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Ralfie is staying at the emergency vets.

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Why does he need an op to get rid of it? Some abscesses can take weeks to heal while others are a devil to keep open.
 
i don't know the vet just said there is a thick piece of skin causing all the puss and if it doesn't respond to the antibiotics he'll need an op ?
 
Hi everyone, can Ralfie have his baytril with his meatcam? should i leave any time in between giving them? thanks x
 
Hi just thought i'd update on Ralfie, we aren't getting any more pus out of his abscess and it isn't swollen, we're flushing it twice a day and the vet didn't get anything out either, is this a good or bad thing? he seems to be sitting a lot more with his legs in the correct position rather than behind him or under him, and when he was walking befre he dragged them a lot less and at first seemed to be actually walking! don't want to get our hopes up but things seem to be improving and i can't believe it! He seems to get tired after a while and starts dragging one of the legs while the other shuffles then he swaps them. He wasn't eating his P@H nuggets so i put him back on muesli (sp?) because this is what he had at the rescue and he loved it. he's had his last dose of metacam tonight though, should i expect him to get worse or better because of this?
Love Emma x
 
Ahhh bless glad hes getting better hes gonna get better for sure O0
 
Thanks, it's a very slight improvement and he may just be having a good day but he seems a lot perkier since his abscess burst, was probably very uncomfortable for him, i'm worried that he's going to be in pain tomorrow when the metacam wears off. But he's been on it for a week so it's probably not wise to keep him on it. He doesn't seem to be in pain but then he's been on metacam so it's hard to tell x
 
He sounds like his getting better. I'm sure he will have his good and bad days atm, but at least you know that he is getting a little better, just take it one day at a time. :smitten:
 
Oh love this is a positive sign, i'm glad that rotten abscess has burst it must've been sooo painful for little Ralfie :( :( :(
I'm sure you'd be able to keep him on metacam for a few more days, ask the vets love. I only say this as we were allowed to keep Duke on it for more than 2 weeks when he had abscess problems a year ago, he def needed it to cope with the pain and the treatment of flushing etc... and don't forget the probiotics O0
Well done Ralfie you're a brave little guy, keep it up :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten:
 
Sounding good :)
I've not been on for a couple of days with being at uni, but came on today and first thing I thought was I wonder how Ralfie is.
 
Thanks fay :) can anyone tell me if i should syringe feed Ralfie? He lost about 60g, then put 30 back on, then lost abit again. And now his weight has been the same for about 3 days give or take a couple or grams, he doesn't seem too interested in dried food but gives his veg, hay and grass a good go? his walking has improved more and he's started kicking us a lot which is both good and bad lol! He's back at the vets tomorrow to get his abscess assesed, i think it looks ok but i'm no professional so we'll just have to see. He seems a lot more active and almost back to his normal self in terms of personality, the girls have remembered he lives next door now that he's moving and won't leave him alone lol, i'm just worried about his weight should i syringe feed him? x
 
I hate syringe feeding unless I really have to. I think I would perhaps weigh him daily (at the same time each day/or every other) and if his weight plummets drasticly then yes, but at the moment I would leave him if he's eating on his own- it gives you an indication of how he's feeling :) Don't worry about the dry food, the hay and grass are the important ones, though there's not a lot of goodness in the grass now ::) Perhaps up his intake of veggies by handfeeding him.
 
Ok thanks :) my instinct was to let him be, he isn't starving, he mostly eats hay really, whenever i look at him he's got a piece sticking out of his mouth! i know grass isn't particularly good for them but it seems to get him started (he loves it) then i sneak some veg in there and he just eats that then. i think he gets poked and prodded enough to be honest without the syringing, he gets a syringe put in his abscess twice a day to flush it, swimming therapy every other day, baby wipes twice a day, bepanthen once a day and his vets cream in his abscess twice a day already, plus he's on baytril for 3 days (until monday) so i think he gets put through enough poor little man! but il keep an eye on his weight and maybe ask the vet about it on monday, how much weight would you say is an drastic amount to lose? x
 
3 ounces or more in one week,or a steady loss of half to three quarters of an ounce per day are worrying.The weights can go up and down even when they are eating well.A weight loss of less than 3 ounces in one week would not be of concern if the piggy was otherwise o.k.

I agree with Karen about the syringe feeding,they can often get lazy and rely on it.,but if the piggy cannot eat at all it is of course a lifesaver.

Baby wipes contain chemicals so plain cotton makeup remover pads are better for cleaning up,I use the large size ones and they are very good.
 
Ok thanks Mary, you should see the improvement, he's still not right but a lot better, i will post a video later. Chrissie from GG advised us to use simple baby wipes with aloe vera to soothe his skin but i don't think he's going to need them much longer because he's started sitting in the right position and moving about more, how do we know if an abscess is better or worse? there is no puss coming out of it since the initial burst and he's on baytril until tomorrow. The most weight he's lost in the last few days is about 3grams so i think he's on the mend :) fingers crossed anyway x
 
I have not seen the baby wipes with Aloe Vera.If Chrissie recommended them they will be o.k.I know the bog standard ones from the supermarkets can cause irritation in some pigs.


Once there is no more pus or smell from an abcess,back flush just twice more to make sure the hole is clean ,then allow it to heal.
 
Ok we're just going to leave it to heal now, he had his last dose of baytril before, he hasn't had metacam since thursday and seems a lot more lively since then, could the metacam have been getting him down? hope the vet doesn't want to operate to remove the abcess :( i have a video of him walking from before, just waiting for it to upload x
 
Here is a video of Ralfie about half an hour ago (excuse the state of the carpet i've just hoovered it, i cleaned the girls out today so it's a mess in the video *embarassed*) please let me know if you think he's improved, we tink he has but it may be wishful thinking and we see him all the time o it's hard to tell!

emmajayne28


Thanks, Love Emma x
 
tried to watch but it says it's a private album and a password is needed ?
 
OOOOOhhhhh wiggling in my chair :D :D :D He looks amazing so so so so much better .I bet you are tickled pink :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten:
 
:) thanks! We thought he was doing well just wanted confirmation from someone else! By the way, again he isn't wet underneath its his nappy cream ;D x
 
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