[princesspiggy]

dorothy has never been ill in her life, so it was guaranteed she'd be ill while we were in wales for our 2 day holiday (a rare event)!!

history -
weaned from her first litter 2 weeks ago and moved into new woodland that shes shares with 2 GOS who are fine and healthy. she is the only pig that goes through the gap to the big pond tho.
a week ago she got kicked on the neck by a pony (when she was in season, she broke into the pony field and followed the stallion everywhere, screaming at him for hours before he finally got fed-up.
last night she was in woods absolutely covered in flies. closer inspection revealed 4 huge (grapefruit size) lumps, 2 on each side of her. in identical places - flanks and lower thigh.
i initially guessed it was an absess caused by the kick, and the pus had settled in a different place.
she is eating normally, still active and weight is fine.
the lumps are quite hard and full, and hot and painful to touch. one of her back legs was a bit wobbly too.
no open wounds. no temperature. being fed harbro sow rolls and free range on 15 acres.

we had the vet out today. he lanced the lumps and they are full of fluid not pus, so not absess. vet decided it wasnt related to the kick by the pony. not erisipilus. they are in exact spots of her lymph nodes so that indicates a foreign body attack of some sort. possibly from skin contact of a poisonous plant. vet ruled out ragwort and nettles, he ruled out being in contact from rats pee. ruled out wasp stings and mastitus. so basically he didnt know what the lumps were but said the body was reacting to something by swelling up.

as she had access to pond and the GOS dont, maybe the reeds or something is poisonous?? the woods are mixed broadleaf/ spruce with nettles, docks and grass etc she has had hair loss but vet doesnt think that is connected.

shes had anti inflammatories and antibiotics etc but vets expects her neck lymph nodes to swell also before she gets better.
...and her voice is fine as she screamed blue murder during her injections. she gets so lary (violent was his wording  ) during injections. so she was held by a calf rope over top jaw while behind a metal gate in corner of the yard, her muscles were so tight it was squirting the injection back out again ...time to invest in a crush i think!

any ideas?

[robert waddell]

pond=algae not good for dogs   so first check if you have blue /green algae in the pond   grass snake bite 

[lill]

Hi PP
could your pig not have been bitten with clegs? my pigs have been bitten several times and had hard lumps. Now DON'T SHOOT ME DOWN HERE, I have treated my pigs with spot on over their backs, I know the box does not have the silhouette for pigs as it has for cattle, sheep but this does work for the pigs. I got in contact with my vet who contacted the makers and they did verify that it can be used for pigs also and the reason the silhouette is not on the box is because they do pig fly treatment at 4 times the cost of the normal spot on. So utilising the cheaper option does not put the pennies in the pockets of the manufacture  

[lill]

Jesus Robert, you must be able to type fast now. 

[princesspiggy]

check if you have blue /green algae in the pond   

i wouldnt hav a clue so will have to research that one! shes in different field now to be on safe side. i think she still misses delilah so its sad, the GOS just arent on her wave length at all.
thanx

[princesspiggy]

could your pig not have been bitten with clegs?

what on earth are clegs??

shes just bin done with panamec today (i kept the vet busy! lol)

[lill]

clegs stick to the skin and feed on blood and are always near where horses are. you may call them a different name but they all do the same, they feed on blood, i hate them when i get bitten, the wee beggers are killed with one hard hit.


Just been told they are called horse flys

[princesspiggy]

i havnt noticed any horseflies or ticks. she was swamped by hundreds of smallish flies on her lumps. like something out of a horror film! i thought there might have maggots but no. they cud obviously smell the fluid etc

[HappyHippy]

Tea tree oil is a cracking antiseptic (and it'll keep flies away) you can dab it straight on to her skin providing it's not in an area she's likely to lick. It should also keep flies away too (they don't like the smell)
Other than cleggs/horse flies I can't think of anything that would swell to that extent...... unless she's been stung by a wood wasp ?
Bruce was stung by a clegg a few weeks ago and had a grapefruit sized swelling on his forearm. A bit of tea tree and a dose of reiki did the trick 
HTH
Karen x

[princesspiggy]

i have "wondergel" for the ponies cuts etc and it reeks of tea tree oil so iv used that. today she is lively and eating well. now has 2 more lumps on one side but the other side is the same.
here are some pictures that show her hair loss also. she usually has a very thick beautiful coat. she isnt scratching and has had panamec jab.
maybe she ate poisonous mushrooms? or brushed up against something without the protection of her hair.
 

interestingly, even though our vet practise has a specialist pig vet, she has to have one "pig-free" day after every pig visit, so she couldnt come and look at dorothy or she couldnt have worked today. 

[HappyHippy]

Poor Dorothy 
It looks hellish (but I suspect that's the remains of purple spray or something) is she bothered by it ? Do the lumps move freely or do they feel stuck ?
I don't know if mushrooms would have that effect on her, maybe someone else will - but pigs aren't usually daft enough to eat stuff they shouldn't.
A recent tip, given to me by a horsey friend (and it's a bit, yuck but it worked for her horse when it had lumps and boils) is to wash the area with urine (the pigs obviously, not yours    ) If you're able to catch some in a bucket it's worth a shot and it certainly wouldn't do any harm.
Reiki is on the way to her too, maybe I live in cloud cuckoo land with my belief in reiki, but it can't hurt 
Karen x

[lill]

I know you said Dorothy been beside the horses but is there any way she may have been bitten with  the horse or maybe by another pig? it looks the same as when one of my pigs got bitten by the our wee shetland pony (little pest thankfully we don't have him anymore) sorry pp cant think of anything else at this moment in time but if i do i will get back to you  

[princesspiggy]

im pretty sure she hasnt been bitten by a pony but was def kicked in neck (we saw it happen). shes the boss over the GOS so they wouldnt dare bite her   . she has been separated for last 2 days and 2 more lumps have come up over night. the original 4 lumps are completely symmetrical.
what are those giant plants that resemble "cow parsley" but bigger and on single thick stem. they apparently make human skin photosensitive if touched. maybe she brushed against them?
the lumps are hardish/full and u can grab them but not move them. very painful for her just to touch. vet put on p. spray.
my consolation was one vet, in conversation, last year told me to put pigs in these particular woods to tidy it up, i dont think they do much apart from potter and sleep.
well...she not at deaths door, so could be worse  
thanx xx  

[lill]

could it be Japanese knot weed, I know that if people brush against it, it does make the skin go lumpy.

[robert waddell]

you mean giant hogweed     have you got that plant there