Post-castration abscess

[ORS]

Hello,

I had my guinea pig castrated a week ago and despite keeping his cage ultra clean and cleaning his wounds with hibiscrub 4x a day, he quickly developed a rather large and hard abscess 2 days ago. The vet suspects that he had a haematoma that turned into an abscess and may be due to the surgery time being too long.

He had it flushed out today and is on azithromycin. I wanted to ask what the best probiotic would be to use with azithromycin? Also how many times a day should I flush it and how many 1ml syringes of dilute hibi should I flush it with?

As it is only a small hole there is concern it might close up. If anyone has any more advice on treating post-castration abscesses that would be great!
Thanks

 

[Wheekallweek]

I have no experience with a neuter abscess that have been left open, but we've had a few post neuter abscesses at the rescue. The majority of them seemed to be caused by a reaction to the sutures. The vets we use has since altered the process slighty and have seen a big drop in abscesses!
Zithromax is a really good ab for abscesses so that's good.
Some pigs cleared up with just the abs, others had to have them drained.

 

[Wiebke]

Hello,

I had my guinea pig castrated a week ago and despite keeping his cage ultra clean and cleaning his wounds with hibiscrub 4x a day, he quickly developed a rather large and hard abscess 2 days ago. The vet suspects that he had a haematoma that turned into an abscess and may be due to the surgery time being too long.

He had it flushed out today and is on azithromycin. I wanted to ask what the best probiotic would be to use with azithromycin? Also how many times a day should I flush it and how many 1ml syringes of dilute hibi should I flush it with?

As it is only a small hole there is concern it might close up. If anyone has any more advice on treating post-castration abscesses that would be great!
Thanks

Hi

I am very sorry.

One needle full of hibiscrub is OK as long as it goes in well; otherwise do it again.
You need to really scratch open the scab over the opening after a few days for as long as possible. It is not at all pleasant.

Any probiotic will do but fibreplex (UK product) has a bit more extra. You give probiotics either 1 hour before or two hours after the antibiotic. If your boy has a healthy companion, poo soup (live healthy microbiome transfer) can also be done. Azythromycin (or Zithromax) is a very strong antibiotic but it has a chance to cut through an abscess. Most piggies tolerate it well but when it wipes out the appetite, it does so completely and requires round the clock syringe feeding a non-cooperative piggy. Been there a few times with my own piggies. The appetite will eventually return.
Probiotics Live Gut Microbiome Transfer ('Poo Soup'); Recovery Formula Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links and Transfer Recipe
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Contact the clinic as soon as you feel the swelling returns or if something is not right.

 

[ORS]

I have no experience with a neuter abscess that have been left open, but we've had a few post neuter abscesses at the rescue. The majority of them seemed to be caused by a reaction to the sutures. The vets we use has since altered the process slighty and have seen a big drop in abscesses!
Zithromax is a really good ab for abscesses so that's good.
Some pigs cleared up with just the abs, others had to have them drained.

Thanks for getting back to me! I honestly couldn’t have kept him any cleaner which is what’s so annoying. I’ve moved him to the cat and rabbit clinic in Northampton so at least he’s in the best hands now. Hoping he won’t need another surgery.

 

[ORS]

Thank you so much that’s great! I ordered some fibreplex earlier so I’ll start using that tomorrow and I’ll keep an eye on his appetite. Just so frustrating that this has happened despite trying my best to prevent it.

After I syringe the hibi in would you suggest massaging the pus out? Or will that risk it bursting into the abdomen?

 

[Wheekallweek]

Cat and rabbit clinic are great with piggies so you're in good hands there!

 

[ORS]

Hi

I am very sorry.

One needle full of hibiscrub is OK as long as it goes in well; otherwise do it again.
You need to really scratch open the scab over the opening after a few days for as long as possible. It is not at all pleasant.

Any probiotic will do but fibreplex (UK product) has a bit more extra. You give probiotics either 1 hour before or two hours after the antibiotic. If your boy has a healthy companion, poo soup (live healthy microbiome transfer) can also be done. Azythromycin (or Zithromax) is a very strong antibiotic but it has a chance to cut through an abscess. Most piggies tolerate it well but when it wipes out the appetite, it does so completely and requires round the clock syringe feeding a non-cooperative piggy. Been there a few times with my own piggies. The appetite will eventually return.
Probiotics Live Gut Microbiome Transfer ('Poo Soup'); Recovery Formula Foods And Vitamin C: Overview With Product Links and Transfer Recipe
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

Contact the clinic as soon as you feel the swelling returns or if something is not right.

Thank you so much that’s great! I ordered some fibreplex earlier so I’ll start using that tomorrow and I’ll keep an eye on his appetite. Just so frustrating that this has happened despite trying my best to prevent it.

After I syringe the hibi in would you suggest massaging the pus out? Or will that risk it bursting into the abdomen?

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you so much that’s great! I ordered some fibreplex earlier so I’ll start using that tomorrow and I’ll keep an eye on his appetite. Just so frustrating that this has happened despite trying my best to prevent it.

After I syringe the hibi in would you suggest massaging the pus out? Or will that risk it bursting into the abdomen?

The pus should be fluid anyway but brace for the stink.

 

[ORS]

The pus should be fluid anyway but brace for the stink.

Ahaha it was very stinky. Sorry for all the questions but would you say the more I flush it out the better? Or should I stick to 2/3 times a day?

 

[Wiebke]

Ahaha it was very stinky. Sorry for all the questions but would you say the more I flush it out the better? Or should I stick to 2/3 times a day?

2-3 times a day is enough as long as you give it a thorough flush; if necessary with 2-3 syringefuls if it is large abscess.

 

[ORS]

2-3 times a day is enough as long as you give it a thorough flush; if necessary with 2-3 syringefuls if it is large abscess.

Perfect, thank you!

 

[weepweeps]

I had a piggy with a tooth root abscess. Obviously it’s in a different location but the principles are the same. He had an operation at the cat and rabbit clinic and was put on a 6 week course of antibiotics (Zithromax). This stopped his appetite completely for the duration of the antibiotics. So be aware this could happen. His appetite came back soon after stopping them. I cleaned it out three times a day with saline solution. It was a massive 4cm wide under his chin. So very large. Good luck. I’m sure you will be fine as you are doing all the right things. Good luck.

 

[ORS]

I had a piggy with a tooth root abscess. Obviously it’s in a different location but the principles are the same. He had an operation at the cat and rabbit clinic and was put on a 6 week course of antibiotics (Zithromax). This stopped his appetite completely for the duration of the antibiotics. So be aware this could happen. His appetite came back soon after stopping them. I cleaned it out three times a day with saline solution. It was a massive 4cm wide under his chin. So very large. Good luck. I’m sure you will be fine as you are doing all the right things. Good luck.

Thank you so much! Aww was your piggy okay afterwards? His also feels quite large and I can’t feel a distinct capsule around it either, feels like it’s adhered to the surrounding structures so I really hope the antibiotics clear it up. He is still eating bits but his appetite has definitely reduced so I have been syringe feeding him 3x a day and found that he will happily munch through grass so I am cutting him a bowl of grass 3x a day. Did your piggies poos stay normal? His have gone very thin and sticky and sometimes clumpy so I am a bit concerned about that but I’m giving him fibreplex too and assuming it’s due to the antibiotics?

 

[ORS]

Hi again, sorry for all the questions! My piggie with a large post-castration abscess is on azithromycin and it has suppressed his appetite a bit so I have been syringe feeding him 3-4x a day with critical care mixed with fibreplex. I have found that he still loves a bowl of fresh grass, so I am giving him 3 bowls of grass a day too. Just wondering if it’s possible to give too much grass? Or whether I should give it as often as possible?

His poos are also quite abnormal - most of them are thin and quite sticky, some are small and some are clumped together. I assume it’s the antibiotics causing this so is there anything else I can do to prevent this?

Thank you

 

[Wiebke]

Hi again, sorry for all the questions! My piggie with a large post-castration abscess is on azithromycin and it has suppressed his appetite a bit so I have been syringe feeding him 3-4x a day with critical care mixed with fibreplex. I have found that he still loves a bowl of fresh grass, so I am giving him 3 bowls of grass a day too. Just wondering if it’s possible to give too much grass? Or whether I should give it as often as possible?

His poos are also quite abnormal - most of them are thin and quite sticky, some are small and some are clumped together. I assume it’s the antibiotics causing this so is there anything else I can do to prevent this?

Thank you

Hi

Grass is fine but you may need to up the syringe feed to help provide more dry fibre for the dgestive system. Please be aware that only the kitchen scales can give you a current update - crucial to compute how much to syringe feed enough to slow down/stabilise any weight loss - whereas the poo output is running 1-2 days behind; it can give you feedback as to what happened and in which area of the food intake it happened. The small size and quishiness reflects the sudden lack of hay intake, which makes three quarters of what a piggy eats in a day.

Please take the time to read the weight monitoring chapter of our feeding guide. The kitchen scales are you best ally in navigating loss of appetite, especially during a potentially longer illness.
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

How is the flushing going?

PS: I am merging your threads on the same ongoing case. Please be aware that we are all doing this for free in our own free time so not everybody is around and reading/posting on all thread all time.

Please bookmark your ongoing support thread so we can keep all information together. It helps us to catch up and helps you from having to repeat information or receive advice that has already been ruled out/implemented. Being able to provide ongoing personalised support on this forum is one advantage we have over social media but we need your cooperation in order to be fully efficient for our mutual benefit. Thank you.

 

[weepweeps]

Thank you so much! Aww was your piggy okay afterwards? His also feels quite large and I can’t feel a distinct capsule around it either, feels like it’s adhered to the surrounding structures so I really hope the antibiotics clear it up. He is still eating bits but his appetite has definitely reduced so I have been syringe feeding him 3x a day and found that he will happily munch through grass so I am cutting him a bowl of grass 3x a day. Did your piggies poos stay normal? His have gone very thin and sticky and sometimes clumpy so I am a bit concerned about that but I’m giving him fibreplex too and assuming it’s due to the antibiotics?

I think his poops were fewer than normal and possibly smaller. But it was last year so I’ve forgotten some of the details. He’s absolutely fine now. It took him 10 months to put back on the 400g he lost though.

I hope your piggy is ok.

 

[weepweeps]

Also what you need to do is weigh him every morning. If he’s lost weight overnight you feed more syringe feed that day. I was feeding him 5 times a day and managed to get 100ml into Pepper some days. And even then sometimes he was still losing weight. It was a struggle at times and quite stressful.

 

[ORS]

Hi

Grass is fine but you may need to up the syringe feed to help provide more dry fibre for the dgestive system. Please be aware that only the kitchen scales can give you a current update - crucial to compute how much to syringe feed enough to slow down/stabilise any weight loss - whereas the poo output is running 1-2 days behind; it can give you feedback as to what happened and in which area of the food intake it happened. The small size and quishiness reflects the sudden lack of hay intake, which makes three quarters of what a piggy eats in a day.

Please take the time to read the weight monitoring chapter of our feeding guide. The kitchen scales are you best ally in navigating loss of appetite, especially during a potentially longer illness.
All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures

How is the flushing going?

PS: I am merging your threads on the same ongoing case. Please be aware that we are all doing this for free in our own free time so not everybody is around and reading/posting on all thread all time.

Please bookmark your ongoing support thread so we can keep all information together. It helps us to catch up and helps you from having to repeat information or receive advice that has already been ruled out/implemented. Being able to provide ongoing personalised support on this forum is one advantage we have over social media but we need your cooperation in order to be fully efficient for our mutual benefit. Thank you.

Thank you for getting back to me and for merging my questions. Sorry I’m quite new to this and don’t know exactly how it works but I think I have bookmarked it now.

He has lost about 80g since his castrate but I’ll keep weighing him. The flushing is going okay I think, I’m using a needle on the syringe so that there’s space for the fluid to run out. The fluid looks similar to the hibi I put in but the area still feels hard so I’m not sure how well it’s working.

I syringe fed him a lot tonight and I’ll be able to do it more often tomorrow as I’m taking him to work with me.

Thank you for your help x

 

[ORS]

Also what you need to do is weigh him every morning. If he’s lost weight overnight you feed more syringe feed that day. I was feeding him 5 times a day and managed to get 100ml into Pepper some days. And even then sometimes he was still losing weight. It was a struggle at times and quite stressful.

Okay perfect thank you. I will definitely start syringe feeding him more and hope his gut sorts itself out. I really hope he does as well as yours.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for getting back to me and for merging my questions. Sorry I’m quite new to this and don’t know exactly how it works but I think I have bookmarked it now.

He has lost about 80g since his castrate but I’ll keep weighing him. The flushing is going okay I think, I’m using a needle on the syringe so that there’s space for the fluid to run out. The fluid looks similar to the hibi I put in but the area still feels hard so I’m not sure how well it’s working.

I syringe fed him a lot tonight and I’ll be able to do it more often tomorrow as I’m taking him to work with me.

Thank you for your help x

Ideally, you weigh him first thing in the morning since the weight swings ca. 30g over the course of a day. in the morning before the first feed, the weight will be lowest and makes for best day to day comparison so you know whether to up your support feed again for the next 24 or whether you have stabilised the weight loss. At this stage it is not about the abscess shrinking but about removing any infectious stuff from the pockets on the inside of an abscess. Any little speck that is left will mean that the abscess will return sooner or later. Abscesses heal from the inside out; with the flushing you are keeping the abscess as clean as possible on the inside. I hope that this makes sense so you can understand better what you have been asked to do?

All the best with the feeding care. You are a great and very caring piggy mummy who has to currently deal with a rather scary situation. Getting a piggy through a crisis is always tough on the owner as well, emotionally as well as physically. Hang on in here.

PS: We do things a bit different on here in order to make the best of the freedom and full control we have over the forum. We just correct and ask new members to please cooperate for their own benefit. No blame attached; you'll get the hang of it.

 

[ORS]

Ideally, you weigh him first thing in the morning since the weight swings ca. 30g over the course of a day. in the morning before the first feed, the weight will be lowest and makes for best day to day comparison so you know whether to up your support feed again for the next 24 or whether you have stabilised the weight loss. At this stage it is not about the abscess shrinking but about removing any infectious stuff from the pockets on the inside of an abscess. Any little speck that is left will mean that the abscess will return sooner or later. Abscesses heal from the inside out; with the flushing you are keeping the abscess as clean as possible on the inside. I hope that this makes sense so you can understand better what you have been asked to do?

All the best with the feeding care. You are a great and very caring piggy mummy who has to currently deal with a rather scary situation. Getting a piggy through a crisis is always tough on the owner as well, emotionally as well as physically. Hang on in here.

PS: We do things a bit different on here in order to make the best of the freedom and full control we have over the forum. We just correct and ask new members to please cooperate for their own benefit. No blame attached; you'll get the hang of it.

Perfect. I have read the link you sent too. I am a vet student so know all about abscesses although we don’t get taught much about guinea pig abscesses annoyingly. I have done so much research but as he has such a small hole I can’t see exactly what I’m flushing and it’s hard to tell how far I should push the needle in. I’m just hoping it is only one abscess and that the incision is still leading into it.
I’m very grateful for all your support and I’m finding it very stressful but I’m trying my best and hopefully it pays off x

 

[Wiebke]

Perfect. I have read the link you sent too. I am a vet student so know all about abscesses although we don’t get taught much about guinea pig abscesses annoyingly. I have done so much research but as he has such a small hole I can’t see exactly what I’m flushing and it’s hard to tell how far I should push the needle in. I’m just hoping it is only one abscess and that the incision is still leading into it.
I’m very grateful for all your support and I’m finding it very stressful but I’m trying my best and hopefully it pays off x

You need to push the needle in only so far that you can push the antiseptic fluid in quite hard and ensure that it is really going in and not all over the place around the opening and over you as well; i.e. not very far.

You have to brace that guinea pigs are dreadfully underresearched in lots of aspects. By default, you have to usually turn to rabbit research which is admittedly a less than ideal situation. Guinea pigs fall very much into the gap of being the most common 'exotic' pet but being too mundane for the many of the exotics buffs even though they are very much a fascinating species in their own right.

 

[weepweeps]

Perfect. I have read the link you sent too. I am a vet student so know all about abscesses although we don’t get taught much about guinea pig abscesses annoyingly. I have done so much research but as he has such a small hole I can’t see exactly what I’m flushing and it’s hard to tell how far I should push the needle in. I’m just hoping it is only one abscess and that the incision is still leading into it.
I’m very grateful for all your support and I’m finding it very stressful but I’m trying my best and hopefully it pays off x

I had to take the needle off my syringe as Pepper was very wriggly and I thought I was going to stab him. Once it was only the plastic syringe I could put it right in the hole. Also I used a cotton bud with a hanky over the end and poked that in the hole too. He actually liked that. Good luck.

 

[ORS]

You need to push the needle in only so far that you can push the antiseptic fluid in quite hard and ensure that it is really going in and not all over the place around the opening and over you as well; i.e. not very far.

You have to brace that guinea pigs are dreadfully underresearched in lots of aspects. By default, you have to usually turn to rabbit research which is admittedly a less than ideal situation. Guinea pigs fall very much into the gap of being the most common 'exotic' pet but being too mundane for the many of the exotics buffs even though they are very much a fascinating species in their own right.

Okay good, that’s what I’ve been doing. And I’ve been doing quite a few syringes 3x a day so hopefully it does the trick.

I’ve also been syringe feeding him a lot more today so I’m hoping his poos might look a bit more normal tomorrow. They’ve been even more abnormal today - very mushy, dark and some not even formed. He seems quite bright in himself but he’s not eating a lot either.
At what point would you stop the antibiotics due to gut disturbance? Or is it okay to continue to give with syringe feeding and probiotics?

I 100% agree. It’s disappointing how little research has been done to help them and yet I assume they are used a lot for human research

 

[ORS]

I had to take the needle off my syringe as Pepper was very wriggly and I thought I was going to stab him. Once it was only the plastic syringe I could put it right in the hole. Also I used a cotton bud with a hanky over the end and poked that in the hole too. He actually liked that. Good luck.

Thank you! Aww bless him. Luckily mine isn’t very wriggly but I wish I could just use the syringe. The incision is only the size to fit the tip of the syringe so there wouldn’t be enough space for fluid to escape and I don’t want to risk it bursting into the abdomen so I am being careful not to poke the needle in too far

 

[Merab]

My boy Micah developed a scrotal abscess after his neutering but my vet opted for immediate surgery to remove it before it grew too much.
I can’t offer anything other than support.

I have dealt with other abscesses and it’s no fun.

I hope your boy makes a full recovery soon.

 

[ORS]

My boy Micah developed a scrotal abscess after his neutering but my vet opted for immediate surgery to remove it before it grew too much.
I can’t offer anything other than support.

I have dealt with other abscesses and it’s no fun.

I hope your boy makes a full recovery soon.

Thank you so much. It’s horrible isn’t it. I really wish he could have surgery to remove it but it came up so quickly over last weekend and was too big to remove
I think I will cry with happiness if he recovers. He’s such a special boy

 

[Wiebke]

Okay good, that’s what I’ve been doing. And I’ve been doing quite a few syringes 3x a day so hopefully it does the trick.

I’ve also been syringe feeding him a lot more today so I’m hoping his poos might look a bit more normal tomorrow. They’ve been even more abnormal today - very mushy, dark and some not even formed. He seems quite bright in himself but he’s not eating a lot either.
At what point would you stop the antibiotics due to gut disturbance? Or is it okay to continue to give with syringe feeding and probiotics?

I 100% agree. It’s disappointing how little research has been done to help them and yet I assume they are used a lot for human research

HUGS

Please continue with the round the clock syringe feeding and keep on with zithromax. Please max out the support feed and probiotic or fibreplex or benebac support (only one of these); you can additionally give poo soup though.

If in any doubt contact the clinic for further advice. Never stop any course of antibiotics on spec without consultation with the treating vet. Antibiotics build up to full strength over the course of several days and then gradually peter out after you stop. Stopping early will contribute to the growing problem of resistancy.

Been there myself more than once with piggies unfit to have an operation so it was either push through with the zithromax or euthanize. It was tough and it was draining but I have got them through and not lost them.

What you are seeing today has happened before you stepped up your syringe feed.

 

[ORS]

He seems quite bright in himself today. Still not eating anything other than fresh grass though and his poos are still very thin and mushy. He’s remained the exact same weight over the past 3 days (1189g) so I will keep feeding him the same amount.

 

[weepweeps]

It’s great he’s ok in himself and his weight is stable. That’s what you are aiming for until the antibiotics are finished. All going in the right direction