The Story of Two Little Wheekers

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Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Mon Jun 10, 2019 8:17 pm


Oh my goodness! So much baby pig adorableness. :)

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Catie Cavy
Supporter 2011-2020

Post   » Mon Jun 10, 2019 8:36 pm


Maybe Taco can have some alone time with mom. Some extra nursing might help him put on weight.

CleoCharity

Post   » Mon Jun 10, 2019 10:17 pm


Catie Cavy, we gave mom and Taco some time together while we snuggled with the other pups, so Taco got at least 10 minutes of peaceful nursing without having to worry at all about her siblings. She is definitely smaller and less active and social than the other pups, but not so much that we're too worried about her. They all had their first veggies tonight (radicchio, bell pepper, and green beans), and the pups loved the radicchio. We got some very cute videos of Toast and Kiwi eating side by side. This also gave Taco some time to nurse while Ember ate and the other siblings were off eating.

CleoCharity

Post   » Sat Jun 22, 2019 4:30 pm


We have been feeding Taco Critical Care four times a day for the last couple of days, along with 2 hours a day of one-on-one nursing time, as instructed by our vet. Unfortunately, she is isn't gaining any weight, and is only 2.55 ounces while her siblings are 5.45 and 5.20 ounces. We're crossing our fingers for her, but it's beginning to look like she has a failure to thrive and that all we can do is keep on feeding her and wait and see what happens. We're not sure which guinea pig it is, but someone keeps chewing on her fur, so she has much shorter fur than all the rest. The vet said that she would normally be concerned, but that the weight is a much more pressing issue. Taco also is wheezing slightly and when wheeking occasionally has labored breathing, causing the vet to consider a URI or pneumonia as something that we need to look out for. Overall, she has lots of health concerns, but we're hoping that she'll get through it and end up with a forever home that will be able to handle any more health problems she throws their way.

On a better note, we just took our own pigs to the shelter to get their nails trimmed, and Charity, who is biter when her feet are getting touched, was very well behaved. She didn't try to nip the person's hand and was even complimented on her good behavior! She is currently celebrating with a new wooden hidey, this time one with large windows that she can fit through ;)

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Sat Jun 22, 2019 8:22 pm


I hope things get better for little Taco. Stick with it! I know from my own experiences with my Scruffy that when things seem at their worst, these guinea pigs can show some resilience and improve very quickly.

I know what you mean about biting when they get their nails trimmed. Mr Bubbles does that every time!

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sat Jun 22, 2019 9:42 pm


I hope she improves too! It sounds like you are doing all you can.

CleoCharity

Post   » Thu Jun 27, 2019 9:19 pm


It's Taco! I'm doing okayish, not gaining the weight my foster human wants me to gain, but not losing weight either. Kiwi, Toast, and Ember are going back to the shelter to get adopted tomorrow, but I'm going to another foster home for a few weeks so that I can keep on gaining weight. I'm okay with not getting adopted, I'm excited to get big and strong before meeting my forever family! Foster human is sad but also happy, and it is very confusing. Apparently, it's called bittersweetness. She says she will miss us very much but is happy that we are all going to cool new places. She wishes she could keep fostering me, but she is going on vacation for a week and can't take me with her or cancel the vacation. I might get to go stay with her all by myself for a week when she gets back from vacation, so I'm very excited about that! I'm not ready to say goodbye forever, and I don't think that foster human is ready to either.

She spent the evening writing letters to go with my mom and siblings so that their adopters can know how awesome they are! She also got all her favorite pictures of us printed out so that she has some pictures and also some that she will put in with their letters. She wants their adopters to see how little they all once were, mostly because Toast and Kiwi are SOOOO much bigger now. I'm still not 3 ounces yet and Kiwi is 6.60 oz, but foster human says that she loves me anyway, and I think my huge ears make up for it. I've started to warm up to Critical Care, which tasted yucky at first but is now tastier. I get it all over myself, tho, so foster human has to put a little less than a centimeter of warm water in a little tub so that I can wash my paws off. She will then wrap me up into a little Taco-burrito and cuddle with me until I'm dry. Even if I'm super small, I always feel lucky because I get the extra attention that Kiwi and Toast don't get. Hopefully, they will get lots of extra attention at their new homes. Foster human is going to recommend that they post on here, and if they do, we will send a link!

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Catie Cavy
Supporter 2011-2020

Post   » Fri Jun 28, 2019 7:43 pm


Taco! I’m so glad you are hanging in there. Sounds like you’ll have a fun vacation of your own next week. Hope you’ll get to hook back up with foster human after that.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Fri Jun 28, 2019 10:48 pm


Hey Taco, if I lived closer to you, I would give you the best forever home! I'm so glad to hear that you are hanging in there. Your foster human is doing a great job for you. Get better!

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Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Sat Jun 29, 2019 10:40 am


You're doing fine, little buddy. Hang in there and keep getting BIG!

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ItsaZoo
Supporter in 2023

Post   » Sat Jun 29, 2019 2:29 pm


Little Taco, keep eating and growing! I wish you all the best.

CleoCharity

Post   » Sat Jun 29, 2019 3:41 pm


This is Charity because human is too sad to type. We just found out from the shelter that Taco died this morning. They thought that she had a GI problem and that if they didn’t put her to sleep, she was going to die a long painful death. They euthanized her this morning, and they told human when she went to go visit them in the shelter. She says that the other three are doing awesome, and that they will soon be up for adoption but that they need to get a clean bill of health first. She also says that the cage felt so empty without little Taco’s constantly happy spirit, giant ears, and sweet little face. RIP little girl, you never knew what it was like to be in a forever home, to be bigger than 3 ounces, and you never made it to four weeks old. But you still faced every challenge (and there were lots) with a determined expression on your more often than not Critical Care covered face, and human is so grateful to have gotten to love you for your short 3 weeks and 1 day.

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