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Poorly Pippin

ladymary86

ladymary86

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Good evening

I’ve been posting about my poor pippin, and need some more advice please.

He lost a lot of weight, vet saw an ulcer in his mouth which he is now on Zithromax for and fingers crossed is healing nicely. He still is not eating well though, so we did a full blood test. Vet was concerned for his gallbladder and liver, but apart from a slightly elevated marker on his liver, the pathologist said Pippins bloods were remarkable!

He is snacking on bits of his favourite foods, and nibbling a little hay, but not eating as much as he should, so I’m supplementing with syringe feed.

He’s been gaining a little weight (20g) in the past few days.

I’ve added a pinch of milk thistle powder to his syringe feed as heard this is good for the liver?

Can I give him alfalfa hay? He won’t touch oats or bran mash. I’ve added lots of tasty forage to his hay but he’s still not keen!

Thank you
 

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ladymary86 said:
Good evening

I’ve been posting about my poor pippin, and need some more advice please.

He lost a lot of weight, vet saw an ulcer in his mouth which he is now on Zithromax for and fingers crossed is healing nicely. He still is not eating well though, so we did a full blood test. Vet was concerned for his gallbladder and liver, but apart from a slightly elevated marker on his liver, the pathologist said Pippins bloods were remarkable!

He is snacking on bits of his favourite foods, and nibbling a little hay, but not eating as much as he should, so I’m supplementing with syringe feed.

He’s been gaining a little weight (20g) in the past few days.

I’ve added a pinch of milk thistle powder to his syringe feed as heard this is good for the liver?

Can I give him alfalfa hay? He won’t touch oats or bran mash. I’ve added lots of tasty forage to his hay but he’s still not keen!

Thank you
Click to expand...

Hi

Zithromax is a very strong antibiotic; when it kills the appetite, it really does a job.

Please just be patient. The appetite will come back and weight should go up once the antibiotic wears off very gradually. Just continue to support feed until that happens. Recovery will happen; it is just not as instant as you seem to expect. In any illness, stabilising the weight loss is the main aim; putting the weight back can sometimes take weeks or even months (and won't happen fully in the older piggies) but it will happen.
As long as your piggy is not yet holding their weight on their own, please continue with feeding support. Weigh daily on your kitchen scales for thing in the morning (when the dail weight swing is at its lowest for best day to day comparison) so you can then compute how much/how often to spport feed over the coming 24 hours. Once they are holding their weight you can gradually ease off the syringe feeding and switch to topping up from a bowl to the degree the appetite returns.

You may find the practical advice in this guide here helpful: All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

I would however recommend to stay off the alfalfa hay. It is a legume, not a hay and is too high in calcium and protein to be part of a regular diet. Hay based syringe feed is frankly best to make up for the lack of hy intake but if you really feel that you need to add calories, try to offer a bowl of mushed pellets (i.e. pellets soaked in warm water).
That is a familiar taste and has better chance of being accepted. You can also syringe mushed pellets if you cut off the syringe tip as show in the guide if Pippin needs a bit of help to get the idea. ;)
 
Thank you so much! He’s still on the antibiotic, should I stop or finish the course? My vet said his mouth looked a lot better but to finish the course :/ he’s also on metacam for the pain. I’m currently feeding him with science selective recovery plus, switching to a mixture of mushed up pellets, oat bran and milk thistle once a day. He’s also having a probiotic paste, and probiotic in his water. I’ve given him oat hay, readigrass and Timothy hay to tempt him, and dandelion and herb forage :) he absolutely demolishes cabbage and spinach when offered but I know these are high in calcium/risk of bloat so I don’t want to give him these regularly :/ I’ve also grated carrot as that’s his absolute favourite, but I’m aware it’s very sugary! I weigh him on Guinea pig scales I got once a day at the same time, we started at 980g a fortnight ago, dipped to 930g, and have come back up to 945g today.
 
ladymary86 said:
Thank you so much! He’s still on the antibiotic, should I stop or finish the course? My vet said his mouth looked a lot better but to finish the course :/ he’s also on metacam for the pain. I’m currently feeding him with science selective recovery plus, switching to a mixture of mushed up pellets, oat bran and milk thistle once a day. He’s also having a probiotic paste, and probiotic in his water. I’ve given him oat hay, readigrass and Timothy hay to tempt him, and dandelion and herb forage :) he absolutely demolishes cabbage and spinach when offered but I know these are high in calcium/risk of bloat so I don’t want to give him these regularly :/ I’ve also grated carrot as that’s his absolute favourite, but I’m aware it’s very sugary! I weigh him on Guinea pig scales I got once a day at the same time, we started at 980g a fortnight ago, dipped to 930g, and have come back up to 945g today.
Click to expand...

Please always finish a course of antibiotics in order to not contribute to the massive problem of growing resistancy. Antibiotics build up over the course of several days, then stay at full capacity for several days before wearing off gradually over a number of days after the end of the course. The loss of appetite is influenced by that. It is not an instant effect as with painkillers.

During any medical illness treatment you focus on minimising any weight loss/stabilising the weight as much as possible to get your piggy through the crisis. Weight gain and recovery are something that will happen afterwards to the degree in which the antibiotic wears off and the appetite returns. But trying for weight gain during treatment is basically aiming too high. ;)

PS: The weight is swinging around 30g in a weight band naturally over the course of 24 hourse, which is why take of weight loss only over 50g and which is the reason why you can only compare weights taken at the same slot in the daily feeding cycle. First thing in the morning when the weight swing is at its lowest is the best time for comparison in my own experience. Please take the time to read the syringe feeding guide. It has got a lot of very practical and helpful information in there, which can also help with your anxiety.
 
Thank you for your reply and your patience :) I’m just so scared as we’ve only just lost a piggie (stroke I think, it was very sudden and no warning) and Pippin is an old boy at roughly 5 (he’s a rescue so unsure exactly). He usually demolishes a pile of hay no problem so to see him hiding away and not eating is upsetting. I just want to get him through this and back to his old self :) I’m trying my absolute best but know my knowledge is not infinite and welcome any advice :)
 
I agree. Be patient. You are doing a great job. I had a piggy on Zithromax for 6 weeks and he ate nothing for himself during that time. Keep monitoring the weight and syringe feed accordingly good luck you’ll get there.
 
Just sending you my support, you've had lots of good advise already.
Looking after a sick guinea pig is exhausting but they are worth it!
 
Thank you for your support. I’m really worried, pippin is just sat in the corner, puffed up. I’ve still been feeding him, and he’s had his meds, and due to go back to the vet tomorrow. He just seems so miserable, it’s breaking my heart
 
That’s good. I hope the vet appointment goes well tomorrow.
 
This is Pips weight chart, I weigh him at the same time every day, I don’t know what the weight gain means? Is it just the swing, or is he eating more than I think, or is it something sinister? He really is skin and bones :(
 

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Those weights look pretty stable to me. They are always up or down by 30 gms depending if they have just peep and full tummy etc
Kdep recording as they are so useful when you have a poorly piggi. Sending Pippin loads of healing vibes x
 
I can't give you any advice but send loads of healing vibes to Pippin. Hope he feels better very soon and that the vet appt goes well x
 
Sending healing vibes to Pippin. Hope he feels better soon.
 
I’m sorry to say this, but my Pippin passed away this morning. I suspect liver cancer. I’m absolutely broken. Thank you for your kind words and advice, I really tried to save him
 
I am so sorry to hear your sad news. You did absolutely all you could for Pippin, no one could have done more. Sending you my very best wishes at such a sad time.
 
I’m so sorry. Popcorn high over the bridge gorgeous Pippin. ❤️
 
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