Yay!!!

Just a quick follow-up to my very last post: Dumbo is fine - his bump turns out to be a cystic one, so the vet said to just ignore it.

Thanks for helping to cross your fingers, toes, eyes and hair! Dumbo thanks you too! :)

Dumbo visits DUMBO (Brooklyn) again.

Greetings! Or, shall I say, SEASON'S greetings!

Wow, long time no speak... or update/blog/write/post/inform!

My free WIFI here at home went MIA sometime in early July, hence the complete lack of updates. :X Still, that's no excuse, I know. *hangs head in shame* But I don't own a laptap or iPad or anything fancy, portable and type-friendly like that, so Starbucks' or anybody else's WIFI was not a viable option, ever. Hmm, OK, well, what really matters is that we now have free WIFI once again in our home and that's why you see this post today. :) YAY!

I got home not too long ago as I had to bring Dumbo, the all-black pig, to the vet out in DUMBO, Brooklyn. He was overdue by a hair for his annual checkup and we'd also discovered a bump on his left thigh area around mid-July. Since then we'd made sure to monitor it every couple weeks or so, and it's never really gotten any bigger or smaller and has virtually made no real impact on his everyday health. During these last several months, he's always had as voracious an appetite as ever! (READ: He is really fat! The vet took notice, too, remarking on how he's packed on the pounds, ha, since last year.)

Dumbo's vet, Dr. Neuman, over at Vinegar Hill, took his vitals and said he was fine. She then took a sample of the fluids in his bump (the medical term is 'cytology') and said I'd hear back from her either Tuesday at the earliest, or Wednesday, at the latest, while the sample gets sent to the pathologist. So now we just play the waiting game...

The vet said she is leaning towards the bump being a cyst, in which case we would just ignore it completely. However, if that bump on Dumbo's thigh has to do with the ever-dreaded C-word (sob), then she would operate on it.

Please, please, please keep your fingers/toes/eyes/hair crossed that it is not that horrible C-word and that it's actually a cyst (gosh, it would probably be the first time that anybody would be so utterly relieved and thrilled to have a cyst present)!!!


Anyhow, I shall bid adieu here. If I go another 7-8 months without posting, then I shall wish you all a very merry Christmas and a very happy, healthy, prosperous and fulfilling 2012 now! Farewell, 2011! :3

Truffle and his embattled body.

Almost two weeks ago, we learned that Truffle has not one, not two, but three, bladder stones. :( :( :( :O

In a way, we were shocked but we also were suspecting that because of his progressively worse squealing and crying, he had stones (if it were a UTI, the sulfatrim would've already knocked it dead). Our stance is that we will not get surgery for the pigs for several reasons. I personally wouldn't want to put any of these beloved little guys through that and emerge from the whole ordeal not even knowing or being given an absolute 100% guarantee that they will be completely repaired and restored when all's said and done. So alternatively the vet put Truffle on a course of potassium citrate tablets and told us we need to give it to all our other pigs too, since in guinea pigs, it is frequently the diet itself that contributes to stones. (Although it can be and sometimes is completely genetic and no matter what you do to curb the calcium intake in their daily diets, it just doesn't do jack. 'Scuse the crudeness but the issue of stones is very frustrating and I've read that even vets do not understand completely why it happens! ARRRGH!!!!)

Since May 18, Truffle has been taking 1/4 of a potassium citrate tablet per day. As have Omelet and Dumbo. Omelet is funny, he tries to lick the stuff as it's coming out of the syringe. You'll keep seeing his adorable pink tongue pop in and out over and over. Hello, Omelet!!! It's not ice cream you're eating! However, these tablets are intended for dogs and so they are roast beef and liver flavored. (gag) Our poor vegan piggies.  But they seem to like it anyway....

Truffle was also put on a 2-3x per week course of subcue injections (in his neck area) of lactated ringers (potassium chloride and other Gatorade-for-animals esque contents). Aside from abundantly hydrating him, it's supposed to help (WE ARE HOPING) flush out his stones IF he can pass them on his own. The standard line when it comes to guinea pigs and this HORRID HORRID HORRID subject of urinary stones is that "Guinea pigs are not able to pass stones on their own" (visit www.guinealynx.info and you will see so yourself). BUT it HAS happened to other pigs (again, please visit www.guinealynx.info) and if you click on the "Forums" tab in the upper right side of the screen when the site comes up, you'll see random accounts of "my pig just passed a stone?!" success stories posted. It's trickier though when it comes to a boy pig versus a girl pig for obvious anatomical reasons (ouchie!!). Yes, so this lactated ringer, we've done 2x on our own since 5/18 because Truffle fights like crazy every time he gets it and the last time most likely has bruised him up real badly (he shakes our hands off when we try to pet his head, which he has never ever done). :(( :X We decided to give him a break from it to let his subcued region heal up a bit before we attempt another. Sigh... raising pigs is challenging in itself. Trying to nurse an unwell pig (READ: a pig with stones) back to health? It's like trying to move mountains. This we have learned the hard (i.e., hands-on) way.

We (Billye and I) met up with Laura from Helping All Little Things (HALT) rescue who are based in South Jersey yesterday morning (more on why in a separate post). She is super knowledgeable and informed (!!) about guinea pigs, having had them as her own pets. She takes her pigs to the Center for Avian and Exotic Medicine (where Tommy went last fall right before he passed on) and raved about one Dr. Alexandra Wilson there ... and also suggested to us using the Chinese herb Shilintong. We later printed out a photo of one brand of Shilintong and took it down to Chinatown to see if any of the herbal stores there carried it. After combing through at least three or four stores, we found the pot of gold (or Shilintong anyway)!!! With the help of a really nice man from the last herbal place we visited. Guinea Lynx recommends administering 1/2 tablet in a CC of water 2x a day. I'm not sure exactly how this herb ("Snowbell leaf ticklover herb") is supposed to work or what it does but some pig owners have apparently experienced positive results with this herb. So now Truffle has swung the pendulum from Western to Eastern medicine, woohoo!! XD I feel like he's becoming a guinea pig in the proverbial sense of the word and not the actual (does that make sense?).

So we'll see how the Shilintong treats Truffle. It supposedly reduces pain and inflammation and is used (in humans) to promote urinary tract health (according to what I've read from other people's accounts on Guinea Lynx/other g pig websites and on the packaging I have in front of me). Laura (from the HALT rescue) said it helps relax the muscles "down there" so the pig can pass the stone. I've also seen an anecdote where the poster said with the help of an X-ray, she saw that the size of the stone in her pig had actually DECREASED whereas these blasted awful pieces of complete and utter uselessness are supposed to grow and grow and just keep growing... so I for one have my fingers crossed that Shilintong will do only good and positive things for those three stones in Truffle's body right now.

Speaking of X-ray...

This is Truffle's X-ray, which Dr. Sara Neuman was very kind to give Billye on a disc. If you click on the photo to enlarge, you'll see three distinct white spots. Those are his stones. According to Billye, Dr. Neuman said they're the size of pencil tips (at the time the X-ray was taken). That is, according to her, really small since most pigs with stones have really big ones by comparison at the time they get admitted for examination. Laura from the rescue, for example, had one pig whose stones were the size of her pinky nail. The potassium citrate tabs he (and Omelet and Duimbo) are taking are supposed to help prevent future calcium stones from forming and help keep more calcium from adding to his current stones.

My one qualm about this whole process is this: guinea pig stones are usually (more times than not) composed of calcium CARBONATE and less commonly calcium OXALATE (or other compositions). The potassium citrate bottle labeling says those tablets work in helping to prevent calcium OXALATE from forming (in dogs and, in our case, Truffle...?). Therefore, *how* would it be effective for treating calcium carbonate if it's not meant to work on that? Gah!!! Might we just be ramming our heads into a brick wall here? This is something that needs to be mentioned to the vet. Laura from the rescue says the tablets will not work in doing anything for the current stones except to prevent more calcium from adding to it (and letting it grow). So it is good in that sense, but I'm doubtful about the CARBONATE side of the story. :X :O

In other (positive) news, Truffle does seem like he's more active and energetic. He seems to be eating on his own although we still give him Critical Care by syringe 2x or so a day. We've been trying to wean him off the CC feedings. The bad news is when I weighed him this morning, he was down to 2 lbs. 9 3/4 (or 7/8 - the scale couldn't make up its mind) oz. That's down a bit from his regular 2 lbs. 11 (or sometimes 12) oz. or so. Gah!!! (for the trillionth time) I'm just hoping the reason for this is because he is pooping out the food he is eating or because he is more active since Billye expanded all of their cages Saturday morning.

OK, that's it for now. Oh, and yes, one more post to make directly after this one...

The "Guinea Pigs Rule!!" Movement/Truffle's Health News

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful and unconditionally loving moms out there!

We had to bring the ever adorable Truffle in to see Dr. Sara Neuman this afternoon. Since about Wednesday, we'd noticed he was having some breathing abnormalities - he would make this little hacking sound, sneezing and wheezing his way through the last few days. On Friday morning, a pretty big ball of green snot shot out of his nose, much to our shock (we'd never seen any of our pigs do that before). We got very worried and quickly started him on leftover Sulfatrim from Dumbo's last upper respiratory infection (URI) last October. Yesterday, he was doing a bit better, having improved a little with the wheezing and hacking. However, he does sneeze on and off. And a second round of snot came flying out of his nose (OK, hope no one is eating as s/he is reading this post, LOL). But this time, it was not as green or thick, which was a good sign. We'll take any good signs when we can get 'em!

However, early this morning, we noticed his appetite started dropping as he seemed to not want to eat any Critical Care from an open syringe. :(( :O :/ We had e-mailed Dr. Sara Neuman late yesterday afternoon to seek her advice. She replied to Billye that the red flag we ought to look out for was a complete stoppage of eating and pooping in Truffle. Because we saw that Truffle, always a voracious eater, really did not have his usual big interest in eating (or drinking), we went ahead and booked an appointment with Dr. Neuman today.

While at the vet, he received a couple of injections, one for hydration, the other to jump-start his appetite. He was out and about for a little over five hours in all today. He's very pooped right now, so it's obvious his first priority is to sleep. I hope when he wakes up and feels refreshed that he will head straight for his hay basket and food bowl. :] Dr. Neuman put him on a stronger antibiotic for the respiratory infection he has. It's called "Orbax" (Orbifloxacin). Truffle will need to be on it for the next two weeks. Aside from that, we'll dose him Reglan for his slowed GI tract to help get it up and moving again. I hope he will be A-OK. It's quite nerve-wracking but we've got all fingers crossed for a complete turnaround sooner than later. We hate seeing Truffle like this. :(

Obviously, it could have been anything that caused Truffle to come down with this URI, but my small unfounded suspicion is that maybe sleeping over and hanging out at Sammy's made him sick. (New pigs from pet stores are often notorious for suffering from URIs, hence the reason why quarantining the new pig from your established brood/gang/fraternity/etc. at the beginning is highly advised.) Anyhow, Sammy was a bit wheezy on and off around the same time that we noticed Truffle wasn't being his usual self. However, unlike Truffle, Sammy is an amazing ball of energy! (OK, I do acknowledge the sizeable age difference between Truffle and Sammy. :P) He still has his normal appetite and flies around his cage constantly, thinking he's a speeding bullet!!! It's quite entertaining to see.

Here are Truffle and Sammy in happier - and healthier - times.

Bonding over a snack of hay together.

This is Truffle yesterday afternoon. Sick and not looking like himself. :'( We would find him puffed up (a self-defense mechanism that sick or injured pigs use to mask their illness/injury from predators - a tactic inherited from their ancestral pigs who lived in the wild) in his igloo from time to time throughout the day yesterday.

The good news is he has maintained his weight, which is extremely important for any sick guinea pig. He was 2 lbs., 11 oz. This morning, he was about 2 lbs., 11.75 oz. However, he needs to start eating and drinking again, so he can do his usual bathroom business! 

***

In other news, Billye ordered a custom silkscreen thingamajig (LOL, I've no idea what the technical term is or maybe I'm just really tired right now) from Pearl Paint on Canal Street last week. So he made some very cool T-shirts with the silkscreen template. 

Two orange T-shirts for Billye and two grey ones for me. Buy 4 for $10 at a variety store, add your own silkscreen, and BAM! You've got four novelty/boutique looking T-shirts. :) In the upper left photo, Billye is showing off a pair of his underwear that he silkscreened yesterday. Guinea pig briefs - ha ha! And, yes, he used Truffle for the silkscreen, as  you can see in the bottom right photo.

Anyhow, please send healthy and healing vibes to Truffle. He is absolutely the sweetest pig in the world, his heart is as big as any that has ever been made and he is full of SO much love and kindness. I really hate seeing him have to suffer. I hope he bounces back quickly.

Have a good Mother's Day.

Until next time...

Omelet is fine!

Omelet came down with a diagnosed case of ileus last week. Dr. Jessica Pizzillo over at the Vinegar Hill Veterinary Group (love them!) examined him, along with her sidekick/technician Jean (who, according to another technician, Tara, knows a TON about rabbits and guinea pigs), and sent him home with Reglan. Dr. Jessica told us to feed Omelet three days of Critical Care (which she then amended to 'not completely necessary' as long as he was eating his normal food) and unlimited amounts of hay. She also recommended we pick up some simethicone (basically, Gas-X in liquid form for babies). We did but then returned it to the store the next day as we did not feel he was exceptionally in need of it.

As of Thursday morning, he has been off of Reglan (which makes you regular, ha ha ha!) and is pooping on his own again. Let it be known that he was switched to a new brand of pellet food last Sunday (actually, two Sundays ago - not Halloween Sunday) and about three days later we observed him suffering from a bit of lethargy and not being overly, well, poopy.

Now he looks better. His poops are self-produced and he is eating normally again. (However, for the record, Truffle, dear sweet little Truffle, is STILL the poop king! Yowza, that little guy with the big rump sure can push those little poops out really quick!)

Here's Omelet:

"What did you say about me, lady?!" (Yes, that's his trademark "angry" stare, LOL.)

Dumbo is in the clear!

We took our youngest (LOL, I started typing "dumbest"!) one, Dumbo, to a place we've never been to yesterday afternoon. It's Vinegar Hill Veterinary Group out in DUMBO (not kidding :P), Brooklyn. Billye said that the technician thought he was prank-calling her when she asked for the animal's name and he answered, "Dumbo." Hehe.

We suspected he had a recurring upper respiratory infection as he would cough on and off during these last couple of months. His vet, Dr. Sara Neuman, seems like a great doctor and lady. I have my fingers crossed hoping she's a keeper. She was quite skilled with Dumbo and received him warmly and fondly in the examination room. She prescribed Sulfatrim for him and said she is partial to that med. She had a great bedside manner and seemed confident and knowledgeable. I thought it was quirky when she chose to divulge gossip about a fellow vet. It made it easier to connect with her. :)

It's been extremely challenging trying to track down vets that specialize in exotic pets here in NYC (such irony!), but right now I feel good about Dr. Neuman and her capabilities. She did say that she does make referrals, at least with G pigs, if she doesn't think she can handle the case presented to her.

Dumbo is doing well. His weigh-in was 2 lbs., 1 oz. He saw part of DUMBO, the Bridge and the promenade. He is slowly becoming a worldly piglet. He was really pooped when he arrived home. I think he hates the noise of the train because he'd run like crazy from one end of his carrier to the other. The gal on the train sitting next to me was excited when he darted from one side to the other. She yanked her earphones out of her ears to ask whether he was a dog and looked like she wanted to pee on herself from giddiness when I replied, "No, it's a guinea pig." People are funny sometimes. :)