Peppa’s Possible Pyometra

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JJGiebz
Make Good Choices

Post   » Thu Feb 02, 2023 7:27 am


Thanks, Zaphy! She's only taken two doses so far but seems to be doing well. Although, I noticed this morning she's begun dribbling liquids out of her mouth.

I'm still waiting to hear back on the analysis of the scans, but I know there isn't really anything to be done at this point, most likely.

I'm just trying to get in as many snuggles and nose kisses as I can. When I put my hand under her front paws to pick her up off the scale, or the mat where she takes her meds, she leaps into my arms. One of the many things I love about her.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Thu Feb 02, 2023 8:43 am


She sounds like such a special guinea pig. Hoping at least this hurdle (the abscess) resolves.

JJGiebz
Make Good Choices

Post   » Fri Feb 03, 2023 11:00 am


Thanks, Lynx. I went ahead and scheduled the surgery for Monday. I know the odds are she won't come through it, at 6+, but I can't just put her down without trying.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Fri Feb 03, 2023 7:12 pm


I imagine you have been through multiple surgeries? For anyone who is not familiar with post op care, I encourage you to read:
https://www.guinealynx.info/postop.html

Lots of good info concerning managing pain and more.

I wish you both the best.

JJGiebz
Make Good Choices

Post   » Mon Feb 06, 2023 1:53 pm


Thank you! Hurdle one done - she came through the surgery well, they told me. They said they didn't touch her teeth because the pus wasn't as thick as they thought it would be. I'm not really sure how that relates, but they said it was good news.

Now I settle into my anxiety until they call me tomorrow with an update : )

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Feb 06, 2023 8:48 pm


The update sounds encouraging. Hoping she can come home soon!

JJGiebz
Make Good Choices

Post   » Tue Feb 07, 2023 12:43 pm


They let her come home! She made enough poops and ate enough lettuce that they thought she'd be better at home, two days earlier than predicted.

Now we must embark on the journey of flushing this wound out twice a day, with only me to do it....they gave me a betadine like solution, but I think I read here that is not preferred? I have saline solution for contact lenses - does that work as well? This is my first abscess. Joy.

Curiously, despite being on her chin, they determined that it was NOT a dental abscess based on the condition of the pus and the ct scan of her head/neck. Aside from being good news for her teeth, apparently that also lowers the chance of recurrence. So I'll take that!

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Tue Feb 07, 2023 2:34 pm


AFAIK, betadine is fine, just not full strength. It will do more to keep down infection than saline. I'd use a 1:10 dilution.

JJGiebz
Make Good Choices

Post   » Tue Feb 07, 2023 3:51 pm


Awesome, thank you! The 10ml packet they gave me is to be mixed with a liter of water, so it's certainly diluted. It says it will only be good for 8 days so I'll just need to go to a pharmacy here and see what else I can find.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Tue Feb 07, 2023 7:51 pm


I think it was Josephine who talked about and promoted flushing abscesses with a salt solution.
https://www.guinealynx.info/antiseptic_solutions.html

It is the chlorhexidine that is drying. So either a salt solution or Betadine (mentioned on that page) should work fine (as bpatters notes).

JJGiebz
Make Good Choices

Post   » Sat Apr 01, 2023 7:47 pm


Greetings, all!

I'm looking for some ideas from the crowd. Peppa's abscess healed completely. She was on the azithromicin and Flagyl for a month and had no issues beyond occasional diarrhea. Unfortunately, she is still losing weight.

She was holding steady around 860 for the month she was on the antibiotics, and then started dropping fast again. I took her back to the vet, they listened to her lungs (thinking it was the tumors they found in November) and her heart and kind of threw up their hands.

They finally agreed to try thyroid medication. She was on .15 ml of 5 mg/ml thiamazole for just under a week with no effect. I took her back and they wanted to simply stop the drug with no other ideas. I asked to increase the dose. They were very reluctant due to the possible side effects, but she is 6.5-7 years old and dropping weight rapidly. What is there to lose?

She was on .3 ml of thiamazole twice a day for a week with again no change in her weight loss, nor her eating, her poops and pee - nothing. She is now down to 700g from her max of 1250. She's developed bumble foot as well and is basically not moving around. But she's still alert and happy to get her veggies.

The vet wanted to stop the thiamazole and do an abdominal ultrasound to see if something else was causing her weight loss. They discovered nothing but the three small cysts we already knew were in there, and some slightly and symmetrically enlarged adrenal glands that they were not concerned about.

They've now suggested that maybe she has a parasite. I still have the Flagyl, so I started her back on it today just to see if it helps. I upped the dose from what they prescribed previously (which was the minimum listed on the med page here) to the midway point of the common dose listed on the medications page (it has immediately caused diarrhea though, so I will reduce it tomorrow).

I'm at a loss. She has been shedding weight rapidly since late October/early November. At first it seemed like it must be the abscess that was on her jaw, but clearing that up didn't change things. She has been eating like crazy - probably three times the recommended pellets - and still dropping. She is also pooping like crazy. If she's chewing, she's pooping. Her body is processing food out so fast. What else could this be if not her thyroid? What doses of thyroid meds have worked for others? Is 0.3 ml of a 5 mg/ml concentration really the max?

She doesn't go outside, and her cage mate is not displaying these symptoms, so I just don't see how it could be a parasite. Welcome any ideas!! I'm at a loss and just trying to treat all the symptoms (she is on bactrim and multiple pain meds for her feet as well).

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Sat Apr 01, 2023 8:14 pm


How long did it take her to lose the 150 grams?

Senior pigs display a usual pattern of weight loss, plateau, weight loss, plateau, rinse and repeat. That generally happens over a period of weeks or month, so it if it's occurring more rapidly, there's probably something else going on.

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