet.

 

[Wiebke]

All the best! Glad that the pooping machine is running again at normal speed.

 

[Honey22]

Hi everyone, so update on Luna. She is still eating her hay, won't eat pellets and eats her fresh food. I am still topping her up because everytime I stop, she goes back to having small poops.

She is still on her emeprid and loxicom, as instructed by the vet. She hasn't lost any weight at all (we weigh her at the same time every morning). Does anyone haven't any tips on how I can get her back to eating nuggets and not take them from me. I am feeding her 3 times a day, morning 7am, lunch 12.30pm and then dinner 8pm. I tried to cut out the lunchtime one but when I fed her in the evening she couldn't get it down her quick enough. She's having 10-15ml each feed. Thanks in advance.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi everyone, so update on Luna. She is still eating her hay, won't eat pellets and eats her fresh food. I am still topping her up because everytime I stop, she goes back to having small poops.

She is still on her emeprid and loxicom, as instructed by the vet. She hasn't lost any weight at all (we weigh her at the same time every morning). Does anyone haven't any tips on how I can get her back to eating nuggets and not take them from me. I am feeding her 3 times a day, morning 7am, lunch 12.30pm and then dinner 8pm. I tried to cut out the lunchtime one but when I fed her in the evening she couldn't get it down her quick enough. She's having 10-15ml each feed. Thanks in advance.

Hi!

You could try and mix mushed up pellets with her formula. See whether she would eat the mix from a bowl. Otherwise you will have to cut off the syringe tip with scissors just below where the syringe widens. This to allow the much rougher pellet fibre to pass through but still hold the plunger in.