Topaz's Zoey

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Topaz

Post   » Thu Jan 05, 2012 3:03 pm


I've just brought our new family member, Zoey, home. She is a 4 year old, beautiful blonde American girl. And she looks big! I think her mom said she's close to 3 lbs. I will weigh her in a day or two.

She looks healthy as can be but I've got a couple of questions/concerns.

Her poops are very big in diameter. I don't think they are really any longer than my other girl's poops, just much much fatter. They also look a little oddly shaped. Not quite so uniform, one end looks a little different than the other.

I'm wondering if having bigger poops is "normal" for some pigs or if it could indicate some kind of problem?

I also noticed that on her back, right foot, her outside toe juts out from the others quite a bit. The nail is also longer on that toe.

I'll try to get pictures of both issues when I can get a better look at her. These were only quick assessments. I'm not going to mess with her too much until she gets settled in.

tiggyswift

Post   » Thu Jan 05, 2012 8:16 pm


Did you ask her mom if the large poops are normal for her? As for her toe, maybe it is a deformity or an old injury? One of my boars has a toe deformity on both of his front feet, the same toe on both feet are curved and the nails on those toes grow to the side. I got him when he was about 2 -3 months old and his toes have always been like that, I am not sure why.

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Catie Cavy
Supporter 2011-2020

Post   » Thu Jan 05, 2012 8:36 pm


Just guessing, but could the poops be a result of a change in diet? Did she eat any new fruits or vegetables with you that she wasn't used to eating?

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angiemthomas

Post   » Fri Jan 06, 2012 12:51 am


One of my piggies (out of 5) has enormous poops. Always has. I always know what poops belong to "Little Guy" because they look like the Goodyear blimp.

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Topaz

Post   » Fri Jan 06, 2012 12:51 pm


I spoke to Zoey's previous owner and she says she's always had big poops. I've heard males have bigger poops but have never seen such big ones on any of my other females so it was a little alarming.

As for the toe, she said her vet thought the nail was maybe cut too short while Zoey very little and still in the pet store. So, she says it's always been this way. It doesn't seem to bother her so I'm not concerned.

As far as poops go, today I am a bit more concerned about that. I felt better after talking to her previous owner and hearing that they've always been big, but now they've become much looser over night and I even had to do a foot bath as she was getting poop shoes. I don't know if this is a potential problem or if it could be due to all of the stress she's been through yesterday and today.

Her mom says there has been no problem with loose poops. I will give her a day or two, cut back on greens a bit and anything like cucumbers or fruit, and hopefully the mushy poo is because she's still scared and not eating normally.

By that I mean that she's not been eating much hay. At all. I keep shoving it up near her hidey, trying different kinds, but have not seen her eat any of it. She is eating pellets, but no hay. She's also not drinking much. Maybe scared to come out and go to the water bottle?

I have just given her a few greens sprinkled with probiotics and will check on her in a bit and see if she's eaten them.

It's almost as if she's reverting or something. Later in the day yesterday she seemed to be coming out of her shell. Now she seems to be scared and is hiding a lot again.

Also, another concern is her weight. I was told that she was a big girl and nearly three pounds. She looks big to me but when I weighed her today, she was only 2 lbs. 2.4 ounces. I again spoke to her previous owner and she said a month or so ago, Zoey was at around 2 lbs. 8 oz. That's a substantial loss.

Lots to consider here. Big change for her with losing her friend, big change with coming here. I don't know. Time will tell I guess but if things are not looking better with the soft poop and not eating hay, I'll get her into the vet's first thing next week. The drinking too. I am giving her very wet greens though.

Is it possible that loose poops could be caused by not enough hay and stress/change?

Catie Cavy, no, no new foods.

dmppiggie

Post   » Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:28 pm


Dottie has monster poops! It's kind of sad I can look around the cage and know how each if them are . . . Uh . . . doing . . . just by their poops!

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:55 pm


I would start weighing daily now if you haven't already decided to do so. It might pay to have her teeth checked (perhaps you can check them yourself).

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Topaz

Post   » Fri Jan 06, 2012 6:05 pm


I will definitely weigh daily. I didn't get a look at her back teeth, but I did check her front teeth today and they look good. Nice and even and not overly long. That was my first thought as well with the not eating hay, Lynx.

I may have been jumping the gun a little. Her poops are firming up a bit, she's been nibbling on hay(the pile in front of her has really dwindled), she is eating pellets, about a quarter of her water is gone, and this afternoon she ate the green leaf and chicory/endive I gave her sprinkled with probiotics.

I am hopefully optimistic. I should probably try to chill a little and stop posting on here so much(and contacting her previous owner with 50 million questions, the poor girl). I think I'm being a little paranoid, but in my defense, I've never had a pig not eat hay and it's been YEARS since I've dealt with loose poos. One of my first pigs had issues with that continually.

But again, happy to say that Zoey's poos are looking a little firmer.

I will continue to go easy on the veggies, I'll only give red leaf, green leaf, escarole, and endive for now in smallish amounts(no peppers, cucumbers, etc...and obviously no fruit either), and I'll keep sprinkling the probiotic on those. If things look good in a couple of days, I'll start reintroducing a small amount of pepper, then maybe cucumber...later on fruit. One at a time to see how she does.

And of course I will just keep shoving hay right in her face wherever she happens to be. I am starting to think that her refusal to eat hay(and resulting diarrhea) could have been due to stress from the long car ride and being in a new place.

We'll see!

Ddmppiggie, there will be NO mistaking this girls poos if/when I put her in with my girls!

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Catie Cavy
Supporter 2011-2020

Post   » Sat Jan 07, 2012 9:09 am


Part of the weight loss, although probably not all, could be due to a difference in scales. The important thing now is that you are weighing her daily on the same scale.

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Topaz

Post   » Sat Jan 07, 2012 4:10 pm


True.

Today she was down one ounce. I'll continue weighing.

She is eating better, more hay and still loving her pellets and greens. Things are looking better. Poops are MUCH better. But she was SOOO quiet last night.

When I first got my Diamond(who also stayed in my bedroom for a week or two), I could hear her puttering around the cage at night. She would drink, munch hay, etc. This girl is so quiet. I think she would prefer to just stay under her hidey.

Therefore, I removed it for a couple of hours today, to get her to putter around the cage a bit. And it worked. She munched hay, went in her cuddle cup for a while, and drank some water. I'm going to do this each day for a little while just to give her a little push, so to speak.

I think this girl just needs to become a part of my herd. I think it would do her a world of good. I'm sure she misses her friend terribly. But I won't do that until I am 100% sure that she is healthy.

I wanna do it NOW!!! Geez, the waiting is the hardest part. Now I'm thinking of the Tom Petty song...

Talishan
You can quote me

Post   » Sat Jan 07, 2012 11:07 pm


In the meantime, can she see/hear/smell your girls? She knows there are other pigs in the house?

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Topaz

Post   » Sun Jan 08, 2012 8:52 am


No, she's upstairs in my bedroom and my other girls are downstairs. I want to make sure she is healthy before having her around the others. Her cage mate died unexpectedly so I'm a little nervous that she could have contracted something.

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