Henry's Thread

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TwoWhitePiggies

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 1:06 am


Henry isn't really eating his pellets much right now, but he's still eating hay and veggies. We noticed he was down a couple of ounces so I made him so Critical Care, which he snarfed down. I'm not sure what to guess...issues with teeth? another stone? Or maybe the CC will get his gut back to normal and he'll be fine?

Tracis
Let Sleeping Pigs Lie

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 1:11 am


Henry is such a wonderful guy. :)

Not sure if this is helpful; just thought I'd mention it:

Some of the members with senior pigs have reported that sometimes pellets can be too hard to chew. Softening them with water, or another liquid, seems to make it a little easier.

TwoWhitePiggies

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 1:44 am


Ah. So this really could just be old agedness, instead of a serious problem?

Tracis
Let Sleeping Pigs Lie

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 1:52 am


I don't know. I am hoping it is a senior thing, rather than something more serious.

The way you wrote about Henry eagerly eating the CC caused me to wonder if he was avoiding the pellets because he could not chew as well. (Which, of course, could be dental as well.)

Other people will have more input for you and Henry, I hope! :)

TwoWhitePiggies

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 2:15 am


I agree; he did eat the Critical Care so voraciously that I felt like I've been starving him.

He didn't seem to have this issue with the previous bag of KM's pellets; he's only been avoiding them since the new bag arrived, though they don't smell any different.

Sometimes he stops eating if his intestines aren't 100%. We'll see what happens over the next few days. I'll give him CC and perhaps he'll get back to normal.

capybara
Supporter in '13

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 3:16 am


I hope Henry is feeling ok. Maybe he's just nuts about Critical Care? A few of our pigs are crazy about it and will eat it anytime. I understand where you're coming from with poor Henry and his tummy troubles. Momiji is a senior pig, too (not quite as amazingly old as Super Henry!) and she has battled gas problems for quite some time.

Katdralion

Post   » Fri Jan 30, 2009 6:01 am


Oh gosh, I always worry when I see this thread pop up. I hope the handsome Henry is ok. Sending lots of good thoughts.

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TWP_2

Post   » Sat Feb 14, 2009 2:42 am


Henry continues to be his active, sweet little self. Pretty good, considering we are near his tenth birthday and third anniversary with us. However, we've been watching his weight, and it has dipped down below two pounds.

For the first couple of years with us (ages 7-8), he hovered around 2 lb 6 oz pretty consistently, occasionally gaining to as much as 2 lb 8 to 2 lb 10 oz, but returning to around 2 lb 6 oz.

In August, he was at just under 2 lb 6 oz. Eight days post-surgery (on 10/26), he was at 1 lb 15 7/8 oz. Four days later, he was back to 2 lbs, and has been around 2 lb 1 oz to 2 lb 2 oz for most of the time since then.

On 1/29, he was 1 lb 15 3/4 oz, and today (2/14) he is at 1 lb 14 1/4 oz.

He does not appear to have any discomfort--he runs around just fine, we have (thank God) not heard any squeaking while peeing, and his poops are usually pretty decent. He has not been enthusiastic about pellets, but eats hay, lettuce, and the other normal foods just fine. His cagemate, Frost, also has not been enthusiastic about the pellets. We've given him a small amount of critical care for the past few days, hoping to boost his appetite for pellets or at least put a little weight on him.

Our thoughts are that it could be:

1. Age-related weight loss.
2. Effects of his daily Actigall or Vetprofen meds.
3. Possible recurring stone (though no evidence for this has yet presented itself).
4. Unrelated medical issue.
5. Non-specific, non-medical weight loss.

Should we be worried? Should we be checking anything else?

We're considering consulting with our vet to reduce the actigall dose to see if his weight rebounds. I am hesitant to do anything that could promote the recurrance of a stone, though.

Thoughts?

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rshevin

Post   » Sat Feb 14, 2009 2:52 am


Is he starting to feel boney around his hip bones and pudgey around his belly like a Booda?

I don't have a lot of advise for you. My eldest pig is slight and I struggle to keep weight on him. I give him a lot of pellet mush and special TLC time to eat and it doesn't help a whole lot. I think all you can truly do is keep an eye on him which we all know you already do. Oh, and give him kishes from us of course.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:40 am


You have a good batch of "thoughts". I don't know what the right one would be. That he's active is great. Ditto rshevin on maybe a little mush, especially if he is fond of it.

GP Estates
Supporter in '08

Post   » Sat Feb 14, 2009 10:43 am


I've had trouble keeping weight on all my older ones, even without illness - and none have lived anywhere near as long as Henry! I wish I could say I've found something that works to put weight on them but that's no the case. I have given several of them daily dishes of mashed potato consistency CC and they love it but I can't say they've gained weight on it.

Sorry, not much help here but he sounds happy and healthy so it sounds like you're really doing everything right.

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TWP_2

Post   » Sat Feb 14, 2009 1:19 pm


Rshevin, you nailed it--boney hips (and spine, too), but belly fat is there.

It is like his weight shifted when he had the post-surgery weight loss and then regained. He lost it uniformly, but then what he gained back he gained back in his belly.

To be honest, I think he's more comfortable running around at around 2 pounds than he was at closer to 2.5. We just don't want to stop being vigilant about his health.

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