Osteodystrophy and Satins

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Becky

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:05 pm


Here are a couple of pictures. The first two show how he used to lay in very strange positions. The third one is his alfalfa/tanning booth.

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CavyHouse
Supporter in '11

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:42 pm


Those are the positions Zeuss lies in too... It makes me feel encouraged to know that you were able to reverse it from this stage.

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CavyHouse
Supporter in '11

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:45 pm


Piggster - If you're serious about possibly wanting the red satin male, that would be great. I can put you in contact directly with the person who contacted me. They live in Oakland and I'm in La HOnda. If your contact information is current (San Bruno) then you're actually located half way between Oakland and La Honda. The person was going to deliver the piggy to me so I'm sure they wouldn't mind not having to drive all the way to La Honda.

Let me know and I'll PM (is that the right term??) the contact information and introduce you via email to the person looking to rehome the piggy.

I would love for the satin to go to someone knowledgeable about their potential problems.

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CavyHouse
Supporter in '11

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:47 pm


Piggster - by the way, you probably know this already but you can get piggies neutered at Palo Alto Animal Services for $40. Dr. Bonnie Yoffee does the neuters and she has done tons of neuters - I think Cavy Spirit uses them too?? But the people looking to rehome the piggy have offered to contribute towards the neutering so the price may not even be an issue.

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rshevin

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:47 pm


Sue, I would think it best to have the light in a spot where he can easily move in and out versus confining him in that box. Yes, he'll get less overall exposure that way, but if he gets warm, he can move and go get a drink of water.

ChunkyPiggies

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 3:00 pm


Remember that even though you supplement with calcium, the body needs either vit D or PTH to absorb and use this calcium. Ask about giving calcitriol (active vit D) to go along with the calcium supplement. Especially if the pig has some sort of renal insufficiency (remember that bloodwork will not reflect abnormal values until over 75% of the organ has been compromised), since the kidney is responsible for almost all of the activation of vit D, the pig may not be able to absorb calcium too well. The body then produces PTH (parathyroid hormone) to fulfill this job... however, this can lead to hyperparathyroid in the long run.

Watch for Ca:P ratios too. You don't want urolith formations, as becky pointed out. Sorry, nutrition and bone stuff is not a strong point for me.

Mum's idea of using a sun lamp is also a good idea. Vit D is absorbed mostly through sunlight. Oral absorption is pretty poor in all species.

Please check wtih your vets. A lot of large breed dogs have bone issues so most vets should be pretty familiar. I'm just throwing out ideas ;-)

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rshevin

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 3:07 pm


D is also a fat soluble vitamin so it's possible to overdose.

ChunkyPiggies

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 3:08 pm


Yup. Though oral absorption is pretty poor. Most of it just passes. Sunlight is probably a better option.

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Mum
I GAVE, dammit!

Post   » Sun Mar 23, 2008 8:54 pm


The reptile lamp has worked very well for Heddwyn. I relied on that alone to take care of the Vitamin D aspect.

But note, this is an expensive light - $50 for the bulb. Still cheaper than dealing with a sick pig :-p I don't think the cheaper bulbs had the same ratings, which is why I went with this one.

I need to rexray Heddwyn and see what his bones look like now. I'm hesitant to remove all calcium. Becky, do you remember Dr. N's suggestion as to the amount of calcium? Is there a maintenance dose?

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Piggster

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2008 9:53 am


Cavyhouse - I'll contact you through the mailer tonight about getting in touch with his owner in Oakland. I'm starting a new job today so I'll be in touch after 6pm tonight. leebee from Cavy Spirit told me about Palo Alto performing neuters - that is great since SFACC isn't currently doing them.

Hopefully they do neuters on Saturdays so I can coordinate to get him neutered on the weekend. I spoke to my friend who so graciously is my " pig emergency" person and he is more than happy to help me get him neutered. I will be SO happy again when I have a car, which should be by the end of June.

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Becky

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2008 8:05 pm


I was giving him 75mg, but Nakamura wanted about half of that amount once we saw a reversal of the bone loss. I did cut it down to 50 shortly before the stone.

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Mum
I GAVE, dammit!

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2008 9:19 pm


I was giving him 75mg, but Nakamura wanted about half of that amount once we saw a reversal of the bone loss. I did cut it down to 50 shortly before the stone.
Was that once daily?

I ask, because Heddwyn is now on 75mg once daily. If your advice was for once daily, I'll cut it immediately.

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