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Syringe Feeding !

  • Thread starter Thread starter georgie-porgie
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georgie-porgie

Hi, I need to know how you syringe feed as George isnt eating. I dont know how to syringe feed but would like to know asap ! Do you have to blend up food or do you have to get a special medicine ?

Thanks, all help appreciated,
Alan, George and Charlie.
 
You can mash up some of his dried food in warm water and give him that. Wrap him tight in a towel so he cant move and put the syringe in from the side of the mouth so he doesnt breather any fluid in. Try not to be too gentle because they can wriggle etc but dont do it too fast either. You'll work out whats best for you once youve had a few goes. Hope he's ok x
 
Also, you can give him any veg type baby food, they like them. And if you can get to the vets they usually sell critical care or science recovery, you just mix these with water and they're high in fibre and nutrients for them. What's up with him? is he not eating at all? x
 
I gave him his food at 6 o clock and he hasnt eaten any of it ! This may seem normal to your pigs but George always eats it straight away and its usualy half gone by now ! I'll go check on him now ........

He ate litiraly nothing ........... :( :( :(
 
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hhmm, he may have an upset tum, theyre sometimes a bit quiet if this happens. Has he had any different veg to normal? Any cabbagey stuff? Check his poops (i know its not fun!) and his bum area and see if they're normal. If his poops are ok and he hasnt eaten at all by the morning i'd take him the vets to get his teeth checked etc. Just see how he goes with a bit of syringed food. Try him with grass, thats a good indicator of wether they're eating anything, because that's usually their fave :)
 
Well he has 2 cuts on his upper and lower lips as i think he was chewing on a bit of wood off his hidey house and I was a bit worried to see his gum was cut with a blood clot in between them [ I'll try to post some pics tonight if i can ].
 
Sounds like he's just hurt his mouth then poor little man, chop his veg really small and maybe gently try to syringe him some stuff. Lips/mouths heal really fast, its probably a scab rather than a clot. Are his teeth ok? x
 
His actual teeth are fine, I choped up some carrot in strips so its easy to eat. I have him in a big box with hay in my room with some food and water for the night while charlie is outside in the hutch with food and water aswell, so in the morn I'll see if HE has eaten anything and not Charlie. THanks a million for the advice so far the only thing is I dont know were to buy syringes and I live in ireland so some of the shops that sell them in the UK arent in Ireland !
 
Ah right, your vet will give you some if you ask! Other than that try chemists! I hope he's eaten by the morning. He should do, probably just a bit sore. If its no better might be worth taking him to the vets to see if they have any creams or something to put on it x
 
Well, over here we have a thing called the blue cross [is it in the UK] and its a mobile vet clinic. They charge 10 euro a pet and the nearest day they come to me is tuesday. I'd have to go there cause I cant offord an €50 trip to the vet ! Do you think they'll be any good ?
 
I'd imagine the vets would be as good as any. Sounds kind of like the PDSA over here. 5o euros is really expensive! are there no other vets? He should be fine i'm just thinking if it doesnt get any better and he's not eating x
 
Yup €50 to get in and more for meds ! How much is it in the UK ? I'll leave the blue cross till friday and if hes still bad then i will bring him, but I'll start syringe feeding him on sunday/monday if hes not eating then. Do you think thats a good plan ? rolleyesrolleyesrolleyes
 
Well if he hasnt eaten anything by the morning id try to get some syringe food into him, you could even try using a spoon because they generally dont mind the actual food, if he isnt eating he'll probably be hungry too. Its usually about £10 to get in over here then extra for meds/treatment, follow ups are free. Not sure what that is in euros. You could e-mail chrissie at gorgeous guineas, she may have something that could help and may be able to ship to ireland x
 
HA £10 is only €15 haha and free follow ups, thats a no way in Ireland ! George is asleep now beside me but still no eating.
 
WOOHOO !! :) :) :) We gote him to eat 1 slice of cucumber ! We had to break it into peices and hand feed it though and hes not eating any more but tomoro I'm going to a chemist to get a syringe. I found he wanted to eat but when he went to take a bite he coudnt cause of his teeth ! I'm DELIGHTED ! I want to thank jnenbnb SOOO much for helping me ! This sounds like an awards ceremony ! haha :) :) :)
 
Hi you i have never had much luck with syringes but have found that if you get a small spoon and put the mash or whatever on it and spoon small bits into there mouth they feed off it much better and it doesnt push into there lungs.I have fed nutrient gel pushed strait into their cheek parts behind the teeth (in small amounts)with my finger and they then chew and swallow it.Keep water intake up if you can and best of luck.I have also been told by an old keeper of guineas that strong mixes of sugary drinks are good for realy ill guineas as it helps get their blood sugar levels up but only in near death cases
 
george and syringe feed

i am so sorry george isn't feeling well, i would try to keep syringe feeding, perhaps as glynis told me when she feeds duke mix your food and add a little of puree apple into it and they love it. you can mash up pellets, buy baby food or grab some of their normal food and put into a blender and make mush that way to feed him. also try to syringe some water into him so he doesn't get dehydrated, and perhaps some vitamin C supplment in the form of tablet of powder. you can get chewable ones or powder from a health food shop or use ones like berocca and use dose for a baby about quarter to half a tablet. also weigh him once a day to make sure he is not losing weight. but it is important that he eats as they are herbivores(sp) and they need to continually eat or their stomach starts to shut down. you could also try him with a probiotic like protexin if he has an upset tummy, follow directions on the sachet and syringe it into him.
hoping george feels better real soon and keep us posted. good luck and come on george you can do it^)^)^)
 
So glad he's had a go, its great that he isnt refusing to eat, he's just sore. Good luck with him today x
 
Hi guys, This morning when I got up he was munching on hay but i gave him a piece of vuvumber and he wanted to eat it but couldnt bite it. I then boiled water, picked out a good few of only the pellets from Supa Guinea [not excel, I dont know werte to find it]. I put the pellets in a bowl and added the boiled water. I mashed up the pellets with a little water to make a mash. Then I let it cool down. I sucked 4cc's[ml's] up into a syringe and he ate it with no problem. I'm going to write all this down and keep it on record for future refrence. If he can't eat by 6 tonight I will repeat the proccess again. So, do you think this will work ? {I might hand feed him some water/cucumber if he is not drinking, but at the moment he IS drinking]

I'll keep you updated,
:rose Alan, George and Charlie :rose
 
If he's eating hay that's good! Hay is best thing for them when they're a bit under the weather. Keep doing what you're doing but encourage him to eat by himself too xx
 
george

am so glad george is eating hay and eating the syringe pellets, if he wants to eat but can't then i think he has a tooth problem and should be seen by a vet. he might just have a tomato seed stuck in his gum or something.
i would weigh him and make sure he isn't losing weight. sending hugs to you both, i normally syringe feed every 4-6 hours.:)p:)p:)p
 
Hi Alan
i'm so sorry to hear all of this, thanks for the pm i'll reply to you !
I'd seriously tho go to the vets, it does sound like a toofie problem you need the little one to be checked out............ if you leave it too long they actually get infected or they end up having ulcerated tongues etc... can be a bit nasty i've experienced this before grrrr
i'll pm you with instructions on syringe feeding.....i wish i was closer as it's such a difficult thing for you both to learn once you BOTH have got it right you usually don't need to do it too more often lol
all our best
Glynis and Duke xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
I need urgent help !

I need urgent help ! I just hand - fed george some water. I then gave him a full check up and decided I'd give him 6cc of food after my dinner in the syringe. Then I discovered a HUGE HUGE problem ! His 2 top teeth are loose ! Do cavies loose teeth and get a new pair ? Do I need a vets help ?

Alan.
 
Hi Alan,

I'm not sure, that don't sound right to me as Cavy teeth continue to grow! I will try and have a look online for you and see if I can find anything. I do think this is a tooth problem.

Louise
 
As I said in the first post, he may have done something to them from biting on his hidey hole.
 
I haven't read all the thread as yet, have you been to the vet? I would ask about this and see what they say.
 
I'd definately get him to a vet now. At first i thought it was just a cut but if his teeth may be loose he needs to see a vet. As Glynis said, the longer you leave it the more prone to infection he is and the weaker he'll be from not eating. Getting him to a vet now could be the difference between a small problem and a very sick piggy x
 
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