Patch the Guinea Pig

Question
Hi Brittany,

Patch has just been to the vet again, where they advised putting him to sleep and checking his teeth which was done. They did previously check his chest and is sounded clear i did notice that he appears to be wheezing a bit and a bit horsy whilst trying to purr.

The Vet has now put him on SeptrinPaed and some Protexin sachets. Can i use Vicks and Robutusin cough syrup in addition. Also is there anything else i can do. As he has lost interest in most food.

Thanks
Allan
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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
Our Patch looks healthy, good size no noticeable weight loss. No poo's appear to be produced and those that are ,are now about half the size. He also appears to have a bit of a wheeze. Where he has been at the vets 3 times already getting Baytril although they seemed unsure of what was wrong.

He did perk up then initially and started eating dry food again, but now all he wants is water, some cucumber, cardboard, wood shavings
-----Answer-----
He most likely has an upper respiratory infection, Baytril does help some, but it does not cure the symptoms right away. I have more information on my website about URI's , http://woopets.bravehost.com , there are some more treatments there under guinea pig information, because you can also use Robutussin cough syrup and vicks vapor rub to help clear up some of the symptoms. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Brittany


Answer
There is not much else that can be done unfortunately. Just make sure to force feed him some soft food if he is not eating, baby cereal often works well. You can also force feed him pedialyte, the unflavored version, to keep him hydrated. You can use the Vicks with the treatment, I am not sure what the Protexin is off hand, but if it is a cough syrup then you can not use Robutussin with it, also if it is a decongestant.
Brittany