unknown bloody pee

[cookieandbecky]

Hi,
My piggy cookie has been on Baytril for about two weeks now for a suspected UTI and a weird teary left eye that even got the vets stumped for why it was happening. For the first week, both the eye and her painful/bloody pee went away. Suddenly on the second week it all started flaring up again while on the medication, eye and painful wee and all. The thing is, I'm also currently treating my other piggy becky with the same Baytril for a URI and it came back on the same exact day! Would this be something wrong from the medicine itself, or is it possible if both my piggies have built an immunity to the antibiotics (as their dosage was the same)? Should I up the dosage for both? I'm worried if it's unsafe for them. Thanks in advance!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Contact your vet about this.
UTIs can take longer to cure but you usually start seeing some improvement after a couple of days on antibiotics.
As things are not improving and is in fact getting worse then either baytril isn’t the right antibiotic to kill the bacteria or is isn’t a UTI.
Very odd that their eyes are affected

Definitely don't up the dosage of any medication without a vet telling you to do so.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi

I am really sorry that things are not working out. I have not come across the combination of eye problems with urinary issues, so that is most likely just coincidal or connected by a somewhat suppressed immune system (stress or an underlying problem). Please contact your vet again.

The bleeding means that you are most likely not dealing with bacterial urine infection. It could either point towards a stone or slush or towards a sterile interstitial cystitis (i.e. a non-bacterial recurring bladder infection). The latter has become very common in recent years but it is not well known outside vet circles that do not see lots of guinea pigs. It is characterised by a very low or zero bacterial count and is often diagnosed by default after all other potential issues have been excluded.
Management is with meloxicam (Metacam) and glucosamine in milder to medium cases and now cartrophen in more serious cases and follows that of FSC (feline sterile cystitis). It is characterised by regular flares every few weeks once you have got on top of the initial symptoms. In milder cases, antibiotics can temporarily suppress symptoms but in more severe forms deterioration happens nevertheless. The bloody pee is likely porphyrine, a natural red dye, which is characteristic for sterile IC but it can really freak out owners. The urine may still test for blood, though.
Here is some more US based information on sterile IC: Links - Interstitial Cystitis - Guinea Lynx Records

All the best. I hope that this helps you and your vet.