Murmeli's Caviary
For guinea pig health since 2003
Murmeli's Caviary
For guinea pig health since 2003
Welcome! I Hope you find these pages informative and good tips for our buddies.
Right on!
So it happened that right after our Myrtsi passed away longed our Emma for greener pastures as well. Only two weeks after we put our Myrtsi under the yard of our old family home in the countryside Emma's appetite went bad. Already six years in July our granny's health was compromised by slowly declining weight, muscle tone, mild arthritis and irritating lump of growth in the right ear, but her appetite or posture was never questioned before this. A heat lamp was already there a heritage left by Myrtsi housed in the same cage so there hasn't been a change in the surroundings or feeding one way or the other.
We arranged hand feeding two times a day, the pig was looked after more than usual, the yard and lawn was searched often in the dark with a search light in prospect of finding the last unharmed leaves of dandelion under the frost and snow. We tried to balance her with Metacam, 2 drops of 1.5mg/ml solution twice a day for about a week. Also at times her chewing wasn't too frequent because of mildly heaving sides, we tried a trial of Benazepril but without a positive response.
For a moment her condition normalized, food did go down on its own and her weight maintained as well but then she fasted again and also had watery diarrhea. The call had to be made and Emma went with her long since passed daughter Raili and Myrtsi.
Our grey faced Pikku-Myy is gone. Wednesday evening just before handing out of the greenies our granny was looking ill, her other eye seemed inflamed but in closer inspection turned out to be a reaction to dehydration. The pig had started fasting earlier in the day, looked sick in her stomach, momentarily went on pooping a large amount of small pellets, and accepted no treat introduced to her (prior this her appetite has always been excellent). We started hand feeding to restore hydration, this helped some and in Thursday morning she looked better but her appetite was still completely amiss. Taking into account her advanced age and general health the only sensible choice was to let Myrtsi go to her passed away daughter Viiru to greener pastures. Longing after Myrtsi especially will be Emma whom we will now try to accommodate with Taavi who has recently been molested by her sister Papu the reason why these two are no longer housed together.
Myrtsi's malady was likely in her liver. For a longer time she has looked puffed as if pregnant which suggest fluids in the abdominal cavity.
Caviary's crop of 2011 has been collected from our acquainted farmer at Tornio's Ruohokari. The former crop was eaten to the very last bale and straw but now we are once again filled with good smelling green stuff for another year. 25 bales of about 200 kgs total cost 60 Euros. There is a picture on the gallery.
Caviary's Emma has turned six. Her correct age is unknown, but we brought the sow to us from Kemijärvi in May 2006 with her since passed away daughter Raili so there has been five years together already. Her appearance remains much the same, the hair is a bit darker where it is red and she has lost about 100 grams of her younger days but in other ways the years have done her exceptionally well. Emma remains herself, quiet and passive cage mate towards Pikku-Myy she passes the days of her pension with while occasionally free ranging on the floor or caged outdoors on the lawn.
Mauno, caviarys straightforward gentleman is gone. After being in declining state of weight during the spring his posture went from slim to bony (up weight 1050 grams, down at 900 grams) appetite went poor and as the boy looked tired and miserable despite all treats and attention, the call had to be made. Longing after his special cries of food and attention will be us the hands that kept on feeding him.
Mauno was brought to us by his previous owner by train all the way from Helsinki in May 2009. This aristocrat of a pig was something special since he rejected all our feeds and especially hay right from the start. After some initial trial and error and about 100 grams of body weight we found harmony and Mauno prospered with special hay purchased exclusively for him from Faunatar (very soft and leafy) and a feed from M&M (Science Selective Guinea Pig). However it was not very long until the real reason behind appeared. Mauno suffered from the same condition that took our sow Viiru at age of two in the spring of 2008. Boils and decalcification of the lower jaw bone made eating solids and coarse stuff extra hard for him because cheek bones themselves or teeth gave away causing him pain while chewing. This hideous malady is now the second case and relatively new phenomenon to us. Before Viiru and during the twenty or so years of pigs I have never seen the condition. Also with our latest innovations and courses of action ensuring the best possible care and food to our pigs I have taken things for granted. As reality has now proven me otherwise some theory and/or course of action must arise, if at all possible, to make sure this condition does not occur again on another pig, ever.
There has been some clues that either a hereditary factor (Mauno is registered pig and there are satin carriers on his family tree, on Viiru's case the information is not available) and/or the current trend where commercial feeds get saturated with Vitamin D3 and this linked with generous distribution to the food bowl (with maintenance feeds possible) it is plausible the demineralization of the jaw is caused by hyper activity of calcium exchange in the bones by super saturation of macro minerals. The subject has been covered extensively in the recent article of mine dealing with equation of calcium and phosphorous and UTIs. In the article consensus is that a guinea pigs do well with only marginal amount of macro minerals including the substance that allows them to ingest: Vitamin-D3. Overdosing D3 as well as deficiency can cause decalcification of bones, and where there seems to be a sudden increase of these problems in pigs (UTIs, jaw problems), one should look into mineral content and handed amounts of feeds first.
We have or so I'd like to believe now put this problem to rest but I still wait with great enthusiasm any call and contact who has a pig that suffers the condition(s).
Faunatar the pet shop has ceased its business in Kemi after little less than two years of action. For our caviary this means we once again have to resort ordering all of our feeds through the web. In addition in Faunatar we lost a great supplier of top quality hay, which for the challenged for health such as our Mauno has been a life saver.
For a reason or another exotic animal, feed and supplies dealers don't do well over here even though I managed to close many good deals with them and begin talks of exclusive collaboration to enrich knowledge of exotic animals among the general public. May the future be brighter for us.
According to caviary's calendar Little-Myy has turned six. Her correct age is not known but since her face shows clear signs and shades of grey the approximation cannot be less. Myrtsi was brought to us in the spring of 2006 from Tyrnävä. Today our granny spends her days of pension one on one with caviary's Emma. Myrtsi's general health is good with the exception of both eyes which went dark with cataracts and glaucoma.
Our girls have a portrait taken over the gallery.
Our boar Mauno has had trouble again with his rotting mandible, his weight on the low side (lowest 980 grams), appetite gone, and the pig looking as if in pain. We started analgesics, three drops of Metacam (1.5mg/ml) and support with hand feeding of about 50ml daily. This helped and now, three days later his weight is up by 60 grams, the piggy is cheerful and can be heard squeaking after his critical care being prepared in the kitchen. We will continue supporting him and this stuff we already know so well since Mauno in his earlier support episodes has already munched through two packs of oath meal and few kilograms of Altromin performance feed. Also the soft quality hay we keep acquiring from the pet store Faunatar seems to be the one to keep his gut moving and droppings man sized.
The most recent newcomer, Kalle (3year) has proven to be quite the personality, caviary's bundle of joy and source of mayhem. As he came to us he didn't quite grasp the joys of exiting the cage and free ranging (was housed in a Duna) and these things had to be taught by hand. Now there is no stopping Kalle and we must allow him the nightshift so that he unleash all that energy. Kalle purrs on the floor all day and steals crisp bread from the feed container. He trashes empty food bowls about and unless given a go for some floor time, will start furious rattling of the cage bars. His weight has risen considerably and Kalle is now the mightiest boar of our caviary at 1350 grams.
Murmeli's caviary wishes all readers a merry xmas. To glorify the day caviary's posse gathered for a group photo, but after fifteen minutes trying, squeaking and coats smudged in pee one had to give up. The dogs could not fit, would not stay put, Papu and Taavi went ballistic and cruised back and forth with Mauno on their backs marking and harrassing. Emma stressed out and Myrtsi blind, almost dropped off the couch several times. Surpricingly Ykä and especially Kalle were indifferent and after introduction stayed cool through it all.
Murmeli's caviary is in a period of mourning again. Our great personality, Sissi has departed and the household feels empty even though there are still seven munching hairy friends with us. Empty though she wasn't the loudest pig, nor the biggest, nor the most beautiful. Empty because Sissi was our first adopted pig and with her example has lead the way of our late activities. We got six long hay munching years with her, some grievance and trouble got along as well, but carrying her name she ploughed through hardship and medial problems, lumps and tumors that were removed by surgery. Eventually her days came to end at the clinic where we had to go because of her deteriorating health, stubborn UTI and weakening of the front and hind legs. Till the last moment and bright eyed our girl held her dignity, munched hay and pooped prone while taking all the care and shrugs with firmness so typical to her.
Missing her will be the caretakers of the house above all else but our Sissi is in a good company. Men of her life, Ville, Wiljami and Wagner have surely already wondered from their green pastures, as where did the girl stayed after for so long.
There is a summary of Sissi's first years with us at the gallery here.
Caviary's feed stock has received much anticipated replenishment. We have been using Supreme cavy feeds for a year now, and one could say it is because of this fine cracker alone that our glass jaw Mauno is still with the gang and yet in packed condition. Season 2010 has been negative for of guinea pig feeds overall, and availability of several brands such as Supreme, Oxbow and Lottie has been declined in our immediate area while new brands (Versele-Laga) have been populating the shelves of petshops. Personally I don't like this kind of campaigning one bit and once you find a good one, you should continue to have it instead been forced to follow the quirks of importers and playing Russian roulette with individuals challenged in health.
Fortunately we have webshops and when needed abroad. This time I selected Zooplus.com which I briefly acquainted myself with in the last spring. The Finnish branch (Zooplus.fi) had Supreme ran out but surprisingly in the German warehouse it was on a whole sale € 9,59 a bag. I immediately (1.12) placed an order of eight bags with which I ditched dispatch (over € 70 is shipped without handling), received some coupon, the order was shipped the next day (2.12), and I collected it today from my local post office where the package had been bounched after already been at my doorstep. Some seriously fast service this is :-)
Seven years in last August our Sissi's journey has now turned into finals, and different problems gradually building up has lead to a verdict that extension of her life much further makes little sense. The girl so far has been in a relatively good mood, depending on the day, but her general condition does not show signs of improvement, unfortunately. Her gradually weakened front legs have led to a condition that Sissi can not move properly in the cage, and relies stumbling on her elbows instead. This means she cannot eat and especially drink enough, which can easily lead to dehydration and her already known urinary stone problem getting worse.
Inspired by an example of a fellow enthusiast, we have experimented Sissi with additional nutrients for joint metabolism and damage control including glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate. A similar nutrient called Cartivet is known for dealing with canine arthritis. The product we chose aimed for horses 'Racing Joint Control' can be obtained from Agrimarket. For a guinea pig, we calculated appropriate dose of about 50mg per kg of body weight (1/20 part of 1ml size spoon), Sissi has received the nutrient for about a week, but so far it has not had the desired effect. Her urine has constantly visible blood in it, and for a remedy we gave a short course of Bactrim that helped. However if the legs do not show improvement fast, time cas come to an end for Sissi.
Our ranks got suddenly strenghtened by Kalle (3year), a call initiated and alarmed by a relative. His head already on the block this boar shall now enjoy his pension with us. Weight on the lowside (1118 grams) but otherwise well in general health our newest hermit shall learn the way of the house in his good own time. While he likes the scrathing on the head he is less than miserable with handling. Wary outside his cage and hushed overall (typical to hermits) he still popcorns promisingly while on the loose and gets excited when I rattle treat bags. Hopefully still being a pig in his prime he will come around.
Age of seven by the end of this month Sissi had a small hay spike in her right eye, which had been there for some time, the penalty being that the cornea formed a dip and developed corneal inflammation. Friday afternoon was perhaps the worst possible moment for observation, but already after an hour and just before closing time I got a recipe (I took a couple of pictures from Sissi's eye and showed them to the vet while the pig stayed home), and then went on by the local pharmacy to collect the drug. I think it's some sort of speed record for this one, and I bow toward vets and clinic of small town Simo south from us being the sole place of help for small animals in the southern Lapland where others care little or aren't able to deliver.
Sissi's eye is being treated diligently, and footage from it will end up on the basic care article and eye department.
At one month short of four years Mauno's problems in his lower jaw now year old and counting have come to stay, and are likely to be the limiting factor of his life. The lower jaw has almost constantly a stoma, the pig smells rotten, and the other incisor came off its roots, and has not grown back. At the moment and so far the boy has been brisk and cheerful, and has not needed any boosting (hand feeding) on his daily routine. Here's how it has worked so far when hay and the type of feed chosen are as soft as possible for our little glass jaw.
Murmeli's caviary is in a period of mourning.
Our brave and fearless girl Nepa (Lilli) is gone. The heart medication Benazepril we tried was a positive surprise, the girl's activity level grew significantly initially, but then gradually began to drop due insufficient appetite and tooth usage. This ultimately led to molar overgrowth and drooling. 20.5. We went to Oulun Lemmikki for dental operation (*), the teeth were honed back to their normal limits but the operation did not have the desired effect and drooling continued. Last week she was practically completely dependent of hand feeding and her weight remained at the lowest level of 750g (-250g). Her elimination I was nominal, there were no signs of stomach problems or gas and any pain was treated with medication. She had some interest in soft foods such as cucumber and banana but got frustrated quickly and gave up trying. Ever-increasing drooling also made it difficult to administer drugs.
During her last health inspection vet heard a heart murmur. Nepa was not known for audible hooting, lungs were not filled with fluid, and using the medication in Nepas case really helped normalizing and easing up breathing sounds and movements. By GL's example the selected Benatzeprilhydrochloride 1.25 mg twice a day was held until the end.
Nepa to my knowledge, was about three and a half years old when she died, and came to us exactly a year ago. In particular, she will be missed dearly by Mauno who was a her cagemate.
Mauno's cheeck abscesses in asymptomatic state are once again waiting for the next episode, the pig has energy, appetite is excellent, and weight is in a good upswing (1170g) though in the mouth his legos point here and there because of maloclusion.
This time around we made it on our own bursting and draining the contents of a large abscess with an injection needle (Terumo 1.1x40mm), and removing the immediate area of hair with a trimmer so that any puss to come out would not stick up, dry and form a plug to prevent draining. So far, the abscess has resurfaced itself three times in the lower jaw to the right, once left, and while the duration of each period has lasted about a month. The future will show if Mauno suffers this condition for the rest of his life, but at least after the latest episode we know how to work better and smarter, and faith for a brighter future in his case slowly increases. Also we continue to strengthen the chap's bones with a vitamin-D rich feed (Supreme Science Selective Guinea Pig), this delicious and relatively soft cracker is ideal support for the glass jaw Mauno.
Nepa's (3year) condition has gradually turned for worse, difficulty breathing and appetite gone has made her weight take a plunge of 150 grams from the normal state (currently 850g). Initially we trialed Bactrim for ten days which about two months ago when we visited Lemmikki was put on the side, but this had little benefit. A week before Labor Day the girl was very tired and breathless, hardly bothered to raise her head from the hay bed, and just lay bananas under the heat lamp all day long. Eating was slow and laborious looking. Her paws seemed cool to the touch, even though she spent all her time under the heat lamp. She did not voluntarily take hand feeding, and knowing already the poor prognosis of her lung images and the basis of the symptoms I considered euthanasia. As a last resort with a veterinary consent I started Nepsu with heart medication Prilben Vet (Fortekor, the active ingredient Benatzeprilhydroclorid) 1.25 mg twice a day. Quarter of the 5mg tablet was soaked in a shot glass with about half milliliters of water, and sprayed to the guinea pig's mouth.
After two and a half days later and five doses of medication I got surprised seeing Nepsu springing onto the floor, something she had not done for several weeks. Now, five days (10 doses) after the initiation of dosing the activity level has greatly improved, breathing movements are back to normal, and Nepsu sits happily on his food bowl, begs and reacts to her surroundings. Her weight has not yet seen an increase, but at this very moment the situation looks good and 100% better than a week ago.
Thumbs and toes up for Nepsu's behalf :-)
Mauno's lower mandible has again formed an abscess size of a grape, and Mr. wasted 100g of his body weight in a day (minimum 1050 g), a clear sign of pain in the mouth. Metacam and hand feeding therapy is re-started, and which so far has had positive reaction. What I don't understand is why these problems persist (he had already been abscessless for more than one month), unless the dear lord's jaw bone resorption has gone same way as the deceased Viiru had as a sign of root growth in her X-rays. Mauno's papers and family tree has several satin carriers, so it is possible that the problem and its origins is hereditary.
Caviary's article department has received a much-anticipated addition, which deals extensively with calcium metabolism in guinea pigs and its problems (urinary sludge, infections, stones). Anticipated in the sense that I have put on hours for material placement more than with any previous topic, this is by far the largest article, and because the mind longs for writing on other topics already :-)
Here you can get directly to the article.
Caviary has moved back to tap water. In spring 2006 we started the low calcium bottled water experiment, a solution sought for our deceased Wagner and his urinary problems, came to end and caviary's inmates began to re-accustom to tap water (total hardness dH = 10). The fact that we continued this practice for over a year after the boy had passed, is due to caviary's Sissi, which sometimes expresses similar symptoms and congestion, and whose background investigations lately confirmed urinary stones. The change was carried out gradually by mixing a refrigerator held 10-liter container with tap water while monitoring the consumption of hay for Mauno, the worst of the gang whose risk for diarrhea is the highest.
Mauno weighs now 1120g (his healthy level is 1200-1250g, the lowest point so far: 1020g) and recovery proceeds normally. We had troubles throughout the first week, the weight didn't turn positive despite pain medication we tested on, and the feces came out low and mushy. Pain Medication was traded for hand feeding 2-3 times a day, and the boy began to collect mass at a rate of about 10 grams per day. Hay consumption and the use of teeth need to be constantly monitored, because this was already second dental mission conducted within the year, and because Mr. seems to be so very precise of what to put in his mouth. Neighboring girls are so much cooler than the pile of hay under the nose, so is this to say the grass really greener on the other side?
Again at Oulu's Lemmikki. The last time we were here was only a couple of days before the new years eve deciding for the girl Nella's misery on her serious liver malady. This time around the subject for visit was Mauno's (3 years) chewing gear because appetite and weight was once again collapsed (no abscess on the cheek this time). In Riitta Liisa's checkup we saw that the molars were overgrown partially trapping the tongue, so anesthesia and molar filing had to be done. Incisors were trimmed too.
Along on the road were also caviary's granny, Sissi (six years) and rescue Nepa (three years). As we go our way to another city like this (driving distance approx 1h, 15min) it makes sense to take along more than one pig compromised in health. Like this the trip won't be in vain, the vet can give a checkup for all, and decide who needs aid the most.
Nepa (formerly named Lilli) according to my information about her past has been ill, and as she joined us in May last year she was clearly underweight. Nepsu's biggest problems are in her airways, breathing movements are bigger than normal, and sometimes wheezing can be heard in the upper respitary tract. So we took an X-ray and it showed 'cloudiness' at the bottom of her lungs suggesting scarring, and it means that the girl's chest volume is no longer healthy, which in turn means that the situation must be addressed at least with a clean cage and draft free environment. a course of ab-treatment was discussed as well, but I decided only to monitor the situation at this time. Nepsu's weight and appetite is excellent and the pig is well spirited and playful. A bottle of Bactrim can be found in the closet as a spare.
Caviary's veteran Sissi was taken along because of her urinary problems, which have been intermittent for several years (dip stick blood, squeaking during urination). Caviary's X-ray cataloque 02/12/2007 shows a possible unconfirmed stone. We took another X-ray and also did an ultrasound to strengthen our findings. In her bladder Sissi has a somewhat loose around fingertip-sized mass of congealed blood and crystals. I pondered the possibility of surgery, but decided against it at this time. Sissi has been a dream patient, she has gone under three times already (removed a mammary gland and cancer tumor, removed an abscess on her butt cheek, removed the uterus, ovaries and a second tumor), but has lately come of age, and her last surgery took so much more time to recover compared to previous one that I do not would no longer be burdened small. Sissi, while paying attention to her diet remains almost asymptomatic, and her weight is good. The dip sticks however, inform a trace of blood every time.
Caviary's index page is intended to convert to a blog type. This means that from now on I will try to write news from everyday life, and also comment other smaller events, articles in progress and what comes to mind at any given time. The amount of information is considered to be moderate overall, but future shows how busy the home page will be. Perhaps good and accessible number of entries should be roughly the same than what occupies currently the guestbook. So I hope a good spring time and wait for the grass season to all readers!