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Toast's Making A Strange Sound

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Beans&Toast

Beans&Toast

Adult Guinea Pig
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For weeks now Toast has been making a crackly/hooting sound. It's not constant, it's on and off some days. Sometimes it's very faint but I can definitely hear it and it seems to happen most when she's eating/cleaning herself. She is otherwise completely herself, eating drinking etc and still running around popcorning.

I've had her at the vets but they said her lungs sound good, no URI and she never makes the noise anytime I take her so it's hard to explain to them...
They gave me some Bisolvon powder and to try steaming water next to the cage.

Anyone have any ideas what it could be if it's not a URI?
 
Could be a bit of dust. Sasspy hoots after she has been sniffing around in the hay. She will then an hour later cough or sneeze and clear it. It paniced us at first but it is something she does.

When you took her to the vets did they listen to her heart etc...?
 
Yeah they listened to her for quite a few minutes and they're happy she sounds fine.. could it be a hay allergy? I know its rare but my vet mentioned she has one guinea pig on antihistamines for a hay allergy.

The only other thing I was thinking is I've been using Alfalfa King Timothy Hay which has been really dusty lately. I have been shaking the dust out but Toast does seem to be sensitive to everything :eek:
 
It does sound like dust or a reaction to that particular hay. My Tabs hoots from the hay sometimes and then clears it with a cough. I had her heart checked and it was really strong so know it is just a hay reaction with her. I have had the odd pig that has needed antihistamines though.
 
Ginger does a regular loud hooting sneeze, she always has and she's been checked out and nothing was found. She always does two at a time and she almost leaves the ground when she does it! They are so loud it wakes me up if I'm asleep. I think maybe she just had a sensitive nose!
 
Got Toast at the vets again this morning. She was given Bisolvon powder to try last week but it's made no difference.

Any one got any ideas? She's been making a hooting sound on and off for weeks now, no sign of URI though...
 
If biosolvin hasnt worked then mucous isnt your problem.

The other thing an allergy or irritant can cause instead of mucous is inflamation- mallow had flare ups of inflammed nasal passages which caused her to hoot. We trialled her on a half dose of metacam and it sorted out the problem.

Id maye suggest this to the vet, and if it doesnt help then your next stops would either be xraying her chest for any signs of an enlarged heart or fluid on the lungs, or trialling antibiotics incase theres an underlying infection.

Is toast the one that took nearly 48 hours to come out of her anaesthetic?
 
Adelle said:
If biosolvin hasnt worked then mucous isnt your problem.

The other thing an allergy or irritant can cause instead of mucous is inflamation- mallow had flare ups of inflammed nasal passages which caused her to hoot. We trialled her on a half dose of metacam and it sorted out the problem.

Id maye suggest this to the vet, and if it doesnt help then your next stops would either be xraying her chest for any signs of an enlarged heart or fluid on the lungs, or trialling antibiotics incase theres an underlying infection.

Is toast the one that took nearly 48 hours to come out of her anaesthetic?
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Toast is on 0.2 mls of Loxicom daily anyway for recurring cystitis.

Yeah Toast takes days/ a week to recover from GA, even though she's only ever under for around 10 minutes.

Twice now the vet's had a really good listen to her chest and lungs etc, for a good 5 minutes and she says everything sounds really good and clear so we're at a loss as to what it could be.

Toast responds badly to a lot of antibiotics, she's had gut stasis due to a bad reaction to a few so they're reluctant to put her on any just now as she's so bright and active, eating well, running around well etc... I'm stumped :hmm:
 
Tiamolly123 said:
Wonder if she could have a small object, caught in her throat that may be why she's hooing & coughing
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It's a very faint hoot, she seems to do it most when she's eating then it stops. I use steam next to her cage too... it hasn't gotten any worse since it started so I have no idea...
 
Beans&Toast said:
Toast is on 0.2 mls of Loxicom daily anyway for recurring cystitis.

Yeah Toast takes days/ a week to recover from GA, even though she's only ever under for around 10 minutes.

Twice now the vet's had a really good listen to her chest and lungs etc, for a good 5 minutes and she says everything sounds really good and clear so we're at a loss as to what it could be.

Toast responds badly to a lot of antibiotics, she's had gut stasis due to a bad reaction to a few so they're reluctant to put her on any just now as she's so bright and active, eating well, running around well etc... I'm stumped :hmm:
Click to expand...

Yeah crunchie is quite sensitive to antibiotics too, she seems to be prone to bloat with some of them.

Maybe just monitor her and any deterioration maybe go for a conscious xray. It took around 3/4 months of fudge intermittent hooting before she was diagnosed- i too was given biosolvin and tried 2 antibiotics. It was only when i took her out to a specialist that they xrayed her chest and diagnosed her with heart disease, her chest sounded pretty much normal all the way through so it can be decieving. Fudge then went into failure not long after and her chest brimmed with fluid and thats when she started all her meds permanently.

A chest xray should rule it out and it only takes a few minutes x
 
Poor Toast.
If URTI has been ruled out then heart must be the next consideration for the vets?
I am just off to the vets myself with an intermittent hooter. She's stopped now I've got her squeezed into the emergency slot at the vets!
 
If there was an issue with her heart wouldn't that have shown up while the vets were listening to her?

I'll ask about an xray. If the xray shows nothing, is it safe to say there's nothing wrong?
 
VickiA said:
Poor Toast.
If URTI has been ruled out then heart must be the next consideration for the vets?
I am just off to the vets myself with an intermittent hooter. She's stopped now I've got her squeezed into the emergency slot at the vets!
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It's always the same isn't it, they like to show us up :p
 
Beans&Toast said:
If there was an issue with her heart wouldn't that have shown up while the vets were listening to her?

I'll ask about an xray. If the xray shows nothing, is it safe to say there's nothing wrong?
Click to expand...

For her heart to be causing the hooting, there would need to be either a great enlargement of the heart or fluid in or around the heart or lungs- both of which should be seen on an xray.

If neither is then i would say it could be ruled out. Just an abnormal beating heart wouldnt cause hooting on its own x
 
VickiA said:
Good job I went... Much as she looks fine and bright she does have a chest infection - glad I didn't cancel the emergency slot now.
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Hope your little one is better soon vicki x
 
I've been watching Toast like a hawk for a day now and something just isn't right..

Since a @Adelle and @helen105281 mentioned heart issues I've been watching her non stop and she does breath funny... faster than Beans even when just resting and sometimes it seems like it's quite laboured..

My gut is telling me to phone the vets and ask for a chest xray but I'm worried they'll think I'm just being over dramatic. Twice now my vet has listened to Toasts heart and couldn't hear anything abnormal but whenever she goes to the vet she never makes the hooting sounds and her breathing is always normal while she's there. I think they think I'm just looking into it too much and worrying over nothing.. I don't want them to think I'm being cheeky or anything by requesting an xray myself...

But I just know something isn't right..
 
You know your pig best and if you want to get the xray they should go with it. Heart issues cannot always be detected by stethoscope. I was lucky to know someone with almost supersonic hearing who could detect irregularities really easily by ear alone but even then they would suggest I got an xray done to make sure.
 
Beans&Toast said:
I've been watching Toast like a hawk for a day now and something just isn't right..

Since a @Adelle and @helen105281 mentioned heart issues I've been watching her non stop and she does breath funny... faster than Beans even when just resting and sometimes it seems like it's quite laboured..

My gut is telling me to phone the vets and ask for a chest xray but I'm worried they'll think I'm just being over dramatic. Twice now my vet has listened to Toasts heart and couldn't hear anything abnormal but whenever she goes to the vet she never makes the hooting sounds and her breathing is always normal while she's there. I think they think I'm just looking into it too much and worrying over nothing.. I don't want them to think I'm being cheeky or anything by requesting an xray myself...

But I just know something isn't right..
Click to expand...

Just explain its going on too long and you dont want to run the risk of assuming its not her heart, and that you'd feel much happier if they could consciously xray her chest.

It will either confirm it or rule it out- neither of which is a waste of time and gets you closer to an answer.

Its non invasive, takes 2 minutes and you are paying for it- they shouldnt refuse you x
 
Adelle said:
Just explain its going on too long and you dont want to run the risk of assuming its not her heart, and that you'd feel much happier if they could consciously xray her chest.

It will either confirm it or rule it out- neither of which is a waste of time and gets you closer to an answer.

Its non invasive, takes 2 minutes and you are paying for it- they shouldnt refuse you x
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I don't think they'll refuse it, I just don't want to come across like I think I know more than the vet if that makes sense... I don't know what's wrong with her but I just can't shake the feeling that it's something serious.. my vet wasn't able to hear anything and thinks I should see if it gets any worse... She doesn't do any of the strange breathing when I take her so it's hard for them to diagnose I suppose.

I'd just feel so much better to get her an xray to confirm or rule anything out like you said..
 
Beans&Toast said:
I don't think they'll refuse it, I just don't want to come across like I think I know more than the vet if that makes sense... I don't know what's wrong with her but I just can't shake the feeling that it's something serious.. my vet wasn't able to hear anything and thinks I should see if it gets any worse... She doesn't do any of the strange breathing when I take her so it's hard for them to diagnose I suppose.

I'd just feel so much better to get her an xray to confirm or rule anything out like you said..
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I stopped worrying about what the vets thought of me a long time ago.. If i have a niggle about something i make sure i get it seen to.. Fudge gets chest xrays every 3 months to monitor her, if i feel the meds arent quite keeping the fluid under control il take her in and request another xray to see for sure, regardless of how long its been since her last one. Her breathing has been laboured on an off for a few days, she has a vet app at 1.45 and il be requesting an xray.

Crunchie has IC and is currently on week 3 of a flare up- the worst by far. Il be requesting an xray to check her for a stone as this is different to
Normal for her.

I took mallow to the vet twice in 6 hours and they found nothing wrong with her.... I worried so much as i thought they would think i was a total nutter... 3 hours later mallow collapsed, 3 hours after that she passed away beside poppet.

From that horrible day, i do not give a jot about what they think!

Go with your gut x
 
Thanks. Yous are right, I know her best. I spend pretty much all my free time with them and I just know somethings not right with her breathing. I think the reason they can't detect it there is because she plays dead anytime anyone but me goes near her.

I've just phoned and asked for the vet to phone me when he gets a minute to discuss an xray.

The only thing that worries me is anytime Toast has to go into the vets to get treatment she always ends up with bad cystitis for a couple days due to the stress, she really is the most stressy animal I've ever known. But I suppose that's not as imporant as confirming/ ruling out a heart condition..
 
Beans&Toast said:
Thanks. Yous are right, I know her best. I spend pretty much all my free time with them and I just know somethings not right with her breathing. I think the reason they can't detect it there is because she plays dead anytime anyone but me goes near her.

I've just phoned and asked for the vet to phone me when he gets a minute to discuss an xray.

The only thing that worries me is anytime Toast has to go into the vets to get treatment she always ends up with bad cystitis for a couple days due to the stress, she really is the most stressy animal I've ever known. But I suppose that's not as imporant as confirming/ ruling out a heart condition..
Click to expand...
Yeah you just have to weigh it up. Fudges diuretics will eventually cause kidney failure as shes on a MASSIVE dose of 2 types- but i want her to breathe easily and comfortably so if she needs the extra meds, she gets them. And i'll be able to take peace from the fact that when her time comes, i know her final time with me was as comfortable as possible, even
If that time is shortened by the meds x
 
I would go with your gut feelings; I could sense when Petal was about to have a bout of cystitis, her ears always seemed to sit lower on her head :) Sounds crazy I know but I was always right. You know your piggy best. Healing vibes for your sweet girl x
 
I phoned the vets yesterday afternoon to speak to someone regarding an xray for Toast, they said they'd get a vet to phone me when they were free. No one phoned back that day. I phoned this morning to see if I could catch my vet to quickly run it by him, he was busy so they said he'd phone around 11. No one phoned so I phoned just now to say I don't mean to be annoying but I'd like to get an xray booked and no one's phoning me back.. they said they'd get a vet to phone me before they close at 12 this afternoon...

I don't want to keep annoying them but I just want to speak to the vet for 2 minutes to get the xray arranged. They're closed on Sundays so it'll need to wait until Monday to phone again meaning I won't get an appointment until Wednesday..

Am I being too pushy asking for my vet to speak to me for a few minutes to get this arranged? I know they're really busy but this is important too.. :hmm:
 
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