# Been to vet twice - decrease poop, eating, NO wheeling



## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

I appologize that this post is so long. I just don't want to leave out something that might be important. Symptoms started on Friday, February 3, 2012. I was running late that morning and instead of taking her CSBW out of her cage and cleaning it, I just swapped in her old comfort wheel for the day. I left it in over night on Friday and noticed that on Saturday there was no poop and no urine plastering her wheel. I started counting her kibble (usually just do a check on that and weight once a week) and noticed a severe reduction on intake. Normal kibble intake is between 25 and 35 per night, along with 3 to 5 mealworms, 2 crickets, and 1 teaspoon of wet cat food (Innova EVO 95% duck). I don't have an odometer on her wheel, but it is typically plastered with poo and urine every morning.

Vet visit on 2/7/12 when symptoms did not get better and weight was impacted. Vet used anesthesia to examine her (first time anesthesia was used). He felt her abdomen, liver, noted that there was poop in her intestines, lymphnodes felt fine, inspected teeth - no problems but one fang is broken, been that way since before I've had her - mouth looked good, no tumors, looked down throat and appears normal. Blood panel and CBC all normal. Fecal came back normal. Urinalysis showed a little yeast in the urine. This could have been due to my collection method. The night before her appt, I put her on her wheel and I collected her urine into a dish but she also defecated into the same dish. Vet said, that it was normal to have a little yeast in the poo. Diagnosis - unknown, behavioral. Keep eye on weight, food and elimination. Syringe feed a/d 3 to 6 ml twice daily. A/d was mixed with water at 1:1 ratio. Vet determined that Izzy was NOT constipated. Decreased eating means decreased poop.

Vet visit on 2/10/12 - weight has decreased, eating is still decreased, not pooping unless put in bath or given pumpkin. Xray was taken to rule in/out arthritis. I also requested another blood draw to verify results of last test. Blood panel and CBC were normal except for slight elevation in white blood cells. Xray showed all bones and joints in excellent condition. Could see multiple gas bubbles on xray. Diagnosis - stomach upset, treating symptomatically with .22 cc Metronidazole and .01 Metroclopramide (gut motility), continue syringing a/d as recommended.

- How old is your hedgehog? *I brought Izzy home last August and I was told that she was one year old??? So that would make her 1 year 6 months old to 2 years?*
- How long have you owned your hedgehog?* 6 months*
- Has there been any changes in the 2-3 weeks prior to the symptoms starting *Previously I was feeding Halo Spot Stew, chicken flavor, 1 tsp. each night for treat. Switched to EVO 95% duck over one month period (my other hedgie has a hard time maintaining weight so I got EVO with higher fat for him but also feed it to her). Fully switched over 10 days prior to symptoms starting. On Friday, February 3, I had a friend over and Izzy was out more than normal. Put comfort wheel in her cage.*
- What is the temperature of the hedgehogs cage? *The thermostat is set on 78 F and her thermometer consistently reads 78 to 80. Has been that temperature since I have had her*
- What is the lighting schedule? *7 am to 8 pm*

Please add dates that symptoms occurred - *Night of February 3, no wheeling; 2/5 smaller bm, using baths and pumpkin to help with elimination; started gut motility drug on 2/10, wheeled 2/10 to 2/13 normally pooping and peeing on wheel like normal - discontinued gut motility drug on 2/12 due to normal bm. 2/14 no wheeling but poop was still normal. 2/7 weight declining gradually, still no wheeling.*

Weight
Do you weigh regularly? *Weigh and monitor food weekly. 330 on 2/7/12, now at 315 on 2/20/12.*
*Weight: on 1/27 was 333. Weight consecutively, daily from 2/7 to 2/21 is as follows: 330, 327, 323, 323, 327, 330, 327, 333, 330, n/a, 325, 326, 327*, 315, 313. (327* weight after being fed 6 ml a/d, forgot to weigh prior to feeding.)*

Poop
- normal size and texture, soft but formed, mush, liquid, jelly like - *smaller in size varies in form, mucous and color (see below)*
- colour normal, slightly green, very green, bloody - *no blood*
- smell normal, stronger than normal, put you out of the room rank - *normal*
- Pooping in bed - *no*
*Elimination:	2/8/12, approximately 24 hours since last bm. Gave .5 ml pumpkin and eliminated immediately, brown, runny, watery. 2/9/12 not pooping over night, morning bath, bm looked normal. 2/10/12 given Metroclopramide and eliminated on wheel over night. 2/10 to 2/13, urine and bm in wheel overnight. 2/14 just urine in wheel. 2/15 bm in evening during bath; 3 pea sized pieces with tan mucous. 2/16 bm in morning in playpen; normal size, dark brown, somewhat lumpy. 2/17 bm in morning in playpen; dark brown, three small pea size pieces. 2/18 bm in am in playpen; two pieces, wet but formed, dark brown, mucous present, size equivalent to three peas. 2/19 bm in morning in playpen; color and consistency of hot fudge; no shape, but not watery or loose. 2/20 bm two pieces; both dark brown, one with dark green mucous, both pieces normal size. 2/21, no bm in am; did urinate. 1pm placed in playpen, bm color dark brown, appears normal in size and shape.*

Urine - *dark yellow, less than normal, strong smelling - is urinating every day*

Eating
- normally, less than normal, not at all -* less than normal*
- How many kibble per day? *Typically 25 to 35 per day, down to 5 to 10 per day*
- Any difficulty crunching food?* no*
- Has there been a new food or treat recently and if so, how long ago? Was this one time, or given daily? *Evo wet cat food on January 24th (ended transition from Halo Spot Stew), given 1 tsp. daily Removed EVO on 2/16 to see if that made a difference - no difference seen as of today's date.*
- Is the water the same as usual? - *Less intake, same water that I drink (I have not noticed a difference in taste or smell)*
- *eating 3 to 5 live mealworms per day and two crickets (bought live and then stored in freezer)*

Activity - *no wheeling, no digging in rock garden, no pushing toys around. Appears to be sleeping night and day or at least staying in her bed. When she is out during syringe feeding, she has enough energy to fight feeding*

Meds
*- .5 cc pumpkin
- Given on 2/8/12 and 2/10/12 to stimulate bm
- one dose on those two days only

- probiotics (quarter turn on syringe dial - small blob of ointment type medication rubbed on mouth)
- 2/10/12 to present (2/21/12) 
- twice daily with antibiotics

- .22 cc Metronidazole to help stomach upset
- 2/10/12 to present (2/21/12 and continues until 2/24/12)
- twice daily

- .01 cc Metroclopramide (gut motility) prescribed for no more than 4 days. Gave her 3 doses of from 2/10 to 2/11. Decided on morning of 2/12/12 to discontinue due to defecating and urinating normally using her wheel. On 2/15 stopped using wheel and urinating and defecating in cage. Resumed .01 cc Metroclopramide on 2/15/12 to 2/18/12. Still not defecating and urinating at night, but will eliminate after being woke up for morning feeding if she is placed in playpen.

- 3 to 6 ml Science Diet A/D (diluted with water 1:1)
- 2/10/12 to present (2/21)
- twice daily
Typically, she will barely eat 3 ml in am but will eat 6 to 8 ml in pm *

Called vet office today on 2/21 to give update and ask about adding baby food to stimulate appetite and add interest in food. My regular vet is on vacation until Friday, but talked to another doctor there that I was told had hedgehog experience. (Side note, she asked me what hedgehog food she was on....I said she was on dry cat food and she thought it was odd). Anyway.....I told her about her being on Halo Spot wet cat food previously (I have to special order it) and that it was mainly chicken, peas and carrots. I asked if it would be okay to give her those items in baby food. She didn't want to change Izzy's diet because she was being treated for stomach upset. I explained that her course of antibiotic was almost over and that I removed the EVO because I suspected the high fat was, if not causing constipation, then at least slowing things down. I ended up telling her that I was going to give her the baby food and I asked for a recommendation on how much she should have. So, tonight is the first night that I am trying chicken, pea and carrot baby food (all organic, only ingredients are the food and water). Has not eaten it yet. I gave her 1/8 teaspoon of each.

What I think is happening: I think she's had stomach upset but she is weak from not eating much so she is sleeping a lot. She's not wheeling, so she's not pooping over night. I just think it's a cycle of lack of appetite causing low energy. Low energy so she doesn't feel like eating. That's all I can figure. But how do I fix it? I will call my regular vet when he gets back on Friday, unless she gets worse, then I'll have to go to MSU vet clinic (Vet school is very expensive).

*Any ideas or recommendations? Please let me know if you have experienced these types of symptoms with your hog and what happened. Thanks for reading this monster post.*


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## Pustulio (Feb 22, 2012)

Hey the I'm having the same problem of decrease poop. But I change the food so I think that can be my problem. How is your hedgehog doing?


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

What is her current kibble? Evo 95% duck is a canned food. Is she only eating canned foods at this point? How old is the bag of kibble?

Are you weighing her at the same time daily? 15 grams over a week is not that significant. It can be the difference of a bowel movement or a big pee.

Do not give probiotics at the same time as an antibiotic. The antibiotic will kill off all of the good bacteria, and the probiotic will not have a chance to improve the flora in her GI. It is ideal to give the probiotic mid-way between antibiotic doses.

I would be very tempted to give her back the food she was eating and doing well on to see if her condition improves.

Pustulio, sometimes changing diet can have that impact, especially if they are not eating it well. What foods are you feeding and how well is your hedgehog eating it?


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Kalandra said:


> What is her current kibble? Evo 95% duck is a canned food. Is she only eating canned foods at this point? How old is the bag of kibble?
> 
> Are you weighing her at the same time daily? 15 grams over a week is not that significant. It can be the difference of a bowel movement or a big pee.
> 
> ...


The EVO duck was a treat, 1 teaspoon in evenings. The kibble she is on is CSFCLS, Royal Canin baby cat, and purina one. Royal canin is a couple months old, CSFCLS is four months old and the purina one was bought last week (our cat eats that one). I tried grinding up her kibble and giving it to her with water added to see if that would help. I used 1 tbls. kibble to 3 tbls. water and it formed a mushy substance.

I weigh her in the evenings at 8:00 right before I syringe feed the a/d. Before that, when I weighed her weekly it would be anywhere between 8 pm and midnight. She is not having big poops or big pees. Her pees are very concentrated, strong smelling and dark yellow.

Thank you for the tip about the probiotic. The vet just said to give it twice a day. I will give her some more this afternoon.

The kibble has been the same for months. I have to order the halo spot stew. I'll place an order today. Thanks for responding.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

If you have a Petco nearby, you should be able to find the Halo kibble there. I just bought some of the grain free to try out last Saturday. Occasionally food will start to loose its flavor and they will start to not eat it as well. If only that was the only reason your little one has decided to not eat a lot of it.

Vet's tend to forget that very important piece of information when it comes to probiotics. You may see some help, but you don't see the help it will really have unless given far apart as possible. 

It sounds to me like she isn't drinking enough either if her urine is that concentrated. Is that your opinion too? I'm going to throw this out here and if you want to try it go for it. Chamomile tea.... Chamomile tea has some properties that I have see wonderful results from before. It can be calming, and it can help increase one's appetite. I have used it with rescues for its calming ability and I've used it to help get a hedgehog who wasn't interested in much to drink just a little more. Sounds like a win win win yes? Now, I don't guarantee results, but it won't hurt her if you want to try it. 

Try making a weak chamomile tea. Ensure the tea is 100% chamomile and I'd make it with reverse osmosis or bottled water. Next to her water bowl, offer the tea in a bowl in her cage. If she doesn't like straight chamomile, you can add a bit of mint and a dash of honey to it, but I've always been able to get them to drink it straight if it is weak. Simply brew the tea and allow to cool. Chamomile is a digestive stimulate, it can also encourage them to drink more.

Now this isn't going to fix whatever has caused her to not want to eat or drink much, but it may help in the short run.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Kalandra said:


> If you have a Petco nearby, you should be able to find the Halo kibble there. I just bought some of the grain free to try out last Saturday. Occasionally food will start to loose its flavor and they will start to not eat it as well. If only that was the only reason your little one has decided to not eat a lot of it.
> 
> Vet's tend to forget that very important piece of information when it comes to probiotics. You may see some help, but you don't see the help it will really have unless given far apart as possible.
> 
> ...


Thank you so much for your help, Kalandra. It was the canned Halo Spot Stew that she used to get for a treat. I ordered some. Pet Supplies Plus usually has a wide selection of really good foods. I placed an order today and they said it would be about a week. I also picked up new bags of her kibble. They probably were stale. I think I'm going to try storing them in the freezer.

I didn't think of this before, but I melted a piece of fleece on her CHE (I thought I could check the tightness without unplugging it and ended up ruining the bulb). I just put in an infrared bulb (my other hedgehog has this kind) and thought it would be okay. But I got another CHE today in case that was the problem. I turned off her infrared bulb this morning and put the space heater on. I'll switch the bulb out tonight when I feed her again.

I keep thinking that this has to be behavioral because every test came back fine. I made an appointment today with Derek at Cedar Creek Vet Clinic. His schedule fills up fast and his first day back from vacation is Friday. He really is an excellent vet. I just think that I screwed something up for her and I just want to figure it out and fix it. I've been having such a hard time sleeping and I'm trying to be very diligent about letting her get sleep during the day, but I really just want to go in there every hour and check on her. I just feel totally inept.

I gave her a dose of probiotic on some mealworms at 2:00 this afternoon. Thanks for the tip.

Chamomile tea sounds like a good idea. But does it have caffeine in it? She isn't drinking very much and I really do hope that helps. I'll make sure to get 100% chamomile. Thank you so much for your help and ideas.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

Many hedgehogs will not be active at all or as active with red light. That very well could be the problem.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Nancy said:


> Many hedgehogs will not be active at all or as active with red light. That very well could be the problem.


I hope that fixes things. Thanks Nancy. Harvey is so easy going and really unstructured. He kind of comes out and wheels when he feels like it at different times. Izzy is usually out of her bed at 8:00 when the light goes out to eat her food and treats. She actually didn't eat her crickets one night because they weren't in her rock garden at 8:00 when she got up. She never when back to check again after I put them in. I just feel like I've screwed her up.


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## Pustulio (Feb 22, 2012)

Kalandra said:


> Pustulio, sometimes changing diet can have that impact, especially if they are not eating it well. What foods are you feeding and how well is your hedgehog eating it?


I took it to the vet and told me that i should change his diet from cat food to some specialized food for hedgehogs called Mazuri, but then in another forum they told me that the brand the vet told me it wasn't that good and that i should gave her again cat food but a quality cat food.

When she started to eat less, there was several changes, i bought a new cage, a bigger cage, also the food change and i change the floor. I used something like a little rocks, i don't know how is called in english. And the vet told me that it was better that i use something called carefresh, so i think there was too many changes in the little hedgehog. I don't know if that helped to the problem with eating. So i called the vet and told me that i have to put everything the back it was, if she start eating i'm gonna do the changes little by little. If not i think i'm going back to the vet.

What do you recommend?


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Rainy,

If you have a red light on, like Nancy said, it could cause a lot of problems. I've seen a night light in a hallway that was barely casting any light in the room cause one to not come out to eat.

Get the 100% chamomile tea. Its all chamomile, no black tea, and has no caffeine in it. I've used it a lot. I've used it as an antiseptic for a hedgehog that nearly bit her tongue off (mouth wash/rinse), used it to help calm Tylda's panic attacks, and have used it to get a hedgehog with an upset tummy to eat better.


Pustulio, 

Mazuri is a junk food. The ingredients in it are low quality and its full of fillers. Plus it contains a preservative (ethyoxiquin) that has been linked to cancer in dogs. Most hedgehog people feed high quality cat foods. You want something that is fairly low fat. The fat content can be raised if you have an extremely active hedgehog, or a young one that could use the extra calories.

For bedding, we prefer cloth liners. You can purchase fleece and cut it to the size of your hedgehog's cage. If you cannot use cloth liners, carefresh would be my next preference. Stay away from wood and corn cob beddings. These get stuck in sensitive areas, like penile sheaths.

Lots of change can be stressful. I would suggest switching her back to the cat food and then getting a quality cat food to start mixing in. Slowly switch her diet. Take at least 2-3 weeks to switch him fully. Some hedgehogs can be very resistent to dietary changes and can go on hunger strikes as a result.

Lastly. I would encourage you to start a new thread for your hedgehog. Tell us more about him, and how you are keeping him. You'll get more response if he has his own thread and we would be happy to share what we think you can do to make your hedgehog's life the best possible.

Welcome to our forum.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thanks Kalandra. I don't know why it didn't occur to me. I was looking at this at first as a medical issue before I checked the basics. She's got her CHE set up and she ate about 6 ml of a/d. I'm hoping she'll come out tonight and eat better. I put out a dish of the weak chamomile tea. I just steeped it enough to change the water color a little bit. Thanks for the tip. I hope she drinks it.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Hopefully it was just that silly light and all will return to normal. Have you tried putting a little dry kibble in her bed? If she is being shy about the light, maybe a little food in her bed with her during the day time may encourage her to eat just a little extra.

Hedgehogs can be such sensitive animals sometimes. That hedgehog with the nightlight I mentioned. I was packing her up the next day to take her to the vet for not eating, not running, not drinking. I removed the night light to plug something else in to charge that night. She ate, she ran, she drank and I figured out what I messed up. Hopefully you'll end up with a similar story to share later


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Well, I put her CHE in last night and I checked on her at 11:00 and there was poop on her wheel. It wasn't a lot, but there was urine splashes too. I can't tell if she tried the chamomile or not, but I'll keep it in there until she's in tip top shape. That CHE did the trick. I separated the peas, carrots and chicken baby food to see if that would make a difference in her eating it. She ate all the peas, but not the chicken or carrots. She was in her rock garden last night. Her crickets were gone. Her pingpong ball moved, but not much. It could have just been in her way on the way to the rock garden. I'm hoping that was the only thing wrong and she just needs time to gain her strength. I'm keeping the vet appt on Friday unless she does extraordinarily well tonight. She only ate 2 of her kibble but I'm really glad she got back on her wheel. That makes me really, really happy. I was singing a pooping song last night. "She's pooping on her whe-heel! She's pooping on her whe-heel!" (Just think Conga Line).  Thanks for the help. I do feel absolutely horrible for not realizing what I did sooner. YIKES.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Pustulio,

How's your baby? Any wheeling yet?


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## Tabbikat (Dec 30, 2011)

Hi Rainy:

Don't be too hard on yourself! It's obvious you take really good care of your little ones! And.. by posting this info you help other new owners (like me)! I found the info about the LIght change and the nightlight experience really informative.

Hope Izzy continues to recover!


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Tabbikat said:


> Hi Rainy:
> 
> Don't be too hard on yourself! It's obvious you take really good care of your little ones! And.. by posting this info you help other new owners (like me)! I found the info about the LIght change and the nightlight experience really informative.
> 
> Hope Izzy continues to recover!


Oh, Thank you. That's so nice of you to say.  I'll update tomorrow too. Really hope she uses her wheel again and poops all over it! I don't usually enjoy that, but I do now.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Bit of a belated posting (at an aunt's house with no internet access), but YAY for some food eaten and poop on the wheel!!!  I really hope she does even better tonight, silly girl. *crosses all the fingers and sends all the good wishes and energy*


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thanks Kelsey. I've really been at my wits end. I just feel horrible about the whole thing.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Do we have a good update coming?


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thank you for asking. I kind of freaked out this morning. I fed her the a/d. She ate 3 ml and gave her the last dose of Metronidazole. I was happy about that because I thought that maybe the Metro was keeping her from eating. Anyways, her poop was all over the wheel this morning. (So happy). She only ate 3 kibble. I couldn't tell if she touched the tea or not. :?

When I took her out, I noticed that she had some poo on her tail. I didn't think that was a big deal because the consistency of her poo has been fluxuating a bit. Well, I put her in the bath after I fed her and was able to clean her up. I noticed that she had some sort of red something hanging from her rectum and I called the vet. Well, I ended up going the vet today and he gave her anesthesia because he wanted to feel her abdomen, check her throat and mouth again. We were both hoping that it was some sort of obstruction that she was passing and maybe this would mean she would be fine again. Turns out that she has an inflamed colon and it was protruding through her anus. There was some blood and a little bacteria, although not a lot. But she was also on the Metro too, so ..... ?????

He prescribed her some predisolone .05 cc 2x day for four days, 1x day for four days, 1x every other day for four days (typical prescription for a steroid). The pred will help with the inflamation and he suspects that she has a food allergy. Well, at least with the pred she'll be thirstier and will drink more water and maybe gain a bit of weight.

Gratuitous photo op!








Don't give your hedgehog cheese. I just thought these were the lyrics when I was a kid.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Wow. Sounds like your little one has something serious going on after all. If she has a food allergy, did doc have a game plan for how to find it?


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Yeah, first is to get the swelling down and then just start adding one thing at a time to her diet until we find what she's allergic to or she's on a diet that is well rounded. I asked him for some information about nutritional guidelines for hedgehogs. Every reputable article that I found, I could only see the abstract unless I paid for the article. I'll share any information he gives me about nutrition. He has access to a database of journal articles.

My dog has environmental allergies and this winter they didn't slow down, even with the shots, so I got him on Natural Balance lamb and rice (it's a limited ingredient diet) just to see if that helps. It really did wonders for him. I really don't care what they're allergic to, as long as I can find something that they are comfortable on. After Izzy's improvement, I won't keep trying things just to find out the allergy. Most likely, it's not a food allergy, but an allergy to a preservative in the food.

Changing her CHE back helped a lot though too. She was wheeling last night, even after having anesthesia yesterday. Her urine was less concentrated and her poop looked normal, but kind of small (she pooped on me after she came out of anesthesia -- a lot! Like, a lot of poop). But, Derek was squeezing her abdomen and using a probe to check for blood and to see the protrusion better.

She ate 16 kibble last night  That's up considerably from the 4 to 5 she was eating. Although, she didn't want to eat much of the a/d last night because she was still groggy and grumpy. She only ate 3 ml of the a/d this morning, but that's not unusual for her. She isn't normally hungry in the morning. Because this is an allergy, I didn't put the tea back in her cage. I did hang a couple of those teabags (out of reach) on her cage, so I hope that can help keep her soothed a little bit. Thanks.  I'll keep you posted.

Izzy says, "Thanks for cheering for me, guys!"


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## KatelynAlysa (Nov 25, 2011)

So glad she's feeling better!


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thanks KatelynAlysa. I just hope it keeps up even after she's off the steroids.  Now I need to get some weight on her.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Last night Izzy ate 13 ml of the a/d. She wheeled, pooped (kind of small, dark brown and thin), peed, and ate 36 pieces of kibble. Increase of appetite might be because of the steroids, but I don't care. I'm just glad she's eating again. She didn't want to eat this morning, but I forced 1 ml into her. I'm not worried about that because she ate so well last night. 

I gave her a plain water bath this morning because she had some poop under her tail. The protrusion from her rectum is still present. I don't know if this is bad or just too early to tell.  I talk to the vet tomorrow afternoon to give a progress report. And of course she pooped in the bath. It was kind of loose and broke up easily. Maybe because of the soft/liquid diet and then suddenly eating more kibble??? I don't know. Sorry I'm talking about poop so much, but I said I'd keep you updated.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Can't offer any advice at all, but so glad she's eating more! And no apologies necessary...I think all hedgie owners' lives revolve around poop. Just something that has to be accepted! :lol:


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Just an update about Izzy. The swelling has gone down and tomorrow she gets weened further from the steroids (goes to every other day). These last few weeks have been stressful. I just don't know how to comfort her. She was getting so fussy that I would just feed her and have to put her back to bed. Even being in a snuggle sack on my lap wasn't comfortable for her. With my other animals, I could give them cuddles when they were sick. Izzy just wants to be left alone....which I respect, but it also makes me feel so helpless.  

I was mistaken before about determining allergies. I was just so upset for her and having to visit the vet again that I just didn't really hear everything clearly. The steroids are being used as a diagnostics tool. The steroids reduce the swelling. If the swelling comes back after her course of steroids is over, then we are looking at a possible food allergy. If the swelling doesn't come back, then it could possibly be a one time thing from the stomach upset. If it's an allergy then she'll be on a prescription cat food for allergies, and we'll slowly introduce one ingredient at a time until she has a reaction to something or she's on a well rounded diet.

Right now, the swelling is gone and she'll have her last dose of steroids on March 11. So after that, we're keeping an eye out for the illness to return. Thanks for your warm thoughts and wishes for Izzy. 

Also, about nutrition, the vet said that the scientific journals have not published any further information about it than we already have. FRUSTRATING!!


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## vasogoma (Feb 25, 2012)

The best of wishes to your Izzy  I know what is like to have a pet with food allergies, and I know it can get frustrating plus also kind of expensive. My black Labrador is allergic to something in some foods that we are not certain about what exactly that is, so we had to give her steroids for a while. She is also allergic to grass, which makes it kind of difficult to know if her reactions are because of the food or because of the itty bitty small patch of grass we left for her and my Golden Retriever to use as a restroom (yeah, we had to put cement all over the place except for a very small area).
Anyway, patience is the key here, that and keeping an eye on her to make sure she is not reacting to some other thing. I hope everything goes smooth from now on


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thanks Vale. My dog has allergies too, environmental and food, so he's been on steroids, had food changes and is now on shots for the environmental allergies. His reaction isn't too bad, just some itchiness and paw licking. He's not losing hair or have scabbing or anything. Just irritating for him.  And patients is one thing I'm short on right now. I just want her to get better.


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## Tabbikat (Dec 30, 2011)

Hi Rainy;

Glad to hear Izzy is doing better!!!! I am sending positive thoughts her way and hope this was a one time thing!!!!! I picked up my little one on Thursday. She is adjusting really well! I am very proud of her. It has been a really busy weekend but I plan to upload some pics tomorrow.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thanks Tabbikat.  How did those liners work out? I was wondering why we haven't heard anything about your little one yet.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Just thought I'd give an update about Izzy. In the last two months she's lost 51 grams. She hasn't been eating well and I just weened her off of syringing a/d.

She is still on steroids because when we weened her before, the inflammation came back immediately, so the vet wanted to extend the course of prednisolone for five more days, then for five every other day. Her last dose of steroids is on March 22.

I was getting frustrated, thinking that this could be an allergic reaction to food and still feeding her the same food. So, last time I took her in I asked the vet if we could just assume that it's allergies to a food and get on that. I felt like I was poisoning her, every time I gave her kibble. A little over a week ago, we started her on science diet z/d. It has hydrolyzed proteins in it so they break down better and is less likely to cause a reaction. She wouldn't eat more than 1 to 4 kibble of that each night, sometimes not eating any of it. I did have some in her bed so it was right under her nose all the time and that didn't help either. I tried syringe feeding the canned z/d and she fought and got stressed from that, so I went back to syringing the a/d. 

I talked to the vet last Friday about her rejecting the food. I gave her a week to get used to it. So, she is now on Royal Canin hp. It also has the hydrolyzed proteins but has a different smell, shape and texture (so hoping the taste is better). I came home and held her and offered her a few kibbles under her blanket. She ate five of them (which is unusual -- the only thing she'll eat in front of me are mealworms and crickets)! I was hoping this meant that she likes it. 

I syringed 5 ml a/d on Friday night and she ate 25 kibble that night. Saturday, I syringed 3 ml a/d in the morning (just to kind of ween her off of it) and 3 ml a/d in the evening. She ate 34 kibble last night. So, this morning I did not syringe feed her, but I did still leave some food in her bed in case she decided to not come out again. When she gets straightened out again with poop, activity and food count, then we'll start adding food to see what is causing the reaction.

The vet said that it would be okay to feed mealworms because she needs the fiber. The low allergen food has poor fiber content. I have a mealworm farm and they were on wheat bran and carrots. I divided some of them for Izzy and put hers on oatmeal with carrots. The vet said that pet allergies are typically a protein thing, but to put her on oats just in case, because people have allergies to wheat. He said the carrots were fine. 

Here's my question: Should I put the worms on another type of bedding and give them something like a sponge or something else for moisture? Has anyone else had hedgies that were intolerant to carrots or had some reaction to them? 

Hissy-Fit-Hazel said that Hazel didn't process carrots well and her mealworms can't eat them because Hazel still has trouble with that.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

I'm sorry you guys are still struggling with figuring this out.  HUGS to you and Izzy both! I can't really offer any advice or help, unfortunately, just lots of hugs. I hope someone else has some useful advice and Izzy keeps eating! <3


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thanks Kelsey. I think things are going in the right direction. I'll see how much she eats in the morning to know if I need to syringe again or not. Hope you're doing well. We need to get together again soon.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

*Update on Izzy's food allergies*

Izzy finished her last dose of Prednisolone last Thursday (3/22). She was doing well, eating the hypoallergenic Royal Canin hp. She was eating 49 kibbles on 3/20, then has slowly deminished as she finished the pred.

On Saturday night she only ate 8 kibble and when I checked on her Sunday morning, she was shaking (but not cold), very pale, and weak. I called the emergency vet and he said that her blood sugar probably plummeted because she wasn't eating. He said to give her some honey or Caro syrup. So, I gave her about .05cc honey and that calmed the shaking. I called the vet with the intention of going in and having her put to sleep. It was very scary. He said to give her a dose of the pred that morning, that night, then the next morning and get into the office on Monday. We did that.

Izzy was anesthetized to draw blood, feel her abdomen, check lymph nodes, check anus (colon was protruding from her rectum a few weeks ago), checked mouth, teeth and throat. Everything still looked normal. The labs showed that all of her blood values were normal, not even a fluctuation from previous values. Does not appear to be cancer, blood sugar was fine, (Sunday was just a transient low blood sugar reaction from not eating the night before), no fatty liver disease, no problems at all that can be detected. So, we're still assuming that it's a food allergy. Since she does well on the prednisolone, we are giving that 2X/day for 7 days, 1X/day for 7 days, then every other day for 7 doses. Hopefully at the end of those 28 days she will have gained some weight, and adjusted to the new food, getting all other foods out of her system. The vet said that the allergen can take 4 to 6 weeks to leave her system.

Thanks for thinking of her. 

We've had some scary moments, but she seems to bounce back well. She just really can't stay on the prednisolone forever.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Oh Izzy...  I definitely need to get my butt out to see you guys, I want to give you both huge hugs! I wish we could do more to help, or that anyone could...But I'll definitely keep my fingers crossed that she continues to do good on the prednisolone and hopefully this gets figured out once all of the other foods are out of her system. I'll be sending ALL of my good thoughts and wishes to her! And I'll let you know about next weekend, whether I can get out to your place or not!


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

Thank you, Kelsey. You're always so supportive. I really appreciate you.  If we can't make it work next weekend, I'm sure we can another weekend. We all would love to see you. HUGS.


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