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sushamiotter posted:So my guinea pig seems to have a little dandruff. I don't think its mites because she is not itching a lot and causing scars. I just noticed she has a bit of dandruff. What should I do? Mites can manifest without scratching - in fact, all pigs have mites at all times; but stress or other illness can cause a population explostion resulting in an outright infestation. Best solution is to take the "better safe than sorry" route: have your vet apply two doses of Revolution or Advantage (NOT FRONTLINE!) 2-4 weeks apart. Should cost you about $4-7 each time. In addition to that, you can help her fight off whatever is bothering her by increasing her dietary vitamin C (meaning, do it by adding more C-rich veggies, not by adding or increasing supplementation). You can also get a very soft kitten brush and gently brush her fur along the grain (not against it) but that won't remove the underlying cause.
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Dec 19, 2007 16:55
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LevitateMe posted:what can I do to try and make grooming time less stressful for Gonzo? That's just normal. MOST guinea pigs do not enjoy being handled, so it sounds like you got quite lucky with Nelson. Pigs particularly hate being 'dangled' in the air, and having all 4 feet on a stable surface often reduces their anxiety. To get him out of the cage, get a 4' diameter PVC joint from the hardware store. Let him run inside, then pick up the entire tube. When you're holding him, you can try using a small basket lined with a towel. Keep offering lots of treats when he's being handled, too. Maybe pick something special like dill or basil, and ONLY give it when he's being handled. Curiously, one of my boys is also named Gonzo and he also hates being handled. When I go to give him his haircuts, I stand him on a towel on the counter. He's perfectly used to this after almost 2.5 years with me, but he just stands there screaming like a fire engine, even if I'm not touching him. He was nearly 2 years old when we rescued him, and he'd been in terrible circumstances before that, so I can hardly blame him.
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Jan 28, 2008 22:54
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MockTurtle posted:Currently we use covered litterboxes but I've been thinking of switching to the top entry rubbermaid alternative. Is there anything I have to do to get the cats to realize the new thing is also a litterbox or can I just swap them out and it will all be good? Depends on the cat. Some get it right off the bat, others get seriously confused and need some training time. Best solution would be to put them side by side for a few weeks, occasionally "seeding" the new box with dirty litter from the old box. Whenever you start to see the cat using the new box, you can try removing the old one. If he gets confused, put it back, but put less and less litter in it, till it's bare plastic. My feral kittens always learned pretty well that they hated to pee on bare plastic when there was a nice full litter box right next to them.
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Mar 13, 2008 16:54
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RazorBunny posted:Maybe I'll put a note that I want it to go to Duncan and any extra should go back into the rescue. Hmm... They would love that, trust me. ANY amount, ANY earmark. 
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May 1, 2008 20:41
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BlondieIsMyNameO posted:I say that, due to the ear, the puppy is pet-quality only. Mom claims he is show quality- except for the ear, which may/may not be a problem in the ring. He could be bred and the ear thing wouldn't happen in his puppies. Which is it? You are correct, not her. A flaw in appearance usually does prevent the animal from winning in shows; and that is the definition of "not show quality". "His kids would be show quality so he is too" is not a true statement in the show world. See also HousecatMD's comment about not breeding an animal who can't do well in the show ring; his pups (were he intact) would be less desirable to serious show folks because their father had not finished. My mom showed IGs when I was a kid, and she did a little bit of breeding (2 litters, 3 pups total) after her bitch finished. One of our loveliest pups was born with a broken tail-tip, I think she was breech and the vet said it was twisted partly behind her as she came out. She had absolutely gorgeous color and conformation, and if I recall correctly (this 20+ years ago, here) her sire, dam, and grandparents were all finished champions. But that little bent tailtip meant she was "pet quality" and we sold her instead of keeping her. I had to have this explained to me at length because I was heartbroken that she had to leave us.
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May 2, 2008 20:27
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Seerows Kindness posted:I'm bird-sitting for a while, and this bird is crazy. Birds don't like change. They don't like being alone. They don't like being ignored when the "flock" is nearby. Etc. He's undergone a tremendous amount of stressors just by coming for a visit, and this is his way of acting out his frustrations and birdie angst. I doubt there's much you can do in a short period of time to really make him happy, but keep trying all the things you've mentioned. One of the best schedules for a bird is: wake up, eat breakfast together, play alone for a few hours (preferably with some foraging toys), eat dinner together, cuddle or play together for a few hours, go to bed on time. If you can start offering a schedule like that he might really like it. Eating together is critical, it's a flock bonding activity. You might also post in the bird megathread to get the notice of some of the other birdy folk who should have more suggestions.
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May 7, 2008 15:30
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Benzene posted:Netherland Dwarf rabbit 1. Yes, rabbits need company. However, they can't just be thrown together like kittens, rabbits can seriously damage one another during introduction fights. Also, same sex pairing doesn't work as well as getting your bun spayed or neutered, and getting an opposite-sex rabbit who is also altered. See this for more information (including the links on the upper-right). 2. Regular veterinary nail trimmings aren't necessarily impractical. Many people do it simply because they don't want to be the "bad guy" to their bunny. They should only cost $8-$12 every month or so. Other than that, some people use the burrito method, other use the hypnosis method, but both require that you become comfortable catching and restraining the rabbit in a safe manner. See this for details. 3. Most rabbits do NOT like to be picked up, that's common. Instead, try gently petting the bunny's forehead (around the ear bases) - not the sides or flanks. If he likes it he should "bow" - press his chin against the ground and stay there as long as you are petting him. 4. If he isn't already, the bunny needs to be spayed or neutered. The pants-nipping sounds like hormonal behavior. Litterbox habits, destructiveness, biting, and cage aggression are all improved by neutering. Also, intact females over the age of 3 have nearly an 80% chance of developing an ovarian or uterine cancer. 5. If you haven't already, read everything on https://www.rabbit.org, especially about diet and housing. EVERYTHING the pet stores tell you, everything you hear from anyone who "used to own rabbits as a kid", will be wrong. The current standards for rabbit husbandry are only about 5-10 years old, and they aren't based on what sells product at pet stores, which is why stores will outright lie to you. The most critical points are summarized here and here and following them will help make sure your bunny lives 8-12 years instead of just 3-5. There's also a rabbit megathread, feel free to post more specific questions (and pictures!) there.
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Jun 24, 2008 20:55
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thomas kingo posted:Guinea Pig Question That's probably exactly correct. I've got pigs who run screaming if I reach into the cage, but would quite literally drag my hand in and gnaw off my fingers if I stuck it through the grids. No, they really are not smart enough to recognize it as the same hand. These are animals who eat their own crap, remember. Also, your grammar is excellent. 
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Jul 16, 2008 21:17
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Quail Butter posted:Can I use Carefresh bedding for a chinchilla? Yes, carefresh is fine. I can't imagine why some people would claim it's not, I've never heard of that, and googling didn't show me anything. Can you link me to someone who says it's bad for them? I don't like that food he's currently on. Too much protein and fat, not enough fiber. Personally, I'm a huge fan of Oxbow. You'll probably have to order it online and pay out the rear end for shipping, but the improved quality is well worth it. Don't forget lots of fresh timothy hay too!
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Aug 4, 2008 20:18
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Little Angel posted:I have a question I've been curious about for some time -- i don't know whether it's been addressed or not recently. They're good for nothing. I have a huge bale of cedar in my garage right now that was "donated" to our rescue, and after a little research I found that NOBODY wanted it. Even the horse, goat, and llama rescues turned me down, because these animals can ALSO have bad reactions to the phenols. Originally, before the ill-effects of phenols were known, all that people cared about was the fact that cedar and pine oils drive off bugs. You can still buy high-end closets lined entirely in cedar for storing your expensive ballgowns and suits and what-not, to protect them from moths without the mothball smell. People naturally reasoned that, well, animal waste attracts bugs, so we should use cedar and pine for bedding because it will drive off those bugs. This spurred a new source of revenue for the lumber industries, as they started to resell their waste sawdust as bedding. (Prior to this, straw was the most often used bedding for small animals, horses, dogs, etc). The reason they are still sold is that ignorant owners still want them (cheaper than aspen/paper beddings, less messy than a bale of straw, and they either disbelieve that they are bad, or don't care because they like the smell/bug deterrence and don't give a poo poo if it kills an animal) and because the manufacturers producing it are primarily lumber companies who honestly don't give a poo poo about animal care. They just want to sell a product that is otherwise going to COST them money, by forcing them to pay for waste disposal. They've also got good deals with the pet supply companies who repackage it (like Kaytee) who really don't care about animal welfare either. They just want to make money by giving the owners what they are most willing to pay for, regardless of whether it's good for the animal, and they know plenty well that most idiots won't buy higher-end bedding, so keeping the low-cost stuff is a must for keeping profit margins high.
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Aug 11, 2008 17:12
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If the boyfriend isn't swayed by the "it's unnecessary, cruel, and sociopathic" argument, try this one: deep puncture wounds, like those made by a rodent bite, abscess quite quickly and easily. If the mouse is stunned and picked up in the cat's mouth, and is alive enough to bite kitty on the cheek or tongue - that's even more of a disaster due to the constant influx of bacteria around the wound. I've seen oral cavity abscesses get into the sinuses, causing eyes to pop out or even damaging enough nerves that euthanasia is required. Here is a picture of the repair necessary to fix an abscess due to an overlooked bite wound. Does your boyfriend want to risk this happening to your kitty?
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Aug 20, 2008 14:52
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Cuddlebottom posted:Anyone know what happened to the hermit crab megathread (or have a link)? I think it's archived, but http://www.hermit-crabs.com/ and http://www.crabstreetjournal.com/ can answer pretty much all questions. 1. A large (baseball sized) sponge, located over the heater. The larger sponge has more surface area and therefore disperses more moisture. Be mindful that over-humidity can be as bad as under-humidity. Also, be careful about wetting your substrate, if it's to the point where you have standing water underneath it, it can breed bacteria. The problem with the sponges is that they breed bacteria too, so you need to change them fairly frequently. 2. Look for heaters for reptiles instead. They are often rated by tank size. I used this Repti-therm heater and was quite happy with it. drat Bananas posted:Gah. Tell me what to do. It depends on the mice's individual personalities, but it can work. Maybe try a shelter or rescue, which would be more willing to let you do an intro before committing to adopt, and to take the new mouse back if it didn't work out? Petfinder shows a number of mice available in TX. alucinor fucked around with this message at 03:17 on Aug 24, 2008 |
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Aug 24, 2008 03:11
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IntoTheNihil posted:Is there a way to stop my year old Guinea Pig from going all killdozer on his cage? Basically he'll sneak behind his igloo/house and push it across the cage and/or dump it. If he still wants to wreck stuff he'll dump his toilet box over and send it flying too. He's got a decent amount of room (upgrading it soon), is in a room with people around all the time, and gets fed + cleaned more than enough. It's cute as hell but is annoying when it's happening every 5 minutes at 3:00 A.M., haha. They are HIGHLY social animals. He's probably lonesome and bored - human companionship does nothing to alleviate the instinctive need for someone of his own species to talk to while the people are asleep. Let me know your zip code and I can recommend a guinea pig rescue near you. You'll want to work with a rescue so that they can help you through the bonding process - pigs aren't like cats, you can't just throw them together and they start playing; you'll need to do supervised introductions until you're sure they won't kill each other. Even with a friend, they may still be noisy at that time of day. There is no way to keep a pig from being active at 3am - they are crepuscular, meaning they are most active in the hours around dusk and dawn. All you can do is move his cage into the living room and away from the sleeping areas. Earplugs are a good investment, too.
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Oct 28, 2008 15:12
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KilGrey posted:When my mom tethered her, she didn't go in the house. However after a week of tethering and my mom took her off, she was back to peeing in the house. For starters, I'd say a week is too short a time for the new behavior to be learned. I wouldn't count on much less than six weeks. Housetraining involves a fairly complex chain of behaviors here so if you suspect the dog is actually retarded by her poor breeding, you may need to break it down into much more simple behavior chains than a normal dog needs. When the dog was tethered, you said your mom tried both taking her out on a schedule, and waiting for the dog to indicate that she needed to go out? The latter will probably have more of a positive long-term effect. Put the dog on a tether and don't take her off except when she's crated. Then, your mom should NOT set a schedule for going out. Instead, watch the dog like a hawk for signs that she needs to go out. If the dog has a behavior that "asks" to go out (barking, whining, whatever) great, but she may not. At first she may sit silently and just display discomfort behaviors, so your mom REALLY needs to watch carefully. You're trying to link the experience of going out with the experience of needing to pee. It may take 2-3 weeks. Next, try to get the dog to ASK to go out. When it's evident that she needs to go out, then have your mom move near to the door, then wait till the dog engages in a spontaneous behavior that will be her way of asking (coming to your mom, whining, barking, scratching, rearing up to touch the doorknob, ringing a set of bells on the door, whatever you want). Reward the behavior and go out. Now you're linking three things: need to pee with asking, and asking with getting to go out. Basically you want to continue this pattern (tethered, waiting for the dog to ask) until the dog seems to get it and regularly asks to go out. It may take another month or two. Then you can change ONE factor: drop the tether but DON'T leave the dog alone. Tether if you have to leave the room where the door is. When your mom is in that room, put up a baby cage but let the dog move around freely. Continue to watch her like a hawk until she is consistently asks to go out while not on tether. If she backslides, go back to the tether. If she doesn't, leave the dog off tether and try moving into the next room, but continue to monitor her closely. This is the step which some dogs have trouble with: If I'm alone, how to I ask to go out? Some dogs just do not get that they have to come FIND you. You may have to set it up so that the asking behavior does not require your mom to be in the room (ringing a bell is a good one for this). Again, you don't want to give the dog complete freedom until she really seems to have learned the desired behavior, and any backsliding should be met by a return to a more controlled situation and careful reinforcement of the desired goals for that step.
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Nov 21, 2008 19:11
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Well, I found this page about "water puppies" but it sounds nothing like what you describe. Was the dog pure white by any chance, or otherwise had two parents of unusual coat color? There's a set of homozygous recessive pairings in many animals, typically linked to rare coat colors (double merle in some dog breeds, double roan in guinea pigs, double frame overo in horses), which lead to something called Lethal White. Absent or abnormally small eyes is a symptom in many of these mutated animals. But it has nothing to do with water or with the brain being partly absent. These animals typically also have an underdeveloped GI system, but many can, with supportive feeding, live for a good while (a guinea pig I knew who had this lived 3 years or so), and they mostly appear normal. I think something like this is pretty likely, because I really doubt a pup with an undeveloped brain or respiratory system would have made it to eight weeks and still be spry enough to pass as mostly normal. Certainly the BYB was partly or mostly full of poo poo, and even if the dog actually was taken to a vet, I wouldn't be shocked if the BYB ignored/misunderstood what the actual diagnosis was and made this up instead. If you really want to know, I'd suggest seeing if you can get the name of the vet and calling to ask what the true diagnosis was.
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Nov 21, 2008 23:22
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Saerdna posted:Would a guinea pig or hamster have something you could call a personality and interest in people? Hamsters: not really. You can get them to the point where they don't MIND being held, but mostly they are only interested in you if you have food. However, the tiny ones like the robos are hilarious to watch. I would certainly recommend them as a starter pet. Guinea pigs: not really. They do have personality, but again it primarily revolves around food, so they are more entertaining to watch than to cuddle. Mine scream for me when they hear me in the kitchen, and run screaming from me whenever I go to hold them. I got out of cat rescue for the same reason (not because I minded my obligate carnivore eating another animal, I just got tired of the stink of carnivore poo poo in my house). I have both rabbits and guinea pigs, and I've found that both are INCREDIBLY harder to care for than cats or dogs. They both are gregarious and have to be kept in pairs, which have to be bonded by experts so they don't hurt each other. They require much larger pens (8 square feet at least) than are sold in pet stores. They both eat hay which is dusty and gets everywhere. They both require expensive vet care (several hundred per year, easily a few thousand in an emergency). I no longer recommend either as pets to 99% of people.  However, rats should not be off the table. Unlike hammies, rabbits, or guinea pigs, they are social in the way most people think: they actually LIKE people and want to be held, and will come looking for you, and beg to be cuddled. They only live 2-3 years, so if they turn out to be not what you had in mind, you don't have an 8 (guinea pig) to 12 (rabbit) year commitment. Also, whatever animal you want, I can hook you right up with a rescue or shelter. Just give me a zip code. Overall, your best bet might be to find a small animal rescue who has all of these species, and offer to foster different species in rotation. They'll teach you all you need to know, you can return them without issue if they aren't what you had in mind, and you'll have the peace of mind that you're not contributing to the mill breeders (petstore rabbits and guinea pigs are from millers who are just as bad as the dog millers). Hope this helps!
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Nov 25, 2008 16:02
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Serella posted:guinea pigs and kitty litter No kitty litters are safe for use with guinea pigs, apart from Yesterday's News and Feline Pine (AKA wood stove pellets). There is no harm in switching entirely or mostly to aspen shavings (not pine), just using carefresh in the corners and sleeping areas, or switch to fleece and use litterboxes with carefresh in them. For the water bottle thing, there are two solutions to help with that that may make the question moot. The first is to place a medium-sized ceramic bowl or small square litterbox under the bottle. Fill it with bedding and clean it daily after it absorbs all the drips. You may also have some luck just with a flat brick or paving stone under the bottle. I use those, and while some leakage does occur, it's still better than the bottle leaking directly on the bedding.
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Jan 3, 2009 03:10
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Heath posted:I think I probably asked this before but I obviously don't remember the answer, so: Any avian vet can do it for you. Here's a handy avian vet locator.
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Jan 14, 2009 20:06
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Fenarisk posted:My fiance and I are thinking of getting another pet in a year or so, and after getting our first rabbit have come to really like unique pets that aren't cats or dogs (and the lease we have won't allow cats or dogs anyways). Oh dear god, no. Ferrets are predators and will kill rabbits if they can. They were actually used in England to hunt rabbits up until the last century. Ferrets shouldn't even be housed in the same room as a rabbits, as their very scent will send the rabbits into a stress response that can end in shock and death (seen fairly commonly in shelters who unwittingly house them near one another). Contrary to anything you might ever read elsewhere, guinea pigs should also NEVER be housed with rabbits. They eat different things, have different behavioral patterns, and there are multiple documented cases of rabbits injuring guinea pigs, either intentionally (breaking their back through dominance mounting, chewing off their ears through over-grooming) or accidentally (kicking or squashing them). Additionally, rabbits have a naturally occurring set of gut and respiratory flora (Bordetella and Pasturella, most notably) which are inert and cause no problems to the rabbit host, but cause fatal infections in the pig. While there are known cases of cats and dogs peacefully coexisting with rabbits, the bottom line is that these are predator animals who have widely different physiologies and behavioral repertoires than rabbits. A rabbit is never truly happy with an animal companion other than another rabbit, so your original plan of a second rabbit would be your best bet. Check HRS for a list of reputable chapters and allied rescues, and they can quite easily help you find a match and perform the bonding with a minimum of fuss.
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Jan 19, 2009 23:11
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UniversalDonor posted:So, any goons with guinea pigs that have been in a similar situation, or have any suggestions as to which option is likely the best? Any alternate ideas I haven't thought of? I'll take any help I can get! Your concerns about classified ad pigs is quite valid. My recommendation would be to find a guinea pig specific rescue. If you take one of theirs, who is already vetted, treated for parasites, neutered, etc, you're making room for them to take one of the ones who is possibly sick and needing medical care prior to being adoptable. The reason most of us are so vehemently against pet store purchases is twofold. First, the chain stores buy from puppy mill type breeders. Nearly all of their pigs are ill, either with respiratory infections or mite infestations. Probably one out of ten people who writes to me to ask about adoption, has just had a petstore pig who died. Secondly, there are THOUSANDS of pigs in rescue. Why support backyard (or back-room) breeding when you can save a pig already in need of a home? I'd recommend the following: 1. Check this list of national and international rescues to find a guinea pig rescue near you. You can also tell me your zip code and I'll tell you who is in the area. 2. Check the placement forum in Guinea Lynx - if there aren't any listings in your area, register and post a thread titled "Female/neutered boar wanted in City, State". 3. Even if there is no rescue in your exact location, check https://www.petfinder.com. Many of us will do interstate transports to bring pigs to adopters. Good luck and don't hesitate to PM me with questions!
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Jan 27, 2009 15:47
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SynthesizerKaiser posted:For those of you who have given up a pet to a new home, how did you do it? I have too many birds to give them all good care, but I'm worried that a new owner wouldn't take very good care of them. It would also mean separating them from their friends. Find a reputable rescue that will help you screen potential adopters. If you let me know where you're located I can help you find a group to work with. Many adopters also offer to keep in contact with surrenderers, so you can always know how the birds are doing, and you can provide a clause in the adoption contract that if the next owner has to get rid of them, they have to be returned to you.
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Feb 7, 2009 20:51
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Shortymrbig posted:The only room I know I can keep a hamster is in my room, but my room is also the oddest when it comes to temperatures for some reason. They're desert creatures, so heat shouldn't be too much of a problem. If it gets too cold they can go into hibernation, but seriously, San Diego? You should be fine. Just give them some extra cozy bedding in winter, and open the window for that delightful sea breeze in the summer.
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Feb 27, 2009 19:43
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The hammie should be fine, but that rather sucks for you. There's dozens of hams on petfinder, so don't overlook them. They're mostly north of you, but distances seem to mean nothing in CA - lots of these rescuers will drive HOURS out of their way to adopt, not to mention the wide-spread network of foster homes they often have. Good luck!
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Feb 27, 2009 22:27
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Probably yeah, if she's allergic to one she'd be allergic to all. In general I'd not recommend a chin for someone with allergies. The bathing-dust isn't the biggest concern - chinchillas need to eat unlimited timothy hay, which causes HORRIBLE allergies for a lot of people. It releases a lot of hay dust into the air in the course of normal use. Make sure she handles the hay when she visits the shelter - picks it up, shakes it around, and breaths in the dust and odor. That's what she'll most likely react to.
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Mar 12, 2009 22:13
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The Hoobit posted:Kind of an embarassing situation.. my cat has fleas. You might want to ask your vet about changing topicals and/or using a more frequent dosing regimen. The feral rescue I worked with used Revolution, and dosed at 2 week intervals if there was a really bad infestation. But check with the vet first, it might be different for a fluffball like that.
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Apr 9, 2009 14:55
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daine posted:So I have a ridiculously cute chinchilla who likes to pick and choose his food. You need to switch to a pellet with no fruit, nuts, or any other additives except plain pellets. Oxbow Pellets are the bomb. Every chin we've gotten has transitioned to it with no problem. Don't forget to try their hay, too, if you haven't already. Kleenmama's Hayloft is another great supplier. You can use her guinea pig pellets for chins, and her bluegrass is always a huge hit.
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Apr 21, 2009 16:45
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Helanna posted:I just heard that my Mum bought by little sister a 4 week old guinea pig from a pet store today Four weeks is about a week after they need to be separated from the male siblings, so it's not too young in terms of bonding her with new girls. My bigger concerns would be A) that she may be a male (unless your parents are pretty savvy at sexing baby pigs and have already ruled that out), and B) she probably has mites, coming from a pet store - and now all three pigs probably have mites. Get them to a vet ASAP, get the baby sexed, and get them all treated with a preventative course of ivermectin or Revolution (NOT Frontline). The other, bigger concern is that the baby needs to be eating alfalfa-based pellets and alfalfa hay for another 24-48 weeks or so. The adults need to NOT be eating alfalfa, as it can lead to bladder stones. So for six months to a year, the baby should be separated and given alfalfa based foods once a day. The rest of the time she can eat timothy based foods like her friends.
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May 4, 2009 22:38
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Hopes Fall posted:My younger sister is looking for a female guinea pig (or possibly a neutered male) to bond with a young female she just bought. We've been trying petfinder and craigslist, but some of the listings are sketchy, and a lot are pretty drat far away. We prefer to adopt rather than buy from a pet store, but the search is getting old pretty quickly. Does anyone know of any good rescues or the like in/near Monmouth County, NJ? Sorry I missed this earlier, hope this can still help. Try these two: North Jersey Guinea Pig and Hamster Rescue, Inc. Have a Heart Guinea Pig Rescue Both have a wide network of foster homes and may have some closer to you than they appear. Also, they'll know of any pigs in other rescues or shelters, if they don't have exactly what you want. Good luck!
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Jun 5, 2009 14:58
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BUMBACLOT posted:Yeah, the kind of pellet we have is alfalfa hay. I figure that's good for now since he's still pretty young and probably needs a lot of calcium. I'm not really worried about nutrients as we give him a large variety of fruits and veggies that he seems to enjoy every day. I probably will just switch to the Timothy Complete you recommended once we finish this bag of pellets. Pellets are not an adequate replacement for loose, long-strand hay. The minute particles of hay in the pellets don't have the same grinding action on the molars (as already mentioned), and they also don't have the same long-strand fiber required for proper digestion. Pigs on a hay-free diet are prone to molar malocclusion, obesity and the concomitant conditions of anal impaction or ovarian cysts (depending on sex), gastritis, and diarrhea. Also, while alfalfa and calcium/oxalate rich veggies like spinach are fine right now, by the time he's a year old you're going to want to limit the oxalates and manage the Ca:P ratios in his veggies to prevent the formation of bladder stones, which are rampant in pigs. You should still be offering loose timothy hay now, with alfalfa as an addition due to his youth, and when he's a year old you can eliminate the alfalfa completely. Also, check out http://www.guinealynx.info/ - best information about diet and care that can be found anywhere, on or off the web.
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Jun 15, 2009 14:32
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Egad! posted:So hey, I saw a guinea pig just hanging around outside in my apartment complex. Try carrots, banana, apple, parsley, all cut up so it's nice and smelly. Put a cardboard box over the trap, the dark "shelter" will be attractive to the pig. You can also see if there is a local rescue in your area. If so they'll be likely to want to come help you get him. Finally, if you do catch him, make sure your friend checks out the housing, diet, and medical info on http://www.guinealynx.info - 99% of what most people think they know about pig care is dead wrong.
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Jun 23, 2009 14:25
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Egad! posted:Thanks. It seems the only rescues in the state are all about 3 or 4 hours away :\ Oh well. I'll have to try the trapping route. Thanks! Contact them anyhow. Most rescues are a network of foster homes, not a centralized business. They may have people in your very neighborhood, or at least people willing to travel to help with this. Helping abandoned pigs is a huge deal on Guinea Lynx; ask the rescue you contact if they can advertise the situation on the GL placement forum, and that will mobilize even more people. Edit: Ha, are you still in Georgia? Definitely, then. Some of our biggest nutters are down there, you're certain to find someone to help. alucinor fucked around with this message at 15:55 on Jun 23, 2009 |
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Jun 23, 2009 15:51
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Egad! posted:Ah, I did not think of that. Thanks! So in a ironic twist of fate, someone on GL thinks I am the closest rescue to you (NC) and contacted me to help you. We already have some GA people volunteering to help with transport to bring the pig up here if he can be caught, but nobody so far has stepped up to volunteer to come catch the bugger. I'll keep you posted. It has also been suggested to me that throwing a blanket over a pig is the easiest way to catch them. They freeze and you just pick them up inside the blanket.
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Jun 23, 2009 19:16
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HondaCivet posted:Madison, WI. Is anyone here familiar with the scene there? The Dane County Humane society often gets in bonded pairs, but doesn't keep them together because they're harder to place. If you call and ask, instead of asking for bonded pairs ask for "cats who came in together whom you'd like to see go home together". They also have a basketball for adoption! Check with these guys too. I do transport for them, they often pull animals from other county shelters if they have a potential adoptive home lined up. If you're up for a road trip, you might be interested in checking out the Milwaukee Humane Society. It's actually worth a stop just to see it if you're in the area, it's one of the nicest and most well-funded shelters I've ever seen.
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Jun 29, 2009 14:34
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What Chaco said. Additionally, they don't just hand you the corpse and tell you to get out, so don't worry about that (a lady I work with is going to have to euthanize her cat, and was fretting about getting the body back to the car without her daughter seeing). Every vet I've ever dealt with wraps the body in a towel and/or body bag, and then places it in a nice cardboard casket for you to take. If you request a necropsy prior to having the body returned, most vets will also offer an "aesthetic" necropsy, if you wish - they sew the body back up neatly as opposed to just bagging up the parts.
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Jul 7, 2009 20:44
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auri posted:even if those animals are being abused then she is glad she saved the one she bought. This is something I've still never developed a good answer to and I'd be interested in hearing how other people respond to this type of statement. I regularly get people who apply to adopt, then tell me "well we went to a pet store to get the supplies and there was the SADDEST/DIRTIEST/CROWDEDEST little pig/rabbit/rat there and since yours are already in a safe happy home we decided to rescue the one who really needed it instead". I always tell them that giving these places money means that more animals will end up sad/dirty/crowded but they always say "well I'm still glad I rescued THIS one". There doesn't seem to be a rebuttal other "good job on being so short sighted". Any ideas? This is timely; I had a lady chew me out earlier this week because she wanted to buy a pair of petstore rabbits and then surrender them to me because they were overcrowded and being tormented by kids at the petstore. She was shocked that I didn't have room (not that I would have taken them anyhow): "WELL YOU NEED TO MAKE ROOM, THESE RABBITS ARE SUFFERRINGGGGGG!" Yet she made it clear from the start she couldnt make room for them herself, nor could she donate any money for care other than purchasing them for me ($20 each). 
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Jul 10, 2009 19:15
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quote != edit
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Jul 10, 2009 19:15
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HondaCivet posted:We are also looking at a pair of adult brothers that are bonded to each other but they were not caught until they were 6 months old . . . I want to give them a chance but I am afraid that they will probably always be very feral. They have bonded with their foster parents, would they ever bond with new owners? I did feral cat rescue for a few years, and yes, even the older kittens would come around eventually. They weren't "OMG LOVE U" cats, but they would always greet us warmly when we came home ("Oh, it's you... bye") and would act like they were doing us a huge favor by keeping our laps warm. To seriously anthropomorphize, they didn't act scared, it was more like they were embarrassed to be seen liking us. They were especially fond of snuggling with us while we slept, until we looked at or touched them, then moving off in a huff. They definitely bond to new owners. It just takes a little longer sometimes. Remember, even fully feral cats, if they see a positive relationship between human interaction and something they badly want, will make themselves quite friendly. You just want to establish routines involving rewards so that they have an easier time making the connection.
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Jul 15, 2009 14:49
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district 12 posted:Do all guinea pigs seize to death? I've had three die (one very sick, one had no symptoms whatsoever, and the other had no symptoms but was 5 years old anyway...) and they all seized before taking their last breath. Can't they just go peacefully I'm sorry for your loss, but no, this is very unnatural. What kind of diet and preventative vetcare do your pigs get? Are you also getting preventative mite treatments? Untreated mites often lead to such pain that they cause seizures. Next time you have a pig die, your vet can do a necropsy to determine the cause. If it's an environmental toxin or a chronic problem caused by diet (such as bladder stones), that will help you figure out how to prevent it from happening again.
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Sep 8, 2009 15:22
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Froglin posted:Can anyone make me feel better about this? There are always horror stories, but it's selection bias that makes us remember those and not the countless thousands of anesthetized procedures that go flawlessly every day. Dental problems seem to be most common when there is not a dedicated anesthesiologist or vet present, only techs who may have to switch between tasks or animals. Ideally, you want one person monitoring anesthesia, another co-monitoring the vital signs, and a third doing the cleaning itself. And one of them should be the veterinarian. One clinic I worked at had ONE tech doing the anesthesia, monitoring, and the cleaning all by herself! She hadn't even received any training beyond what she was taught in-house. If you already have a vet and don't want to change clinics, you should definitely talk to your vet about your concerns and ask some questions: 1. How many people will be with my dog during the procedure? How many are monitoring anesthesia and vital signs vs how many are holding and cleaning? 2. Is the anesthesiologist a certified specialist? Where were they trained? How long have they worked for this clinic? How many animals have they lost? 3. What is your procedure if my dog starts having trouble on the table? How often do you perform "doggy CPR" and what is your success rate? 4. What is your post-anesthesia procedure for monitoring my dog while he wakes up? How many people monitor him and how many other dogs are they going to have to be monitoring at the same time? Will the monitor be a vet, a tech, a receptionist, etc? Will the procedure be performed early enough in the day that my dog is completely awake before I take him home? Additionally, request that your vet run pre-anesthetic bloodwork if it's not offered. This will potentially show if your dog has any hidden problems that may make coping with anesthesia difficult. (If it's not offered, that may be a warning sign to go elsewhere). If all this doesn't reassure you enough, the one thing that should definitely reduce the chance of adverse events is finding a clinic which specializes in dental work. They often charge more, but that's because more people assist in each procedure and they have better monitoring equipment.
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Sep 25, 2009 14:54
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| # ¿ May 6, 2024 00:22 |
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Irafe posted:He has a bulbous blister-like bump on his right chest... quite a concern and we are nowhere near a vet that is open this late. That sounds like his crop? It would mean he's been fed adequately. To keep him comfortable, let him alone and keep him warm, quiet, and dark. Are you guys experienced with hand feeding? It's so terribly easy to aspirate them (put food into the lungs instead of the crop) which is the #1 killer of handraised birds.
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Oct 23, 2009 15:14
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