The Pigglingtons

Thank you @Merab's Slave and @Betsy Caspy's sight was much diminished by cataracts at the end too and before the infection he was getting around fine and still demanding floor time. I think it all came as a bit of a shock really. Brillo's such a happy boy now his arthritis is under control, it's strange for him not to come running when a bag rustles though. I'm used to piggies with very acute hearing!

Nugget's just attacking the water bottle for the first time in a couple of days. I caught him lying out in the open when I came in just now, lovely to see, he's been in his cardboard box feeling sore since yesterday morning. Looks like he's turning the corner. As I write this he's eating hay, really going for it in big mouth full's, that really is a relief. :yahoo::yahoo::yahoo:
 
So glad I started this thread, it's a useful record of what happened when. I normally keep a record of treatment and illnesses the boys have in a notebook but with all that went on last year I didn't do it. Nugget is still not eating much hay and he's stopped eating pellets so I was feeling a bit worried. Just looked back here and can see he took 10 days to eat normally last time so I've been expecting too much too soon I think. The battle of the syringe continues! His back feet are now looking really red and sore so I've put him on vet bed. Poor boy's really having a bad time, 3 illnesses in 3 months my gorgeous chunky piggy (1.5 killos) is now struggling to stay stable at 1.1. when I pick him up he feels so light.
 
Nugget's back to the vets this afternoon. He is brighter and eating a little bit for himself but progress is slow. He is still dropping weight and refused any syringe feed this morning. I am taking him to see a very piggy savvy vet for a second opinion, she wasn't available when I took him in the first time as an emergency. It is so hard to see him like this and I need to know I am doing all I can and should for him. I have a feeling there is something else going on and the bloat could be secondary.
 
I’m hoping this piggy savvy vet can help get Nugget ‘on the mend’ - such a lovely little piggy ❤️
Good luck 🥰
 
Poor Nugget, I hope these new meds make all the difference 🤞What tests has the vet got 8n mind, I hope he improves over the course of this week and won’t need any, hugs to you, such a hard time, especially when he’s been poorly for so long:hug:
 
Bill & Ted said:
Poor Nugget, I hope these new meds make all the difference 🤞What tests has the vet got 8n mind, I hope he improves over the course of this week and won’t need any, hugs to you, such a hard time, especially when he’s been poorly for so long:hug:
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Bloods, faecal, CT scan, about £1,500 worth :yikes:. Looking for malfunctioning organs (liver, kidneys), parasites, masses. It's horrible seeing him so thin, he was such a big boar.

I keep reminding myself that 3 months ago Brillo was terribly ill and now despite arthritis he's dashing about and popcorning like a young one!
 
piggieminder said:
Bloods, faecal, CT scan, about £1,500 worth :yikes:. Looking for malfunctioning organs (liver, kidneys), parasites, masses. It's horrible seeing him so thin, he was such a big boar.

I keep reminding myself that 3 months ago Brillo was terribly ill and now despite arthritis he's dashing about and popcorning like a young one!
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Yes, amazing how Brillo is now. Gosh that’s a lot of tests and ouch! Vet bills are pretty pricey when it comes to tests, hope he improves and doesn’t need them 🤞
 
Nugget saw the vet today that treated Brillo, she asked after him today and was so happy to hear how well he is doing. Sadly she is moving on next month, her colleague left last week who has been seeing the boys as well. We will be seeing some new faces this year although I am hoping for a much quieter year on the vet visits.
 
Nugget has come out of his bed and is shoving a pile of hay around his cage, I think he's eating some :yahoo: . The downside is he's on vet bed for his sore feet, it takes forever to brush hay out of vet bed. It's good to see him looking a bit perkier though! Thank goodness for Ranitidine. I'm sure that's what's done it.
 
We've just found Nugget in his forever sleep. It's a year since his grease gland tumour was removed. He battled bloat and stasis at the end of last year and bloat again 2 weeks ago. I suspected when he didn't get over the recent bloat episode completely that something more sinister was going on. I didn't want to put him through lots of tests, he hated being at the vets and I suspect we couldn't have done any more for him if we'd known what was wrong. I'm heartbroken but glad he went before his vet appointment on Monday when they were going to insist on sedation and scans and blood tests etc. I suspected he was on his way this afternoon when he didn't want feeding, the light was fading in his eyes. It's so unfair he was only 3.
 
I’m sorry Nugget was called by the bridge. I’m sure he had the best run with you.

Sleep well Nugget 💕
 
Oh I’m so very sorry, Sue. You could not have done anything more for Nugget, so there must have been something sinister he was keeping to himself. Sleep tight little fellow. Big hugs to you Sue x
 
I'm feeling a bit lost without a piggy to syringe feed.
Kept busy this morning deep cleaning Nugget's half of the cage. Red now has a 5.5 x 3 C&C. We debated putting Brillo in Nuggets half and taking his cage apart which would give us most of the room back but I don't like them in such small cages. When the 5.5 was split it gave just over the minimum requirement and was a case of needs must when they fell out. Red has been plippy ploppying all round the cage doing double popcorns, not bad for an arthritic 5 year old! Brillo has a 4x2 with a 5x1 runway attached, this takes him across the room to Red. They make me smile with their antics, calling each other to the bars and then running away. They a comedians these two, shame they fell out.
 
The memorial slate came for Nugget's pot today, it was so sad opening the package as I knew what it was.
Red and Brillo have been very quiet for a few days, I think they are missing their through the grids friend but they are getting back to their normal noisy selves now.
I was still preparing veggies for 6 even though we only had five piggies, now there's only 4 it's hard to adjust. Red says that's okay, all the more for me!
Red is enjoying his much bigger cage today, lots of room for arthritic zoomies. He does make me laugh with his odd old man popcorns, they look like little curtsies.
I've been thinking over the last year and realised in 12 months we lost 3 of our little friends. They bring such joy into our lives but losing them is so hard. It doesn't help that I keep calling Brillo Nugget, I've always muddled those two up, I think because we had them quite close together and for a long time they were the babies.
I'm longing for warmer weather now so we can all get outside and enjoy the garden and of course the veggies it brings.
If you stayed with me this long thank you, sorry for my ramblings, sometimes it helps to write our thoughts down.
 
It does take a period of adjustment for us and the piggies when the numbers change, even if they are in separate cages. I notice it with my herd when we’ve had fosters in and then the fosters go. Well done for opening the memorial slate. I’m a devil for knowing what is inside a package and then avoiding opening it if I know it’s something that I will need reserves to deal with. Sometimes that takes me weeks. Until MrA loses patience, unwraps it and then leaves it out for me to deal with. So I applaud you for biting the bullet and opening the slate on arrival. Big hugs x
 
Thanks everyone for the support it's good to be able to 'talk' to people who understand how much these little furries mean to us.
Red and Brillo have picked up again and are tormenting each other at the bars.
Timmy has had a hormone surge the last few days and is trying to hump Freddie at every opportunity. Timmy doesn't often have much success, as the smaller piggy he has trouble reaching :)) . If what I was told when I got them was right they are 14 months old now, when they first came here Freddie was very much the dominant one, they seem to have had a power shift. I love watching piggie dynamics, for more entertaining than anything on TV!
 
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