[Stones] Guinevere Update/New Questions

[pat schuett]

Hi there,

I have gotten so many great replies, excellent
information and offers of vet consults to my initial
message about Guinevere, I just wanted to thank
everyone (I am responding to each individual reply but
only have e-mail at work, so it's taking a while!) for
all the help and emotional support.

I also have a few new questions that I'd welcome your
input on.  Guinnie is on the antibiotic bactrim
(called sulfatrim here) for her bladder infection; the
vet has prescribed it for two weeks.  I know with
rabbits, two weeks might not be long enough --- can
you tell me if that would generally sufficient for a
guinea pig bladder infection?

She is also VERY upset about me syringing medicine and
extra fluids into her twice a day.  Do you have any
tips for making this easier on her?  She is a very
high-strung little girl and hates being handled at the
best of times (I probably have not helped matters by
avoiding handling her much at all up until now).  I'm
afraid her agitation is part of why she still is not
eating and drinking normally (I'm hoping she will
really enjoy me being gone at work all day today).

Also, do people generally give probiotics to guinea
pigs when they are on antibiotics?  If so, what is a
good one to use for piggies and where can I get it?

It now appears that what Guinnie has is gravel or
crystals rather than stones.  I did see the x-ray and
what it showed was maybe eight little bits of stuff
like gravel in the bottom of her bladder; this gives
me hope that we may still avert surgery, and that a
complete blockage may not be as likely as I feared.  I
am now in the midst of finding out more about
shilintong (which I had not heard of until a few days
ago), and I would be happy to hear from anyone who
uses or has used this (especially long-term) about how
it's administered, dosage, etc.

Once again, THANK YOU SO MUCH ---

                                     Pat & Guinnie



__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com