Ruby and Her Puzzling Problem

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Wed Oct 10, 2018 3:34 pm


I have a pig, Ruby. Her mother was a rescue and passed away from cancer in 2016. Her father passed in July from cancer, also. She will be 5 years old December 6th. She has been a very healthy girl up until this point. I took her in for a routine check-up, and of all things, she pooped and there was blood there. Did a poop spin and had sporulating rods. Put her on Flagyl. Four days later, she had bloat and could not poop. I immediately gave her metoclopramide, probiotic, baby gas drops and she has been on them ever since. She began to refuse to eat and drink. I've fed her Critical Care and syringed water. Yesterday, I took her in for a hydration sub-Q. Last evening, she started eating and drinking on her own and has been doing well, with poops growing in size and frequency, until this afternoon. Now we are back to tiny poops and few...even with Metoclopramide. She has had an ultrasound of her uterus (what they could see), and intestines and nothing was found. This has been going on since last Wednesday. I have never had a case this hard. Has anyone else had a similar experience? I've had 16 pigs in 15 years and I have never had this before.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Oct 10, 2018 9:14 pm


Are you weighing her daily right now? If so, how does her weight look these past few days? I am sure you know tiny poops are most often due to not eating enough, perhaps with some dehydration. Unusual that this developed so quickly. I hope things turn around!

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Wed Oct 10, 2018 9:51 pm


Here is the strange part. She had actually gained 3 grams from her check-up to yesterday. I am at a loss. The dilemma is this. If I'm feeding her, she won't eat on her own. As it is, she is drinking and eating on her own. When do you intervene? Feeding her stresses her out, too. I am almost afraid that it may be the "C" word. Her mother, father, and sister were all abandoned on a porch for who knows how long without food and water. When we got them, they ate for what seemed like 5 days straight without letting up. Her precious little mother was already pregnant with her, her sister, and brother. I guess one never knows the ramifications of that horrible situation.

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Wed Oct 10, 2018 9:54 pm


Three grams is not a weight gain. Or loss. One TEASPOON of water weighs five grams. Three grams, or twenty-three grams, could be accounted for by whether or not she had peed/drank water/ate/pooped/whatever.

Weighing is necessary when they're ill, but you need to know what the reasonable parameters are. Three grams is not a reasonable amount to worry/celebrate about.

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Thu Oct 11, 2018 10:38 am


I'm definitely not celebrating it. I'm not celebrating anything right now...I'm so worn down I can hardly function. I was wondering about Mirtazapine for appetite loss? Anyone had any experience with this?

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Thu Oct 11, 2018 11:52 am


Are you force feeding her?

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Thu Oct 11, 2018 2:40 pm


I just finished force feeding her. She gets so stressed she cries. I have to feed her some...let her down...feed her...let her down. She will eat on her own...but not much. That's the dilemma. I've never had one just eat a little. They either eat or they don't. If I force feed her, I don't know if she is eating on her own. If I don't, I'm afraid she isn't getting enough. She is on the floor right now eating on a hay stack.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Thu Oct 11, 2018 10:23 pm


I am sorry it is such a struggle to get the food in.

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Fri Oct 12, 2018 7:38 pm


Thank you, Lynx. We are about the same. I just do not understand it. I have read the Flagyl can cause anorexia. I just don't know if it is temporary or can be permanent. Getting ready to feed her some right now.

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Fri Jun 14, 2019 5:42 pm


Ruby now has coccidia. She is still eating and drinking. Poo is soft.

I am looking for all advice as to how to clean, how often to clean, what to clean, and what to clean with. I ordered a steam cleaner. She is on Albon. any other suggestions? This morning, husband and I took down all cages and cleaned all of them. I cleaned bases, grids, walls around the cages, toys, food dishes, water bottles and gave pigs a bath. I am washing all bedding with hot water and capful of bleach and setting an extra rinse during the washing cycle. Drying on high heat.

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Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Fri Jun 14, 2019 8:40 pm


Odd. Any idea how she might have contracted it? I'm finding very little literature on how to clean an environment infected with coccidia, although I did see a few threads on rabbit forums where owners used a steam cleaner on carpeting, tossed anything porous in the cage (wood hideys and anything that can't be sanitized, etc.), and disinfected cages with a mild ammonia solution and/or wiped and rinsed thoroughly with a white vinegar solution. I will do a little more digging this evening to see if I can find anything else, but in the meantime have you tried a search on this forum?

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Shanna
Supporter in '19

Post   » Fri Jun 14, 2019 9:21 pm


Yes, I've searched. I may not be good at searching, though. I've seen steam cleaning, too. I bought a steam cleaner from Amazon and now just have to wait. I have no idea how she has gotten it. They are inside pigs. The only thing I can figure out is the stray cat outside. My husband my have petted it and brought it in with him. I am running myself ragged taking out her fleece beddy-byes and switching them out. She is already messy. I guess I can do a butt and feet bath before bed tonight. I have such severe anxiety, anyway. I struggle with it daily to the point that I had to quit teaching last year. We've lost 2 of our pig babies in 3 weeks already from different issues - heart and old age. This is really doing a number on me.

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