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My Guinea Pig Has A Lump

  • Thread starter Thread starter Annie59
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That is great news, really hope he continues to do well.
Her method was different from what we know here. Do you not have to flush the wound? What antibiotic is Ricky on?
The most important thing is to ensure that Ricky continues to eat. Guineas are grazing animals and need food moving through their gut constantly! If he seems off his food, it is very important to help him out here :) Tempt him with his favourite veg cut up small and hand feed him if he isnt keen on eating by himself. If you think he isnt eating or drinking, post here and we will advise about syringe feeding him.
Did you get a pro biotic? Some antibiotics upset the gut flora (as indeed they do with us humans), so a pro biotic such as bio lapis should be given by syringe to correct the balance otherwise he could get diahorrea which can be dangerous :)

I bet you are relieved though and good exotic vets are hard to come by here too. Keep us posted on the little mans progress :smitten: :smitten: :smitten:
and of course you are very welcome to the forum, we have several overseas members and we have silly and fun chats about all sorts of things!
Fiona :)
 
Hi, sounds like an antibiotic bead? We do use them here, our vet has used them on rabbits more than guineas and yes, they have to be asleep. Usually for persistant abscesses!
 
I have heard of abcess being packed, is this the same thig Karen? and does this iliminate the need for flushing the abcess? Just interested!
 
lavenderjade said:
I have heard of abcess being packed, is this the same thig Karen? and does this iliminate the need for flushing the abcess? Just interested!
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I don't know, I've never known what 'being packed' meant! I have mine lanced and then flush them, but beads are good for abscesses that are persistent. I've 'packed' with Manuka Honey before and used along side Baytril but the guinea loved the honey and licked it all. I'm sure this helped it heal but I'm not sure about him eating all that sugar and ingesting pus from the abscess.
 
We were told to flush Ralfies abscesses with mediscrub and warm water then pack them with dermisol, which meant just putting the cream inside the hole, it worked really well on all 3 :) x
 
Thank you karenrgpr! That's exactly what the doctor called it. An antibiotic bead! I just could not remember the name of it. She said she put it in before she stitched it up. It cleans the whole wound inside. He is all stitched up so I don't have to do a thing. I asked her about cleaning it up and she said not with this surgery. She did it all. She said it's her job to clean it. I said that was fine because I was afraid to clean it! I only have to give him the antibiotic and a pain killer. And thanks to all your posts because I asked her about alot of the things you advised me on and especially about a probiotic. They give him something for his tummy before I left and she said the minute it looks like he's not eating, call them and they will give me something. I can't think of the name of the antibiotic. I will check the bottle later. Also, the vet told me to watch his stool and check for diarreaha. They also said if he scratches the wound, then they will fit him for one of those cones (which I thought was hysterical!), but so far he's not scratching the stitches. He goes back for a follow-up next week. But I have to say, this morning I walked in the room and he was weeking louder than ever for his food! Popcorning all over the place! I cut up his usual vegatables and he ate like he never ate before! I took him out and he was climbing all over me! You would never think anything ever happened. Except for a huge, stitched up wound on his side! The doc told me not to give him carrots anymore. She said to much sugar. She's actually going to go over a diet for him with me. Sounds wierd! I give him his pellet food too, but he loves his veggies! He can eat bunches of parsley at a time! It's incrediable. He eats green bell peppers and celery also. What veggies do you all feed your piggies? I don't know what else to give him now that she wants me to take carrots away! He hates broccoli and califlower. Any ideas? I took a pic of his wound. I'll try to download it later. I have to be somewhere in 15 minutes so I have to run. Thank's again for your concern for Ricky! He would be so happy if he knew how many people cared! I will post the picture later! Thanks all!
 
I have never heard of an abcess being sutured before,normally they are left open to drain otherwise another abcess will form/.

The sugar content in carrots is very low and parsley should only be fed in small amounts as it is very high in calcium.
 
I give mine carrots quite regularly! There is a great guinea food shopping list under the food section on here (at the top-its a sticky post)
As Mary says, not too much parsley as v high in calcium and these sorts of foods can cause bladder stones to form. The food list outlines what to give ad lib and what in moderation ;)
 
Maryh, the abscess is cleaned out and the bead put in under anaesthetic. I've never had it done to any of mine because they haven't been that bad. A friend needed hers to have one because the hole was closing over very quickly and and it wasn't healing with flushing. She flushed it as normal for a couple of wheeks before the bead was put in , the bead just cleaned up the remaining abscess. She's not had a problem since :)

Calista has a recurring abscess and we discussed a bead for her but she has an abscess with 'pockets' in and I don't think they work as well on them, same for a rabbit that my friend has. Because the bead wasn't an option for Calista I flushed with Hartmans and Baytril which worked really well- she had the antibiotics topically and orally. A/B beads are often used in dogs and cats I believe, but flushing should always be the first option.

Carrots have the wrong Calcium to Phosphorus ratio for guineas, a little is OK, but not too much. The baby carrots are better for them, as is any baby veg. Try Chantenay carrots, mine love them ::) I hardly ever give Parsley now.
 
Can I just add Annie, please don't let them put a cone on him. Guineas need to eat their soft droppings and can't do this with a cone. Its also more uncomfortable with guineas than dogs because guins have short legs. To be honest I've never had problems with wounds and don't know what to do if I did have. Moisturise it perhaps or is that totally the wrong thing to do?
 
Thanks for the cone advice! So far he has not scratched so I'm hoping he doesn't. I'm glad you told me about the cone getting in the way. I never thought of that. He's doing wonderful. Still eating like it's his last meal. I'll cut back on the parsley, but Ricky won't be happy. His stitches look good and he doesn't seem to be bothered. He gets a little mellow after his meds. Maybe the pain killer winds him down. I keep forgetting to check what his medicine is. I know some of you have asked. I'll check that later. I'm trying to post a picture after the surgery. Sorry it's a little blurry. I'm not the best photographer!
rickyscar.jpg
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i wonder y it didnt work.......................... i love seeing pics!
 
So wonderful to hear that Ricky is doing alright, you have made some great decisions for him and I am so glad you did not let him go back to the pet store O0 I wish him a speedy recovery he is gorgeous :smitten:
 
Annie59 said:
Thanks for the cone advice! So far he has not scratched so I'm hoping he doesn't. I'm glad you told me about the cone getting in the way. I never thought of that. He's doing wonderful. Still eating like it's his last meal. I'll cut back on the parsley, but Ricky won't be happy. His stitches look good and he doesn't seem to be bothered. He gets a little mellow after his meds. Maybe the pain killer winds him down. I keep forgetting to check what his medicine is. I know some of you have asked. I'll check that later. I'm trying to post a picture after the surgery. Sorry it's a little blurry. I'm not the best photographer!
rickyscar.jpg
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Some guineas get like this with Metacam. I use Rimadyl. :)
 
Ok, finally, I got the meds Ricky is taking. It is Rimadyl. It seems to be working fine, with no reation. He's still eating! And for the pain, the bottle says TMS. Not sure what it stands for, but he doesn't seem to be in any pain. I know guinea pigs hide pain very well, but he was climbing all over me this morning. He's really affectionate. You know you've all been very wonderful to me these past few day. I'm hoping as time goes by, I'd love to get to know all of your guinea pigs. They all look so cute. I'd love to hear all your stories. I've been so wrapped up with Ricky being sick that I couldn't think straight! I'm going to try to put up the picture again, but not sure if I can do it. Here goes! He was all shaved for the surgery, so it looks worse than it is. Also, it's not to sharp, so I hope you can see it...that's if I can even get it posted!
https://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh174/Annie59_2008/rickyscar.jpg[/IMG]
 
Well, the pic didn't come up, but I think if you click on the link, you'll get the picture up. Sorry it's not to sharp!
 
That was quite a lump! It is fab he is running around and eating/drinking well, what a brave boy :smitten: :smitten: :smitten:
 
Hey All....just an update on Ricky. I checked my piggy this morning, Monday, (his surgery was Thursday) and I was freaked out when I saw that he ripped his stitches. His wound was bleeding and I panicked. I called the vet emergency where he had his operation and brought him right in. They cleaned him up and are waiting for Ricky's doc to get in. The doc gets in at 11:00 am which was a few minutes ago. I'm waiting to hear. I didn't know what to do for him. He kept trying to scratch. It was torn open so I wrapped a towel around him and held him in the car while I drove to the hospital. It's great that it's opened 24 hrs. The cone wouldn't help because he scratches with his back leg. They need to somehow bandage it. The poor thing looked so sad, but managed to munch on celery while I was getting him ready. He still looks like he has a smaller lump there. I'm wondering if it's just swelling, but I thought it would have gone down by now. He had the abscess removed 4 days ago. I'll let you know how it goes.
 
Poor Ricky, hope he will be ok. We will wait to hear :smitten: :smitten:
 
Just got a call from the vet. They are taking out the antibiotic bead. She said sometimes it is irritating to them and they try to scratch. He's going in for another operation. (this is killing me). But just to take the bead out (she said it did it's job) and she is going to clean it again and stitch him with stronger stitches. She can't cover it with a bandage she said, because it's in an impossible spot to cover? I guess she know's. She is going to cut his nails while he's out and cover his right back paw with something. I think tape it up and put a bootie on it, so he can't scratch with his nails. I hope this works. She said she can't believe the way he eats. At least he has not lost his appetite! She also switched his antibiotic. She said the culture shows the type of bacteria and she gave me an antibiotic that kills this type of bacteria. I can't even pronounce it. It's a long word that begins with a C. I have to go look at the bottle later. Anyway, thanks for all your good wishes. I wish he'd get better already! I wrote a big letter to Petco. Poor Ricky is only a few months old and has been sick a couple of time already. They should take some responsibility for selling people sick animals. I love Ricky, but it's not easy because he's still small and a baby and I haven't even had time to enjoy him! I just have to be patient. I'll let you know his progress. Thanks again!
 
Get well soon Ricky so sorry to hear he had to have another op, we will all be thinking of you both.
 
No, I wouldn't of thought bandaging was an option. Can she not use glue instead of stitches or perhaps glue can only be used in certain sites :-\ It really is a horrible place.
 
Hello Annie59! I am in the US also, Maine! I hope Ricky is better. I am glad to hear Petco is taking such good of him, I did not know they would do that but I do agree, it is sad they sold an animal who seems to have health issues. But maybe this will be it and he will live a long healthy life with no more illness! Take care.
 
Woops, I just read more of your info and see that you decided against Petco for care....probably a wise choice! Especially since it would be more profitable for them to sell you another one rather than make Ricky better. We have a great vet in our area.. When I brought Brownie in for skin problems she gave him kisses and cuddled him. It does get expensive...my hubby and yours have similar opinions about animals! I have children so I can always use them to get him to cave in...Like when our "boys" had babies and he wanted to give them away...I told him how sad our 4 year old would be and he let us keep them! I hope Ricky is doing well. He is sooooo cute!
 
Hi Lamore....I wrote Petco a long e-mail (they responded quickly to the last one) letting them know my concern about the horror stories I read. You should go on line and type in Petco and animal abuse and you won't beleive the tons of stories that come up. You would never bring your animal back there for treatment! Today when I picked up Ricky, it was another $200 on top of the $300 from last week! My husband will freak. I'm avoiding the issue. I think everything in the states so overpriced. I don't know if Europe is as bad as here. Or maybe it's just a New York thing. (I don't know if Maine is as bad as NY) What can I do?! I have fallen in love with Ricky. He is just so cute and loves to be held. I never thought I would get this attached to a guinea pig, but I did. Sadly, this has made me not want to get another one in the future. I'm so afraid of something like this happening again. But he is such a great pet. He's home now. She cleaned out the wound again and stitched it back up with a stonger stitch. I feel so sorry for him. His back paw is all bandaged up so he can't scratch. He's walking a little funny but he's doing ok. When I got him home, he automatically climbs into his hammock. It's a closed one (you can see in from the top) and there is a little hole for him to go in and out. I walked in the room and heard him crying and saw his little butt sticking out of the hammock hole with the bandaged leg dangling. I pushed him in and then a few minutes later, he got stuck trying to get out. I had to remove the hammock for a while so he doesn't get hurt. But I put a little soft guinea pig bed in there. He's sleeping with his head on it. For the first time since I've had him, I saw him yawn several times. It looked so weird! And he laid down with his head down and eyes closed, which he never does either! I worried at first but then realized how tired he must be. Eventually he dragged his tired body over to his food bowl. He never stops eating! I think he'll be ok, but I know he's trying to get at that cut. I'll be checking him all night now! Anyway, that's all for now. I'll post his progress again!
 
Awwww bless poor Ricky, he has been through the mill :( It is a shame it has put you off getting another in the future, those vets bills are awfully high, more than it would have been here :-\ Do try and keep on at petco to see if you can get some money out of them to go towards it ::)
 
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