Unsure of what happened to my pig

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daisymay
Supporter 2016-2021

Post   » Thu Aug 20, 2020 12:54 am


That's great news. Hoping things continue to improve and go well for you all!

Lisa12

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 10:55 am


Hy!

Little update on us...

I have been strugglin with a lot of issues cause its been awful dealing with life without Ringo,without my best friend..I know in a way he ll always be in our hearts, minds, souls and rocknroll..but you know, that he is not psyhically present its hard enough..i ve had back pain and severe legs pain and shortness of breathe and feeling like i ll fall down at any moment during walking..i went to the doctor, but blood results were perfect, she said i am underweight, not having enough iron..the rest she thinks its due to stress and anxiety..i ve never felt like that and i am sort of 30 so its been awful:(.

But i ll leave it at that..we wanted ask you some questions cause Irie is turning 5 on 31.10
Can guinea pig eat prosomillet seed?(they had it in some sort of wooden roll toy).
What about orchid grass okay, is as good as timothy hay?
IRie have grass and garden and everything cause we live in the house so i dont know what new to get him:)

And we have a question on anal sack cleaning..
We check everyday if he s got some piece of hay stuck anywhere..and most of the time he doesnt..however i watched video on cleaning someone posted here..but Iries precious vets just sort of squeezed anal sack or somethng and white smelly stuff came out(i dont know what its called, i forgot).
However, since he just squeezed it it didnt bother him at all..it was quick and simple, like more than cleaning with stickfor cleaning ears like on the video..but I cant do that cause I dont know how to squeezed it..I cant just try so it wont hurt him.
Do I need to take him to vet for cleaning..or no, if its okay on the outside? And are you suppose to clean this how many times once per week, month, half of the year-if all is clean since he is becoming older boar..?
I noticed its little bit more inflated and big on the right side than on the left(anal sack)...but for now it doesnt look like something is wrong.
He doesnt seem old cause he is still so active and wild:)---

wishing all the best..and if anyone got time for answering stuff we will be grateful..

Lisa12

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 10:57 am


*previous vets(spelling mistake)

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daisymay
Supporter 2016-2021

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 11:13 am


Never had boys just girls. Wish you luck and sorry about Ringo. Sending hugs! And feel better soon. I am way over weight, you can have some of mine if you like!

Maybe ask the vet to show you how? I'm sure they won't mind!

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 12:39 pm


Here's a video from one of our members:

You check frequently, but only clean as needed. Depending on what kind of bedding you use, and how often your boar flips open his anal sac, you may have to check daily. If he's on fleece and doesn't do much scent marking, maybe once a week.

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 12:57 pm


Too late to edit my earlier post.

I forgot to post this: https://www.guinealynx.info/impaction.html

Lisa12

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 3:18 pm


Daisymay, yeah, please i need 5kg!Its so not easy putting on weight like that.. cause actually i have set hours when i have to eat..if i like it or not..
Sometimes you haveto forcefed yourself, or at least i have to..

And no we cant just ask, cause we dont go there anymore.
As I wrote the best vet left..and there is a chaos and some young vets and the older is not available and he operates at afternoon and this and that
I dont honestly care how is there anymore.

We found this brilliant vet 2h away we will contact again if we will be in crisis.
We need to get somebody closer for routine check ups..i think i already know who will be.

All thing considered Irie is my last animal ever, but he reached a good age so..whatever he will live up to, i ll be okay with it.

Thanks bpatters..i will read it all..is that alright too? ITs a bit different than this on video you posted:

Altough when the vet cleaned Irie i held him and he did it in 5 sec and he didnt even mind..this vet didnt have asistence and pig didnt like it and it took so long..but she is just pushing the stuff out. So if you squeezed you cant hurt the pig?

Lisa12

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 3:25 pm


And thanks again for replies..

He is on hay.. he has a bit of fleece sometimes, cause he likes rest on it but nothing lese..I cut his long hair so his hair doesnt get stuck..if piece of hay get stuck i gently remove it. We check every day.

Hope we will be able to clean this properly on our own.. cause as i said its a bit of inflated if thats the right expression, if it will be more i ll send Lynx photo so we can show you..for now its only little bit

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 3:33 pm


I wouldn't squeeze.

User avatar
Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Wed Oct 07, 2020 7:40 pm


Hi Lisa12. Yeah, I agree with bpatters about squeezing. I have done that, in very severe cases of impaction (I used to groom local guinea pigs as a sideline for a very brief time), but I feel like it's safer to soak the bottom to loosen up the impaction first, and then use a Q-tip with a little mineral oil to gently work it loose. There is a risk of tearing the anal sac lining if you're not careful. Definitely don't want to do that.

It's usually fairly easy to tell if a male is impacted. They just seem "heavier" down there. It has been a while since I had a male prone to impaction, but it does sometimes happen when they get a little older and especially if they become less active due to arthritis or other health issues. Increased exercise is supposedly a good way to prevent this problem, but some guys just seem more prone than others.

Agree, also, that it's a good idea to check the anal sac regularly but only clean it out if/when it becomes necessary. I read somewhere that cleaning the sac out too often can potentially stretch its thin tissue/lining and make it even harder to expel cecal poops because it loses its elasticity. I don't know if that's accurate. With the impaction-prone males that I've had over the years, I did notice that the impactions tended to become more and more frequent once I started cleaning the sac out. Whether it was due to the mechanics of me cleaning out the sac (and stretching the lining) OR just the nature of impaction itself, I can't say.

My advice would be to intervene only when it looks like the poops aren't coming out on their own, and then do so gently.

Good luck! Not a fun job, but you get used to it. ;)

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ItsaZoo
Supporter in 2023

Post   » Thu Oct 08, 2020 12:24 am


Hi Lisa, I'm so sorry about losing your dog. I know how hard that can be, but you're right about having him in your heart forever. Some days are more difficult than others.

For help gaining weight, I used to get meal replacement bars and beverages for my mom when she wasn't feeling like eating. She would sip on a beverage while she was on the computer or watching TV, and the bars she would have with a cup of tea for a snack. Anything like that will add calories and nutrients without feeling like you have to sit down and eat even when you don't want to. Take care.

Lisa12

Post   » Thu Oct 08, 2020 10:35 am


Thanks so much ItsaZoo!!
He was our everything..we did everything together, we played football, hang out with friends, travell, do agility even surf few times.. he was always main *man*when we were having fun..all knew him..will Ringo come? Sure, can I come to? I replied..you know...:). I skipped school just to play with him cause border collies are usually so hyper active:) I said to my parents he is just the most important, but he was also boss of the family, so we got away with all kind of jokes..and I was only 14 when I got him...

And thanks for the food advice, too..I have many drinks suppliment(with vitamin C, vitamin D, magnesium)..and iron pills. I need protein bars also, yeah.. I hope your mum is alright, now!

And thanks bpatters for oppinion and Sef, for very very helpful description..I think I understood now,..we wont squeeze it. i need to get this oil and my sister for asistance.. He is popping normally..so, not too often..we re both happy with that, haha.. :)!

Happy to have you all for help.. And I lied a little bit..of course I would like for Irie to be 7 or 8, but.. we can only do best and hope for best.

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