Keep in mind that when you say .3ml dosage, that is a meaningless number. ml is a volume of fluid. The drug is measured in mg.
To understand what your guinea pig is actually getting in mg, you must know the concentration in mg/ml
To know what the dose in mg/kg, you need to also know the weight of your guinea pig and how much of the solution is being given in cc (aka ml).
sef1268 explained this above. Since the drug comes in different concentrations and I don't think you mentioned what the concentration of your metacam is, we don't know.
To understand this better, read www.guinealynx.info/calculate_dose.html
Mysterious respiratory issues
bpatters thanks for the info on your piggy's dosage. Whenever we have issues I tend to use the same process I use at work and look for anything that changed or anything that looks out of the ordinary so focussed on the Metacam dosage. If the Vet had told be more than "I just upped the dose" it would have set my mind at rest. I still intend checking any future dosages and double checking them if they seem high though.
Bruno has been off Metacam since Sunday but has maybe been a bit less active than usual. Though on Monday when I was at work he had decided to redecorate his cage completely, so I assume he has some energy in him. But, right after that we had an incident with zucchini. As I've told, he hasn't been eating fresh things that well and I've only been offering him small amounts to see if he's interested. But then I had a brain malfunction with a piece a zucchini and left it with him for a while and before I noticed, he had eaten it all. Good to see he has good appetite, but clearly the piece was too much as he had soft stools for a day after and he dropped his weight to 840g overnight (from the usual average being around 870g), which I'm still trying to get back up. So now he's back to hay and pellets, and support feed with CC. Also he was a little less active after the incident, but I assume that is fairly normal if his stomach took a turn.
I also just send e-mail with an update to the vet as Bruno's antibiotics are due to end tomorrow and I really can't see any clear improvement on his breathing. Maybe he's less wheezy and his breathing is popping less than it used to, but he's still sneezing and often has a runny nose. Also, my nebulizer refuses to co-operate since this morning (been in use for a month, great), so now I'm at a stall with the saline until I figure out how to fix it or get a new one.
I also just send e-mail with an update to the vet as Bruno's antibiotics are due to end tomorrow and I really can't see any clear improvement on his breathing. Maybe he's less wheezy and his breathing is popping less than it used to, but he's still sneezing and often has a runny nose. Also, my nebulizer refuses to co-operate since this morning (been in use for a month, great), so now I'm at a stall with the saline until I figure out how to fix it or get a new one.
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Sef
- I dissent.
I'm sorry to hear that he continues to have issues. If he was doing a little better on Metacam, then by all means I'd add that back in. He may need an anti-inflammatory for whatever is going on in his lungs at this point. I'd double-check the dose with your vet, but if she is knowledgeable and feels that a higher dose is warranted for a shorter amount of time, I would go with that and see if it helps. Is he drinking water well on his own?
I'll check the dosage with the vet, but to be completely honest I might just be imagining his previous energy levels at this point. I think I might observe for another day and then maybe put him back on it.
He drinks water, but the amount varies. Luckily his absolute favourite treat is C-vitamin infused water fed from a syringe, so he does get plenty of water.
He drinks water, but the amount varies. Luckily his absolute favourite treat is C-vitamin infused water fed from a syringe, so he does get plenty of water.
I know when Nala had breathing issues it took some time before we started seeing an improvement but we just kept stuffing her with CC to make sure she was getting enough food. We also found that when she was being picky about veggies if we tried other stuff that wasn't on their regular list (Radicchio, Red and Green Lettuce, Escarole, Endives, peppers etc) she would ea some of those, in her case it was Green Chard that she started eating. Even when she wasn't eating much on her own she woudl still eat wheat grass though.
I actually decided to put Bruno back on Metacam (0.1ml twice a day) and he seems much happier. He started to make the usual wreck around his cage more often and is now gaining weight. I still haven't heard from the vet (...) so I've left another message and I'm looking into finding another one where we could go next week to get a second opinion. His breathing is still wheezing and at least his left nostril is wet every now and then. So, we are now off ABs but continuing with the temperamental nebulizer and I try to keep him happy until I get him to the other vet.
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Sef
- I dissent.
Sounds like a very good plan. I'll be interested to hear what another vet has to say about the wheezing. And you have pretty much been able to rule out anything environmental? Things like bedding, soaps used in the cage or on fabric bedding/hideys, any cleaners used in the house around his cage, smoke from cigarettes, air fresheners, etc., possible mold or mildew in the home, all things I would have to consider. Remote chance, but have you tried changing pellets to see if he might have a food allergy of some sort? Have you tried different types of hay? Again, probably a long shot.
Do you know if he had these issues in any of his prior homes?
Do you know if he had these issues in any of his prior homes?
We've tried ruling out environmental things and he was on antihistamin for a while too to see if that would change anything, but no. He has only started to eat the pellets during the last week or so, he had different hay (with less timothy and anything that could be allergenic). I've been using Guineadad liners, which I clean every day and change frequently, use noncented cleaners, no airfreshners, smoke etc..
It's an old building, but I'd be surprised if it had some issues with mold, as this is the first place I've lived in where I've had zero problems. Of course, I can't completely rule it out. I was supposed to be moving to a new building in a month, but it got delayed until June.
His previous home gave me very little info, and I doubt they could tell even if I asked. Bruno was a bit neglected there, so his problems might have started there already without anyone noticing...
It's an old building, but I'd be surprised if it had some issues with mold, as this is the first place I've lived in where I've had zero problems. Of course, I can't completely rule it out. I was supposed to be moving to a new building in a month, but it got delayed until June.
His previous home gave me very little info, and I doubt they could tell even if I asked. Bruno was a bit neglected there, so his problems might have started there already without anyone noticing...
Do you use the pockets on the Guinedad? Does he hide in them and pee and poop? If he does he is breathing in the ammonia from his own pee.
We had that problem with our 3 girls they kept having breathing issues when we were using the pockets, even though we were cleaning and changing them every day.
As soon as we stopped using the pockets (Folded them back under the liner) the problems stopped.
We had that problem with our 3 girls they kept having breathing issues when we were using the pockets, even though we were cleaning and changing them every day.
As soon as we stopped using the pockets (Folded them back under the liner) the problems stopped.
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