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Advice on Pining Piggie

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Marty

Marty

Teenage Guinea Pig
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As you may or may not know we very sadly lost one of our piggies yesteday. Scampy left us quite suddenly and has left his dad, Blaze, pining for him.

He is already looking around outside his cage for his little boy and just seems generally low. Although we had to separate them several months ago (as Scampy's adolescent side seemed to come out and he got somewhat aggressive towards his dad), they both still needed to be next to each other and spent a lot of the time lying beside each other, divided by the grids of their pen. Even yestedray when Scampy was near the end, he snuggled up to his dad so it's blatantly obvious that the bond had remained.

We now don't know what to do about Blaze. As I see it we have 4 options:

1) Do nothing and hope that the general company of us and our other two piggies keeps him happy etc. (unlikely I suspect)
2) Put one of the other two piggies, speciifically Pepe who also seems to need company, in Scampy's part of the pen, leaving Dylan, who seems to be something of a loner anyway, on his own above them - Dylan is currently next to Pepe.
3) Get another male piggie (not sure how old) to put in Scampy's side of the cage and either try to bond them at a later date or leave them as per the Blaze/Scampy arrangement of just being divided by grids
4) Get Blaze neutered and get him one or two lady piggies as friends for him to share the large (undivided) pen with.

This last option is something we were considering doing with Pepe as we have reserved two female piggies already and were going to either put them in a single cage out of the way of all four (now three) boys or put Pepe with them.

We are in somewhat of a dilemma as, although option 4 to me is the best option, I am reluctant to get any of my boys "done" after hearing a few unpleasant results from recent neuterings. Also although Dylan is somewhat of a loner I do think he likes to have company some of the time as he gets quite happy when put in the run next to Pepe at playtime (again divided by grids).

Also, I'm not sure how well Pepe would get on being next to Blaze as they are both quite dominant piggies. Dylan conversely is quite passive unless actually in the same pen as Pepe when he turned in to a bit of a bully (we tried to bond them recently without success).

Any advice on these options, plus advise on when best to instigate any of them, would be appreciated.

Sorry if this is in the wrong section, I'm not entirely sure where this should go so feel free to move it if necessary to the right board.
 
:) I really don't envy you in this situation. Number 1 is definitely out in my opinion, piggies need company of their own kind- be it through a divider or not. If I were you and with my vet I would have him castrated, I've never had any problems with any of my castrates save for abscesses which are easily dealt with (but you may not want to which is OK). Then I'd take him to a rescue to choose a girlfriend.

I wouldn't leave Dylan on his own despite him seeming not to need any company.

Yes to getting a male pig to put by the side of him, especially if you are wary of getting him castrated or not sure of your vet.

Tracey at Rugby Rescue gets her sows spayed- just in case you want another option...
 
Karen, thanks for your reply.

We like the sound of the last option. Would you know if Tracey at Rugby Rescue would consider re-homing to us, living in Kent?

I know loads of castrations go well, but we are feeling very raw at the moment and are reluctant to take any risks healthwise with these boys.

How long would you think to leave Blaze before we get his new companion, regardless of which way we go about it?

Thanks
 
Again, this is purely personal, but I would start making arrangements for a new friend now. I have no idea on Tracys rehoming policies, Cheryl at Sprowston might. Why don't you contact Tracey via her website and see.

Rabbit and Guinea Pig Welfare

Its there open day on Sunday so maybe someone could pick a sow up for you if its too far.

I understand about the castrates, I never used to have them done until we got a good surgeon here.
 
Thanks Karen

We will investigate. Do you know if there are any obvious health problems etc. with spayed sows, it seems to be quite a rare procedure to be done?
 
The biggest problem for me would be the op itself, something I only had done once on a sow with Ovarian Cysts but you don't even need an op for this now. She won't get Ovarian Cancer, thats one thing :)
 
Thanks, although we're very happy to find Blaze some more companionship asap I'm a little worried about the other three boys' health (see Julie's original thread about Scampy being ill) and am concerned about getting any more piggies until we've at least ruled out some possible reasons for Scampy's sudden demise. I'd hate to lose the other three boys, but I'd be even more devastated if we took on more piggies only for them to go the same way. At the moment we're feeling very low and keep wondering if his death was caused by something we've either unwittingly done or not done as the case may be. I guess we're just having doubts as to our abilities as piggie parents, sorry. :'(
 
Marty,



The spayed sow is a nice idea,or ,you could get a baby boar from a rescue and house them together.If it did not work,you could just put the divider back.

I think it might be an idea to rule out any infectiion before introducing a new pig.,although I think the likelyhood of this being an infection is slight.Would it be possible for your vet to do some blood tests and faecal tests to rule out infection?.
 
Mary

I'm going to see what Vedra comes back with, if I have to I'll run them up to Cambridge and get her to check them out. Although the emergency vet yesterday was very good she admitted she didn't know much about piggie problems etc. and the same is probably true of our own vet.

Both Julie and I really appreciate yours and everyone else's help and support. I'm typing this in tears at the moment as Blaze has just started wheeking at the bars for no apparent reason, and seems very down, it's breaking my heart. :'(
 
oh guys, this is so sad. I went through much rthe same with Rocky when I lost Scarby 0:)

I won't make any suggestions as you have plenty to think about, just know that I'm thinking of you and poor Blaze. :smitten:
 
Marty and Julie,


This is a sad dilemma. Blaze needs a companion quickly ,and I doubt that there is infection here,but the question is,can you take the chance.

You need to get blood,urine aand faecal tests done straight away.Is there not a vet near you who could do this?,to save you having to drive to Huntingdonshire?.

What is Vedras opinion at the moment,does she think it may be viral?.
 
Hi Mary, thanks for your advice.

Haven't heard back from Vedra yet. If we get our piggies tested tonight or tomorrow night with a normal vet, what should we be asking them to test for exactly?

Karen, I emailed Tracy at Rugby Rescue last night with our situation and request, I haven't heard back yet, but will check email again this evening. I like the idea of a sow better, just in case a baby boy falls out with him later like Scampy did. I just want to see Blaze looking happier again, poor little man.
 
Have just spoken to my local vets. They charge £17 per piggie consultation, and £50 per pig, per test :o depending on how many thngs we need to test them for, if we have them tested for 5 things each that totals £750 PLUS 3x £17 (£51) for the consultation thats just ridiculous, I could go on holiday to Australia for that. I'm not saying my boys aren't worth it but we have to be sensible - I can't believe they charge this, it's out of the question.

I'm not sure if this is something Vedra can do, or how much she will charge, but the big thing is actually getting up there. (We live in Kent).

So I'm not too hopeful at the moment.
 
Perhaps just have the one done and if there's a problem then pursue it. Just have Blaze tested perhaps? I think you have to ask what will happen if anything is found and would a period of quarantine be just as helpful, I don't know- just chucking suggestions at you :)
 
I just don't know Karen. Obviously £750 is out of the question right now, our visit on Sunday totalled nearly £100, (which I'm not regretting it, it's just the way it is.)

Perhaps we could just get Blaze tested so at least we can confidently (healthwise at least) pair him up with another piggie.
I'm still waiting to hear back from Vedra - I've described Scampy's symptoms, and I'm hoping she may be able to think of somthing to test them for specifically. I just don't understand why the vets charge so much - we don't even get a quick result as they have to send the tests away to a lab as well, so all this is wasting time for Blaze getting a friend - I'm so frustrated, i just don't know what to do.

Apart from obviously missing Scampy and slightly soft droppings, he is his usual feisty stroppy self! So we are probably being over cautious but you know what these little folk are like...

Thanks for your suggestions :)
 
I think your vet is trying to rip you off,this is very expensive.
It is a difficult situation and I do not know what to suggest.

Could you get to Surrey?,it is a lot nearer than CCT and my vets do not charge an arm and a leg.

If Blaze is still pining,I think I would chance getting a friend for him.As I have already said,I think it is a bit unlikely that they have an infection.
 
Hi again Mary

Yes, we could get to Surrey, whereabouts, and who is there? I also think the vets fees are a bit mad, I would have no objection to forking out a proportion of that if needed but I think as they don't know what we are supposed to be testing for it could possibly reach a thousand pounds. Thats double what I earn in a month.

All our piggies have a few SLIGHTLY soft poos now, and some seem to be slightly streaky in appearance, almost two tone! I'm not sure what this means, its partially very dark with bits of lighter brown. Blaze's look a bit like sausage links - from what I can glean this could be down to not eating or drinking enough, however, he has been tucking into his food as usual and nearly toppled over backwards trying to get through the bars when his wet food came a moment ago :)

We totally did away with their wet food on Sunday, gave them severely reduced wet food yesterday, and reduced again today, they are by no means soft, but seem to have a moistish sheen on some them (the softer ones), I must stress that none of them are by any means mushy, just not the hard little pellets we are used to. They have had plentiful timothy hay, and pro-biotics, tey've clearly been drinking a lot today as well, which I'm pleased about.
 
Hi,
My vets Anne Taylor and Andy Bradnock are gp experts and very good vets with all animals.Anne has been specialising in gps for several years now and has gp patients from all over the country.She was trained by Peter Gurney in dental techniques.

I get a big discount so am not sureof full costs,but I know other people have said they are cheaper than a lot of other vets.I could find out for you exact costs if you are interested.I think the consultation fee for a gp is about £13,and further consultations for the same problem are free.Anne will give extra time to clients travelling long distance and will try and fit in with a suitable time for you.At a guess I would say that a blood test would be about £25 -£30.and you might get away with just having the blood test done.

One of the forum members,Piglover,goes to Anne so maybe she knows some of the costs.

Anne is on holiday at the moment,but I can find out when she is back.Andy is very,very good,but I think Anne has the edge on him.

Sidetracking here,you may have seen Andy on Wildlife Rescue on tv,he is a volunteer vet at the Wildlife Hospital in Leatherhead.

Let me know if you would like contact details etc.

The surgery is on the Ewell-By-Pass near Epsom.
 
Hi Mary

We still haven't heard from vedra so I will your vets in my lunch break today. Thanks for the info, I'll let you know how we get on.

Marty
 
hiya
just wanted to say that i was in this position a while pack with Patch and Ginger. Little ginge died leaving patch alone. he was the same, pining, not eating :o (unheard of ;D ), and as you say just generally low. i put him in an indoors cage in my room and i gave him lots of cuddles all through the night. the next day or so, we went to our vet's house. she had rescued this piggie that was wandering round Lake (a town) and had been mauled by a cat. :'( she had neutered him and he was the same age as patch. she needed a new home for him, so we took him and Patch and him became best buddies, no fighting or displaying just cuddles. :smitten: :smitten: hope this helps and good luck. :smitten:
 
:) Thats a nice story Cavylover, was meant to be :) There's no need to have boars castrated though in order that they may live together- they either will or they won't. In guinea pigs who are extremely aggressive towards others (the likes of whom are very rarely seen) it will mellow them a little- but again not enough :)
 
karenrgpr said:
There's no need to have boars castrated though in order that they may live together- they either will or they won't.
Click to expand...
yeah, it's just that she had a load of girlies, so she had to have him neutered so he could be with them until she got him a new home. :)
 
Cavy Love. Blaze fortunately is still eating, but he's clearly missing his little boy as he's looking out through the bars of his cage for him and seems quite down a lot of the time. :(

As soon as we get Blaze and the others checked out finding him a friend will be our number one priority, he has at least got the sounds and smells of the other two to give him some sort of company :)
 
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