Reba: Satin w/arthritis, bone loss, & teeth issues

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mammabear66
With a Touch of Insanity

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 3:45 am


Radar seems to be doing great with the doxy - for now! This is the first time in weeks I have not had to take him in to the vet to have his abcess drained. I was ready to party! Then I had to take Reba in instead.

We have noticed lately that Rojita was being a bigger bully towards her - or at least she was being more of a whiner and snitching on Ro, so that daddy would come running, waving the back-scratcher of Doom.

Then I noticed at the regular weigh-in a couple days ago that her weight had dropped from 1082 to 982. I started looking closer. But everything else looked good and her weight has always fluctuated. However, Wednesday nite I had that "feeling". Her weight was now 954. She also seems to be hopping when she walks and isn't moving away from her bed to pee. Unusual for her. I spoke my concerns to husband and watched a brown daddy turn white. This is the diva... the star... Miss July... the BABY! His siezure kitty is the only other one that comes close in his heart.

This morning her weight was 932 and I called the vet. One nostril was kinda yucky and her white ear was bright pink. Vet said her lungs are clear and heart sounds good. Nose ever has gotten yucky again since I cleaned it the first time. But lymph glands felt kinda swollen to the vet and she did have a fever. Started her on Baytril and gave her fluids with some b12 thrown in.

The vet couldn't judge the walking/hopping cuz she wouldn't walk - she played Radar's "I am statue" game. She whined when the vet played with one back leg but then she was whining at everything by that point. She is the queen of whining - but daddy wasn't there to save her this time!

We talked about her being a satin and will look into things further on that end once she feels better. She did tell me to give her vitamin C every other day or so in case she is lacking there. It is hard to tell what her veggie intake is as she eats with Radar and Rojita. For now I am pulling her and feeding her veggies by herself so I can monitor better. Doing the CC thing too.

She peed on daddy twice tonite and he never moved! Just cheered her for peeing cuz she hadn't for a few hours.

Now I have 3 out of the 5 piggies on meds! Plus the cat on phenobarbitol and both dogs on glucosamine. Yikes!

I am stressing.

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JHand
For the love of pigs!

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 6:19 am


Wow, MB, you sure have your hands full right now. I hope that Reba recovers (and everyone else does well too)

Try to remember to take care of yourself too.

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cavyhaven13

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 7:10 am


Did you print off Pinta's case history of the Satin bone loss? I printed it off for my vet even though I don't have satins. Dr. Kathy is giddy with joy when I give her print outs from here.

I'm only guessing, as I usually do, but could it hurt to give her more calcium rich treats for awhile and see if that helps? I know it sounds like she's got an infection too so I'm really just grasping at straws. I get so so worried when your babies are not feeling well. Take care of your mushy kids, MB. I'll be thinking of you.

mammabear66
With a Touch of Insanity

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 7:21 am


I haven't printed it yet cuz it honestly didn't enter into my head until I was there. But I plan to take it in (unless critterluv02 already has) and will probably do a baseline xray also.

We did talk about adding more calcium. I gotta be in a frame of mind to read and understand the charts tho, so I know what to give her.

Thanks for the thoughts - both of you.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 8:28 am


I was thinking calcium too -- the vitamin C is also important.

When pigs don't eat as much and lose weight, they can certainly become deficient in vitamins and minerals due to decreased appetite.

One of the first things to check with weight loss is teeth. An xray will really help get a total picture. You might want to reread all the malocclusion info.

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WindeSpirit
Sewing for a Cause

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 11:17 am


Nothing new to add, just wanted to let you know I'm here thinking of you and the whole 66 gang there.
~~~~~~Good Vibes~~~~~~

mammabear66
With a Touch of Insanity

Post   » Fri Sep 09, 2005 3:29 pm


I never thought about teeth Lynx, due to finding the crusty nose. I will definitely go read the info and look into it more.

The Baytril seems to have hit her appetite this morning. We had to force the CC into her and then only got about 10cc down. She did just voluntarily eat some veggies, and then ate more with the help of daughter's fiance. She gets tired really easy I think.

pinta

Post   » Sat Sep 10, 2005 5:39 am


We talked about her being a satin and will look into things further on that end once she feels better.

If she's a satin with calcium deficiency she may not feel better until you deal with it. I would xray immediately to check for bone density.

mammabear66
With a Touch of Insanity

Post   » Sat Sep 10, 2005 3:56 pm


The problem with doing the xray the other day is that Reba was already highly upset at being examined. The vet was more concerned about thouroughly checking out lungs, ears, nose, etc. and getting subQ fluids into her (which REALLY upset her). By the time she was done with all that, Reba was so upset that she was constantly crying and trembling to the point that the xrays woud have been blurry. It was decided that I could make another appointment for xrays on a day that she wasn't getting poked by needles. Reba would make a good piggy candidate for Valium.

I was considering starting calcium supplements anyways. I just need to find out what kind to get and how much to give.

She is feeling better. She has been on the end of the couch (Radar is pissed - that is his spot) except for when I am sleeping or not in the room. Right now she is eating/playing with a TP roll, which is one of her favorite toys.

She isn't eating pellets much but never has. She is readily eating a lot of veggies. Sometimes we have to hand them to her, but she takes them. She is rotating what she eats - lettuce is an always, tomatoes were yesterday and bell peppers and cucumbers are today. Carrots are just nibbled. Everything is offered every time. I wonder if they know what foods they need?

She munches on bits of hay pretty regularly. She eagerly took CC on Thursday but fights it now. She has gained a few grams so maybe she is just not hungry. She does get a lot of veggies down throughout the day. I force water (she never has drank much). She grabs the ABs away from me and looks for more.

Overall, I am pleased. She really looked bad by Thursday nite and she was SO hot. Last nite I joined her on the couch and she curled up on my arm and napped. I felt honored as she is usually very much a daddy's girl.

mammabear66
With a Touch of Insanity

Post   » Thu Sep 22, 2005 5:12 am


OK. All signs of infection appear to be gone.

Reba eats her couple cups of veggies a day minimum (she gets extra treats right now), she eats her hay, she still isn't eating pellets much but really never has, she drinks her water, she poops, she pees, etc. She was switched to Doxy cuz the Baytril upset her tummy - is still on it. She is also still getting vitamin C and calcium.

BUT, she is still hopping and I can't get her weight up. It has progressively dropped to as low as 886 (3 days ago). I got more aggressive with CC and upped her to over 60ml a day! This is on top of all her regular food! Now she is hovering around 898 - 902. She weighs over 930 right after I feed her and then it is back down by the next meal.

I have an appointment on Saturday for her, Radar (STILL going), Momma (med check for heart meds), my seizure kitty Xena who is having problems, and my boy kitty Hercules who needs shots. I wanted to get feedback of what I should ask for concerning Reba, besides xrays. I have no clue what to think with the weight loss despite her eating.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Thu Sep 22, 2005 9:22 am


Glad to hear you've gotten the infection under control. Good luck plumping up that pig.

pinta

Post   » Thu Sep 22, 2005 4:35 pm


How much calcium are you giving her?

Has she been xrayed recently to rule out fractures and/or arthritis?

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