• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

Possible stroke

Status
Not open for further replies.
Chocolate&Coconut

Chocolate&Coconut

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Apr 20, 2010
Messages
67
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
England
Hi,
I have two 7 year old female guinea pigs, and last night I came to their cage to find one of them, Coconut, lying on one side hardly moving. She didn't move until I touched her, and then she got up and tried to run, but was falling all over the place. I gently took her out and placed her on the floor, and she was very tilted to one side and also seemed weak. Mostly she was very still, but then she tried to walk again but was really struggling, falling to one side. This was very late last night, and the vets that I phoned were shut, so instead I tried to get her to eat and drink. She ate some cucumber and lettuce, but wouldn't drink at all. After a while I put her back in the cage, where she wobbled to the corner and stayed there.

I was very worried and upset all night, but this morning she seemed slightly better and not quite so tilted. I kept hand feeding her cucumber and lettuce, then took her to the vets. He seemed to indicate that it was a stroke, but that in fact she did seem fairly responsive. He gave her 2 injections and we also have another appointment in two days time.

Since she's been home with her sister, Coconut's either sat in the corner or buried under the hay, which isn't like her at all. I also haven't seen her eat or drink anything by herself, so I've given her some water with a syringe, which I really hope was the right thing to do. I know she's quite old, but for her age she is usually very active, so it's really upsetting to see her like this.

I was just wondering about other people's opinions on whether this does sound like a stroke (they're my first piggies), and whether anyone would have any advice as to how I can help her recover?

Thank you very much, any help would be much appreciated.
 
i have heard of peoples guinea having a stroke and they recovered but some did have a little brain damage or perm damage to other area affected but it did improve a lot over time,with her not eatting could you syringe feed her some recovery feeds if you dont have it you can get it from your vets,or if you use pellets pour some boiling water on them wait until they have become mushey but dont try to crush them let the water mush them for you then mix them into a liquid paste and once cooled down give her this via syringe some people do it every few hours but a good amount is around 60mls in one sitting.
burgess excel is just as good as recovery feeds once mushed up if this is the only thing you have in x
 
I'm afraid I'm not experienced enough to offer advice on this sad situation but there are others on here who will be able to help.
I just wanted to wish you well and send love and healing vibes to Coconut and yourself.
Please keep us informed of any developments and good luck. x x
 
clairelove and Wiebke, thank you very much for your information. I tried feeding her some mushed pellets via syringe, but she was being very stubborn and hardly took any in. I tried giving her some more water too, but again she wasn't having any and just seemed to be getting distressed so I stopped. However, hopefully the cucumber and water that she had earlier will be enough until morning when I'll try again.

devonbelle and flips thank you also for your support.
 
Welcome to the forum, I am sorry Coconut seems to be unwell.

I have to agree that it sounds like a stroke. I also agree on syringe-feeding, if you can please do get the vet/vet nurse to show you how to syringe-feed; it is difficult at first but you do need to get food into her, it is very important that she keeps her strength up. Guineas' digestion is designed to constantly digest food, if the pig goes without any food for as little as 12-24 hours the digestive system can start to slow right down and lead to much more serious illness. She'll need feeding at least 10ml every 3-4 hours, although feeding more if she wants it is also fine.

Disorientation and loss of balance can suggest ear infection, but I'm not sure that the symptoms would develop so suddenly if this was the case. It could be worth discussing with the vet in any case.
 
Really sorry to hear that Coconut isn't well.

I know it's really hard to syringe-feed a poorly piggy, especially if you're new to it, so I really hope you manage to get enough food & water into her, as it's so important. If you're not doing so already, some people find it much easier to syringe-feed a towel-wrapped piggy (you can use a tea towel, small towel or pillowcase) - just swaddle her like a baby, so her legs are carefully out of action and you'll hopefully find that she struggles much less once wrapped. This is also a bit tricky at first but is worth trying.

Just persevere with the feeds, no matter how hard and slow going. Having 2 piggies of 7 yrs of age you're obviously already doing a great job with them. Good luck x
 
Thank you everyone else for your support and advice. Sadly, Coconut is a lot worse today. She had a little cucumber this morning as well as a little water throughout the day, but mostly she's not actually taking the water in, just keeping it in her mouth and then letting it dribble out. The same happened when I tried to syringe feed her pellets too. Her balance is also a lot worse; she's really struggling to walk and she goes very floppy when we pick her up. However, she seems to be fairly happy simply sat on my lap wrapped in a towel, and she's purring every now and then when I stroke her.

Also, it's almost as if her sister Chocolate doesn't want to know her? When in the cage, Coconut will go to snuggle against Chocolate, but Chocolate just ignores her or pushes her away. It's strange and very sad because normally they have a good relationship and always snuggle together.

We're taking her to the vets again this evening, but we're preparing ourseleves for the worst. I'm so worried... But it's absolutely heartbreaking to see her like this... just two days ago she was completely her old self: running around, squeaking for food, climbing the stairs! It's devastating how suddenly she's deteriorated, but whatever happens, I don't want her to suffer.
 
Me, Poco and Figgy all send our love and our kisses to you and Coconut.

I'm not the expert, but this is quite worrying to me. October 26th 2006 we got a piggy from a shop - not even a legitimate pet store. We "rescued" (he wasn't a rescue pig, he was a breeder pig) him from these tiny triangular plastic boxes, one pig per box. Willy was always VERY laid back.

July 2007, he started getting very weak and barely eating. His heart was bursting out of his chest, we could see it. He was also gasping for breath and opening his moth wide a lot. On the 17th, he died in the car on the way to the vet.
We later found out that pure breeds are likely to have serious heart conditions. We concluded that he was a Heart pig.

Can I ask :
- Where did you get Coconut?
- Is she a pure breed?
- Can you see her heart moving?
- Is she gasping for breath?
- Is she very laid back/ Quite overweight?

I'm not saying this is her problem, I am just asking you to look out for it.
For more information on heart problems in guinea pigs, try this link http://www.knoeddelmeister.com/information/heart-problems-in-guinea-pigs.php

Hope this helps in any way.
 
Last edited:
I'm sorry, it does sound like she may be struggling significantly. I had a similar experience, my first pig Charlie had a kidney tumour for 9 months but he was only really 'ill' on his last day. Overnight, he became weak and unstable with a loss of balance, and unable to swallow. It was almost certainly a stroke.

Sadly once they reach the point of not swallowing, it tends to indicate they've had enough; if there is no way, no change in technique, to encourage her to swallow then she may have made the decision for herself.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but I think you're right in preparing yourself, somewhat, for the worst. Please do keep us updated. xx
 
Really sorry to hear that poor Coconut has taken a turn for the worse and is much worse than we'd all hoped. Big hugs x
 
I'm afraid it's very sad news... by the time we got Coconut to the vets last night she was even worse. I had her wrapped in a towel on my lap in the car on the way up there because she kept falling if she stood on her own, and she seemed so much calmer like that. I held her in her towel in the waiting room too, and there was this one lady who walked past us and commented on how beautiful she looked. It made me smile even though I was absolutely terrified. And we were right to prepare ourselves for the worst; the vet said there was nothing else we could do for her, so we had to have her put to sleep. My mum and I stayed with her as the vet injected her and she passed away. I was in such a state, I just kept stroking her and talking to her.

I carried her home in the car as well, and I just felt so numb. It was so hard for me to believe that she'd actually gone as she looked as if she could just be sleeping. When we got home I had one last moment with her and then we buried her in a lovely spot in the garden. My mum came up with a brilliant idea to mark the spot by buying a real coconut, cutting and sculpting it and engraving her name on it.

I've just spent all day thinking about her, and I don't think anyone else today has really understood how much it's affected me. Lots of people don't really seem to understand that it's possible to get so attached to a guinea pig! I'm also worried about her sister Chocolate. The pair have lived together all their life, and with Chocolate being an old pig I'm afraid that she might become depressed and loney... looks like we'll have to help each other through this hard time!

These past few days have just been horrible; it was so heartbreaking to see my lovely, bright girl change so quickly and be suffering so much. My first ever pet and the first pet I've lost, she really was such a lovely, sweet, cheeky girl. Rest now my precious, beautiful girl... forever loved and forever missed.

DSC00065.jpg


DSC00107.jpg
 
I'm sorry to hear about coconut. I understand that you feel so sad and I'm sure everyone on this forum feels sad for you because we all love our pigs. I'm sure coconut has had a happy life with you and i hope you can remember the good times and i hope things get a bit brighter for you soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
Oh that's so sad. I'm genuinely sorry to hear that it was her time, despite your very best efforts...unfortunately all the will in the world just isn't enough when the time comes. Coconut was a beautiful piggy and it's no wonder that you feel so deeply, but you have wonderful memories to cherish and it won't always be so painful to reflect on the wonderful times you spent together.

Thinking of you and Chocolate at this sad time x
 
I'm so sorry to hear she has passed. You gave her a good life, she was very well loved. Such a beautiful girl. Big hugs to you and Chocolate.

Rest well, dear Coconut.
 
I am so, so sorry to hear this.
I really can't sympathize enough fro your loss, she was a beautiful girl.

With Willy, I found that waiting was very important. Cry, let it out, and just wait for time to go by. It'll seem like a long time but soon you won't feel quite so horrible.

Me, Poco, Figgy and Angel Willy all send our love to you and Chocolate, and our best afterlife wishes to Coconut <3
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top