Syringe feeding

[ruler of elves]

Hi, my guinea pig has recently become pretty sick and I am having a lot of trouble figuring out how best to care for her. She was not eating much for the last couple of days, but saw an emergency vet yesterday. Since then, she has been getting critical care. Today she got about 30-35 ml, in addition to some fresh grass and a few veggies she was willing to eat (she's on the small side, about 825 g, and this was within the range the vet recommended). In the day she has been home, I haven't seen her poop at all. Is this normal after a period of not eating? So far, I have continued to give critical care since everything I've read says continuing to offer food is important, but how long is normal to not see poop?

I also want to ask generally if anybody has experience with the problems she might be having. The vet did an ultrasound that showed the uterus and one ovary dilated; she also has some bloody discharge. The vet sent us home with tramadol and meloxicam, and seemed to think that what she had would resolve, at least temporarily. She said that ovarian cysts and endometrial hyperplasia are fairly common causes, but without a diagnostic ultrasound (which would be almost $2000 for a reason that is beyond me) they couldn't say for sure. Does this match anybody's experiences? Nothing was mentioned about a risk of infection and no antibiotics were given, but I know the uterus can become infected and am not sure if she ruled it out. (She was able to rule out stones, tooth problems, and GI problems).

Thank you for any advice and experiences you are willing to share. My #1 concern right now is making sure the lack of poop isn't a problem, but I also want to know if what the vet said about reproductive issues matches what anyone else has experienced.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear she isn’t well.

When a piggy hasn’t been eating enough, then they won’t be pooping enough.
Ensure you weigh her daily so you can be sure she is getting enough food to keep her weight stable. Any significant loss of weight means she needs to be syringe feed more. How much you need to syringe feed depends on how much she is eating independently - this is where the weight checks are essential.
Poop output is 1-2 days behind food intake, so the fact you aren’t seeing poop today means she didn’t eat enough yesterday and the day before. Therefore, any food she eats today won’t be reflected in poop output until tomorrow and the next day. Seeing pshe needs to eat plenty today to be able to see poop tomorrow and the next day etc.
This is why weighing daily is essential during a period of illness as it gIves you real time information on food intake, whereas poop output always has a delay so provides less information.

The guides below offer further help and information on syringe feeding and managing a period of illness

Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment
Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide
Weight - Monitoring and Management

Regarding the ovarian cysts, they are common in sows over 2 years of age. Often the ultimate end point is piggy needing to be spayed. You would need to discuss options going forward with your vet. Its great she’s got pain meds though. I only keep boars myself so don’t have personal experience of ovarian cysts but one of the other members of the health team and wider forum who do have experience will be along shortly.
In the meantime, this guide explains a bit more about ovarian cysts.

Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)

 

[Wiebke]

Hi and welcome

I can't add to what @Piggies&buns has said but I fully agree. Please take the time to read the links. You may find them very helpful.

 

[ruler of elves]

Thank you for the advice and information! I called the vet yesterday and she gave me some cisapride to hopefully get her gut moving. I also reduced her tramadol dose (at the vet's suggestion) since she didn't seem to be in a lot of pain, so now I'm waiting and hoping that (plus the syringe feeding) will be enough to get her gut moving again.

She's also not doing quite as well with syringe feeding as she was. She is more passive/accepting of it (not sure if this is a good or bad sign) but has been making little grunting sounds, and occasionally ones that sound like a really sharp exhale; if guinea pig could throw up, I would say it sounded like that. I know I need to keep giving her food but I have to wonder if it's painful for her or if she is developing a GI problem. Is that something I should be concerned about?