I have a guinea pig that was having trouble eating ...

Hello and thanks for researching this very important question!

I think that it's time for you to have this mouth re-examined, since his appetite is still not back to normal. The original cause of the dental problem may still exist and need to be diagnosed. Without his front teeth at the proper length he cannot feed himself properly.

***In the meantime, you can feed him jars of baby food fruits and veggies...these blended foods can be given by spoon or syringe and will provide calories, nutrients and fiber. You can melt his regular pellets in water and syringe feed him this as well.***

Here are some sites that advertise vet-finder indexes in case you would like to interview other veterinary offices that are familiar with guinea pig medicine:

http://www.cavyinfo.com/html/vet.htm

http://www.aracnet.com/cgi-usr/seagull/vetfinder.cgi

http://cavyspirit.com/vets.htm

If you have additional questions, please click "Reply".

Edited by GenB on July 17 2006 at 9:57pm

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Thanks, I pretty well knew and have done what you suggested. The Vet said his teeth looked fine, I got a second opion on that...the vets here are NOT
very familar with guinea pigs and their problems.

I thank you for your advice...but I don't think it provided any information that I wasn't aware of. Thank you for trying, I really appreciate that. Any following suggestions would be appreciated.

Finding good help with an exotic pet can take some creative thinking: you may be able to find someone at a university or even a small zoo who is willing to help out. GPs are a pretty usual resident at colleges and universities, and even zoos. Keepers can be very helpful and generous with their time and expertise!

Abscesses or tumors in the mouth can cause the kind of on-and-off symptoms you are describing...without seeing his mouth in person, it is hard to tell exactly what is going on.

Do continue your careful nursing to keep his energy and nutrition levels as high as possible.

If you have other more specific questions, I would certainly be willing to discuss them at this time.

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Relist:
Thanks for your help. The guiena pig passed away this morning. Poor little fellow...we tried. :(

I am sending this as an Information Request so that you do not have to place a deposit...I am so sorry to hear this news!

There are some 'wasting' conditions in GPs that are very difficult to combat. I am glad that this dear pet had someone to care for him with this kind of loyalty and gentleness!

We all here send you our good wishes and support at this time. This link will connect you with others online who have had a similar experience...I do believe that in this fellow's eyes you succeeded quite a lot:

http://www.pet-loss.net/

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Your concern has touched me--if you have follow-up questions, or need to clarify your case, please let me know right away! Your "Accept" helps me reach out to others!

The vet gave my piggy amoxicillin...which after reading the CavyCorner page, turns out to be very
toxic to guinea pigs. I know the vet didn't know better, and wish that I would have taken more time to read up. Thanks for your compassion and thoughts regarding "copper".

You are certainly welcome...all the best to you in the future.

Here are some titles you may wish to add to your personal library so that you can have more productive conversations with the vets around you, should the occasion arise again...these books can give you guidance at home in deciding what symptoms mean and what to do:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0632052090/104-3083161-3615112?v=glance&n=283155

http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?inkey=1-0721640230-1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0963699644/qid=1153320946/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/104-3083161-3615112?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

Edited by GenB on July 19 2006 at 10:57am

__________________
Your concern has touched me--if you have follow-up questions, or need to clarify your case, please let me know right away! Your "Accept" helps me reach out to others!