[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Flashbang Fatbottom Still Losing Weight

[Penny Charlesworth]

Jocelyn,

I am so sorry that Flashbang is not responding to treatment.

I am thankful that I have never had to nurse a piggy after a stone excision 
but it is often very hard to put the weight back on after any illness just 
by syringe feeding.

When you consider just how much a little piggy can consume in the course of 
a day even the keenest syringe feeder will never take that amount on board.

There could be many reasons why Flashbang is not eating but, if he were 
mine, I would worry that his teeth could be at the root of it. When they are 
syringe fed for any length of time, their back teeth soon overgrow as they 
are not munching away at their hay in between meals. Does your vet not have 
the piggy buccal separators, the use of which enables the back teeth to be 
clearly seen? It can only take a little bit of overgrowth to put a piggy off 
his food. Some will soldier on with the most horrendous teeth but others 
will give up at the slightest sign of a spur. When I was syringe feeding my 
dear old Gulliver, he had to have his teeth trimmed every two or three 
weeks. I clipped his front ones and a trip to the Rodentologist took care of 
the back ones. My hands are not big and strong enough to hold a towel 
wrapped piggy still and trim as well.

You can try syringe feeding all kinds of other piggy delights. Gulliver 
loved mashed banana and Readybrek ( an English breakfast cereal ) but you 
can pulverise all kinds of Flashbang's favourites to get him eating.

Hoping that the blood work will be enlightening.

We are all thinking of Flashbang here at Piggyfriends and long to see him 
running around via the webcam.

Penny ( writing with my experience of piggies over too many years to 
count ).