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Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
#917764
03/11/10 02:18 AM
03/11/10 02:18 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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Second post to emergency forum in one week... this is insane. I heard hissing mixed with a weird noise coming from the gliders cage just a few minutes ago. I thought one of the joeys was looking for Kiwi, so I went over to look and I was shocked to see it's Kiwi making the noise (Kiwi is my least vocal glider) and she's just sitting on a vine hissing. I took her out and noticed her belly is extremely large and firm. She is a huge eater and we commented on her eating more than usual tonight (we added in a few fruits and veggies that are part of the BML diet, that they don't always get on a regular basis) - could she have eaten too much? Is she bloating? She continues to hiss every few minutes, but then she runs on her wheel or comes out to play. I called one of two emergency vets in town and the vet on call is not familiar with sugar gliders at all. I'm waiting for a call back from the second e- vet. Until then, any advice or suggestions?
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#917783
03/11/10 02:36 AM
03/11/10 02:36 AM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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Until you get her in to a vet, only keep her on a liquid diet.
When was the last time she poopied? Has she been constipated?
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: the gliders angel]
#917786
03/11/10 02:41 AM
03/11/10 02:41 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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Fruits and veggies are always a daily part of their diet. I was simply stating that tonight, they had a few extra fruits and veggies (that are accepted in the diet) on their plate that they don't get every single night.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#917787
03/11/10 02:43 AM
03/11/10 02:43 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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Until you get her in to a vet, only keep her on a liquid diet.
When was the last time she poopied? Has she been constipated? She pooped a few droppings about 10 minutes ago when she was crawling on me. They appeared normal. I have removed their plate from the cage for now. She continues to run around the cage playing, but stopping to hiss every so often.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#917789
03/11/10 02:50 AM
03/11/10 02:50 AM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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Is she paying attention or over grooming her bottom? What did she have to eat last?
Last edited by LSardou; 03/11/10 02:51 AM.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#917794
03/11/10 02:57 AM
03/11/10 02:57 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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Not grooming or paying attention to any special area. I'm on hold with the vet now, who is looking up information on bloat in gliders. We have two emergency vet centers here - one will not take in any exotics and said the vet on staff knew nothing about sugar gliders. The other animal hospital has a vet on staff that is on the phone with me now, trying to look up information. They told me to confine Kiwi to a small area and not let her move, because activity after a large meal (if this is what's causing her sudden bloat) will make it worse. This is making Kiwi extremely unhappy and hissing has increased.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#917798
03/11/10 03:06 AM
03/11/10 03:06 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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The vet is going to call me back after calling a few other vets. She has never seen this problem in a sugar glider and isn't sure what actions to take other than limit Kiwi's activity for now. Hopefully she will call me back with more helpful information. Tonight's dinner was BML mix, peas, corn, green beans, carrots, grapes, apples, watermelon, cherries (pitted), peaches (pitted), mango, and blueberries. We went to the store tonight to restock on all of our suggie foods, and decided to give them a little bit of everything while it's all fresh. Bad idea, I guess. Thanks for the posts, LSardou. I appreciate the help!
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#917802
03/11/10 03:17 AM
03/11/10 03:17 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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Another update after another phone call with the emergency vet: She spoke with another vet several hours away who also had no experience with this problem in sugar gliders. They both tried to find information about possible torsion in sugar gliders, but nothing came up. They asked me if sugar gliders can have stomach twist like guinea pigs and dogs, and I couldn't find anything on here about it? It's $110 to be seen by the vet tonight and the only thing she knows to do is x-rays, which start at $100 plus sedation if they can't get a clear lateral shot, so she said unless Kiwi starts acting lethargic or strange, to hold off on bringing her in. Do you guys agree, or should I take her in and get an x-ray anyway? I don't really want her sedated, and the vet doesn't know what actions to take after the x-rays... so I guess this is turning into a "wait and see" game? Sigh
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#917805
03/11/10 03:31 AM
03/11/10 03:31 AM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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I'm worried about waiting. If there is an intestinal blockage, this can cause perforation to the intestines.
I'm not trying to scare you, but from what you're describing, this is not normal.
If her food intake has been the same, and she hasn't shown signs previously, the indications are more than just average bloat, which is not common unless there is something going on.
Here is a list of some vets who will do phone consultations with your vet. If need be, have the vet that your talking to now try and call one of these vets.
Dr.Tim Tristan OSO Creek Animal Hospital 361-994-1145
Dr. Bradley Walsh Village vet Animal Clinic/All Creatures Veterinary Hospital 928-258-0040
Dr. Andrew Grzanowski Canton Center Animal Hospital 734-459-1400
Dr. Kate Zimmerman TriCounty Animal Hospital (has 24hr emergency contact info on her office answering machine) 423-391-0303
Dr. Teresa Bradley Belton Animal Clinic 816-331-3120
Dr. Kristen West Mandel Veterinary Hospital 216-321-6040
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#917806
03/11/10 03:33 AM
03/11/10 03:33 AM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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Sending tons of hugs and prayers your way.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#917808
03/11/10 03:34 AM
03/11/10 03:34 AM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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This vet would be the quickest one to get some help from.
Dr. Kate Zimmerman TriCounty Animal Hospital (has 24hr emergency contact info on her office answering machine) 423-391-0303
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#917811
03/11/10 03:54 AM
03/11/10 03:54 AM
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lovejinx
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lovejinx
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I'll call the vet I spoke with earlier and see if she will call one of the vets you listed. Thank you! As for food intake being the same - she ate way more than usual tonight. As mentioned in my first post, it was enough to make my boyfriend and I comment several times on how much she appeared to be eating. She sat in the glider kitchen for at least 45 minutes straight when we first put the food dish in. She's a very big eater normally, which we have been attributing to the fact that she's had nursing joeys, but they're mostly weaned. However, despite being a big eater all the time, she seemed very excited with tonight's food plate and not too long after her gorge-fest, the bloating and hissing began. If she's bloated from overeating, will this subside when she digests the food? The vet mentioned watching for vomiting and aspiration, which is just another concern to add to the list. She was stressing out too much being confined to a smaller area, so she's back to running around. She's currently exploring a cardboard box on top of her cage, but still hissing at random intervals. Thanks again. I'll keep you updated.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#917821
03/11/10 06:47 AM
03/11/10 06:47 AM
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Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 14,788 Cleveland, Ohio
sugarglidersuz
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 14,788
Cleveland, Ohio
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Brittany, Hopefully she is doing better as of this morning. Please post an update for us when you get a chance. I have heard of bloating in joeys before, but not in adults. For joeys, adding a drop of Simethicone drops (Little Tummies) to the formula helps decrease the bloating. You may want to ask the vet about this if she is still bloated this morning. I'm sure the dosage for an adult would be different.
Moving this over to Health & Hygiene now.
Suz Enyedy Carina & Coobah Allira & Gizmo Picasso, Trinity Joy & Luna DaisyMae; Darwin; Mareki; Mambo; Pika; Cricky; Reggie & Bobo, Pepe & Bittah Suz' Sugar Gliders
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: sugarglidersuz]
#917891
03/11/10 11:15 AM
03/11/10 11:15 AM
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 3,224 North Fort Worth - TX
jacknsally
Glider Addict
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Glider Addict
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 3,224
North Fort Worth - TX
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It could be that she ate so quickly and so much and now has a gas bubble. The hissing is what's baffling. Trying the Simethicone drops (Little Tummies) may help and may go down on it's own by morning. If the bloating/gas has not subsided by this morning, I would have her in today for a visit right away. An x-ray will help to answer what is going on. If gas, they can put her on a special fiber diet to help relieve it, if a blockage- a Barium could help pass it. If it's worse and there's no relief, surgery is probably the last option. I had a glider who once went through the same thing. His bloating/gas was due to intestinal issues. Keep us posted and let us know how she's doing
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: jacknsally]
#918021
03/11/10 06:09 PM
03/11/10 06:09 PM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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Brittany, I've been worried about your little one all day today. I hope that everything is alright.
I hope to see a 'good' report from you soon.
Many prayers and blessings.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#918126
03/11/10 10:52 PM
03/11/10 10:52 PM
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lovejinx
Unregistered
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lovejinx
Unregistered
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Thanks for the replies, guys. Kiwi is finally back to normal, but it was a very, very long night. We did end up making a trip to the emergency vet after the hissing/crying continued and the stomach remained large and firm with no improvement. Once we got to the e- vet, we had to wait over an hour because the vet I had been speaking to was in surgery and the other vet on staff knew nothing about gliders. Finally they took her back to do x-rays and it took 3 vet techs and 4 films to get a clear enough shot, because of a certain very wiggly glider! The vet was nervous about sedating her because she hadn't sedated a glider before and she also didn't know if it would have any ill effects on Kiwi's nursing joeys. Long story short, from what they could tell from the x-rays, Kiwi had a very full belly and quite a bit of gas, but no obvious blockage or any twisting of the stomach or intestines. We discussed barium as the next step, but after I mentioned the Simethicone suggested in this thread, the vet agreed it was worth a try. Go figure, they didn't have any kind of gas relief drops in the clinic. I drove to a 24 hour store to pickup some Little Tummies while the vet tried to research what she thought was a safe dosage. An hour later, Kiwi's hissing had stopped and her stomach was softer, but still bloated. We ran a urinalysis and fecal exam while we were waiting and everything came back normal, so around 7am we decided to head home and follow up with our regular vet in a few hours if needed. Kiwi was very happy to see her cage and her babies. $450 later, I have a sore bank account, but a healthy glider, and Little Tummies in the glider drawer. No more scares for a while, please! Thank you for the replies and support!
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#918130
03/11/10 10:55 PM
03/11/10 10:55 PM
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Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 3,047 atkins arkansas
eterrell84
Glider Addict
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Glider Addict
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 3,047
atkins arkansas
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oh my lord.... lots of money for such a tiny baby! so glad she is okay!!!!!!
~ERIN~ momma to:ceasar(boxer),Chili(pug),Badcat(black cat) and Juliette(ragamuffin)~Apple and Archer and George Micheal Maybe and Jasper ,husband Jordan and daughter Azlyn!
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: the gliders angel]
#918219
03/12/10 04:51 AM
03/12/10 04:51 AM
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lovejinx
Unregistered
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lovejinx
Unregistered
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We never discussed cutting open a glider. As mentioned in my most recent update, we did a fecal and urinalysis on her last night while at the emergency vet, and everything came back normal. She does not hiss when she urinates, has no problems urinating or defecating, and the test results showed no problems. She has never hissed or made crying noises before last night's episode, and she hasn't hissed/cried out since we came home from the vet, so fingers crossed we figured it all out.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#918265
03/12/10 10:32 AM
03/12/10 10:32 AM
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glidernanny
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glidernanny
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Hope it was all gas and things keep going well. Praise God for mommies willing to go the extra mile and simple fixes despite our worries. I'm guessing you won't be offering any more all u can eat buffets again any time in the near future-lol.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: ]
#918293
03/12/10 12:36 PM
03/12/10 12:36 PM
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Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060 Kansas
LSardou
Glideritis Anonymous
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Glideritis Anonymous
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 21,060
Kansas
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I am so glad to hear that your little one is doing alright now. What a scare! You did the right thing by taking her in to be looked at. These little ones are so unpredictable, so to me, it's not worth taking the chance on waiting.
You're a fantastic mommy! I hope that she behaves herself from now on.
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: LSardou]
#918308
03/12/10 01:08 PM
03/12/10 01:08 PM
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Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 2,443 Roanoke, Virginia
mommawannabe
Glider Slave
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Glider Slave
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 2,443
Roanoke, Virginia
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Oh my goodness Brittany what a scare. Yup you did the right thing hon. Glad she is okay and I can definitely simpathize with the bank account being sore. Mine sure was after Izzy's 2 surgerys. I hope she continues to do well and look at it this way. You have had her all checked out with everything okay. Little stinker...yup I have a very fluffy glider I have to watch.
Anna
Hubby Tommie son Logan - 11 Pugs-Duncan and Raven, Bunnies-Foo&Friday Hedgies-Sweet Pea,Dobby,Bambi,DarthVader,Lexy,Shadow, Willow & Thatch. suggies-Izzy, Miley~Toff, Jasper~Twinkie, Nix~Ash, Nash~Riley, Barney~Spryte~Pixie, Apollo~Athena. Turtles - Shelly~Petunia www.suggiebabies.com
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Re: Bloat? Stomach suddenly huge and hard?
[Re: mommawannabe]
#918350
03/12/10 02:30 PM
03/12/10 02:30 PM
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lovejinx
Unregistered
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lovejinx
Unregistered
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Definitely no more "extras" on their food plate from now on. Apparently I have a little piggie who can't control her love for food. Anna, I'd love to look on the bright side and say that at least now she's already had her yearly fecal exam, urinalysis, and health check-up, but we just had it 2 months ago. Figures! But she's worth it, and the bright side is that she's acting like nothing ever happened. Now it's almost time to get our little boy joey neutered... does it ever end?
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