Fuzzbutt's Medical

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Talishan
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Post   » Thu Jan 28, 2016 1:57 pm


Scurvy attacks connective tissue. A piggy that moves painfully, and/or actually has loosened teeth is likely low in C.

That said, they don't need much. A pig given KM's pellets and even a few greens is not likely to develop scurvy.

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GrannyJu1
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Post   » Fri Jan 29, 2016 2:36 am


Thanks, I know I'm a big worry-wart. Like the new med student who suddenly finds himself seeing nasty, deadly diseases because he has ONE symptom of them. ;o) I see them in my pigs, hahaha!

My new vet (the one in Olympia - Farmhouse - said he's about to take possession of a dental x-ray machine (film, not digital), and he's positive he'll get better definition with that, so we've decided to wait for more x-rays until then - less than a month, he's sure.

Talishan
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Post   » Sat Jan 30, 2016 1:38 pm


Sounds good. Keep us posted.

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GrannyJu1
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Post   » Thu Feb 11, 2016 5:23 am


I may have been dissing the wrong pig when it comes to smells. I sit here at my desk the last few days and even though I just changed the cage bedding a few days ago, the odor is nauseating. I'm wondering if I'm smelling boarfume. I actually had to cover the trash can holding the poops and hay from the dirty cages (I scoop twice a day usually) with another trash bag it was so bad. That was several hours ago and I can still smell it a little. I know it sounds like I just need to take the bag out to the trash can, but that's not true. This smell has just started (week or 10 days), definitely since I raised their cages off the floor.

All this time I've been blaming it on Fuzz, but I suppose it could be Peek (neutered boar). Fuzz is the one with the food-vs-soft-stinky-poos issue. I know she does have the issues; she's been a lot better since I restricted her diet to lettuce and carrots (a very small piece of fruit now and then, and a small bite of some new food I'd like to try her on). But I can't figure out why I'm suddenly smelling the discards so strongly. Hmmm, could be I'm the one with the problem, not the pigs. I'll have to pursue that thought more tomorrow.

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Lynx
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Post   » Thu Feb 11, 2016 8:37 am


Seeing any green soft stinky poops in the cage?

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GrannyJu1
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Post   » Thu Feb 11, 2016 9:35 am


Soft poos, yes, stinky or sticky: a few stuck to fleece now and then, but usually none stuck to piggy feet. Stinky, definitely. As I scoop, I sweep them all (or most of 'em) together then pick them up. That can be smelly, or I'll lean over a corner of the cage to clean, or even one that's already been cleared, and that can be smelly. Greenish poos? Nope.

What exactly causes boar odor? Can neutered boars produce it? (Peek)

Do grease glands smell, and/or leave the fleece smelling awful? I just noticed yesterday what I think might be a dirty one on The Veeb. I won't have time to give her a bath today, but definitely will tomorrow. (I hate doctors of all kinds. Except vets. Maybe I need to go see one of those for me, that way I won't be discriminating) So, bath for Vee tomorrow; extreme exam for Peek and Fuzz. That's what I have planned anyway.

Poor Fuzz; all this time I blamed her simply because she's the one with the soft poos, for the most part. I have to figure this out for all of our sakes. One of them could be sick or if not, simply because I already spend a great part of my day nauseated from my meds.

Another puzzling odor came from the other cage and while I did manage to isolate the source, again I can't figure out the cause; it was a sour, wet soft wood smell. It had to be urine, but not a normal urine odor. It came from one of the fleece cloths I put under the hay, and I have had a heck of a time washing it out. Naturally I washed it with other dirty items then the whole dang load came out smelling to high heaven. I washed the load twice more and finally used Nature's Miracle. The smell is still there but very, very faint.

I'd say it's all in my head (I've been having really strange olfactory hallucinations lately), except my husband can also smell these two odors, just not as strongly as I.

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Lynx
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Post   » Thu Feb 11, 2016 1:01 pm


There is a scent gland that produces odors. The poops, urine (urine also when a pig has a UTI) all produce odors.

I suspect the special poops which you are not seeing as green may have been more green when I saw them because I was feeding lots of fresh grass and some romaine. Cecal feces are very stinky. Interestingly, chickens also produce them. They are smaller, dark and mushy, and smell the most.

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GrannyJu1
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Post   » Fri Feb 12, 2016 9:41 am


Whatever it was seems to have dissipated since I turned the flippers. Maybe I just waited too long to do so. My absorbent fabric may not be as effective as uhaul felt, but it's a darn sight cheaper. I'll just have to get used to it and clean the cage a a day or so earlier. I suspect Fuzz may have eaten something she shouldn't have, since it hasn't re-occured. Besides, we all know how paranoid I can be.

Talishan
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Post   » Sat Feb 13, 2016 3:57 am


Paranoid is far better than negligent. Carry on. ;-)

I will say that feces mixed in with hay dust, then peed on makes a wretched smell. FWIW.

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GrannyJu1
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Post   » Sun Feb 14, 2016 12:10 pm


RE: arthritis and pain meds

The only things they've ever found with her was some gas (not surprising with her soft, smelly poos) and some arthritis. It seems as if it wasn't too long after I brought her home, maybe 4-6 months old, she quit popcorns and laps. Unless she's running from me, she's a slow mover, and even then, she's the easiest to catch. She wheeks a little but not as much as her cage mates. One vet put her on the daily dose of .78 (lowest strength) of the Metacam, another concurred with the diagnoses of arthritis and agreed with the treatment plan. At first I was really bad about giving it to her & Peek daily, then when I did manage to get into the habit of daily dosing, it took a week for me to notice she was even less mobile - out of choice it appeared but still less, so I took her off it. It had been a month or more since I quit when I noticed how miserable she was last week, hunched, puffed (that's hard to notice with her breed!), so I gave her the tiniest dose I could draw up of the strongest strength Metacam (1.5ml). Suddenly I had the romping baby I hadn't seen in forever, back.

Our vet told me a few weeks ago he was expecting to receive a dental x-ray machine and we should wait until then to do more x-rays because the detail would be a world of difference from the digital ones done last summer/fall, so we've been waiting. I'll call his office to see if he's received it and just forgot to call me. If they don't have a definitely (soon) date for getting it, think I should just go ahead and get the regular old fashioned film x-rays he uses?

I haven't told him yet about the incident last week where I gave her the equivalent of 2 little drops of Metacam. Do you think it would be worth it to try her on that as a daily regimen? Or will that raise the risk more dangerous results? The one tiny dose has appeared to give her some relief for a little over 24 hours now. I'm not sure how she's feeling today. Didn't see any popcorns or play with Peek and/or The Veeb last night. Yesterday morning she was still going strong.

I'm not sure if Dr. W's practice is open today, but will call as soon as husband wakes up so my voice doesn't disturb him.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sun Feb 14, 2016 1:07 pm


I am guessing the vet would go along with trying some tiny doses to see if it makes a difference. The tiny dose might have been a fluke or might have been the cause of improving.

Talishan
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Post   » Sun Feb 14, 2016 7:16 pm


From your pain meds thread: Rimadyl (carprofen).

The first vet we ever saw used carprofen, because Metacam wasn't in common use for small furries at the time. I've had a handful of pigs unable to tolerate Metacam for more than a few days who did just fine on Rimadyl.

NSAIDs work both the liver and kidneys. It's my understanding Rimadyl is a little harder on the liver and Metacam a little harder on the kidneys, but in my opinion chronic pain relief is much more important unless the pig is in outright kidney or liver compromise.

One vet wanted bloodwork every six months for a long-term Rimadyl patient. There was never any problem that appeared with it.

You could go up to a low dose of a mild narcotic like Tramadol, but that shouldn't be necessary (yet, anyway).

Rimadyl does not come in a liquid and will need to be compounded by a veterinary pharmacy. Here's the one my vet uses:

http://www.roadrunnerpharmacy.com/

You can compound it yourself, but most vets only have the chewables for dogs that are loaded with a liver-flavored filler. If your vet uses a tablet, they need to get these:

http://www.revivalanimal.com/Carprofen- ... neric.html

CAPLET NOT CHEWABLE!

All that said, if tinytiny doses of 1.5 mg/mL Metacam does the trick without crashing her, go with that.

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