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No eating

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natters84

Junior Guinea Pig
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My boy guinea pig who is almost 2 year olds.
Over the last week and a bit has lost weight. I took him to the vets last Monday and gave pain meds but didn't make a difference. Yesterday I noticed he wasn't eating so I started syrgine feeding him very few hours. Took him to the vets again today. And they said if not improvement in the 24 hours he wil have to be put to sleeps.

He is currently on
Rheumocam 0.4ml twice a day
Emeprid oral 0.6ml every 8 hours

And cc every 3 hours getting about 15ml

I have been trying herbs and veggies.

Any advice would be great.
 
I’m so sorry your piggy is not eating. Did the vet find anything wrong? How
Much weight has he lost? Are there any other symptoms? Is he eating at all for himself? What are his poops like. Is he acting ok in himself of sitting in one place not moving?

Sorry for all the questions it gives us a bit more of a picture
 
weepweeps said:
I’m so sorry your piggy is not eating. Did the vet find anything wrong? How
Much weight has he lost? Are there any other symptoms? Is he eating at all for himself? What are his poops like. Is he acting ok in himself of sitting in one place not moving?

Sorry for all the questions it gives us a bit more of a picture
Click to expand...
Couldn't see anything his weight was 1530gish and down to about 1300g.

They said could be teeth or kidney stone or something with his gut. But without test won't know for sure. I can't afford the test which is upsetting me more. He is not eating for himself. He does move a bit. His poos are soft and small. He is not himself or thought when trying to give him cc he becomes active
 
I am sorry to hear you are in this position and not able to afford the tests.
Do you have any family members that can help? Any savings at all? Did they quote you for a investigative appointment.

It is likely that his issues are being caused by another ailment in the body, which is why the tests would be needed to help pinpoint the issue.
Did they have a look at his teeth at all in the initial consultation?

If he has a healthy friend, who is not on medication, you could make poop soup.
Poop soup is a 'free' probiotic made using a healthy pigs poop to try and help restore a guinea pigs gut microbiome.
You will find more about this here - Probiotics, Recovery Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links
 
piggl said:
I am sorry to hear you are in this position and not able to afford the tests.
Do you have any family members that can help? Any savings at all? Did they quote you for a investigative appointment.

It is likely that his issues are being caused by another ailment in the body, which is why the tests would be needed to help pinpoint the issue.
Did they have a look at his teeth at all in the initial consultation?

If he has a healthy friend, who is not on medication, you could make poop soup.
Poop soup is a 'free' probiotic made using a healthy pigs poop to try and help restore a guinea pigs gut microbiome.
You will find more about this here - Probiotics, Recovery Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links
Click to expand...
They said could be £500-£1000 but no guarantee it won't cost more.

Unfortunately not.

Okay I have never heard of this but I can give it a go.

They did look the back ones looked okay. The front are a little slanted but not that they think that is the problem.
 
Without testing all you can do is see if the pain killers help until the issue resolves. But this is highly unlikely. Can you ask your vet if you could pay in instalments?
 
Also are you weighing him daily? Do it at the same time each morning and that will tell you how much you need to syringe feed him that day. You are trying to keep his weight stable for now.
 
natters84 said:
My boy guinea pig who is almost 2 year olds.
Over the last week and a bit has lost weight. I took him to the vets last Monday and gave pain meds but didn't make a difference. Yesterday I noticed he wasn't eating so I started syrgine feeding him very few hours. Took him to the vets again today. And they said if not improvement in the 24 hours he wil have to be put to sleeps.

He is currently on
Rheumocam 0.4ml twice a day
Emeprid oral 0.6ml every 8 hours

And cc every 3 hours getting about 15ml

I have been trying herbs and veggies.

Any advice would be great.
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome

HUGS

I am ever so sorry. The medication level is good. Rheumocam is stronger dog metacam and the dosage is solidly at the upper end. Your vets are competent and experienced enough to keep your as comfortable as possible under the circumstances.

Mystery weight loss without any further symptoms is my personal least favourite symptom since so many different things can be behind it as I have found out the hard way with piggies of mine. Sometimes something can be done about it but often not. Finding out what is exactly going on is not easy and can be rather expensive with all the lab tests. :(

The poos reflect what has gone into him 1-2 days ago not how he is today on your feeding support. You want to aim for 60-90 ml over the course of 24 hours and also offer extra water, as much as he is willing to take and the poos will show that in in the coming days.
The guide also has a chapter on how to spot the line of no return if you do need that.
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Signs of Pain in Guinea Pigs
 
weepweeps said:
Also are you weighing him daily? Do it at the same time each morning and that will tell you how much you need to syringe feed him that day. You are trying to keep his weight stable for now.
Click to expand...
Thank you
 
Wiebke said:
Hi and welcome

HUGS

I am ever so sorry. The medication level is good. Rheumocam is stronger dog metacam and the dosage is solidly at the upper end. Your vets are competent and experienced enough to keep your as comfortable as possible under the circumstances.

Mystery weight loss without any further symptoms is my personal least favourite symptom since so many different things can be behind it as I have found out the hard way with piggies of mine. Sometimes something can be done about it but often not. Finding out what is exactly going on is not easy and can be rather expensive with all the lab tests. :(

The poos reflect what has gone into him 1-2 days ago not how he is today on your feeding support. You want to aim for 60-90 ml over the course of 24 hours and also offer extra water, as much as he is willing to take and the poos will show that in in the coming days.
The guide also has a chapter on how to spot the line of no return if you do need that.
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Signs of Pain in Guinea Pigs
Click to expand...
Thank you for your advice.

The vets want to see him again tomorrow. And if no improvement have said to put him to sleep.

It will be a different vet to the one I have seen today. So will ask again about my options.
 
Good luck tomorrow. Maybe this different vet will have some more advice. Sending healing vibes to your piggy. ❤️
 
natters84 said:
I am going to ask about his front teeth if anything can be done
Click to expand...

Slanted front teeth are often a sign that the problem is actually with the molars. Piggy is not chewing evenly for some reason - that reason could be a spur, or abscess etc.
 
Slanted front teeth and weight loss was the first symptoms my piggy showed when he had a tooth root abscess brewing
 

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Piggies&buns said:
Slanted front teeth are often a sign that the problem is actually with the molars. Piggy is not chewing evenly for some reason - that could be a spur, or abscess etc.
Click to expand...
He did chew has cage wire. Last Monday the vet did have a look at his back teeth and couldn't see anything.
 
oh bless him sounds like your both in a hard situation! might just be me but seems a bit rash to just PTS? how long has he been like this for? x
 
piggiemummy03x said:
oh bless him sounds like your both in a hard situation! might just be me but seems a bit rash to just PTS? how long has he been like this for? x
Click to expand...
He has been losing weight for just over a week.
Last Monday started pain meds for 5 days and after that I noticed he went down hill a bit more.
Since yesterday not eating for himself.
 
natters84 said:
He has been losing weight for just over a week.
Last Monday started pain meds for 5 days and after that I noticed he went down hill a bit more.
Since yesterday not eating for himself.
Click to expand...
hm very strange! and the vets don’t have any idea what it could be without the tests?
 
natters84 said:
They said could be dental or kidney stones but wouldn't know without doing x-rays and other tests.
Click to expand...
ah i see, is there no type of payment plan, you say they quoted £500-£1000, that is a lot of money they surely can’t expect people just have that lying around to pay in one go?
 
piggiemummy03x said:
ah i see, is there no type of payment plan, you say they quoted £500-£1000, that is a lot of money they surely can’t expect people just have that lying around to pay in one go?
Click to expand...
I am hoping the vet I'm seeing tomorrow can say something. I feel bad and I don't know what to do for the best
 
Even a small spur can cause pain and stop them from eating. Was piggy sedated so they could have a proper look at the molars?
 
Would a vet be able to see this looking in their mouth or by doing test?
 
My latest investigative procedure cost £185 in total. That included sedation, dental and an x-ray.
That is a very high quote and I am sorry to hear this.
 
natters84 said:
What did you do?
Click to expand...
He was sedated so they could look at his back teeth. They were absolutely fine. But the vet noticed a bit of pus coming from one of his incisors. But he had no visible lump at the time so he was given ABs. They didn’t work. About 2 weeks later a huge 4cm lump appeared and he needed an op to marsupialise it. It cost £1,000 in total. Piggies are unfortunately not cheap pets.

We are only guessing what could be wrong with your piggy. See what the vet says tomorrow. ❤️
 
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