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Original poster

Guinea pig not eating after castration

33 replies

SuburbanRhonda · 03/12/2017 17:12

I rescued a one-year-old pig which I was told was aggressive towards other pigs and had to be kept alone. I thought if I had him castrated I could get a little sow friend for him in the spring.

He wasn’t himself after being castrated - started squeaking a lot in a way that seemed he was in pain. He stopped eating and was drinking very little. I took him back to the vet and it turns out one of his ex-testicles has an infection. His weight dropped from 1kg to 900g in a week. He’s been on Baytril since last Thursday and is back to the vet on Tuesday. But he’s still not really eating. He had a huge appetite before he was castrated.

Do I just need to be patient?

OP posts:
70isaLimitNotaTarget · 03/12/2017 20:13

Poor piggie Sad
Is he on any painkillers as well or did he have a painkiller injection? (My GP3 had Meloxicam after he was castrated )
Maybe your boar has been attacking his wound (some animals will insist on overgrooming )

I think you'll need to syringe feed him pretty full time if he's not eating , get some fibre and water into him (sloppy mash pellets if you don't have Critical Care type food) maybe grate carrot or tiny bit of apple.

Nice cuddly fleece bedding ( IIRC I used white/cream blankets and towels for Dill and hay in loo roll tubes so he didn't sleep on it) GP6 was pre-snipped 2 weeks before I got him .

Fingers crossed for him, c'mon SuburbanBoar get scoffing ....

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 03/12/2017 22:01

That’s brilliant advice, 70, thank you so much.

I need to ask the vet if he had any painkillers - he must have had, surely? And yet he’s now stopped squeaking completely so I’m hoping he’s not in pain any more. I’m going to phone the vet tomorrow to ask if she can see him early.

He seems in good shape apart from the eating. But I’ll get going with the pellets . He has very soft fresh hay but I’ll roll up an old t shirt too for his bedroom.

I’ll report back when he’s back on his feet again Smile

OP posts:
Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 06/12/2017 07:11

Back to the vet last night and he has a hard lump which the vet thinks is an abscess - he’s back in again this morning before work to have it lanced.

I got a bit of critical care down him last night and he also ate small bits of cucumber and parsley. Fingers crossed.

OP posts:
Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 06/12/2017 07:14

He’s lost 20% of his body weight now though Sad

OP posts:
EastMidsGPs · 06/12/2017 19:52

Paws crossed for SB and 🍀🍀 parsley for strength

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 06/12/2017 23:42

Aw poor love , he's probably right off his food with the abscess. Once its lanced and drained he should pick up.
The vet / vet nurse will get some Critical Care down him (they don't take any nonsense from stroppy little rodents -memories of painstakingly feeding sloppy food to ill little piggies who wore most of it down their chins/ were hungry but CBA eating/ engaging in a battle of wills with us "I'm ILL I tell you" ..... "Yes I know but you have to eat"

All this before work, straight after and through the night )

Good job we love these little animals eh?

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 07/12/2017 19:57

So I think he’s on the mend - the wound has to be left open so it doesn’t refill and hay means no hay or wood shavings in the cage. So he’s got fluffy towels instead and seems to like it! I managed to get a serious handful of salad leaves down him this leonine, plus metacam and ABs (but he hates me now). And then he squeaked for about five minutes non-stop and produced the biggest pile of poos I’ve ever seen!

OP posts:
Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 07/12/2017 20:02

Not sure what the rogue “hay” is doing there!

I agree with you 70, we do love them but it’s makes me nervous when they’re so unwell.

But I think we’ve definitely turned the corner - thank you both for your kind thoughts x

OP posts:
FernieB · 07/12/2017 20:07

Big pile of poos is good news! Means the system is working and food is going through. It's good that he's turned a corner. Keep on with tasty treats to keep him eating and the rest should take care of itself.

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 07/12/2017 20:29

Thank you fernie. He’s just tucking into some cucumber chunks before I inflict the dreaded meds on him again.

OP posts:
Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 07/12/2017 20:32

Bruce says thanks for your good wishes, everyone Smile

Guinea pig not eating after castration
OP posts:
FernieB · 07/12/2017 20:36

What a sweetheart he is! He looks gorgeous.

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 07/12/2017 21:26

Oooooh that's a Judgey Look if ever I saw one Grin

The big pile of pooh is your ' Brucie Bonus' , obvs !

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 08/12/2017 06:58

Brucies bonus

Brilliant!

OP posts:
EastMidsGPs · 08/12/2017 08:06

Oh what a lovely looking boy. He reminds me of our long ago dear departed Betty.

You do know now he is feeling better (and relieved of his poos) he'll milk this for all its worth don't you ?? 😂😂

Have you a wife in mind for him?

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 08/12/2017 08:10

I haven’t found him a wife yet as I thought I’d wait until spring. I’ve heard there’s a place in Surrey where they can bond your pig with a female in their care. I don’t want to take the risk with an unknown female - did that before with previous pigs and they hated each other. I had to maintain separate households for five years Grin

OP posts:
EastMidsGPs · 08/12/2017 13:45

I know what you mean.
In September we pig dated Sadie when her friend Mollie died. The local rescue suggested a rather fine looking black boar called Roger.
Sadie behaved so badly on their date she had to be removed from Roger's presence.
We now have a baby sow running rings around her.
It's Sadie's own fault as I keep reminding her 😃

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 08/12/2017 16:03

She sounds a right shocker, East

Grin
OP posts:
70isaLimitNotaTarget · 08/12/2017 16:19

My sows GP7/GP8 (had them now since May 2016) refuse to bond with GP6. They didn't like GP4/GP5 but after they went Bridgewards , we tried with GP6 , still no..... (its GP8 who is non compliant )

Bert has his own space and chatters to them , its sad but he's not safe with her .

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 08/12/2017 18:14

It’s strange how some of them are fine together but others are just plain antisocial!

OP posts:
Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 11/12/2017 08:33

So his weight has now gone down to 700g from 1kg before the castration.

I’m giving him critical care and water by syringe. He’s hardly doing any poo and the ones he is doing are tiny and hard. Online research is suggesting gastric-intestinal stasis. Not even sure if it’s worth taking him back for his vet appointment tomorrow. He just needs to get his digestive system moving Sad

OP posts:
FernieB · 12/12/2017 13:07

How is he? Vets can give injections to stimulate the gut and get it moving.

Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 12/12/2017 15:32

He has now definitely turned a corner. I took the afternoon off work yesterday and spent the rest of the day hand feeding him critical care and syringing lukewarm water into him. Back in his cage he started eating some fresh grass!

Back at the vet first thing this morning and he’s gained 400g Smile.

Thanks for all your good wishes, fellow piggy owners Flowers

OP posts:
Original poster
SuburbanRhonda · 12/12/2017 15:33

That’s worth knowing fernie

OP posts:
EastMidsGPs · 12/12/2017 16:25

Yahhhhh 😃😃😃
Blooming worry aren't they??
🐾🐾 Crossed the weight gain continues

(Well they will be when we find Nessa, she has gone missing Confused we think she is somewhere in the utility room but cannot find her .. )

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