[Gpdd] HEALTH: Blossom has a swollen throat

[ME]

Not to blame Michael for anything, but how does he give her the  
meds?  Does she like it or fight it?  Does he have to restrain her?   
What is the position of her body?

After the first dose or two of meds, I usually don't have to restrain  
as long as the meds don't have a bad taste.  The only med I've given  
that I've had to continue the restraint with is Baytril (I've never  
used Flagyl) ... but even when I'm using restraint, I try to keep the  
pig as calm as possible and don't dose when they're struggling.  I  
also keep their body leaning forward, at most a 45 degree angle from  
the floor, usually more like 30.  At most, I give 0.3 cc at a  
time ... I start with 0.1 cc and work my way up as they get used to  
it.  Years ago, I had a diabetic who was a pro at taking her meds,  
and she'd just hold on to the syringe until she took the whole thing,  
but she was on meds every day for almost 4 years.  Most of the time,  
I either give meds while they sit on the scale (I taught them as  
youngsters never to jump off) or I set them down on a towel on a flat  
surface (if they don't feel comfortable on the scale).  Others, who  
love to cuddle before, during, and after meds, I set them on the  
towel on my chest.

I don't know if Flagyl itself could have those side effects, though I  
do know aspirating meds can.  I had it happen once with a pig who was  
struggling to take her meds.  I stayed up with her all night,  
listening to her labored breathing, wondering if she'd be alive the  
next morning.  After that horrible night, I soon developed the  
procedure I outlined above.  Oh, and the pig survived ... funny thing  
was that a day later, she decided she actually liked the meds and  
took it without a fuss.

As to getting her to eat ... since her throat area is swollen, you  
might want to try something soft and easy to swallow ... like canned  
pumpkin ... just 0.1 cc at a time, at least to see how she takes to  
it ... giving her more at a time as she gets used to the procedure.   
Most of my pigs love the stuff ... it's one of the things I use to  
teach them to take a syringe ... they attack the syringe when they  
see it.  I also give it to them in a spoon to teach them to spoon  
feed.  I've also used other mixtures I've used for hand feeding.  If  
she's up to eating from a spoon, you might try getting her to take it  
that way ... whatever she feels up to.  Main thing is to keep her as  
calm and as cheerful as possible.  If she kind of fights it the first  
time, just feed for 5-10 minutes ... I've found as they get used to  
it, you can feed them longer.  I usually don't hand feed more than 30  
minutes (sometimes I do if the pig is just eating very slowly and I'm  
not going to be able to feed   for awhile), but I feed every 2-3  
hours (if it's canned pumpkin) or 3-4 hours (if it's dry pellets or a  
pellet mash) if they're not eating anything on their own.