it is the tubing that is on the venipuncture blood collection set - the tubing is the same size on gauges of butterfly sets - just cut the needle off and use the tubing.
If you are going to use something on the rectum - you could use a lubricated q-tip.
Constipated Dog Face
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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Puffer Queen
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Re: Constipated Dog Face
Kelly
Re: Constipated Dog Face
Ok lubricated q-tip great (the q-tip soft end or the blunt end),as I can see a large amount of brown waste.
I have the feeding tube and syringe.
How much castor oil ??? mixed with food or not??
Thank you so much for the help.
I have the feeding tube and syringe.
How much castor oil ??? mixed with food or not??
Thank you so much for the help.
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Puffer Queen
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Re: Constipated Dog Face
cotton tip end (lubricated) to the rectum.
I have never used castor oil...only cod liver oil. I would probably only use a couple of cc's - probably straight at this point.
I have never used castor oil...only cod liver oil. I would probably only use a couple of cc's - probably straight at this point.
Kelly
Re: Constipated Dog Face
Thank you again. Apparently according to the drug store the castor oil is about the same as the cod-liver oil.
Here is the plan within the next hour am putting him under with the clove oil I will be putting the tube down his throat to just past the gills with about 2 cc of straight castor oil while the boyfriend holds and put the q-tip about 1cc in the other end and turns. Wish me luck and if he doesn't wake up I know that I did all I could and he will not suffer anymore.
Here is the plan within the next hour am putting him under with the clove oil I will be putting the tube down his throat to just past the gills with about 2 cc of straight castor oil while the boyfriend holds and put the q-tip about 1cc in the other end and turns. Wish me luck and if he doesn't wake up I know that I did all I could and he will not suffer anymore.
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Puffer Queen
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Re: Constipated Dog Face
To help with the waking up - gently guide him through the water to force water over the gills to give more oxygen. Make sure to well aerate the clove oil bath as well as the wake up tank.
Best of luck.
Best of luck.
Kelly
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Puffer Queen
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Re: Constipated Dog Face
Insert the lubricated q-tip a cm or slightly more - do not force. May repeat a couple of times especially if feces starts coming out......
Kelly
Re: Constipated Dog Face
Thank you for the exta tips and good luck wishes. Will do that.
Re: Constipated Dog Face
We put puff under and he came out of it ok 
. Problem was when I put the feeding tube down his throat it clogged right up so I just ripped it off and stuck the syringe down his throat and administer like that. Hopefully some got into his system ??? q-tip up the rectum no problems no waste came out but hopefully loosened it up enough for him to expel by himself. I guess time will tell. Thanks for all your help will let you know how he is doing in a couple of days.
. Problem was when I put the feeding tube down his throat it clogged right up so I just ripped it off and stuck the syringe down his throat and administer like that. Hopefully some got into his system ??? q-tip up the rectum no problems no waste came out but hopefully loosened it up enough for him to expel by himself. I guess time will tell. Thanks for all your help will let you know how he is doing in a couple of days.Re: Constipated Dog Face
Well I lost Puff lastnight 
. I guess to little to late but I know in my heart that I did try everything I possible could. I keep a lot of fish but why is it that we get so attached to these beautiful guys. I guess it is the way that they bond and interact with you like no other fish can. I will aways keep puffers but this guy was my first, a big teddy bear and I miss his so much already. The greeting when I came into the room, the begging even when he wasn't hungry, those big brown eyes. Most people would say it is only a fish but I know you guys can understand, puffers aren't just fish they are our pets. He made me laugh many a time and now I cry for him but I know he is not in pain any longer. I want to thank you all for your help and the puffer forum for teaching me so many things. Do I see a new puffer on the horizon, you bet for the enjoyment is worth the pain.
. I guess to little to late but I know in my heart that I did try everything I possible could. I keep a lot of fish but why is it that we get so attached to these beautiful guys. I guess it is the way that they bond and interact with you like no other fish can. I will aways keep puffers but this guy was my first, a big teddy bear and I miss his so much already. The greeting when I came into the room, the begging even when he wasn't hungry, those big brown eyes. Most people would say it is only a fish but I know you guys can understand, puffers aren't just fish they are our pets. He made me laugh many a time and now I cry for him but I know he is not in pain any longer. I want to thank you all for your help and the puffer forum for teaching me so many things. Do I see a new puffer on the horizon, you bet for the enjoyment is worth the pain.-
OraLacerta
- Former Staff Member
- Posts: 573
- Joined: Mon Apr 17, 2006 12:51 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Tetraodon biocellatus.
RIP: C. travancoricus, Chilomycterus schoepfi. Canthigaster jactator. - Location (country): USA
- Location: USA
Re: Constipated Dog Face
I am so sorry to hear he didn't make it.
You tried your best, I guess it was too far advanced for the treatments to help. Yes, most of us know how easy it is to become attached to our puffers and how painful it is to lose one, but I have never lost a puffer after owning it for so long so it must be very hard for you. I hope you will be able to find a new puffer addition some time in the future. Take care!
You tried your best, I guess it was too far advanced for the treatments to help. Yes, most of us know how easy it is to become attached to our puffers and how painful it is to lose one, but I have never lost a puffer after owning it for so long so it must be very hard for you. I hope you will be able to find a new puffer addition some time in the future. Take care!
-Michelle
Prevent unnecessary deaths due to disease- quarantine ALL new additions at least 4 weeks in a separate tank before adding to your main display tank!
Puffers: Hindenburg the Figure Eight, 75gallon Brackish
Prevent unnecessary deaths due to disease- quarantine ALL new additions at least 4 weeks in a separate tank before adding to your main display tank!
Puffers: Hindenburg the Figure Eight, 75gallon Brackish
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
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- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Contact:
Re: Constipated Dog Face
Sorry for your loss... You got some good experience on treatment though.
You got some good experience on treatment though.You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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Puffer Queen
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- Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 10:35 am
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Re: Constipated Dog Face
So sorry.....
You definitely gave the puffer everything you could.
Can you or do you know someone that could do a necropsy to see what the problem was?
You definitely gave the puffer everything you could.
Can you or do you know someone that could do a necropsy to see what the problem was?
Kelly
Re: Constipated Dog Face
Thank you all for your kind words.
I strongly suspect that he developed a internal bacterial infection as a result of his constipation (started treating towards the end with maracyn 2). There is no doubt in my mind that he was constipated as I could see the blockage that he attempted to expel for three weeks. What was puzzling to me was lots of white dust like waste that came out of him about a week before he passed. Once this settle it was like grains of salt all over the rocks??? It wasn't internal parasites or not like any I have seen anyways. He quickly went down hill after that.
Again thank you all for your kind words and help and yes puffer punk a few lessons learned.
I myself don't think I could do it to my beloved puff. As far as someone else I phone almost every vet in the city and even the college that has an animal care technetion coarse looking for MS 222 (finquel) and no one carried it or even knew what I was talking about. I even had one vet phone me back quite interested in what I was doing, knew that you could put a fish under but had never heard of anyone doing it. Was quiet impressed that I was going to all that trouble, I told him to check out the puffer forum and gave puffer queen the credit. So as far as anyone knowing about fish or their autonomy I don't think I will have much luck around here.Can you or do you know someone that could do a necropsy to see what the problem was?
I strongly suspect that he developed a internal bacterial infection as a result of his constipation (started treating towards the end with maracyn 2). There is no doubt in my mind that he was constipated as I could see the blockage that he attempted to expel for three weeks. What was puzzling to me was lots of white dust like waste that came out of him about a week before he passed. Once this settle it was like grains of salt all over the rocks??? It wasn't internal parasites or not like any I have seen anyways. He quickly went down hill after that.
Again thank you all for your kind words and help and yes puffer punk a few lessons learned.
Last edited by trekenk on Mon Jul 23, 2007 11:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.