Right, that makes sense, I suppose that would be best case scenario then. And thank you, I thought it would be okay but wanted to make sure
Thank you, I’ll 100% do that, I didn’t know about it until now. If it helps them then it makes sense to feed all pigs that type of diet as a preventative. Is there any veg you’d recommend avoiding?
To be honest, I feed all sorts. The only ones I don't feed very often at all are spring greens and brocolli. I feed kale at least 6 times a week, I feed coriander daily, parsley about five times a week, babyleaf mixed salad every day, carrots, about three times a week, corn on the cob around once a week, cucumber if fed about three times a week, peppers around four times a week, romaine lettuce around three times a week. I put it all into a washing up bowl, mix it around with my hand and then put handfuls into each cage. I feed a lot more than is recommended on the forum. In the summer I feed less veg, as the piggies spend entire days grazing in runs, on the lawn. My vet was saying that it now thought that most owners are feeding too dry a diet, because they're so obsessed with getting them to eat hay. He said piggies are normally very good hay eaters and in fact eat very much more hay when they are getting a wetter diet. Nuggets should be cut to a minimum and I tend to feed porridge oats to our little guys, as they prefer them to the nuggets. I have never had a guinea pig with a bladder issue, apart from one who came to us with a stone. When my friend sadly died, her guinea pigs all came to me. One of them had been plagued with bladder issues for all of her life. After being fed the diet we feed, she never had another issue. I don't use bottled water and I don't filter water either!
Thank you so much for your detailed response. I really appreciate it. I’ll definitely be following your advice, I’ve found it hard to know what to do for the best with veg, filtering water, etc, so this is really helpful to me
fingers crossed that we can sort peanut out and keep whatever is going on with him at bay with these diet changes.
Today I think I’ve also realised that Peanut squeals sometimes when he poos too, his poos are also quite wet, like they have a wet cast over them. So, essentially it seems like you and I are dealing with the same situation. Because there’s no blood I feel like it makes it a bit difficult, as the only issue is that he’s clearly in pain sometimes when he pees/poos. The fact that it’s not stones is a relief, now just hoping there’s nothing wrong with his kidney.
He's probably producing a small amount of urine at the same time as he poos, so still most likely to be associated with urination.
Yes probably, started the boys with their new diet yesterday so fingers crossed we see some improvement
feeling a bit down about it all. Guinea pigs really are one of the most expensive pets to own!
Thank you, it’s so hard because we all just want to do the right thing and do right by our pets and I’m so worried about him
Don’t be afraid to give her the medication, the medication given is essentially Bactrim which is needed to treat urinary problems. It won’t kill your pig, if anything it could help save her. Medications don’t kill animals, it could be that your guinea pig that died before was too ill to be saved. You say they are giving your pig an endoscopy(?), has she had an X-ray? Ultrasound? Blood test? Those should ideally be the next steps from what I have read. What country are you in? Are you going to a vet which specialises in exotics?
Antibiotics should be given alongside a probiotic too, you can make this yourself by using the poo of a healthy guinea pig and with some water and then syringe feed it into your pigs mouth.
What, anesthetics for these procedures?
Yes, general anaesthetic is generally required for an ultrasound, on some occasions for an X-ray, and always for a blood test
No, they do ultrasound without anesthetics. There is no reason for anyone to need it
How is your pet? Maybe better?Thank you, it’s so hard because we all just want to do the right thing and do right by our pets and I’m so worried about him
Anaesthetic is needed for an ultrasound in order to actually observe the correct area. From my knowledge, the pig will need to be shaved and held completely still with the belly facing upwards - all of this requires anaesthetic or else the pig will become very stressed and will be reluctant to stay still. An ultrasound won’t be effective in figuring out the issue if you can’t even get a good look at potential problem areas.
No, there has been no change. We’ve postponed the scans until Friday the 6th to give time for his sniffly nose to clear just in case it puts his health at risk during the anaesthetic
For x-ray you also need to place the guinea pig into certain positions, that they wouldn't stay in whilst awake, to ensure you can get a good image.
Our very experienced exotics vet does not use a GA for an ultrasound. Mavis has had two now, all they do us shave her tummy. I think most piggies will stay relatively still if held firmly.