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Sedation.. is it safe?

Lymaine

Lymaine

Junior Guinea Pig
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Ok so Elvis has been losing weight for a few weeks and we don’t know why. I’ve been giving him extra separately and it has gone up slightly but not enough.
He is booked in for Monday to be sedated and have the back of his teeth checked and his belly scanned/probed to check for any problems.
Is this safe? I’m so scared.
 
I'm sure Elvis will be fine! Hopefully you will be able to find out what's wrong with him. Keep us updated.
 
I’m sure he will be fine. It will only be a light sedation and it’s needed to find out what the problem is. Wishing you all the best.
 
Ok so he has had his sedation and we’ve found out he has 3 small bladder stones in the urethra. Hoping he can pass them naturally because where they are will not be an easy surgery. I don’t want to put him through that.

He is home and I can’t work out if he is sulking with me, groggy or ill. He won’t eat, is very sleepy and floppy. I gave him his baytril and another full syringe of water as the vet had him there all day and he didn’t drink… possibly too stressed? He took those fine but he’s normally quite sassy and will fight me. No fight at all. Only just got back… should I be worried? He’s had the sedative and buprelieve.
 
Thank you that makes me feel a bit better. If he refuses his veggies tonight, should I give him critical care or just leave him alone? He hasn’t eaten or drank since I got him home but him and his cage mate did have a chattering contest for some reason though I think it was aimed at me!
 
Claire W said:
If he hasn't eaten anything since being home, a top up of critical care won't harm
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I tried to give him some. Managed to syringe him a few full syringes of water but they didn’t give me a feeding syringe so was trying to force him to eat it from a tsp. He ate a tiny bit but hardly any. I’ve put him to bed now with an extra blanket. 8’ so worried!
 
Would he be tempted with some little bits of veggie? Cucumber pieces? They are nice and moist and if it's just the middle they are easy to eat
Personally I prefer to make a thinner slurry to syringe feed rather than just water in case he inhales a bit while he's not feeling so good. If you have even a 1ml syringe you can cut the end off with a knife to use for CC. Just be careful that the rubber plunger tip doesn't pop out into his mouth... so I'd fill a 1ml but then just syringe 0.8ml leaving a bit behind so I know the rubber tip is still in there.
We're thinking of you and poor Elvis - he's being very brave x
 
Aww Elvis. I'd keep trying with some critical care or mushed up pellets in the syringe. Have you tried adding a bit of baby food into the crit care? Some don't like the taste so a tad bit of baby food mixed in may tempt him. Hopefully he'll pads the stones by himself. Fingers crossed
 
Mine like a bit of grated apple, oats or a bit of grated carrot in with their syringe food. You could try that.
 
Free Ranger said:
Would he be tempted with some little bits of veggie? Cucumber pieces? They are nice and moist and if it's just the middle they are easy to eat
Personally I prefer to make a thinner slurry to syringe feed rather than just water in case he inhales a bit while he's not feeling so good. If you have even a 1ml syringe you can cut the end off with a knife to use for CC. Just be careful that the rubber plunger tip doesn't pop out into his mouth... so I'd fill a 1ml but then just syringe 0.8ml leaving a bit behind so I know the rubber tip is still in there.
We're thinking of you and poor Elvis - he's being very brave x
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Tried his favourites including cucumber. Not interested at all. Think it’s the sedation as he’s very sleepy
 
I put a small dish of Critical Care with some mashed banana in the cage if I have a post op piggy. It helps encourage eating.
Scattering raw oats or mixing raw oats with grated carrot or sweet potato is another tip I learned here.
 
I’m not sure if I should just let him sleep for now… I’ve read he should pick up and start eating after 24 hours
 
Lymaine said:
I’m not sure if I should just let him sleep for now… I’ve read he should pick up and start eating after 24 hours
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Please weigh him daily and step in and syringe feed him. While he is dozy he may not feel like it, but piggies do need to eat regularly to keep their gut functioning
 
Hope he starts eating once the medication wears off.
 
Piggies&buns said:
Please weigh him daily and step in and syringe feed him. While he is dozy he may not feel like it, but piggies do need to eat regularly to keep their gut functioning
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Yes I’ve been weighing him daily for a week or so now. He started to pick up last night and ate a bit of hay so I decided to let him sleep it off. In the night I heard biting boxes so hopefully that was him.

Today he ate some cucumber, grape and herbs in the morning. This afternoon I weighed him and he’s dropped another 20g which isn’t that surprising given he hardly ate or drank yesterday. Gave him a plate of veggies which he ate a bit of then gave him some critical care, he went back to the veggies, more CC and then herbs.

He does NOT like being syringe fed! I’ve managed a tsp of CC but I feel bad because he really doesn’t like the process. A lot ended up on the floor but I did make it quite watery to get it in. Any tips on CC?
 
As well as being dozy after anaesthetic, the Baytril could be dampening his appetite. I hate it and always ask the vet for an alternative where suitable.
Could pain be making him off his food, from the 3 stones? Is he still floppy?
Do you feel the vet is trying to find out the cause of the weight loss?
I use nuggets the piggy likes soaked in water instead of cc, if they'll take it better. Local rescue recommended wheatbran to me to help with weight and it's very fine and easy to eat and they love the taste. I don't feel comfortable pushing syringe feeding, if I'm not sure whether a piggy might be on a final shut down physically. It's very tough.
Hoping you'll see him pick up again very soon.
 
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Black piggies said:
As well as being dozy after anaesthetic, the Baytril could be dampening his appetite. I hate it and always ask the vet for an alternative where suitable.
Could pain be making him off his food, from the 3 stones? Is he still floppy?
Do you feel the vet is trying to find out the cause of the weight loss?
I use nuggets the piggy likes soaked in water instead of cc, if they'll take it better. Local rescue recommended wheatbran to me to help with weight and it's very fine and easy to eat and they love the taste. I don't feel comfortable pushing syringe feeding, if I'm not sure whether a piggy might be on a final shut down physically. It's very tough.
Hoping you'll see him pick up again very soon.
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He is still eating, I’m just trying to get his weight up. I think the vets are trying to figure it out yes. They want me to get a urine sample from him but it’s difficult because he is very well behaved and doesn’t pee on the floor! What other alternative to baytril is there?
 
Black piggies said:
As well as being dozy after anaesthetic, the Baytril could be dampening his appetite. I hate it and always ask the vet for an alternative where suitable.
Could pain be making him off his food, from the 3 stones? Is he still floppy?
Do you feel the vet is trying to find out the cause of the weight loss?
I use nuggets the piggy likes soaked in water instead of cc, if they'll take it better. Local rescue recommended wheatbran to me to help with weight and it's very fine and easy to eat and they love the taste. I don't feel comfortable pushing syringe feeding, if I'm not sure whether a piggy might be on a final shut down physically. It's very tough.
Hoping you'll see him pick up again very soon.
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No he’s not still floppy. He’s very much picked up and is acting grumpy again lol. Just really need to get his weight up!
 
That's good he's not floppy anymore! I'm no expert, like in humans, vets match the antibiotic to the condition, so Baytril might be necessary, but I always ask about whether another antibiotic would be suitable, then follow vet advice.
The grumpiness might be pain?
Are his teeth OK? I had a dental piggy before I realised that many vets can't identify or treat dental problems. Sorry just saying what comes to mind.
 
Lymaine said:
He is still eating, I’m just trying to get his weight up. I think the vets are trying to figure it out yes. They want me to get a urine sample from him but it’s difficult because he is very well behaved and doesn’t pee on the floor! What other alternative to baytril is there?
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Not all piggies like Critical Care - maybe it's the aniseed taste. CC Fine Grind which tastes of papaya can be more popular, or else Science Selective Recovery Food or Emeraid if you can get them.
Septrin/Sulfatrim I believe are more often used for urinary tract infections etc in the UK than Baytril.
One way to get a urine sample might be to give him some watery veg then pop him in a plastic tub until he produces a pee (hopefully!)

Hope Elvis starts eating well for you!
 
My piggies love Science Selective Recovery Plus. It's important to get the Plus as it has Vitamin C in it. They wolf it down usually straight from the bowl.
 
Black piggies said:
That's good he's not floppy anymore! I'm no expert, like in humans, vets match the antibiotic to the condition, so Baytril might be necessary, but I always ask about whether another antibiotic would be suitable, then follow vet advice.
The grumpiness might be pain?
Are his teeth OK? I had a dental piggy before I realised that many vets can't identify or treat dental problems. Sorry just saying what comes to mind.
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They checked his teeth. He’s always been a bit grumpy his whole life lol. His teeth are perfect 😊
Betsy said:
:oops: Forgot to add the pigture!

View attachment 186846View attachment 186847
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awwwwwwwww 🥰
 
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