Piggy bleeding from her bum

[sunnysidestyles]

Hi all,

We first noticed blood in the cage from our piggie Luna just over a month ago. It was quite a lot of blood so she went straight to vets and got anti inflammatory meds and antibiotics.

After this she was fine for a couple weeks until we noticed blood again, only a little this time but she went straight back to the vets and got another round of antibiotics and anti inflammatories. She finished those about a week ago but we’ve just noticed blood again, so she’s on her way back to the vets again.

She’s eating, drinking, running around, and popcorning still. She’s still so full of energy and happy, we’ve noticed no changes in her at all. She doesn’t squeak when she has a wee or poo, and doesn’t show any signs of discomfort.

Has anyone else had experience with anything like this and what was the outcome? We are very nervous about her going under anaesthetic if she needs to, as we’ve never had that for a piggy before and we are worried she won’t wake up again.

I don’t think it’s a UTI because it’s not mixed with wee, we’ve had a piggy before with a UTI who had anti inflammatories and she’s been fine ever since. We changed their diet after that to reduce calcium to hopefully prevent that again.

Other options we think it might be is she’s passed a bladder stone or something and she’s just passing blood after that, or if it’s something more serious like ovarian cysts or an issue with her uterus.

Any advice or experience would be greatly appreciated, even as just an indication for what we should be prepared for.

 

[fluffysal]

Welcome to the forum, I'm sorry it's in these circumstances. I'm afraid I have no experience with sows but someone with experience will be along soon.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi all,

We first noticed blood in the cage from our piggie Luna just over a month ago. It was quite a lot of blood so she went straight to vets and got anti inflammatory meds and antibiotics.

After this she was fine for a couple weeks until we noticed blood again, only a little this time but she went straight back to the vets and got another round of antibiotics and anti inflammatories. She finished those about a week ago but we’ve just noticed blood again, so she’s on her way back to the vets again.

She’s eating, drinking, running around, and popcorning still. She’s still so full of energy and happy, we’ve noticed no changes in her at all. She doesn’t squeak when she has a wee or poo, and doesn’t show any signs of discomfort.

Has anyone else had experience with anything like this and what was the outcome? We are very nervous about her going under anaesthetic if she needs to, as we’ve never had that for a piggy before and we are worried she won’t wake up again.

I don’t think it’s a UTI because it’s not mixed with wee, we’ve had a piggy before with a UTI who had anti inflammatories and she’s been fine ever since. We changed their diet after that to reduce calcium to hopefully prevent that again.

Other options we think it might be is she’s passed a bladder stone or something and she’s just passing blood after that, or if it’s something more serious like ovarian cysts or an issue with her uterus.

Any advice or experience would be greatly appreciated, even as just an indication for what we should be prepared for.

Hi and welcome

I assume that you are talking about dark red urine rather than sheer blood? Sheer blood in sows generally comes from the reproductive tract and only rarely from the urinary one, usually from when a kidney or bladder stone is very narrowly passing down one of the tube. Fresh sheer blood is generally bright red/pinkish drying to mid-brown shades.

Please be aware that there are several urinary tract infections of which the sterile (i.e. non-bacterial) form is now the most common but unfortunately non well known outside vet circles that deal with lots of piggies on a regular basis. Both the bacterial and the sterile version are characterised by producing deep red (drying to maroon/dark purple) urine patches. The intense colour is actually not blood (although pees may or may not test high in blood) but at natural dye called porphyrine which tends to freak out unsuspecting new owners and is also not necessarily known to vets.

In milder cases of sterile interstitial (i.e recurring/flaring) cystitis antibiotics can temporarily suppress symptoms but they cannot heal them and you will see a return and regular flares every few weeks.
Because antibiotics cannot work on an infection with a low (only rarely zero) count of bacteria, sterile IC can only be managed with anti-inflammatories like metacam and - since it seems to mainly affect the natural insulating glucosamine coating of the urinary tract that prevents stinging urine from coming into direct contact with raw tissue - extra glucosamine. The latter is classed as a food supplement and not as prescription-only medication (POM) so your vet won't usually prescribe it and I will you have to get some online yourself.

Milder forms of sterile IC can eventually go away on their own but you are looking at best at over a year or several. Managing the flare ups effectively and getting on top of them quickly is your main aim. Since the infection can run the whole gamut from the very mild to the fatally untreatable, you will have to work our your ideal individual level between how high you have to up the glucosamine and metacam during the flares and how low you can keep the maintenance dosage in the interims.

Please take the time to read this link here, which you should find very helpful. If your vet has never heard of it, they may want to do their own research. Symptoms and treatment is roughly comparable with FSC (feline sterile cystitis) in cats, which are the other species with this illness arising from increased commercial mass breeding of pets over the last couple of decades.

Thread 'Wiebke's Guide to Pees and Stones'

May 29, 2024

1 The Urinary Tract
2 Pees
- Water intake changes
- Pee discoloration
3 Infections
- Bacterial urine infection (UTI)
- Bacterial cystitis
- Sterile cystitis (interstitial cystitis or IC)
4 Stones, Sludge and Crystals
- Crystals, stones and sludge
- Stone and sludge removal
5 Kidneys...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 3
• Forum: Wiebke's Guides to the Body

For the case that you are dealing with sheer blood and a reproductive tract problem (less likely), here is our infomation guide with an overview:

Thread 'Sow Problems 'Down Below' (Ovarian Cysts, Super-seasons, Womb Infection, Pregnancy & Mammary Tumours)'

Jul 15, 2024

1 Important reproductive information
- Start of making babies - seasons - lack of menopause
- Pregnancy
2 Sows in season
- How a season runs
- Strong seasons (snap seasons; the social role of strong seasons; problem seasons)
3 Health issues of the reproductive tract
- Ovarian cysts (types, symptoms and treatment options)
- Other health...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 2
• Forum: Wiebke's Guides to the Body

All the best.

 

[sunnysidestyles]

Hi and welcome

I assume that you are talking about dark red urine rather than sheer blood? Sheer blood in sows generally comes from the reproductive tract and only rarely from the urinary one, usually from when a kidney or bladder stone is very narrowly passing down one of the tube. Fresh sheer blood is generally bright red/pinkish drying to mid-brown shades.

Please be aware that there are several urinary tract infections of which the sterile (i.e. non-bacterial) form is now the most common but unfortunately non well known outside vet circles that deal with lots of piggies on a regular basis. Both the bacterial and the sterile version are characterised by producing deep red (drying to maroon/dark purple) urine patches. The intense colour is actually not blood (although pees may or may not test high in blood) but at natural dye called porphyrine which tends to freak out unsuspecting new owners and is also not necessarily known to vets.

In milder cases of sterile interstitial (i.e recurring/flaring) cystitis antibiotics can temporarily suppress symptoms but they cannot heal them and you will see a return and regular flares every few weeks.
Because antibiotics cannot work on an infection with a low (only rarely zero) count of bacteria, sterile IC can only be managed with anti-inflammatories like metacam and - since it seems to mainly affect the natural insulating glucosamine coating of the urinary tract that prevents stinging urine from coming into direct contact with raw tissue - extra glucosamine. The latter is classed as a food supplement and not as prescription-only medication (POM) so your vet won't usually prescribe it and I will you have to get some online yourself.

Milder forms of sterile IC can eventually go away on their own but you are looking at best at over a year or several. Managing the flare ups effectively and getting on top of them quickly is your main aim. Since the infection can run the whole gamut from the very mild to the fatally untreatable, you will have to work our your ideal individual level between how high you have to up the glucosamine and metacam during the flares and how low you can keep the maintenance dosage in the interims.

Please take the time to read this link here, which you should find very helpful. If your vet has never heard of it, they may want to do their own research. Symptoms and treatment is roughly comparable with FSC (feline sterile cystitis) in cats, which are the other species with this illness arising from increased commercial mass breeding of pets over the last couple of decades.

Thread 'Wiebke's Guide to Pees and Stones'

May 29, 2024

1 The Urinary Tract
2 Pees
- Water intake changes
- Pee discoloration
3 Infections
- Bacterial urine infection (UTI)
- Bacterial cystitis
- Sterile cystitis (interstitial cystitis or IC)
4 Stones, Sludge and Crystals
- Crystals, stones and sludge
- Stone and sludge removal
5 Kidneys...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 3
• Forum: Wiebke's Guides to the Body

For the case that you are dealing with sheer blood and a reproductive tract problem (less likely), here is our infomation guide with an overview:

Thread 'Sow Problems 'Down Below' (Ovarian Cysts, Super-seasons, Womb Infection, Pregnancy & Mammary Tumours)'

Jul 15, 2024

1 Important reproductive information
- Start of making babies - seasons - lack of menopause
- Pregnancy
2 Sows in season
- How a season runs
- Strong seasons (snap seasons; the social role of strong seasons; problem seasons)
3 Health issues of the reproductive tract
- Ovarian cysts (types, symptoms and treatment options)
- Other health...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 2
• Forum: Wiebke's Guides to the Body

All the best.

Hi, thanks for your reply. It is sheer blood and not in her urine. I’ve attached some pictures for reference. We’ve had experience with another piggy having a UTI and that was very clearly in her urine and this is very different

 

[Wiebke]

Hi, thanks for your reply. It is sheer blood and not in her urine. I’ve attached some pictures for reference. We’ve had experience with another piggy having a UTI and that was very clearly in her urine and this is very different

Thank you for clarifying. All the best for finding out what is going on.

 

[Merab]

Welcome to the forum.
I can’t add any advice but offer my support and wishes for a speedy solution

 

[sunnysidestyles]

Thank you for clarifying. All the best for finding out what is going on.

Thank you we’re going to push for an ultrasound to see if we can find out anything else, just really bizarre as she’s completely fine in herself and shows no other signs of any illness!

 

[sunnysidestyles]

Welcome to the forum.
I can’t add any advice but offer my support and wishes for a speedy solution

Thank you very much x

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you we’re going to push for an ultrasound to see if we can find out anything else, just really bizarre as she’s completely fine in herself and shows no other signs of any illness!

Finding out whether it is sterile cystitis or something from the reproductive tract is first priority but it since there are no other distinctive symptoms to go by it may not be quite easy and take a while. At least you and your vet seem to have that time. All the best with the scan.

 

[VickiA]

Welcome to the forum. I think you’re absolutely right to push for a scan to check for either stones or some sort of problem with the reproductive tract