[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Weight loss and increased water intake. Fidget.

[Penny Charlesworth]

Several years one of the Piggyfriends developed exactly the same symptoms as 
you have described. My vet diagnosed diabetes but said that there was no 
treatment that he could offer. She was quite an elderly piggy at the time 
and I never knew if it was her age or the diabetes that caused her eventual 
demise. She died suddenly one morning after consuming a huge breakfast.

On Peter Gurney's A-Z there are a few lines on diabetes which infer that 
drugs can be prescribed. This could be a recent discovery and will probably 
depend on having a very good GP vet.

I wish that I had known the Cavies Castle folk then as they may know of a 
suitable treatment.

The Piggyfriends send their best wishes to Fidget.

Penny.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <DebJonSara at aol.com>
To: <gpdd at gpdd.org>
Sent: Thursday, November 16, 2006 5:27 PM
Subject: [Gpdd] [HEALTH] Weight loss and increased water intake


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> Fidget (d.o.b. 03.02.03, son of Poivre and brother to Cherub, Cayenne and
> Red Dandy, all now at The Bridge) weighed 898g when he was returned to me 
> by his
> adoptive family who were moving into an apartment in June 2004. Within
> months it  had settled in the region of 1100 to 1200g, and it reached an 
> all-time
> high at  1250g in July this year. Since then, it has been steadily 
> decreasing,
> reaching  an all-time low this week at 907g, and I am worried. I am almost
> certain there  is no dental problem, as he is eating very well. I have 
> watched
> him demolish  huge chunks of homegrown carrots, and would say if anything 
> he is
> munching more  pellets and dried food than ever before. He's not just 
> chewing
> the food and  spitting it out - he is consuming it, I have watched and
> checked! The only  change in his behaviour, other than the weight loss, 
> that I have
> noticed, has  been an increased water intake. He and cagemate Scrabble are
> gettting through  300ml in 12 hours, and he is very frequently at the 
> water
> bottle, which I have  checked and it doesn't leak.
>
> I have often seen similar symptoms mentioned on here before - Alge, didn't
> Wilson show the same symptoms? I seem to remember diabetes or kidney 
> disease
> were possible diagnoses. I should be really happy to hear from anyone who 
> has
> dealt with such symptoms, and particularly to hear advice as to what I can 
> do
> to  minimise the weight loss and maximise Fidget's life. I don't think it 
> can
> be  diet-related, as none of the other what were 22 Dolly Mixtures have 
> shown
> these  symptoms, and they are all fed the same diet. Red Dandy did lose
> weight, but had  dental problems and stopped eating. I am putting a 
> Vitamin C
> supplement in  Fidget's water, just in case. I can't see syringe-feeding 
> would
> achieve  anything, as he is eating really well.
>
> I do have an 18 year old cat whose systems have collapsed. She looks and
> feels like a skeleton wrapped in skin, but eats like a horse and lords it 
> over
> the other cats and dogs. Each morning we expect to find she has left for 
> The
> Bridge, but instead she wakes us demanding her next meal, and she has been 
> like
> this since she was 16! We spoil her because we know her days are numbered.
> Could  this be what is happening with Fidget?
>
> All advice gratefully received
>
> Debbie (and the 14 Dolly Mixtures)
>


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