Nibbles Medical Thread

IssaG

Post   » Mon May 20, 2019 7:08 pm


Well she was back to normal this weekend. She even gained some weight. It's so nice having her back to her normal loud, annoying self : ) I'll keep her on the two supplements a day and see if that stretches out the timing or makes any other difference. I AM glad she appears to be consistantly passing the stones, so it sounds like she might be like your little boy Sef who had fast growing stones. So I'm hoping the supplement is helping her pass them though we'll never know for sure since she started on it right when she had her first painful stone.

I do agree that the restricted diet isn't doing a thing to prevent stones. Maybe it keeps them smaller, who knows, but I don't believe the hype on the low calcium diet anymore. Her cage mate who is mostly on the same restrictions for ease, though she does get lettuce and carrots when she's out by herself, has not had problems. So I'm not going to feel bad giving Nibbles a bit of lettuce here or there.

Sef, thanks for sharing your experience with stones. It helps keep things in perspective. We'll keep going on our current path but if there is no change I'll look into that bladder stone formula. I'd like to have more data on the current regimen first.

IssaG

Post   » Wed Aug 21, 2019 4:50 pm


She had her annual exam last week. The vet felt her abdomen then pressed on the bladder to empty it. Nibbles gave her annoyed sound, but not her pain sound, and the vet was pleased that there was no pain, no evidence of stones or sludge, and that it took the right amount of pressure to force the bladder to empty.

I told her we had to keep Nibbles at two tablets per day, not just one, otherwise she acted off. The vet speculates that the muscles of her bladder don't work correctly and that's why she is uncomfortable when she's only on one tablet or no tablets. The urine doesn't empty properly and that build up contributes to the stone formation. The tablets let those muscles relax so she can empty the bladder.

So good that we have a treatment that works and that's she's not forming hundreds of stones. And I'm even less concerned about giving her things occasionally that are not on her prescribed diet.

So crossing fingers that this is the worst we'll have to see in her.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Aug 21, 2019 8:37 pm


I'm glad you are having success.

What tablets is she getting, again? Shilintong?

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Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Wed Aug 21, 2019 10:16 pm


That is very good news! I think you did mention Shilintong somewhere along the way. Can you remind us how you are dosing it?

Fingers crossed!

IssaG

Post   » Thu Aug 22, 2019 3:41 pm


Yes, she's on Shilington. Two tablets a day. I crush them in a dish with the back of a spoon then use a wooden popsicle stick to mix it in with either a little banana or apple sauce. I let Nibbles eat it out of the dish or off the stick. Works pretty easy and so far she's been willing to eat it every time.

IssaG

Post   » Mon Oct 28, 2019 1:37 pm


Nibbles is a little over a year old now. Over the last couple months I've noticed her scratching more. Nothing like mites but more than I'd say was "normal". Her nipples have grown and get crusty. I've cleaned them with water but see coconut oil is better and I'll try that. One nipple she doesn't mind me cleaning, the other only tolerates it for a short time. There is no hair loss. Her weight, appetite, and behavior are all unchanged. She does have dry skin, I see dandruff when I brush her, but I can't add to the humidity here, we are so high already.

Most of what I've read here says the nipples indicate ovarian cysts though I thought she'd be a bit young for that. This isn't an emergency situation since she's fine otherwise so should I take a wait and watch approach for now?

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Mon Oct 28, 2019 2:02 pm


Sounds like a plan to me.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Oct 28, 2019 4:17 pm


Yes, watching is a good idea.

I would also consider giving her a couple Nizoral shampoos to see if it helps with the dandruff - which can be fungal (dandruff can be caused by a yeast infection - aka fungal infection).

And if you start seeing more scratching, I would still consider mites a possibility, as they are so common. If you have never treated for mites, it can be a good move.
www.guinealynx.info/fungus.html
www.guinealynx.info/mites.html

IssaG

Post   » Tue Oct 29, 2019 2:51 pm


We treated them for mites when they got them. I still have some Revolution so if she keeps going I can use that and see if it helps.

Hmm, I never considered that the dandruff could be fungal. I'm still just going to watch for a while. She does get bathed periodically as she urinates on herself from time to time so I may think about the shampoo the next time we do that if she doesn't start scratching more.

IssaG

Post   » Tue Feb 11, 2020 1:22 pm


We treated Nibbles for the dandruff, bathing her once a week for four weeks with Nizoral. That was November. Then we stopped and she seemed to be itching far less in December and January. Now we are in February and she's itching a lot. I held her over a dark surface and brushed her hair and she shed hair and dandruff like snow. We bathed her last night.

My questions is how often, or more accurately, how long do we do this. Human directions say use everyday for only 4 weeks. Then move to once every 1-2 weeks. So if we go once a week for 4 weeks, then stop, should be start back up preemptively? Or wait until she scratches again? I know this stuff is strong and I don't want to overdue it or cause harm. But the dandruff is bad and has to be addressed.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Tue Feb 11, 2020 1:36 pm


While she was being treated in November were you also seeing an easing of itching?

If you were having success treating once a week for four weeks, that is a lot less than the human recommendation of daily for four weeks. I am guessing the daily use in humans really knocks out the dandruff/yeast infection and then it is maintained at a lesser rate. It may be treating only once a week only knocks things down and does not knock it out. But the once a week still seems much more reasonable than daily. The human scalp produces many oils. I don't think guinea pig skin is that oily.

What are your own ideas?

IssaG

Post   » Tue Feb 11, 2020 2:04 pm


<While she was being treated in November were you also seeing an easing of itching?>

Yes. It seemed to go down each week then she looked normal after treatment 4 so I stopped.

It's my husband that is more worried as I can't show him any studies, that's just how his mind rolls, but I was thinking somewhat like you in that we didn't do enough to knock it out. However, we may never be able to knock it out. It's something I'll bring up with the vet at her annual in August. But till then I was thinking of being a little more aggressive with it, maybe twice a week for two or three weeks, then once a week for another 4 weeks. The dandruff is worse this time so I think it might warrant a little more treatment. Does that sound out of line?

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