[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Sooty has multiple health problems
Ann Evans
ann.evans at hintlink.com
Tue Mar 26 11:51:40 EDT 2013
Dear Julie, Sooty is very fortunate to have a mommy that cares for him
around the clock. Any piggy that has been on antibiotics and suffered
from diarrhoea for 2 years is going to have damage to the
gastro-intestinal tract, gi-tract. That is why the oil is just passing
through him. Most likely the lining of the gi-tract has lost most of the
villa that absorb food and water. He has also lost most of the bacteria
that is needed to digest food in the caecum. Based on your description I
feel he is suffering from a systemic fungal infection along with damage
to the gi-tract and he possibly has diabetes. I recommend that he be
treated with itraconazole 10 mg/ml at a dose of 0.5 ml orally twice a
day for 10 days. Then stop for 3 days and repeat giving him the
intraconazole. Do this for a total of 3-10 day periods. Keep up feeding
him the critical care with added probiotics. To help prevent bloat give
childrens simethicone. The dose is 3.0 ml orally every 3-4 hours. Or you
can use any baby gripe water at the same amount of 3.0 ml orally every
3-4 hours. Also virgin coconut oil is good for gas and energy. Activated
charcoal is also very good for gas and absorbing any toxins from bad
bacteria. Just crush a tablet or open up a gel cap of charcoal mix with
water and give to him using a feeding syringe. You can do this once a
day for 4 days. I would not give him imodium for the diarrhoea. Start
out at 0.5 ml orally every 3-4 hours. You can increase the amount of
coconut oil to 1.0 ml if it is staying in his tummy. I am sorry to say
that with the best of nursing care gastric torsion, twisted gut, can not
be prevented in all cases. It actually occurs in seconds. An analogy
would be filling up a glass of water until it overflows. It only takes
one extra drop of water to make the water overflow. In gastric torsion
it just takes one more gas bubble to upset the balance of the stomach
and it goes into torsion. Any time a piggy is off food it will be
producing more gas than usual. Keep checking his tummy to see if it is
taught from gas. If you shakes him gently up and down like a hot water
bottle and hear a sloshing sound this is an indication of frothy-watery
bloat or kidney problems. The gas can only get out through the anus. So
keep on rubbing his tummy. Keep him moving and feed him or get him to
eat as much food and water as you can. The fact that he is drinking more
water than normal may be a sign of diabetes. This can easily be tested
for by collecting a fresh urine sample and having it tested with a
urinalysis dipstick reagent test strip. Maybe you can buy them at the
local chemist's. Many diabetics have these test strips. Or if you know
someone who is diabetic you can check his blood glucose with their
meter. Just over cut a toe nail to get a drop of blood for testing. The
normal range is 60-125 mg/dl = 3.3-6.9 mmol/L. Wishing you and Sooty the
best of health.
I volunteer as a consulting rodentologist to Drs. Danielson and Saleh
D.V.M. of Ehrlich Animal Hospital and Dr. Bonsack D.V.M. of Westchase
Animal Hospital Tampa, Florida.
Sincerely,
Ann and the Rescued Piggys of Piggyville, Tampa Florida USA
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