Help... sick boar, won't get up

[Hillsvale]

So boris our 670 pound boar refused food yesterday morning... first sign of a pig not feeling well. I immediately gave him ivomec injectible, injected into a bagel which he happily ate. Last night we forced him up and he ate his dinner unwillingly. This morning he won't get up, he is quite cranky. We tried to give him a shot of LA pen last night but the needle was only 20 gauge and worked too slow for boris, I found an 18 and hopefully I can get it IM this morning. He doesn't seem to have stool that are off, no vomiting, no spots, no weezing... just won't get up and cranky.

Any thoughts?

 

[Hillsvale]

OK so he is deficating and urinating, seems a bit dehydrated. Tried to give him a shot of LA Pen but he wasn't having any of that... he got up and left until we left the hut then he went back to bed. He seems almost OK when up and about but only got up when we tried to give him that needle, he almost seemed to twitch when laying down.

Someone must have some thoughts?

 

[elevan]

Rehydration should be a major step. Drench him with electrolytes (Pedialyte or Gatorade). If you have access to Lactated Ringers Solution or Sodium Chloride you can give SubQ fluids.

How old is he?

Does he have a fever?

Anything else that we should know in order to help?

 

[Hillsvale]

subQ is the issue lol... he is 1.5 years old and 700 pounds, he does not feel warm around his nice soft ear folds but there would be no taking his temperature... he certainly had several good pees today and a large poop which did seem a bit dry, he is our breeder boar. When we went to feed him tonight Simon went to the beck end and he didn't even get the cap off the syring and boris bolted, he refused his dinner and went back to bed but he moved faster this time then earlier in the day... I wonder if there is a tablet form of penicillan, I can contact the main office of our vet clinic... they are about and hour and a half away but worth it if it helps my boy. Have you ever heard of an oral form on Pen for livestock (I know most of our drug names are different than in the US)

I cut up fresh fruit and veg with some pasta today mixed in some hummas that would never be eaten and he ate a bit of that. We will go out tomorrow and get some really fresh fruit and perhaps inject it with some pedialite, he will definately eat that, maybe some yogurt.. i'll look for the juiciest thing I can find and make it power fruit.

 

[elevan]

You could ask them to call in a prescription for him to a human pharmacy to obtain penicillin in pill form that way. (at least in the US you can)

Replace his water with electrolytes. Here are some homemade electrolytes that you could try (electrolytes rehydrate better than plain water):

Switchel
Switchel is the name for a common, centuries-old homemade beverage (and Gatorade precursor) comprised of water, vinegar, molasses and honey. While not a powder, it has a number of other advantages (notably, it's easy and cheap to make). For one gallon of switchel, combine 14 cups (3-1/2 quarts) of water with 1 cup of molasses, 1/2 cup of honey, 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar or other strong vinegar plus 1 to 2 tbsp. ground ginger. Stir all ingredients until thoroughly mixed.

Powdered Drink-Mix Recipe
Combining unsweetened powdered drink mix with salt and sugar is an alternative to Gatorade powder. This recipe tastes more like Gatorade than Switchel and is less expensive than Gatorade powder mix. To make this substitute, combine one envelope of unsweetened powdered soft drink mix (flavor and brand of your choice, as long as it makes two quarts), with 10 tbsp. of sugar and 3/4 tsp. of granulated salt. Store mixture in an air-tight container, such as a resealable bag. Mix with up to two liters of water when ready to use as a drink.

Imitation Gatorade Powder Recipe
Another common and inexpensive way to recreate Gatorade powder at home is to combine one envelope of any unsweetened flavored drink mix with 1/2 tsp. granulated salt, 1/4 cup refined sugar, 1/4 cup granular fructose and 1/2 tsp. citric acid. Store mixture in an airtight container such as a resealable bag. Mix with up to two liters of water for use as a drink.



Read more: Homemade Gatorade Powder | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/way_5480560_homemade-gatorade-powder.html#ixzz1rJ7Tm0g3

 

[Hillsvale]

Well I called trhe vet clinic at 9pm on Good Friday... vet called back in about 3 minutes, we will go and get some oral penicillan tomorrow.

Beats the human health care system!

 

[redtailgal]

It's really hard to subq or saddle bag fluids on a pig. You can have some success if you go to the area right above the root of the tail or in the belly, inside thigh area. That said, um, pigs dont really like that, and so it could be quite difficult and dangerous.

Another thing that I have done with poor pigs, is to soak wheat bread in electrolyte formula. REALLY soak it so it's more soupy than anything.

You could try taking his favorite food and floating it in a water pan, he'll get some water by trying to get the food.

Also, if his stool is not loose, you can feed "wet" fruits to help with hydration, watermelon is a good one.

I've taken dehydrated fruit, raisins or dried peaches apricots etc, and soaked them in pedialyte.....they will REALLY suck up some fluid.

The point is, he is a large animal and it's hard to replace fluids, so make every bite of food count.

I'd also consider giving him some B12, and if the stool is still ok, consider a little molasses (one or two tablespoons twice a day) for the sugar and iron.

Twitching when getting up is often a sign of dehydration. Things get "sticky" inside, literally. Joints dont want to move, nerves are not properly lubricated, and well, the brain gets smaller. The stress of movement often causes twitching.

Get that antibiotic, give some probios or active culture yogurt with it. Work hard on the dehydration, offering wet foods several times a day. Be prepared....once he starts peeing and clearing out the junk that has accumulated in his body, the urine may be very dark, slightly bloody and have a foul smell. (I've always found dehydrated pig urine to be EXTREMELY foul, like rancid beer)

 

[Hillsvale]

thanks all.... Vet Awesome.

We will go to the vet 1.5 hours out of our way because their satilite isnt open tomorrow... we will take fecals though he thinks its not necessary including sheep in the pen we had coddi last year; pure bred lambs are worth it.... vet was awesome! cant say it enough

busy saturday...............

 

[Queen Mum]

You might also try putting something sweet in his water to make him drink it, but add a little extra salt. It will make him drink the water while also making him thirsty thus making him drink more water. Pigeraide! Get a packet of animal electrolytes. They will help rehydrate him pretty quickly and pigs seem to like the taste. You can also try a nurser. Oddly enough when I had pigs, waaaaay back when, if they got sick I could give them a calf nurser and they would SUCK down the fluids from a baby bottle. And they weighed close to 800 lbs.

 

[Hillsvale]

Well I tried everything... this is a very pungent and bitter anti biotic... I can smell it you can bet he can.

I finally had enough of the waste yesterday and mixed the meds in with some molasses and apple juice concentrate... and shot it down his throat, he made a look of complete disgust but not a whole lot he could do.

Tonight I tried so hide it in a turn over... nope, he took one bite then moved to the sows dish.. after moving the balance of the turn over 3 times I decided that my time was being wasted, mixed his meds in a bit of apple juice and took out a new turn over, when he opened his mouth to taste the treat I shot the meds down his throat. I tried playing nice be he wasn't having it!

On a better note he actually came out for breakfast and dinner which he hasn't in several days... he is on the road to recovery. Now just to figure out where the piece of pizza when that I have medicated and put up high hoping to give it to him last year.... I suppose there is a flock of birds somewhere that won't get a bacterial infection for some time!