The Legend of Barry Jenkins

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Mon Dec 28, 2020 7:43 am


The big guy has a heart of gold. He's come so far from the itchy and angry piggie I brought home. Even when he was so itchy, he had as sweet a disposition as could be expected. Since the itching stopped, he's gotten more outgoing as time passes. He runs to the front of the cage to greet me and squeaks for me. He readily lets me pick him up and purs when I hold and pet him. Most of all, he's become quite the lettuce eater. It took many months to get him to eat it but he eats it as readily as the rest of the boys now.

His favorite thing to do next to snuggling up on my lap is to have me hand feed him pellets through the cage. It's funny how excited he gets when he sees me reach into the bucket to grab a handful. He's got such character. It really came out once we got his health squared away. Itching can drive a person crazy, so I can only imagine how he felt. It's so nice to have that behind us. Mites can be brutal.

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ItsaZoo
Supporter in 2023

Post   » Wed Dec 30, 2020 2:48 am


He’s a cutie and you can see he’s got personality from his expression.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Tue Jan 26, 2021 6:49 pm


The big guy is a bit under the weather. His eating has been declining over the last 2 days until I was forced to hand feed him today. Not seeing anything obvious to explain this. He's over 5 years old now; although I don't know exactly. He could be even older. It could be that his age has caught up with him. I'm continuing to monitor and hand feed him as needed. I'll take him to the vet if it gets worse. He pepped up and ate some pellets after I got about 6 or 7 ml of critical care into him. Glad I keep plenty of it on hand.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Tue Jan 26, 2021 10:07 pm


I know you will keep a close watch on him. Hope he can maintain his weight.

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daisymay
Supporter 2016-2021

Post   » Tue Jan 26, 2021 11:25 pm


Hoping he feels like his old(young)self again really soon. Me and the girls sending healing vibes your way!

Bookfan
For the Love of Pigs

Post   » Wed Jan 27, 2021 12:19 pm


Eating pellets after critical care seems like a good sign. Keep us posted.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Thu Jan 28, 2021 1:56 am


No change today. BJ will eat pellets and not much else. He'll also eat baby carrots. Pretty curious. Got about 10ml of critical care down.

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ItsaZoo
Supporter in 2023

Post   » Thu Jan 28, 2021 12:38 pm


I hope you get this figured out. Does it seem to be a chewing issue, or he’s just not interested in food at all?

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Thu Jan 28, 2021 11:16 pm


Maybe a little bit of both. It's weird because he'll nibble on the carrots and pellets, which are the hardest things he gets. He's going to the vet as a walk in tomorrow since they don't have any appointments available for at least a week. I hate having to go that route because it could take all day to get seen and they tack on an additional charge of $75.

Bookfan
For the Love of Pigs

Post   » Fri Jan 29, 2021 11:46 am


I wouldn't like that either, but I think a week is too long to wait.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Fri Jan 29, 2021 2:08 pm


Got BJ to the vet this morning. They did an examination, including an x-ray and found little or no gut motility, some gas and a small amount of sludge in the lower end of his digestive tract, but no blockage. He's not in a lot of pain but he is experiencing some moderate discomfort. He's getting a motility medication and some pain med. I'll have to keep feeding him critical care until he starts eating on his own.

This is close to the same thing that happened to Mr Bubbles a few months ago. It came on a little more gradually for him than it did for BJ. He's recovering from sedation from the x-ray, so I'll be picking him up in about an hour. I'll have an exact list of meds and a more clear explanation of what they found. I'll post an update later, but it looks like an easy treatment and hopefully a fairly quick recovery.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Fri Jan 29, 2021 4:44 pm


So they prescribed 5mg metoclopramide tablets for BJ. He gets a quarter of a tablet twice a day for gut motility and meloxidyl 1.5 mg/ml as needed for pain. They preloaded his dose into syringes for me. He just got his first dose of metoclopramide with his critical care. I'm not seeing any indication that he's in any pain. I'm watching him carefully and if he shows any signs of pain, I'll give him his meloxidyl.

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