Oxbow Critical Care

Pickles is no longer in danger! This may be a bit long, but I'm hoping that it will be helpful to another stressed-out mom. So, about a week before my daughter came to me and said he was really skinny and his eyes looked funny, we thoroughly cleaned and rearranged my daughter's guinea pig's cage. I'd bleached the cage and replaced the food bowl-- Instead of sitting on the platform at the top, it was attached to the cage's side. It was an understatement to call her skinny. His eyes were completely sunken in and he was skin and bones. He didn't make a single movement. I didn't think he'd make it through the night because he was so close to death. He did, but he appeared to be warming up to death. br>br>Tried the next day to get him into an exotic vet, but was unsuccessful. I did some googling and discovered that there are four main reasons why guinea pigs become "anorexic. "br>1) Ileus- such as a blockage in their intestines or excessive bloating I felt his abdomen, which was soft and he didn't seem to be in any pain. At the time, I still believed this was the most likely cause. br>2) Malocclusion - Their teeth grow into their cheeks or jawbones in this way. I didn't think it was this because the symptoms included a constantly wet chin/jaw and, more often than not, a mouth that wouldn't close completely. He didn't appear to be drooling and appeared to be normal. br>3) Infection of the upper respiratory tract- Sneezing, coughing, and nasal and mouth mucus are all symptoms. This, too, failed to meet the criteria. br>4) Stress/depression Depression, to be precise. I thought this was absurd. I mean, you could eat very little for a few hours or even a day or two, but this guy was gaunt. Isn't there a physical reason why he can't eat or drink? Anyway, I figured he might miss his old food bowl, so I put it on the top platform with him. He didn't make a single movement. Completely sluggish and uninterested. br>br>I made the decision to make him as comfortable as possible while also attempting to save him (despite the fact that I had little hope). I figured dehydration was the most serious issue, so I used a syringe to administer pedialyte to him. He gladly accepted it- like 3. 5 teaspoons in total! This is a positive indication. I saw this product online and it wasn't available in any of the local pet stores, so I ordered it from Amazon. It had been nighted. Meanwhile, I soaked and mashed pellets, then mixed them with carrot/apple/banana babyfood and syringe-fed it. He nibbled on the syringe a little, but not all that much. This arrived the following day. br>br> The pedialyte (which I continued to give him every 4-hours) made his eyes look better. 6 hours). He went into overdrive when I offered him critical care! I took about 2 teaspoons and felt much better. Every four hours, I continued to administer pedialyte and provide critical care. 6 hours. br>br>The next day, I noticed his water bottle (whose level hadn't changed in days) was about a third of the way empty. So he wasn't drinking the pedialyte after all. Awesome! He was also circling his cage back and forth! He used to jump around and wheek all the time before he became ill, but he hasn't moved since the illness began. I offered him some additional critical care, which he accepted, and then I decided to bring back the old food bowl. The most miraculous of miracles- He ate some pellets, that's for sure! His old food bowl was nearly empty the following day. Even so, two servings of critical care were given to him just in case. I knew he wasn't out of the woods yet because he hadn't pooped in a long time. He pooped the following day! br>br> Quite a bit. When I came in, he was happily wheeking at me and sticking his snout through the bars, looking for critical care, and he was munching hay out of the NEW food bowl. I gave it to him, but that was the last time I gave it to him. br>br>He's back to his old self now. It's impossible for me to believe. I believe he was enraged because I moved/rearranged his house and bought him a new food bowl. I read online that guinea pigs can go on a hunger strike if they are stressed, and that once they begin to feel bad, they quickly lose their will to live. It's strange. I think all I had to do was get him over the hump, and get him something he liked, so he'd remember that being alive is better than the alternative. My daughter and Mr. Pickles are reunited and happy. And I'm not required to be a guinea pig nurse all of the time. Thank you very much, Critical Care! You did a fantastic job!.

Malik Stephens

| Jan 28, 2021

GET IT NOW, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE! I'm so glad I got this before I got my rabbit - This is something that every rabbit owner should have on hand in case of an emergency. I've used Critical Care on guinea pigs and rabbits several times. Someone recommended the fine grind over regular Critical Care, and let me tell you, this stuff is incredible. br>br>It blends well, and it keeps a good texture for syringing even when mixed with an electrolyte mixture like Pedialyte. When I have an ill rabbit, I fill a few 10ml syringes and warm them on a heating pad while medicating, hydrating, and massaging the GI stasis tummy. I can easily syringe the Critical Care, clean up the rabbit, and get them back to resting until the next feeding once it's nice and warm. PRO- br>br>PRO- br>PRO- br>PRO- br>PRO- TIP: If you have a stasis rabbit and can't think, get up every four hours. Don't try to squeeze it into a syringe; instead, pop it open and spoon it in from the top, leaving as few air bubbles as possible to allow room for the plunger to return. PRO- br>br>PRO- br>PRO- br>PRO- br>PRO- TIP 2: So you have it, go ahead and order some syringes from Amazon. Exotic pets almost always become ill at 1 a. m. on Fridays, when nothing is open in town and no ER veterinarian accepts exotic pets.

Hope Beasley

| Sep 15, 2021

We own rabbits, and we've been told that this product is a must-have for caring for rabbits in GI stasis by a number of people. I should start by telling you about how we used this product: at Country Max, we discovered a very sweet and beautiful little Red Rex Rabbit. What we didn't realize when we bought her was that she had a parasite in her GI tract called Coccidia, which we discovered after we brought her home and took her to the vet for an initial checkup. We were able to get her the medication she needed, but by day three of the treatment, she had stopped eating and was exhibiting all of the symptoms of GI stasis. We had to use critical care at that point. We gave it to her through a syringe, and it, along with Simethicone, helped her get out of stasis in 12 hours, despite the fact that we were awake all night. We'd already gotten her through the worst of it by the time the vet's office opened in the morning. I wish I could tell you that the story had a happy ending, but she died in her sleep on the 12th day. It's a long story, but she was sold to a pet store knowingly by a breeder, along with other sick rabbits, all of whom died within three days of being adopted by families. Sansa, our bunny, lived four times as long as the other rabbits, and I know that part of it was because she was still receiving nutrition due to the Critical Care. We did everything we could for her, and this product played a significant role in that. By the time we found her in the store, she was too sick to do anything. I was, and still am, grateful that we were able to use this for her. It allowed her to pass away peacefully and with less pain. I strongly advise every rabbit owner to purchase this product because stasis can be fatal in just a few hours, and having it on hand to use when you need it is just common sense! Please see the photo of our precious little angel attached. You'll notice how, despite her illness, critical care kept her looking the exact opposite. br>br>This item was not purchased as part of a promotion. This item was purchased at full retail price.

Summer Lamb

| Apr 23, 2021