Marmot - bladder stone

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puffin

Post   » Sat Dec 18, 2021 12:23 am


Hi again! My four year old sow Marmot recently (October)has a small stone that was removed under sedation via manipulation. She has been doing well since although I have occasionally noticed some gritty or sludgy spots on the fleece. She is off pellets and I’m tinkering with her greens too get good ratios of stuff while going lower Ca.

I noticed tonight when she came for a visit that she peed a dark rusty color, which was disconcerting. What was weirder was that after 10 seconds or so, the fleece had a slight faint orange tint (I would likely not notice it had I not seen it happen). I brought her in bed on my light colored sheets and observed the same thing. Rust upon exit, but then the sheet looks like she was never there. I’ve had another pig pee bloody urine on me (bright red) that also then dried pink/brown and this doesn’t seem like that, but it is perplexing. It seems like what I’ve read is that the longer it sits it will oxidize, but this doesn’t seem like that is happening.

I wouldn’t say there was an odor that was different than normal as compared to the other pigs. She had some red pepper, curly endive, escarole, green lettuce, and corn husk for dinner (very small amounts of each). I’ve been giving her shilintong which when dissolved in water colors the water brown.

Any insight on the observations? I have SMZ here for her if needed and am going to book her into the vet (hopefully tomorrow) but wondering if others had experienced this? Thanks!

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sat Dec 18, 2021 12:10 pm


Perhaps porphirins (weak, diluted)? Some foods can reportedly affect the color of urine (I vaguely remember beets being one of them). Unsure about the red pepper (only food candidate that you mentioned that might contribute).

See:
https://www.guinealynx.info/normal.html#urine

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puffin

Post   » Sun Dec 19, 2021 8:48 am


Yesterday I put her out on some paper towels and got a series of mostly clear pee spots. One spot had a little pink center which seemed to dry to brown. I was able to get her seen by my backup vet. She xrayed and thankfully no stones! She want able to get a urine sample (bladder was empty and due to the clinic hours not enough time to give fluids and wait). She suggested a 10 day course of marbofloxicin for a suspected UTI to see if that resolved it. I asked about the SMZ but she seemed inclined to the marbo, which I’m unsure about. Anyhow we will see it she does and go from there!

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sun Dec 19, 2021 11:13 am


If you give the marbofloxacin, do weigh a couple times a day and make sure she does not go off her food. I believe if there was a UTI, you would notice an odor.
https://www.guinealynx.info/antibiotic_advice.html

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puffin

Post   » Mon Dec 20, 2021 5:34 pm


Thank you for the heads up! That is indeed what happened and now we are trying to recover from stasis today (also a bloated tummy but not sure it was full on bloat). I feel like the worst owner. And if I can find some humor it is that I imagine the vets office has a little sign in back saying “it has been 0 days since we saw one of puffins pigs” and the record we get to is like 7 so far.

I feel like a precautionary lesson for others is to insist on a urine test before starting an AB to ensure it is necessary and appropriate. We are having that done today now at our main vet where she was hospitalized to get fluids, pain meds, hand feeding. Vet felt like blood tinges may be irritation from sludge/grit and unlikely UTI but an actual test versus a hunch should tell us more.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Dec 20, 2021 7:20 pm


Unfortunately, once on an antibiotic, a test to tell if there is bacteria present may not be accurate. There is a waiting time - ask your vet how long you should wait before testing for bacteria.

Bactrim is better tolerated by many guinea pigs and seems to work pretty well if there is a positively diagnosed UTI.

p.s. you may feel like "the worst owner" but it is very apparent to me you care about your guinea pigs greatly and are doing the best you can to ensure they get the treatment they need when they are ill.

double-p.s. more likely your vet has a little sign in the back saying, "if only pet owners were as responsible as "puffin!".
:-)

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puffin

Post   » Tue Dec 21, 2021 4:16 pm


Thank you so much for your kind words. It has been a hard few days here. Marmot has been in the day hospital the past two days for fluids, hand feeding, pain relief. Her x-rays are showing a reduction in bloat but she isn't going for her food. I did get her to voluntary take a few greens last night and force fed CC (she spits some out and is a very resistant pig to force feeding), but she shows no interest in hay right now. She is passing some droppings (some very small hard ones and some larger squishy ones - she squeaked a few times on those). I bought a massage pad and have been sitting her on it regularly. She sometimes seems to like it and other times not. I'm sure she is tired and needs rest, since she's been at the vet for two days and I was checking on her and attempting food/massage about every 2 hours. I'm hoping when we pick her up here in two hours she has perked up, but it seems like the healing trajectory is slow. Bonnie bounced back from stasis quickly, so it is worrisome to see Marmot struggling in her recovery. I've read some pigs can take longer so I am hoping she will recover. It is awful to see her uncomfortable and disinterested in food. I just feel awful for causing this. I am just kicking myself! I appreciate being able to vent here and I get so much out of other threads seeing what others have experienced, so hopefully my rantings will be helpful to someone else.

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puffin

Post   » Wed Dec 22, 2021 1:17 pm


An update on Marmot. She does well at the vet and improves, but I cannot get her to take the CC at all. She nibbled a bit of hay and greens last night every couple of hours but was bloated again this morning, so is back at the vet for day hospitalization. If she improves there, I am considering admitting her to the emergency vet overnight to see if supportive care can continue to help her since I am not doing well with it. I don't like the idea of leaving her there but the vet today thought it seems like when she gets that level of care she improves and maybe we could get her over the hump. If she hasn't improved, I will discuss letting her go. I don't want her suffering in pain.

The vet mentioned trying simethecone drops, but I feel like I have seen conflicting info on whether that can help a pig or make things worse. Anyway, that was if we brought her home tonight for supportive care, but I just don't feel confident in that after two days of sucking at it.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Wed Dec 22, 2021 4:02 pm


Supportive care on a guinea pig is not easy, so don't beat yourself up. It is very tiring and complicated when the pig doesn't cooperate by letting you syringe feed her. It's tedious and there's no shame in paying someone to do it.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Dec 22, 2021 11:09 pm


Have you read the advice linked to on the emergency page? It might help.
https://www.guinealynx.info/emergency.html#bloat

Here are some tips for getting CC in:
https://www.guinealynx.info/tips.html

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puffin

Post   » Thu Dec 23, 2021 8:55 am


I was incredibly blessed yesterday with Marmot, as the vet tech who had been caring for her during the day and is also a pig owner said he would look after her last night. He was able to do four feedings and is taking her back to work today for her day care. He said she is eating hay and was interested in lettuce. I’m going to ask the vet to demonstrate how they are getting the CC in her. I’ve looked at the tips and I think my issue is not being more forceful in holding her and properly securing her head in such a manner as to get her jaw open.

I am hoping after her good night and regimented care, and after getting some sleep myself, we can continue progressing together at home.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Thu Dec 23, 2021 12:20 pm


Oh, do let us know what you learn! I am humble enough to understand I sure as heck don't know everything!

That was really nice of the vet tech to take her home to care for. Getting food into a guinea pig sure makes a difference!!!

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