[mrsbeckett]

hi again, Percy, for those who don't know, is a piglet who someone found newborn and badly sunburned walked beside a country road. he was brought to me to look after as the RSPCA wanted nothing to do with him and no farms would take him, he became a part of our family like a puppy. he is about 8 weeks old now and seemed to be doing great. until yesterday when i went to get him up in the morning and his whole body was swollen with bubbles of water under the skin, so much that he could barely walk and his neck was swollen so his breathing was laboured. we are not a well off family, and would not have planned to get a pig, but decided to try and deal with it here rather than face vet costs that we might not be able to pay. Advice online said this happens and to lance them and drain, keeping them clean. i spent all day yesterday doing so, and as his temperature was shockingly low, he was cuddled up in a wam bed with hot water bottle under his blanket. by the evening the swelling was less and he looked better. this morning however, he is colder despite the warm attempts, he wont eat or move, he just lays limp in my arms with laboured breathing. we are doing all we can but it seems to be too late. has anyone experienced this?

[HappyHippy]

I've never heard of anything like this  nor has my OH (who worked in commercial piggeries when younger)
If you don't want to get the vet out (and a long acting anti-biotic might help him), do you have a farming neighbour who might have a way of dispatching him humanely to save him suffering ?
I really feel for you, you've done really well to keep him going this long........poor Percy and poor you 

[Bionic]

Sorry I can't offer any advice but this is so sad after all that you have done for him.    That he gets better

[BadgerFace]

Could be an allergic reaction?
I've never seen it in pigs, but once had a horse with a barley allergy. He would become covered in hives (urticaria) at the smallest wiff of barley. If I remember correctly, Vet treatment was hydrocortisone injections?  (was a few years ago).
I would be telephoning the vet for advise - good luck.

[ZaktheLad]

I don't have much experience of pigs but just wanted to say how sad I was to read your post.  You have done so well with him to date and so this is a horrible thing to happen now after all your hard work.  I am keeping everything crossed for a good outcome, but if you can try and get him to a vet it would probably be best. 

[Eve]

Our vets don't charge for advice given over the phone.


Best of luck, hope Percy pulls through. 

[Bumblebear]

So sorry to hear this    I hope it ends well, please keep us posted.

[mrsbeckett]

hello again all thank you for the comments nice to know you're rooting for Percy! Well its been a mad couple of days, like having a newborn baby again! after his worrying morning i honetly thought we would lose him and even had our oldest daughter (3) say goodbye to percy before she went to preschool. He was freezing cold, his heart rate had plummeted and he was wetting himself and wouldnt open his eyes, but we refused to give up and gave ourselves 12 ours to try and get him on the up! i then set to work with three (yes three!) hot water bottles, 5 blankets, antibiotic and salt water washing to prevent/deal with starter infections at the lance sites all over his body, back to formula milk on the bottle as he was so weak he didnt want to eat (and for a piggy thats a shocker!) Well by evening he was trying to walk again (HURRAH!) he is still wibbly but defecating and urinating as normal again where he had been wetting himself in my arms that frighening morning which he hadnt even done as a teeny piglet! I was up in the night with him changing hot water bottles and bedding since he has been losing plenty of fluid from his lance sites, and I even found the dog licking him through his crate bars which was very sweet. this morning he is a lot more Percy than he has been for about 48 hours, walking still a bit wobbly and his breathing is still a wheeze but he is a lot better and im no longer thinking its the end! I ruled out pneumonia since he has no temperature in fact was prone towards hypothermic readings, and no cough, though he does have dirty eyes but i think thats just him, he always had eye gunk even before gettng ill. i just read one of the comments about allergies so will give him a shot of benadryl to see if that helps, that would certain explain his eyes, and will be ready to ask my vet for antibiotics if the wheeze progresses to a cough. any further thoughts on cause of this weird sickness would be appreciated, i can only find one reference in books and online about water retention under their skin and no cause for why it happens so we are going off the cuff a bit!

We are all extremely glad he is pulling through though, we realised how much he has meant to us when we nearly lost him! It was strange to think how awful it would be to lose him to a sickness and yet we would be fine with him going to slaughter at the appropriate age! I can't work out whether it has put me off more pigs or made me determined to get more!!!!

[Bionic]

Great to hear that he is looking a bit better.    That he is on the mend now

[ZaktheLad]

  for Percy 

[Eve]

Percy is an incredibly lucky pig to have ended up living with you!! 

[Eastling]

Glad he is making progress in the right direction    all continues, well done you. He is one lucky little piggy. Just a thought have you used anything like shake n vac in the house? as a contact allergy.

[Penninehillbilly]

Just wondering if he'd been outside and rubbing/rolling in plants which could have caused an allergic reaction? sometimes sun can create a blistering after contact with certain plants?
I have to admit, I expected the worst, well done for keeping going with him and not giving up. 
Maybe others would know better but would his low temperature be due to shock from an allergic reaction?

[Alicenz]

Hi So pleased to hear that he is getting better, but just something with the antibiotics, I suggest you check over the phone with a vet or someone who knows (perhaps a pig farmer, or someone here) that the medications you give him are safe for pigs. Not related obviously but some animals such as hedgehogs can react to penicillen, and i have a feeling pigs react to some meds too.  However maybe you have used these meds before with him, so I dont want to be alarmist!   Over 20 years ago some farmers i new had a pig that got into their garden and ate beetroot leaves, and had an allergic reaction, bruised all over, and almost didnt make it,  but did survive in the end after vet treatment. 

It sounds a bit like hives? but they normally go down.  hives i THINK is an allergic reaction, could be from a bee sting or something like that ?- a spider or snake?

Good luck

Fabulous that he has done so well, great that you are dedicated to him.  Best of luck.

[nelson]