Veg causing urine problem?

[Char-x]

This could be long so sorry in advance...
My sow Tallulah is a Peruvian and is constantly wet around her rear end, we keep it as short as physically possible and have given her many baths. However one day it got to the point it just couldnt have been normal. The bedding is always kept dry and although they sleep on hay I keep it dry and constantly change it.
I took them to the vets last Friday and got told that no stones could be felt so I was to give her Baytril and a fibre paste...I was also to stop feeding her veggies whilst I done this. Done as I was told and she wetness went away...
Began to ween her back onto her veg when the paste was finished and by the second day she was wet although she had only had a small amount of carrot and a small tear of greens. Put it down to prehaps carrot? So next day...no carrot and a small bit of yellow pepper..checked again next day..wet.

My mum called the vet and the vet said to stop the veg again, I have just spoken to my mum who said the vet was basically saying Tallulah would have to now live on pellets and hay...surely this cant be good for her though and she will miss out of vital vitimins etc?! I'm so confused it's unbelieveable!

She has a constant fresh supply of hay and Supa Guinea Pig Excel pellets...

ANy oppinions or advice on this would be very welcome as I'm extremely confused and worried at the moment.

 

[maryh]

Make sure she has loads of good hay to eat,and if you are not already using it,give her plenty of Readygrass.Cut back on cabbage and kale and other strong greens.Try her with a little parsley,basil,coriander,and maybe sweetcorn.The corn silk is good for pigs with any renal problem.

I am not entirely convinced that veggies can ccause urinary problems,but the veggioes in this case do sem to be aggravating.Some veggies are diuretic,celery,cucumber are the main culprits.

Does her urine smell,and have you noticed her crying or straining when urinating?.,these would indicate an infection.

Septrin is a better antibiotic than Baytril for urinary infection.Talk to your vet about trying this for 7-10 days.

Renal stones cannot be felt by external examination,in fact x rays and scans do not always show them up.

As there is no blood and I think no straining?,it is unlikely to be stones,but they cannot be ruled right out.

 

[karenrgpr]

Veggies have a long term effect because of the Calcium to Phosphorus ratio in some. Its dependent, often, on the age of the veg when picked- young veg (and indeed all plants etc) are better fed when they are young (as opposed to those that are old).

A grass, herbage and hay diet is good for guineas with recurring bladderstones but can be difficult to feed. Some people like to grow their own grass and herbage and supplement the diet with a reduced veg intake, while this doesn't guarantee anything it helps along with increased fluids, in a lot of pigs. But, there are even some types of herbage I don't recommend feeding to pigs with a history of stone/renal probs.

I had a boar with stones that kept recurring and you could feel them in him, my vet felt them too. If stones are small enough they can be flushed out by giving extra fluids by syringe, but this should be done by working with your vet. I changed him over to an almost veg free diet.

As Mary says they can't always be seen by x-ray but its a good idea to get at least one done. Sometimes the stones are not in a position to cause straining and bleeding.

I've only had 2 boars with stones, one had the stone removed and was fine afterwards but the other's stones kept recurring despite a change in diet- all I could do was maintain him on increased fluids.

Supa Guinea is VERY high in Protein, I wouldn't recommend feeding it to a pig with bladder probs (in fact any pig!). Its OK for show and breeding pigs but I feel not for pet pigs.