Need reassurance

[Amberly81]

Hi there

My guinea pig Bella is due to be put under general anaesthesia on Thursday and I'm actually so very worried and actually quite emotional because I look online and the amount of warnings I come across about how risky it is is setting off my anxiety.
I have been back and forth at a local vets with Bella over the last couple of months. She was prescribed baytril, emeprid and metacam. However her symptoms worsened and she started bleeding from her rear and lost 20% of her body weight. I put her on critical care and travelled an hour to an exotic pet vet today and turns out she has a very large bladder stone (as well as a couple of cysts which they say is common in older guinea pigs) and needs the stone removed.
I'm concerned because she has lost weight and is 4.5 years old. I have spent nearly £1000 trying to get her better because I love her so much.
Can anyone reassure me that general anaesthetic for guinea pigs isn't as bad as the Internet makes out? My vet said there's always a risk with guinea pigs but the Internet makes it out to be worse and has put the fear in me.

Thanks

 

[Claire W]

I’m sorry that Bella has a bladder stone end ovarian cysts. The problem with the internet is that you always hear all the horror stories and not the success stories. There is always a risk with any general anaesthetic even with humans but that risk is minimal. Please try not to worry and I wish Bella a speedy recovery from the operation x

 

[Wiebke]

Hi there

My guinea pig Bella is due to be put under general anaesthesia on Thursday and I'm actually so very worried and actually quite emotional because I look online and the amount of warnings I come across about how risky it is is setting off my anxiety.
I have been back and forth at a local vets with Bella over the last couple of months. She was prescribed baytril, emeprid and metacam. However her symptoms worsened and she started bleeding from her rear and lost 20% of her body weight. I put her on critical care and travelled an hour to an exotic pet vet today and turns out she has a very large bladder stone (as well as a couple of cysts which they say is common in older guinea pigs) and needs the stone removed.
I'm concerned because she has lost weight and is 4.5 years old. I have spent nearly £1000 trying to get her better because I love her so much.
Can anyone reassure me that general anaesthetic for guinea pigs isn't as bad as the Internet makes out? My vet said there's always a risk with guinea pigs but the Internet makes it out to be worse and has put the fear in me.

Thanks

Hi!

If you suffer from anxiety, please stay away from online research. You inevitably get get all the horror stories and plus a few miracle ones but what you most decidedly don't get is the vast majority of perfectly normal unexceptional cases with a full recovery because they are taken as par for the course and are not considered worth posting about. The world of social media is anything but a proper reflection of reality. Even on this forum we see a higher proportion of problems in this section because we are a port of call for people in need.
What we experience ourselves with pour own piggies is quite a different picture.

Would it help you know that my Meleri has just had an eye removal operation a week ago and is making a perfect recovery without needing any additional support apart from her daily meds? Despite on average having 2-4 operations a year in piggies between age 3 to nearly 7 years old, I haven't lost a piggy in 7 years (and that was in a last ditch make-or-break highest risk op in a piggy that would have otherwise died within a couple of weeks anyway).
Please keep your fingers crossed for Meleri's eye removal operation!

If it helps you, there are a few things you can do to prepare for any operation so you can step in with care if necessary; but I sincerely hope that it won't! Keep in mind that while most ops go without problems, the guide is there to help you in case things are not running quite smoothly. Tips For Post-operative Care

More on ovarian cysts and alternatives to spaying op: Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)

Recommended dietary changes for bladder stone piggies: Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets (see special needs diet chapter)

PS: I haven't ever lost a sow of mine in a bladder stone op in the last 15 years and none in a spay in last 10 years - and I have had a number of these ops. Bladder stone ops in sows have a much better than average recovery rate because they are generally pretty straight forward.
My 5 years old Teggy with a large stone wedged at the exit of her urethra (about as large as can travel down) requiring a trickier than expected emergency op last October is very much an extreme - but even she has come through it and is fully recovered with a little feeding support in the first days but her survival never in question.

Crucial for the success rate is a vet who has experience with guinea pigs/small furries operations because they are classed as exotics and do not feature large - and in some countries not at all - on a general vet's curriculum. You have to see things on that background. Vet care in the UK is generally on a somewhat better level. Your vet should have had training in operating on small furries. My own operating vet by preference is also an hour away. He did Meleri but Teggy was operated by my local general vet.
We do have a recommended vets locator on the top bar: Vet Locator

 

[David Piggie Lover]

Hello. Ok deep breath. You doing so well with Bella. . You giving her the best chance and that's because you love her.
When a piggie is put under its very simple and allows the vet to work.
It's not easy I know been there etc.
If you left Bella she would be very ill and horrible to watch. You giving her a chance and I think thats wonderful. Xx

 

[Amberly81]

Hi!

If you suffer from anxiety, please stay away from online research. You inevitably get get all the horror stories and plus a few miracle ones but what you most decidedly don't get is the vast majority of perfectly normal unexceptional cases with a full recovery because they are taken as par for the course and are not considered worth posting about. The world of social media is anything but a proper reflection of reality. Even on this forum we see a higher proportion of problems in this section because we are a port of call for people in need.
What we experience ourselves with pour own piggies is quite a different picture.

Would it help you know that my Meleri has just had an eye removal operation a week ago and is making a perfect recovery without needing any additional support apart from her daily meds? Despite on average having 2-4 operations a year in piggies between age 3 to nearly 7 years old, I haven't lost a piggy in 7 years (and that was in a last ditch make-or-break highest risk op in a piggy that would have otherwise died within a couple of weeks anyway).
Please keep your fingers crossed for Meleri's eye removal operation!

If it helps you, there are a few things you can do to prepare for any operation so you can step in with care if necessary; but I sincerely hope that it won't! Keep in mind that while most ops go without problems, the guide is there to help you in case things are not running quite smoothly. Tips For Post-operative Care

More on ovarian cysts and alternatives to spaying op: Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)

Recommended dietary changes for bladder stone piggies: Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets (see special needs diet chapter)

PS: I haven't ever lost a sow of mine in a bladder stone op in the last 15 years and none in a spay in last 10 years - and I have had a number of these ops. Bladder stone ops in sows have a much better than average recovery rate because they are generally pretty straight forward.
My 5 years old Teggy with a large stone wedged at the exit of her urethra (about as large as can travel down) requiring a trickier than expected emergency op last October is very much an extreme - but even she has come through it and is fully recovered with a little feeding support in the first days but her survival never in question.

Crucial for the success rate is a vet who has experience with guinea pigs/small furries operations because they are classed as exotics and do not feature large - and in some countries not at all - on a general vet's curriculum. You have to see things on that background. Vet care in the UK is generally on a somewhat better level. Your vet should have had training in operating on small furries. My own operating vet by preference is also an hour away. He did Meleri but Teggy was operated by my local general vet.
We do have a recommended vets locator on the top bar: Vet Locator

Thank you so much for your very detailed and reassuring reply. I really do appreciate it. Bella had her operation this morning and I'm still waiting on news about how it went. Of course I'm really anxious but I just adore her so much and I am really missing my piggies (swift went with her to comfort her). I shall look over your links which you kindly posted. The vet called me this morning to talk everything over with me and she seems really knowledgeable with guinea pigs so that's further reassurance. She even said I'd have to watch out for high calcium and oxalate diets buts she will go through all that with me and she will be given supplements to reduce the chances of the stone reoccurring. Thank you again

 

[weepweeps]

Hope you get some news soon. It’s horrible waiting for the call. I’m sure she will be fine and home soon so you can spoil her.

 

[YvonneBlue]

I hope that Bella's operation goes well today. Waiting for news is the always the hardest part.

Our piggy Hazel had a bladder stone removed a few weeks ago. She was quite poorly for a couple of days and had to stay at the vets but is now home and recovering very well. xx

 

[Sunnyandbutch]

Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

 

[Wiebke]

All the best with Bella coming round from her op!

Filtering the water and reducing the amount of pellets you feed to max. 1 tablespoon per piggy per day will go a very long way in the future!

 

[Amberly81]

Thank you everyone. I'm getting to take my guinea pigs home tomorrow. I've honestly missed them so much. My partner is fed up of me banging on about how many days left to see them, I'm sure I'm now hoping they recognise me as it's been nearly a week now that I haven't seen them. I'm hoping to hear their squeaks of joy when they hear me. Bella is recovering really well. They say she's eating by herself and her wound is healing really good. They kept her in for nearly a week to observe and give her painkiller injections which they've now reduced. They say now she will have to have supplements to keep away more bladder stones and reduce high in calcium veggies. I'm so excited to see my babies

 

[Merab]

Glad all has gone well and Bella is recovering from her op.
I’m sure they will be glad to be home too.