Gilbert was
not expected to live he is one of those guinea pigs that are just simply a
miracle or a guinea pig version of a cat with nine lives. Gilbert was
rescued from a pet shop in December 2005. He was suffering from severe
heatstroke, was very underweight and was found lying on his side in a
small cage overcrowded with guinea pigs. When touched he was unable to
move his back legs and I assumed they were broken at the time. It was the
worst heat of the summer months and the guinea pigs had no cooling and no
food/ I spoke to the owner of the shop and was given Gilbert in a shoebox
free of charge.When
Gilbert arrived at the shelter he was treated for heatstroke and for the
next couple of weeks Gilbert was administered with vitamin supplements and
energy supplements. He was
expected to die in the state he was in but to my surprise after a few
weeks he was able to walk again which indicated he had been suffering
severe vitamin C deficiency. With Gilbert now able to walk we had a second
battle on our hands. He WOULD NOT EAT. Gilbert would not chew anything and
was rapidly losing weight
and becoming
skeletal. Gilbert
would
eat apple but wouldn't touch anything else. For a month Gilbert was living
on just apple
and water. With him now becoming practically a walking
skeleton
he weighed around 200grams and I knew if I put him under a general
anesthetic to check if the cause was his back teeth, that at this stage
with his
low body weight he could die or come out with brain damage. Gilbert became
bald underneath and down his legs he was losing hair. He did not have
mites so the hair loss
was very
puzzling. Gilbert was taken to the vet for an appointment to have
him put to sleep.
Once I reached
the vet though I started questioning my decision to euthanize so decided
to put him under the general and If his teeth were really bad we decided
we were going to let him gently pass while under the general. The vet and
myself didn't expect Gilbert to come out from the general even if his
teeth were overgrown and needed a simple trim. 2 hours later I received a
call from the vet letting me know that " he had
come out of the general well ". So off I went completely shocked to
collect Gilbert. I was told
that their was
nothing wrong with his teeth. Gilbert was taken home and didn't look well
he was lying on his side and I expected him to pass on. Well he didn't
pass. For another 2 weeks Gilbert
was still only
eating apple and was just a walking bone. I never took photos but for
anyone that saw
him it would have been a horrifying site. Oddly he was still full of
energy and was active and alert and not in pain. I had just about
given
up on dear
Gilbert when in the middle of January 2006 I put him in a lawn
cage with water and feed I'd done all I could and he wasn't in pain
and I figured he
would either pass on suddenly or continue to live looking as he did. On
the 1st of January I checked Gilbert and he had eaten his
grain
mix. I picked him up on the 3rd January and noticed he was getting a
little belly from eating. By the 6th January Gilbert appeared to be
putting
on weight and was eating all his feed. New hair growth was coming through
on his tummy. From this date on Gilbert continued to eat and put on weight
and he met a new friend " Pete " another disabled boy. The two boys became
best mates. By the time both boys were available for adoption I wanted
them to go in a pair to a home where they could be on the lawn and where I
could feel sure they would be treated as very special members of their new
family. After 2 months of having the boys available for adoption on our
website we received many emails from potential buyers although most homes
were not appropriate for the boys. The waiting paid off and finally in
April
2006 the home of their dreams arrived. A family owned a 24,000 acre animal
and produce farm and enquired about the boys and
after much
talking they traveled 6 hours to come and adopt
them. The two
boys are now
residing in a very special home with endless feed and love and have
become very
special members of the family.
(c)
Copyright 2006, Australian Cavy Sanctuary. All rights reserved.
Gilbert was
not expected to live he is one of those guinea pigs that are just simply a
miracle or a guinea pig version of a cat with nine lives. Gilbert was
rescued from a pet shop in December 2005. He was suffering from severe
heatstroke, was very underweight and was found lying on his side in a
small cage overcrowded with guinea pigs. When touched he was unable to
move his back legs and I assumed they were broken at the time. It was the
worst heat of the summer months and the guinea pigs had no cooling and no
food/ I spoke to the owner of the shop and was given Gilbert in a shoebox
free of charge.When
Gilbert arrived at the shelter he was treated for heatstroke and for the
next couple of weeks Gilbert was administered with vitamin supplements and
energy supplements. He was
expected to die in the state he was in but to my surprise after a few
weeks he was able to walk again which indicated he had been suffering
severe vitamin C deficiency. With Gilbert now able to walk we had a second
battle on our hands. He WOULD NOT EAT. Gilbert would not chew anything and
was rapidly losing weight
and becoming
skeletal. Gilbert
would
eat apple but wouldn't touch anything else. For a month Gilbert was living
on just apple
and water. With him now becoming practically a walking
skeleton
he weighed around 200grams and I knew if I put him under a general
anesthetic to check if the cause was his back teeth, that at this stage
with his
low body weight he could die or come out with brain damage. Gilbert became
bald underneath and down his legs he was losing hair. He did not have
mites so the hair loss
was very
puzzling. Gilbert was taken to the vet for an appointment to have
him put to sleep.
Once I reached
the vet though I started questioning my decision to euthanize so decided
to put him under the general and If his teeth were really bad we decided
we were going to let him gently pass while under the general. The vet and
myself didn't expect Gilbert to come out from the general even if his
teeth were overgrown and needed a simple trim. 2 hours later I received a
call from the vet letting me know that " he had
come out of the general well ". So off I went completely shocked to
collect Gilbert. I was told
that their was
nothing wrong with his teeth. Gilbert was taken home and didn't look well
he was lying on his side and I expected him to pass on. Well he didn't
pass. For another 2 weeks Gilbert
was still only
eating apple and was just a walking bone. I never took photos but for
anyone that saw
him it would have been a horrifying site. Oddly he was still full of
energy and was active and alert and not in pain. I had just about
given
up on dear
Gilbert when in the middle of January 2006 I put him in a lawn
cage with water and feed I'd done all I could and he wasn't in pain
and I figured he
would either pass on suddenly or continue to live looking as he did. On
the 1st of January I checked Gilbert and he had eaten his
grain
mix. I picked him up on the 3rd January and noticed he was getting a
little belly from eating. By the 6th January Gilbert appeared to be
putting
on weight and was eating all his feed. New hair growth was coming through
on his tummy. From this date on Gilbert continued to eat and put on weight
and he met a new friend " Pete " another disabled boy. The two boys became
best mates. By the time both boys were available for adoption I wanted
them to go in a pair to a home where they could be on the lawn and where I
could feel sure they would be treated as very special members of their new
family. After 2 months of having the boys available for adoption on our
website we received many emails from potential buyers although most homes
were not appropriate for the boys. The waiting paid off and finally in
April
2006 the home of their dreams arrived. A family owned a 24,000 acre animal
and produce farm and enquired about the boys and
after much
talking they traveled 6 hours to come and adopt
them. The two
boys are now
residing in a very special home with endless feed and love and have
become very
special members of the family.