[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Diarrhea in Sooty all the time and Imodium

[Sandra Oliver-Poore]

Thank you so much Ann, I lost your instructions when my hard drive bit it
last spring.   Good luck little Sooty!!!! Sammy wheeks now (but I suspect
it's for hay  :)  Sandy

All of this info is from the Cambridge Cavy Trust and has been supported by
my personal experiences. All medications are to be given orally. 
First try to stop the diarrhea with Imodium. You can give 2.0 mg/day for up
to 3 days. This can be given as one dose or in divided dosages. I start by
giving 1.0 mg and repeat in 8 hours. I use generic Imodium liquid that
contains 1.0 mg of loperamide HCl in 5.0 ml. Thus the first doses is 5.0 ml.
You can also use Imodium instant melts. One melt contains 2.0 mg. Dissolve
in some water and give half of the water for the first dose. His intestinal
villa most certainly have been damaged so stopping diarrhea using any
medication will be difficult. In all cases the underlying disease must be
addressed. Everything Sandy said is correct. I would suspect that he has
coccidiosis along with a bacterial and or fungal infection. Your vet can
determine coccidiosis from a stool sample by looking at the fecal float
under a microscope. At the same time I would suggest having your vet culture
the stool sample for yeast and bacteria. My first choice of medication is
Flagyl, metronidazole, 25 mg/day in one dose for up to 10 days. My second
choice for coccidiosis is Albon 5% suspension of sulfadimethoxine. Give an
initial dose of 50 mg in one dose on second day and up to 10 days give 25
mg/day just one dose per day. Also worm him per Piggyville protocol
http://piggyville.com/index.php?id=9. Recovery is often a long road
especially in a piggy that has had a long standing condition. If the
diarrhea is caused by bacteria, Baytril given at 10 mg twice a day for 7
days should be given. If it is caused by fungus then itraconazole 10 mg/ml
suspension is used up to 30 days. The dose is 4.0 mg twice a day for the
first 5 days. If using 10 mg/ml this would be 0.4 ml. Then 2.0 mg twice a
day up to day 30. Again if using 10 mg/ml this is 0.2 ml. 
Ibuprofen should be given twice a day when using Baytril and or
Itraconazole. The dose is 8.0 mg twice a day. Thus if using children's
ibuprofen that contains 100 mg ibuprofen in 5.0 ml this equals a 20.0 mg/ml
solution. You would use 0.4 ml twice a day.