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Post by littlepaws1999 on Apr 28, 2015 12:27:20 GMT
Hi,
After getting Pixel neutered back in dec. 2014 I have had troubles keeping weight on him.
I was giving him critical care but I noticed careracts forming so I don't want to give him that as a long term treatment.
I do give him a mixture of seeds (I can't remember exactly which ones) but those don't help with his weight.
Before neutering he weighted around 315g but now he fluctuates between 260g and 299g.
Is there anything I can feed to help with the wieght loss?
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Post by Kins on Apr 28, 2015 13:35:24 GMT
315g is on the larger side really! 260g to 290g sounds about right, it's when they start to dip below about 240g that you really need to worry about getting some weight back on. But if you're concerned oil seeds can be a good way to help increase weight in a healthy way deguworld.proboards.com/thread/15602/vegetable-seed-nut-nutrition-charts. You should be able to get them from a supermarket or health food shop... |
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 28, 2015 14:40:03 GMT
Well, that's interesting, I've never come across a report of lower weight after neutering. Have you noticed his activity levels increase or his appetite decrease or be for different things?
As Kins says, in theory his current weight should be fine. Sometimes it can look a bit strange when you are used to them looking a certain way. Does he look OK for his overall size? How does he compare to your other degus? Do you have any concerns for his overall health, is he still eating the full range of foods?
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Post by littlepaws1999 on Apr 29, 2015 2:05:41 GMT
Okay thanks both of you!  I do feed hemp, chia, golden and brown flax, buckwheat, coriander, fennel,cumin, and sesame. The only increase in activity I can think of is him playing out of his cage. He squeaks like crazy until we take him out and play with him on the couch. I guess he looks good; like a big puff ball when sitting. Sadly I can't compare to other degus cause I still haven't found babies to introduce to him yet, there may be a possibility in a week but I don't want to get my hopes up just yet. And yes he does eat lots of food, his pellets, Timothy hay, seeds, grass forage, and occasional veggies. I was just starting to worry because I weigh him weekly and his weight has never stayed constant since the neutering. |
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 30, 2015 10:20:43 GMT
How long have you had him, did you have him long before he was neutered? Perhaps he was inactive and overweight when you got him, and he is just steadily normalising since then? Let us know if he continues to lose weight.
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Post by littlepaws1999 on Apr 30, 2015 12:24:50 GMT
When I got him he weighted 270g in August 2014. He was around 3 and a half.
For a few weeks he was at that constant weight, but then He slowly started gaining wieght until his peak in December 8 2014 of 315g. Right after neutering he dropped down to 288g. (He is the one who had gotten his stitches loose and his intestines came out)
But since the neutering his wieght has never been constant.
Maybe I am just paranoid with His wieght, but I'll be sure to keep you informed.
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 30, 2015 16:30:03 GMT
Lots of degus like to gain weight in autumn for winter, so that could explain the weight gain, and then it is natural that he would lose weight after the surgery especially with the complication, and now spring is here so it wouldn't be unusual for his appetite to decline a little for the summer. Then their weight will fluctuate a little anyway and it changes quite a bit with different times of the day, and bear in mind that just a teaspoon of urine is 5g. I think keep monitoring but don't worry |
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Post by saddlers on May 1, 2015 14:25:23 GMT
Interestingly our Jerry dropped a bit of weight after neutering, from just above 300g down to the 280 mark. I just assumed he was trimming himself up now that he had a female  But seriously we did find out Jerry had a dental issue post op, but even now he is slightly underweight compared to where he was at before neutering. |
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Post by littlepaws1999 on May 14, 2015 0:59:15 GMT
So today I had a big scare. Pixels right side of his face has become swollen. His face was normal this morning when I feed his critical care as he seemed to have stopped eating Friday (same day I brought home Willow and Clover home), and his weight again dropped to 258g. And when I came home from school that's when I noticed it. My mom called the vet and they fit us in. They took him to the back room and had a look in and noticed both sides of his molers are really long. The vet who specializes in small animals wasn't there but another vet which sees dogs and cats was so she checked him with the help of the vet techs who do see small animals. That vet wasn't able to tell us exactly what is causes the swelling but said it could be do to the tooth or an abscess  . My usual vet is supposed to call us in the morning and we will quite possible need to schedule a surgery app. We did receive a medication to give to him (should help swelling and any pain/discomfort) and told how much of critical care to feed. Fingers crossed that this will end In a good way. I'm gonna guess that after the neutering, when he didn't want to eat as much, that his teeth then started growing longer and it has only become a problem now. Hence the dropping in wieght. |
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Post by moletteuk on May 14, 2015 10:21:27 GMT
It looks like your instincts were right all along about the weight loss!
We have a few forum members who have to deal with this, it's quite common for their molars to overgrow and develop spurs. Your vet will sedate him and trim everything back to a good shape and hopefully after a couple of days recovery he will be eating normally again. Let's hope it is a spur pressing his cheek and there is no abscess.
I know you know about good diet, but once you have dental issues it becomes even more important to feed lots of forage, including fresh forage if you can and really keep an eye that the calcium in the diet is high enough.
Let us know how he gets on.
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Post by littlepaws1999 on May 15, 2015 19:04:41 GMT
I just came back from the vets with Pixel. They trimmed both side of his teeth and discovered that an abscess was formed also, as the right moler was growing INTO his check causing an irritation. I can only imagine the pain we was in.
Need to continue with critical care and the antibiotic, and a recheck will be in 2-4 weeks.
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Post by yasmin on May 15, 2015 19:16:23 GMT
Poor baby. I imagine having to administer Critical must be very stressful for you and for him. Hopefully he will start eating on his own soon. Try feeding pea flakes, hulled sunflower seeds, fresh leaves (dandelion, chard, carrot tops, dill), thawed frozen peas, puffed rice, oats, or wet his regular food so it is soft, or split it into slivers or flat thin bits for him – anything to get him to start eating on his own soon. If he won't eat anything, perhaps he needs Metacam for the next few days to dull the pain and reduce the inflammation. I have never had to give Critical Care to my guys after dental work – including those that have had spurs growing into their cheeks, tongue, or into their nasal cavities or eye sockets. They usually get Metacam and only occasionally Baytril. |
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Post by littlepaws1999 on May 16, 2015 1:47:48 GMT
Poor baby. I imagine having to administer Critical must be very stressful for you and for him. Hopefully he will start eating on his own soon. Try feeding pea flakes, hulled sunflower seeds, fresh leaves (dandelion, chard, carrot tops, dill), thawed frozen peas, puffed rice, oats, or wet his regular food so it is soft, or split it into slivers or flat thin bits for him – anything to get him to start eating on his own soon. If he won't eat anything, perhaps he needs Metacam for the next few days to dull the pain and reduce the inflammation. I have never had to give Critical Care to my guys after dental work – including those that have had spurs growing into their cheeks, tongue, or into their nasal cavities or eye sockets. They usually get Metacam and only occasionally Baytril. We need the critical care mainly to try and help boost his wieght up, but at the same time so he has food in him. Thanks for the suggestions of food. I sent my mom to get some carrots with tops, puffed rice and sunflower seeds. We have oats, and pea flakes at home so we will see what he wants to eat. He had actually had a few munches of pellets when I put some water on it. The medication he received is under the name enrofloxacin, which is the proper name for Baytril. |
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. My usual vet is supposed to call us in the morning and we will quite possible need to schedule a surgery app. 