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Recovery from operation

SarahO

SarahO

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi. Cookie had an operation today to remove a wart. When I put him in his cage when we got home, he was still groggy and balance was not which is after effect from general anasethetic. he did not touch any food till I introduced fresh veg at teatime at 6pm. Cookie ate a bit of a carrot and took a bite of his lettuce but couldn’t face anymore. I left him to it, but then I went up a couple of hours later and he had not touched his food so no pooping either. 😞 I introduced him to more veg then he started eating and then started to eat his hay. Is it normal for Guinea pigs to recover from an op like this? It’s possible that he isn’t pooping yet as he hasn’t had a lot to eat yet. I hope i can draw dot to dot in the morning!
 

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Yes some piggies can be more affected by the operation anaesthetic than others, and be groggy and lack appetite for a time afterwards. My vets usually keep recovering pigs in until they have been seen to eat etc, but fortunately I've never had one affected by anaesthetic.

It's good that he has started to eat at least. Were you given any post-op pain relief for him, and do you have any recovery food in case he needs supplementary feeding?
 
One of my pigs was really groggy after anesthesia so my vet literally kept her all day to make sure she came around (she had surgery done by noon, vet kept her until about 6 in the evening.) It can take a few hours for sure. It's encouraging that he is eating hay. I would weight daily for the next week to make sure he's maintaining weight normally. Does he have any pain meds? Sometimes discomfort postop can put some pigs off their food, some pigs are really not good at managing pain/discomfort. I hope he's back to normal for you very soon!
 
SarahO said:
Hi. Cookie had an operation today to remove a wart. When I put him in his cage when we got home, he was still groggy and balance was not which is after effect from general anasethetic. he did not touch any food till I introduced fresh veg at teatime at 6pm. Cookie ate a bit of a carrot and took a bite of his lettuce but couldn’t face anymore. I left him to it, but then I went up a couple of hours later and he had not touched his food so no pooping either. 😞 I introduced him to more veg then he started eating and then started to eat his hay. Is it normal for Guinea pigs to recover from an op like this? It’s possible that he isn’t pooping yet as he hasn’t had a lot to eat yet. I hope i can draw dot to dot in the morning!
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Hi

Piggies can react differently to GAs. Yours is not an unusual reaction. Just leave him be and allow him to rest and sleep it out but be prepared to step in with feeding support if needed. Check once during the night. As long as your piggy is nibbling and drinking, the gut is working and you will see poos in due time. If needed, give a bit of recovery mix or some mushed pellets (see the syringe feeding and medicating guide for details).

Keep in mind that the poo output runs 1-2 days behind the event horizon, so you will inevitably see the feeding gap during the operation and then the operation drugs reflected in the funny poos you will have to brace for in the coming day or so once the operation gap is bridged by the internal digestive converyor belt.

Please be aware that you need to monitor the weight (i.e. the food intake) daily on your kitchen scales first thing in the morning (for best day to day comparison) so you'll know if and when you may need to step in with feeding support.
Unlike the poos, the scales will give you immediate feedback as to how much your piggy is eating - especially the crucial hay intake, which makes over three quarters of the daily food intake and which you cannot monitor by eye. Veg only makes about 15-20% of the daily food intake and together with 1 tablespoon of pellets replaces the supplementary role of wild forage in the diet that piggies have evolved on. The support feed primarily replaces the hay/grass fibre to keep the gut going.
I call the first day post-op 'hangover day' when the operation cocktail is worked out of the body, everything feels sore and the healing process has not yet picked. Expect some funny poos. After that, your boy should start picking up more with every day.
You can find plenty of very practical little and large how-to tips in these guide links here, which contain all the details we cannot repeat in full every time. I have included our emergency take just in case there is a downturn but not because I expect one. However, it is always better to have the information handy, just in case. The one time you don't is usually the one you need it.
- Tips For Post-operative Care
- All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures
- Emergency and Crisis Care as well as Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment

All the best!
 
Thank you for all the information and the links for me to look at. I checked in over night and although he is eating he did not touch too much of it. There were some poos today which is a relief. I have been given Metacam once a day from 2pm today. I can see that he is looking sorry for himself and doesn’t like me right now although he does let me stroke him this morning. I have yet to weigh him this morning. Luckily I work from home in the same room as him so it’s easy to keep an eye on him during the day
 
Weigh him daily, each morning, so you can monitor his hay intake. Step in with syringe feeding if his hay intake, and consequently weight, has reduced. 50g or more weight loss requires action.

Ideally painkillers are given twice a day to guinea pigs. They have a fast metabolism and meds are metabolised in around 12 hours meaning once a day is usually not enough. You will have to keep an eye on the situation and speak to your vet if he appears to be in discomfort.

What dosage is he on?
Is it cat metacam?
 
SarahO said:
Thank you for all the information and the links for me to look at. I checked in over night and although he is eating he did not touch too much of it. There were some poos today which is a relief. I have been given Metacam once a day from 2pm today. I can see that he is looking sorry for himself and doesn’t like me right now although he does let me stroke him this morning. I have yet to weigh him this morning. Luckily I work from home in the same room as him so it’s easy to keep an eye on him during the day
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Wait with the painkillers until the operation cocktail (which contains a large dose of them) has worn off, as directed by your vet. Your boy will be uncomfortable coming up to 24 hours post-op.

What metacam dosage and strength have you been prescribed (cat metacam is 0.5mg/ml and dog metacam three times stronger at 1.5mg/ml)?
 
He is on 0.8ml on the one for both cats and guinea pigs. It comes in a 0.5mg/ml meloxicam 3ml bottle
 
Cookie does not seem to eat much right now unless I put it in front of him and he eats it right away
 
When my Percy had an operation last august the vet nurse told me he should be walking around by the following afternoon. If you are worried I’d call up the vets and ask their advice.
 
weepweeps said:
When my Percy had an operation last august the vet nurse told me he should be walking around by the following afternoon. If you are worried I’d call up the vets and ask their advice.
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He is walking around just a bit slow on the eating
 
SarahO said:
He is walking around just a bit slow on the eating
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If necessary, offer him additional syringe feed to minimise any weight loss he has to make up again afterwards. It is the three quarters food intake of hay fibre that you need to replace; pellets and veg only make about 20-25% of what a piggy eats in a day and it is the fibre that is crucial for keeping the gut going.
He is in no way critical since he is eating, pooing and moving - if not a lot - and will hopefully perk up a bit with his new painkiller dosage.

The metacam is at the lower end but since you only have enough for about 4 days, you have to go with that. Your boy will still recover and will start feeling better once the healing process is in full swing in a couple of days' time or so.
 
Update: 2 days after op cookie has started to eat his nuggets and has been eating his hay but not so much as he used to. I can see he is toileting no problems but just concerned that he has not touched his water bottle. Although he does eat his fresh veg every night. I’m working today so will keep an eye on him. I might need to call vet tonight if I don’t see him drink from the bottle
 
SarahO said:
Update: 2 days after op cookie has started to eat his nuggets and has been eating his hay but not so much as he used to. I can see he is toileting no problems but just concerned that he has not touched his water bottle. Although he does eat his fresh veg every night. I’m working today so will keep an eye on him. I might need to call vet tonight if I don’t see him drink from the bottle
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Hi

Are you weighing to ensure that he is actually eating enough on his own? Please keep in mind that drinking can vary enormously, individually and from environmental factors.
 
Cookie still isn’t touching his water bottle even though I’m putting fresh water in it everyday. He is eating well now and pooping more. Spoke to vet and the appointment has been brought forward to Tuesday now instead of Thursday. I have been advised to give him water by other means. Any ideas how encourage drinking on his own?
 
SarahO said:
Cookie still isn’t touching his water bottle even though I’m putting fresh water in it everyday. He is eating well now and pooping more. Spoke to vet and the appointment has been brought forward to Tuesday now instead of Thursday. I have been advised to give him water by other means. Any ideas how encourage drinking on his own?
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If the poos are looking normal and not dehydrated/dry, and he is eating normally, then he is not at risk of dehydration. The need to drink comes before the need to eat, so an eating guinea pig is generally not dehydrated as long as they have access to clean, cool, drinkable water.

Plenty of piggies get all their fluid from the veg you are feeding; they are not thirstier just because you offer them more veg and they eat most of their fluid.
 
Syringing liquids is something we tried to avoid in the past as it's very easy to squirt a bit in unexpectedly and they can inhale it and that can cause more problems. But with George we learned how to carefully offer water in a 1ml syringe with a rubber end to the plunger which is very controlled. For some reason George loves syringe water and will take a proffered syringe - my 2 girls have a sniff of it but don't want any. It's something you can try... but if he doesn't want anything I wouldn't push it.
 
Day 4 after op: not eating as much as I would like him to eat but does eat all of his veg. His weight went down yesterday to 1.27kg but staying stable today at 1.28kg. He took a couple of sips of water from the bottle today first time since before the op which is a good sign. The vet appointment has been brought forward to today so will give update afterwards
 
SarahO said:
Day 4 after op: not eating as much as I would like him to eat but does eat all of his veg. His weight went down yesterday to 1.27kg but staying stable today at 1.28kg. He took a couple of sips of water from the bottle today first time since before the op which is a good sign. The vet appointment has been brought forward to today so will give update afterwards
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Glad he is maintaining weight now. How did it go at the vets?
 
Well vet said he is not dehydrated and breathing is fine. He weighed 1.4kg before the OP but now weighs 1.29kg. It has not gone down any further for now. I think it’s just very slow recovery. He has another post op check up next week
 
It is a slow recovery but with your help he hasn't lost too much weight - he's still a hefty boy! You might find that he doesn't put that weight back on very quickly - they are generally much faster to lose than to gain. I hope he continues to improve x
 
Good news Cookie has been finally drinking from his water bottle it to took 5 days to start after the op. his squeaks for food and treats are back 😊 his weight now though is 1.27kg but it has been stable at that weight over the past 5 days
 
Took cookie to his final post op checkup today. Everything is healing up nicely. Cookies weight was 1.26kg this morning when the vet weighed him. It was a very early appointment mind you so hopefully when I weigh him again later his weight will have increased 🤞
 
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