Yesterday, while feeding our large predators, we noticed something was seriously wrong with Bullet, one of our cheetahs.
His stomach was severely bloated, he was lethargic, his eyes were sunken, and he was extremely dehydrated—all of which had developed overnight. Severe bloating like this can put immense strain on the organs and quickly become fatal. Seeing how critical his condition was, we immediately called @peter_rogers_provet.
After an initial examination, a blockage was suspected. Bullet was rushed to the vet clinic, where X-rays confirmed the issue, leading to emergency surgery. The vet determined that a piece of meat had become lodged in his system, preventing the rest of his food from being digested. The decayed meat was carefully removed, and Dr. Debbie stitched him up before moving him to an overnight recovery cage.
Normally, food is digested within 8 hours, so the fact that Bullet still had undigested food in his stomach after 24 hours was a major concern. Fortunately, we caught the problem in time, and he is now on the road to recovery!
—Hoedspruit Hospital