Syringe Feeding Tips, How To Increase An Appetite, Advice Please?

[Salt and Pepper]

Hi, my piggy had an operation to remove a bladder stone (about the size of a chickpea) last Tuesday, she has had a week course of baytrill and metacam which she has now finished.She is also in the middle of a course of ranitidine to get her gut moving again.

She is not lethargic, sometimes her fur seems a little puffed up, but she will happily run around on the floor when she wants to. Her appetite has been quite weak and she isn't pooping much at all. I am currently syringe feeding her with supreme recovery food and syringes of water (should I be adding anything to this vitamin C etc.?) , however this is a struggle to get her to take. I have tried giving her fibreplex as I heard this was good but she just won't take it.

Can anyone give me some advice on things I can try to get her appetite up and any advice on syringe feeding a reluctant piggy would be helpful ?

 

[piggieminder]

Sending your piggy healing vibes.
There are some syringe feeding tips in these guides you may find them useful.Illness Support Care Guides

 

[Eriathwen]

To be honest I have found my pigs much prefer the taste of the critical care brand than the supreme recovery food, especially the fine grind one plus its easier to feed as you can make it thicker as its meant for tube feeding, that means you can get more nutrition in smaller amounts which is a relief if your pig is reluctant to take the food!
Then theres Burgess dualcare pellets for sick and recovering guineas, my pigs love them and they can be soaked down into a liquid feed as well, they smell really nice..id eat them if I were a piggy!
My own vet has also advised adding pure orange juice to the liquid feed also, the issue of natural sugar contained in it is outweighed by the need to have the piggy take the food for the short amount of time they'll be getting it.

Most importantly, breathe. It's incredibly frustrating syringe feeding a pig that just will not co operate and they can sense that, I recently had to syringe feed my Shelly after a bad reaction to baytril for her UTI...she's part Cuy (the giant type of piggy) and has the temperament to prove it, she is /very/ skittish when being handled and it was an absolute nightmare trying to get anything into her. Wrapping in a towel helps, they cant shove the syringe away with their feet then.

I hope your piggy is back to eating by themselves and feeling better soon!

 

[gizzy]

Pigs tummies don't fare well with change,
If you feed pellet dried food then mill the dried food in a coffee grinder.
Get your pigs favourite veggies and juice them in a blender.
Mix the dry powder ad juce into a slurry .

A fibraplex syringe makes an ideal tool to feed the pig!

 

[gizzy]

Protexin Fibreplex For Rabbits - 15ml Syringe - Animed Direct
M t the contents of the syinge into a clean container, it can be stored for many weeks in a sealed container in the fridge, and could be added to the slurry to help the tummy bactera to flourish

 

[gizzy]

How much do you need to feed! 3 to 4 fibreplex syringes a day!
I kept a sow comfortable for 3 years on syinge slurry

How to deliver!
Put the spout of the syinge just past the back of the molars and squeeze a small amount, 2 to 3 ml at a time! No moor
After a wile the pig will get to know the syinge and willingly come to you for food

 

[gizzy]

NB ! For pigs with non chronic conditions, and there is no reason for prolonged syinge feeding, care should be taken not to have the pig become to reliant on the syringe , they can quickly become lazy and rely on you to feed them!
Also with long term syringe feeding monitor incisor growth, ! They are not being worked as they would normally be and may need periodically trimed by the vet

 

[Salt and Pepper]

@piggieminder @Eriathwen @gizzy
Thank you all for your replies, I hope only to have to syringe feed her for a few days until her appetite returns. I have read about poop soup to help their gut/appetite, do you think this would work for me. Also how much recovery food should I be aiming to syringe feed her each day ?