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Old 09-29-2021, 08:02 AM   #371
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Pickle's Thread

I did have a tooth out with hypnotherapy once but found it quite exhausting and gruelling and wasn't particularly successful. But it's my only really option if I need the same again - or a general anaesthetic, which seems more sensible but they seem reluctant to do that on me! Seriously I went round the houses for years between dentists, doctors and hospitals and them not knowing what to do with me. I had drug allergy tests for local anaesthetics in London which were negative - but next time I had a local anaesthetic, ended up hospitalised again and was very ill for a long time afterwards. Been told not to do that again! Dentists won't touch me with a bargepole. Personally I just want to have all my teeth removed and false ones and be done with it! But I will muddle on during the pandemic as enough on our plates.
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Old 10-13-2021, 07:04 AM   #372
Pebbles82
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Pickle is just the same - still active, still using his wheel. His eye is no worse. Occasionally looks a bit weepy. He had the antibiotics for 3 weeks. The swelling round the eye, I think is less but maybe it isn't.

Had a call with the vet on Monday to ask her about continuing with antibiotics, and as I suspected, she was very much against that idea. She seems very concerned about antibiotics generally becoming resistant and said he'd become resistant, then I might become resistant and then she might become resistant (I kind of follow the logic there but ....).

I said my concern was it had got much better after 10 days of antibiotics and I was concerned if it was a trapped abscess it would come right back again and his eye protrude again and I didn't want him to go through that again, but also don't want to have him pts while he is still so active and enjoying life (and food).

So she said to stop the antibiotics and if it did come back to restart them again (but that could take another 10 days) but her feeling was if it came right back then the antibiotics hadn't work and they'd prescribe a different one. She also still thinks it's a tumour and maybe it was the metacam that made things shrink and improve. Which is possible too I guess. Although I do think the antibiotics improved the eye.

Basically no-one knows what's going on behind his eye but all agreed to continue keeping him on Metacam.

So fingers crossed his eye doesn't get worse again now he's off the Baytril. I'm not the vet but was going with a gut feeling based on knowledge of tooth abscess - which get better after antibiotics but only temporarily because the abscess is trapped in a bony socket and can't get out, so it just starts getting worse again once the antibiotics stop.

I think it probably is a tumour though if the swelling didn't go down completely (either that or the antibiotics didn't work) but as she said at the last appointment - could have been secondary infection as well.

All I know is something definitely burst in that first week and his eye went back to more normal - if slightly weepy occasionally.

But he carries on as usual, still likes to come out and seems very keen to free roam and jump off the sofa. Still scales the sofa. He's very active and just the same as ever.

Vet did say he will need to be pts at some point. And I know that, which was hard to accept at first - unless of course something else happens meanwhile, like a sudden heart attack or something.

So he is just living out his life on Metacam for now until he shows signs of suffering.
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Old 10-13-2021, 08:45 AM   #373
Ria P
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The vet left the possible natural option out.
Pickle may die peacefully of old age. Just because he has health issues doesn't mean that he'll have to get put to sleep at some point.
At the moment he's doing fine on metacam and long may it continue.
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Old 10-13-2021, 09:29 AM   #374
Coco61
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Let’s hope the metacam keeps Pickle feeling comfortable for some time to come. He is enjoying his roaming time and being active so he is feeling fine now.
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Old 10-13-2021, 11:59 AM   #375
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Thanks both. She is very logical and if she thinks it’s cancer she will be assuming he starts to suffer a lot before he dies of old age. But yes I am nit going to assume anything- but be prepared and enjoy that he is so active as well. Started weighing him this week. He’s 237g. He was quite a bit more than that last time I weighed him but that was ages ago. And not sure my scales were correct at that time. Anyway he is still a really good weight but will monitor his weight weekly to see if he starts losing weight.
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Old 11-06-2021, 05:42 AM   #376
Pebbles82
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So an update on Pickle. No change to his eye really - which is a good thing. He’s been off the antibiotics a while now and continues on Metacam with baby food - which he loves. He licks the Metacam off the top first and comes back later to eat the rest of the baby food. His eye looks no worse and the slight swelling around it is no worse. So he’s stable basically. Carries on doing all the usual hamsters things although less inclined to want to come out of the cage at the moment - maybe since the colder weather started or maybe just getting older. He cleaned out his house yesterday - I found a load of yellowish smelly substrate in front of it and a lot of substrate missing . Pickle has never been completely toilet trained (the only Syrian I’ve had who pees in different places — although all within his house. He sometimes uses the litter tray and sometimes uses other substrate area in the house. But not his nest any more thankfully. And he has got very good at housekeeping in his old age!

So the eye remains looking fairly normal (ie not protruding) - sometimes looks a bit weepy round the outside.
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Old 11-06-2021, 07:17 AM   #377
Ria P
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That's a pretty good outcome. Great too that he does his own housekeeping,lol!
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Old 11-15-2021, 05:48 PM   #378
Pebbles82
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An update on Pickle. He is more or less just the same. Doesn't show any particular inclination to want to come out but doesn't seem to be failing. There was no change in his eye for quite some time but I've noticed recently it looks weepy and dark circle under it again, and can see a bit of white of his eye. So I think the infection has come back again. His head with slightly swollen area (you can only tell because his head isn't quite symmetrical) is no different.

So I'm having a think about that. I might just start him on the Baytril again if it looks like that again tomorrow. I don't really want to drag him off to the vets again, he's an old man now and on palliative care basically.
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Old 11-16-2021, 01:23 AM   #379
Ria P
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That's what i would do as well. Nothing more a vet could do at this point.
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Old 11-16-2021, 11:56 AM   #380
Coco61
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It does sound that the best for Pickle is to keep him in his own home and give some baytril if that would help him. He is an elderly gent now and just needs keeping comfortable unless it becomes obvious that is not enough.
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