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wet

21 13:46:39

Question
Hi Pat,

Daisy's bottom seems always wet this last few days.
It doesn't seem like her bedding would be so wet and she finds no dry spots to sit at. every time I pick her up, I have to think about wiping her bottom before I put her on me.

I don't recall Peanut's had a wet pant situation before. and i also don't recall Daisy had this issue till recently.

Thanks so much, Pat!

jill

Answer
I've had that problem occasionally with some of my older sows. It seems to be the worst in the coated pigs, in my case my Teddies. It seems as though it starts with the wet bottom, then leads to what appears to be a yeast infection and a smelly strong urine odor from the wet parts.

I've actually had one or two that developed bleeding areas from trying to pull off the stuck hair.  I've found an easy cure but it does take a little patience.  

I give my girls a sitz bath just like we used to do in the hospital for sore bottoms either due to childbirth, hemorrhoid surgery, etc.  A small bowl or dish works fine and in fact my last sow to get that would just sit in the warm water without moving. I think it must have been soothing to her poor sore bottom.

The water should be warm. I have a square plastic container that's made for sandwiches, etc and it's perfect for the purpose. (For those of you wondering......no I don't use it for anything else)

Put some Betadine solution in the water. There's probably about 12 oz of water in the container and I put a tablespoon of Betadine in it. Sit the young lady in the dish. Polly (my old fat sow that I just had to treat) would sit with her front feet on the edge and stay perfectly still for ten to fifteen minutes.

That has a three fold purpose. It softens any hardened hair and it soothes the soreness. It also cleanses the area as the Betadine helps to treat any bacteria that is there. Then I pat her dry very softly and put Clotrimazole (used for yeast and fungal infections in "use girls") on the area. After the second day I switch to Neosporin ointment.

If the hair has become stuck the solution softens it so you can gently peel it away from her skin.  After about 5 days total the skin is nice and pink again (assuming she has white hair) and is no longer smelly and painful.

I don't know why some sows get this, but the one common denominator in my caviary is the obesity of an older sow. Maybe it just stays warmer and wetter if they're fat as the air can't get to them as easily.

If Daisy doesn't have any strong urine smell where she is wet then she may not actually have any kind of yeast or bacterial infection. In that case wash her off and just use good old fashioned Petroleum Jelly, aka Vaseline, on her.  Just as with babies with diapers it keeps a barrier on the skin so the urine can't get through it.  

I hope this is what you're looking for and this will help out. I've never had this with any of my boars, ever.  It seems to be unique to the girls just the 'portly' ones at that. It also did not seem to require any antibiotics, and since it clears up with the sitz baths it is not a urinary infection.

Please let me know this works for you.  

Best of luck.