As you may know from previous posts (
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=4596 ;
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=4650) Puff and I have been having some major URI / antibiotic woes.
I finally heard back from my vet today who had some suggestions on what to do next but due to the lack of hedgehog knowledge in the vet world, I always like to get a second opinion first.
Summary:
-Earlier last week Puff was wheezing in sleep, sneezing, gooping
-Last Thursday went to vet, diagnosed with "somewhat laboured breathing", prescribed 8 day antibiotic dose - been taking Novo-Trimel (48mg/ml - dose of 0.32 cc /12 hrs)
-Has green diarrhea stool on the wheel and very small amount of solid stool in the litter each morning since and has been on/off her food (one night eats normal amount, the next hardly any) - Still eating mealies and crickets even if doesn't touch the dry kibble
-Been giving her crushed acidophilus tablets sprinkled on crickets between the antibiotic doses since last Sunday and syringe feeding her wet cat food/baby food each morning when she hasn't eaten the night before as well as pedialyte to prevent dehydration
-The green stool on wheel has been getting less "green" each night, and this morning it looked greenish brown with some solid stool in the litter and she ate a normal amount of kibble
The vet's suggestion:
-Stop the antibiotic after tonight (2 days before the 8-day dose is up)
-Wait until after the weekend to see if the stool clears up and eating resumes to normal
-If she still sounds like she's having breathing troubles, go back for a recheck early next week and do one or both of the follwoing:
1) get x-rays (which means sedation) to check lungs
2) put her on a different antibiotic
My concern:
-Stopping the antibiotic dose early and waiting until next week may let any remaining "super" bacteria result in a worse upper respiratory infection (although I don't think she's getting the full antibiotic dose anyways because she lets it fall out her mouth after I syringe it and I can't get her to take it any other way than scruffing her and syringing it)
-Getting x-rays and sedation may be more of a risk than a gain if she doesn't need them, but putting her on a different antibiotic or not doing anything if she seems better could be more risky if she does still have a URI or has some other lung problem besides a URI
All this being said... her breathing DOES seem better, still some nose goop and nose licking but it's clear and could just be regular wet hedgie nose, and I haven't heard any wheezing. She IS still eating enough (between her eating her kibble and me syringing her) and her poop IS getting better... but I don't know if I should wait until next week to see the vet
Very frustrated and worried what to do - Any advice is appreciated!!!!
