[Gpdd] [HEALTH] senior pig losing weight

[Sandra Park]

I took my 5 yr 8 mo. old gpig Taffy to the vet today to try to determine why
he has lost weight.  He eats his veggis with the same relish as always,
pellets and hay too, and yet has fallen to 1007 gms.  (When he was younger,
he was over 3 lbs.)  His weight has been falling since March when he
recovered from bladder stone surgery.  He lost his cagemate at that time
too.  I figured the weight drop was due to no longer "competing" for food
and perhaps not processing his food as well due to his advanced age.  The
vet's exam manual exam found nothing wrong:  incisors & molors fine, urine
OK (a little dilute with calcium carbonate crystals but no red or white
blood cells), and so forth.  We're waiting on blood results.  Did give
ivermectin (just to play it safe) because he has been shedding quite a bit.
His legs are a little clumsier (old age?) and he's gotten a little nippy,
which is out of character for him.  Any suggestions on what might be wrong?
Any suggestions on how to keep up his weight?  (We have to be careful about
calcium because of bladder stones.)

Happy wheeks to all, comforting wheeks to those who have recently lost a
fur-friend,

Sandy and the two boyz, Taffy & Tiger (remembering Crystal, Autumn and
Winter, at the Bridge)
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