Let It All Hang Out

The hammock is back in the cage this week.  I've been getting a kick watching Boadicea sleep in it.  In the past I've noted that Boadi has some similarities to Bertie.  This time she's channeling Pinniped.

Remembering Bertie and Pinniped

I adopted Bertie and Pinniped (named Sweetie and Midnight) on a cold January evening in  2010.  We had lost Pippin a few weeks before, and I had been on the lookout for a pair of young sows to keep Willow company.  Willow had been very lonely.  Bertie and Pinni had been part of a large seizure of guinea pigs on the Cape and had been in foster care until they had weened their nine pups.  The two of them had been up for adoption only a few days before I took them home with me.

Bertie

We debated about what to rename Sweetie for several days.  I liked Godiva or Guilian, because her colors made me think of chocolate.  But her blue eyes and dapper, dopey personality made us think of Bertram Wooster.  So we ended up calling her Bertie.

Bertie was one of the most stubborn, opinionated pigs I've ever had.  She liked things her way and took no arguments.  So much attitude in such a small little package.  It was at odds with the cute, timid demeanor she had about her.  Bertie was fairly easygoing about life and yet would stand up to Pinniped if she started to push Bertie around.  She maintained this attitude right to her very last breath.

Pinniped: The Schnoz

Pinniped of the non-stop nose, proud owner of the double-wide, has left us.

Sunday night she was clearly unhappy and hid herself as much as possible.  Monday morning she wobbled to the lettuce but wouldn't eat.  I wrapped her up in a cozy and we sat quietly together all morning.  At lunchtime I carefully placed her in the cage, still snuggled in the cozy, making sure she was comfortable.  I grabbed a bite to eat, checked on her a few times, and she was gone. 

The mass in her bladder was often uncomfortable in the last few weeks, but she continued to be her nosy self, cruising around during floor time and being front-and-center (and wheeking) for all mealtimes.  Pinni was a little trouper through it all.  She took her meds without a fuss and couldn't wait to slurp down the lactated ringers.  She bore up through multiple rump-dunkings (giving Rob the how could you do this to me looks and voicing her displeasure).  She accepted her wedge of melon rind reward with enthusiasm.  And never once, with all of the manhandling at the vet and at home, tried to bite anyone.  Damn.  What a good girl.

Holiday Single Shots 2014

My Christmas cards feature both pigs, but inevitably I find a couple of good single shots.  This year's photos were no exception.

I love this photo of Cannoli stuffed in the sleigh.  It certainly captures her dopiness.  She's such a fat, wuzzy pig.

Pinniped can be hard to photograph; the camera doesn't like to focus on all her black fur.  So I'm always happy when I can get a clear photo of her that isn't just a black blob.

Christmas Photo Shoot 2014

Black Friday!  Round up the pigs, bribe them so we can take hundreds of photos, then I spend the afternoon picking the best ones to make Christmas cards.  Not a bad way to spend the day.

Pinniped wasn't too happy about the whole thing.  She vented her displeasure at eating the scenery whenever it was within reach.  No, no!  Cannoli, of course, hates being photographed and froze still like a lump for most of the shots.  Sitting still isn't so bad, but many shots were unusable because she looked scared out of her wits.  There were several shots of stink-eye from both pigs.  On the other hand, I didn't spend much time chasing after pigs like I have in past years.

The second sitting went better.  Noli relaxed and Pinni hammed.  Pinni was somewhat snug in the sleigh, so I was amazed that Noli could fit at all.  But both seemed happier with the switch.  We shot most of the second series with Noli in the sleigh.  I've picked my three favorite photos; time to start writing cards.

A Grand Day Out

Sunday was cage cleaning day.  We spent some time hanging out with Pinniped and Cannoli during their floor time.  It was great seeing Pinni tool around the floor.  Pinni may not be feeling her best, but it's not stopping her from puttering around.  She spent some time playing with the egg-cersizer and exploring the cozies and hay tube.

I was a mean mommy and loosed Cannoli in the middle of the kitchen.  She didn't freeze solid like last time but took only a few steps before loafing.  When Rob walked away get his camera, Noli was torn between heading to where he had been standing, or following him across the floor.  Oh!  These big decisions are so taxing!  I took pity on her and placed her by the side of the island, at which point she recognized how to get to home base and took off.

Cancer

Pinni hung out with me as I work, so I could watch how she's doing.

There's a reason why my guinea pig posts have been few and far between.  Pinniped hasn't been well, in spite of the extra care and medication she's getting.

We were at the vet early last week.  X-rays were taken and we all expected to find a bladder full of stones or that she was trying to pass a stone.  Imagine our surprise - not a single stone in Pinni's bladder.  The odd calcification near her spine had split in half and the x-ray clearly indicated the pieces were less dense than they had been months ago.  Proof that the hydrochlorothiazide is slowly working.  Not only has it prevented new stones, it's dissolving the old one.

They gooped up Pinni's tummy for an ultrasound and found a mass in the middle of her bladder.  It looked to me like the peak of a mountain.  The vet was very concerned about the fluid all around Pinni's organs, too.  Her diagnosis:  cancer.  Well, crap.  We're finally successfully battling the stones only to be hamstrung by a bladder tumor.  So unfair.

Grindstones and Millstones

October was a slow month for blog posts.  But it wasn't a slow month for me.  There was lots of sewing in-between bringing my sewing machine back to the shop.  I'll have four quilts to write about in the next few weeks.

I attended a Tea and a quilt show.  Put up more bird feeders.  Let the pigs have their last romps outside before the weather turned cold (and the grass got too brown).  Made more earrings and tried new recipes (piggy pudding and squash-sage-cheddar galette).  I dressed up and went dancing for Halloween.  There were so many wonderful costumes.  I wish I had more photos.  My little camera doesn't do well in low light.

Cornucopia

When I was in the basement digging out the pignic equipment, I came across a cornucopia.  I bought it a few years ago for a Fall photo with Willow, Bertie and Pinniped.  I thought it might be nice to dust it off and use it again.

I was amazed that Cannoli fit into the cornucopia as well as she did.  What a loaf.  

Sneaky Probiotics

Banana-and-Probiotic Sandwich

Giving medications to a guinea pig can be difficult, especially if they're pills or powders.  It's been a while since I've tried to give Pinniped powdered probiotic and I had forgotten how I normally gave it to her.  I tried sprinkling it on some green pepper.  That was a mistake!  She ate around the edges and kept pawing at it, clearly unhappy with it.  I'm sure she'd have made faces if she could.  I eventually washed off the probiotic, and she wolfed down what was left of the pepper.

Rob reminded me that I usually hid the probiotic in a bit of banana.  Banana should only be fed sparingly to guinea pigs, but it is a wonderful medium for hiding pills and powders.  It worked great for Willow's shilintong... until she realized that banana shouldn't be crunchy.  She was very deft at eating all the banana and spitting out the shilintong.  Bad pig!

However, Pinni isn't so discerning.  Probiotic powder wedged between two thin slices of banana quickly disappears.  I'm not sure if the banana flavor overwhelms the probiotic, or if it's because she eats it too quickly to notice.  Doesn't matter - it works for me!

Boston Fall Pignic 2014

The morning of the pignic dawned beautifully sunny, but rather chilly.  The forecast had been for a clear day with a high of 70F, but as we packed the car, the temperature was hovering around 50F.  I had warned people to prepare for the cool weather, but I still worried.

It was still very cool when we arrived, but the sunny spots in the grass were wonderful.  I wandered around in bare feet to make sure the pigs would be comfortable on the ground.  I just wanted to lay down in a sunny spot and nap - so I figured we were good to go.  It never got above 66F in the shade, but the breeze died down in the afternoon, and people brought plenty of cozies and houses to share. It turned out to be a good day for a pignic.

We had a good showing.  People arrived early, despite the cool weather.  We had nearly 60 people and close to 50 guinea pigs.  The guinea pigs spent the afternoon chasing each other and eating grass.  The boars got rather rowdy, and a few ended up in the time-out pens.  Most pigs, though, interacted peacefully and many seemed happy to spend the afternoon with other piggy friends.

Clockwise from upper left: Pignic in full swing; Pigachu; disapproving guinea pig (being with Mom was better than participating in the contest); goofy rodent being inspected; gray guinea pig that completely filled the weigh-in bowl; a boar that was bigger than the tissue box (he broke it!); peeking boar - do you see me?

X Marks the Spot

I'm doing the nerd thing again and showing off my latest guinea pig weight chart.  Last year's tracked a fairly stable Pinniped and a growing Cannoli.  What a difference to this year's chart:  X marks when Pinni and Noli traded weights, just before the new year.  Not really what I forecasted last year.

Guinea Pig Spaghetti

Corn season!  I picked up a big bag of husks this week and shredded the lot for drying.  That left a mound of corn silks, which looked to me like a plateful of spaghetti.  Doesn't it?  It just needs some tomatoes on top to complete the picture (however, I'm unwilling to share my few that have ripened).

I grabbed Pinniped and Cannoli to take some photos.  Pinni was more than happy to sit right down and start munching.  Cannoli, as usual, was a bit shy.  She wolfed down a mouthful of silk, but as soon as I moved her to get a better shot, she was gone.  Made a beeline out of the living room to the home base in the kitchen.  Better to hide where it's familiar than to eat good stuff in a strange place.  Noli is such an odd guinea pig.

Liquifying Pinniped

I've switched Pinniped's daily fluids from subcutaneous to oral.  I had a hard time getting the full 30ml into her the first few days.  It took more sittings than I had time for so she got needled every couple of days.  But Pinni has caught on.  She's either developed a taste for lactated ringer's solution, or she's figured out that if she drinks what I give her, she doesn't get poked.  We have a new routine in place of the quick (but stressful) two-person evening shot.  I draw the fluids in the morning, squirt it into a clean baby food jar and feed it to her throughout the day using the 3ml syringe.  Pinni goes through 10-12ml at a sitting; if I'm lucky I can finish off the fluids in two sittings.  When it's time for evening meds and fluids I announce:  I'm off to liquify the pig.


Pinni's pretty funny.  She pulls the syringe like I'm not giving it to her fast enough.  But I don't want to plunge the syringe too fast - I'd hate to choke her.  I can tell Pinni's had enough when she either starts dribbling fluids or when she grabs for the syringe from the side instead of straight on.  I wish all feedings and medicating were this easy.  Down the hatch!

Good girl, Pinni.  Oral fluids may interrupt my daily schedule than administering a subcue, but it makes everyone much happier.  If she keeps this up, I may have to return my collection of butterfly needles.  Oh, joy!

Who Let the Pigs Out

Wheek, wheek, wheek-wheek!

This summer has been pretty good for spending time outside in the yard.  Pinniped and Cannoli had several afternoons in their pen while the weather was dry and sunny.  But we had rain and thunderstorms last week, so they had to stay in.  Friday cleared up and was a perfect day for an outing: sunshine, not too hot, and dry.  There was much happiness!

The grass had grown quite a bit from the rain.  Pinni wasn't sure what to eat first - the wide-bladed grass or the clumps of clover.  She kept chewing as she moved from one spot to the other.  Cannoli preferred whatever she could find under the house.  She's so hard to photograph!  That chicken runs and hides whenever I come near (Pinni, as you can see, could care less).

Status Quo

Pinniped has been stable.  She's still on the hydrochlorothiazide (which I can now spell and pronounce without looking at the bottle).  Unfortunately, she continues to receive daily subcues.  I've weaned her to a daily injection instead of the twice-daily routine.  After six months of getting jabbed, she's not taking it well.  I can no longer give the injections by myself because she's too wriggly.

I stopped at the vet last week to stock up on another month's worth of meds, fluids and needles.  I spoke briefly with the vet.  She was thrilled that Pinni has had a few weeks of 850-900g weight and that she'd been clean and dry for several days in a row.  It's a far cry from the state Pinni was in this winter.  I explained how I've modified the regimen and the problems we've had with subcues.  The vet suggested that if I'm down to 30ml of fluids a day to try syringe feeding Pinni that amount.  I could use the lactated ringers' solution orally, which would help keep Pinni's electrolytes in balance.

Polite Pig

Have you ever heard a guinea pig say "Thank you" when they've been handed a treat?  Pinniped has been making a quick little purr when I hand over certain green veggies or corn husks.  Usually it occurs just as she bites into it and hauls it away.  Realistically Pinni is probably saying "Hand the food over faster" or "Yay!  Food!" but it sounds like thanks to me.

She's not the first - I've had other guinea pigs do this.  Granted, I only get a thank you when I'm doling out the really good stuff.   Cannoli has yet to express any gratitude.

Summer Sacking

Summer is really here.  We've had several warm days over the last few weeks.  It has left me with a pair of very blobby pigs.  Indoors, outdoors, or on the floor, I often saw a pair of fuzzy puddles when I'd check in on them.

Cannoli has learned the art of sticking her feet out over the edge of the hammock in new and interesting ways.  (I think she may have outdone Pinni.)  Sadly, she leaps out of the hammock when I walk by.  The only photos I've gotten of her in the hammock or out in the open is if she's deeply asleep.  She was out cold when I snapped the photo of her under the hay rack.

The Guilty Party?

We came home from grocery shopping and found a broken hammock.  It was fine when we went out. 

I'd been anticipating this since Cannoli took an interest in the hammock cords and seams.  Upon close examination, it doesn't appear that the cord was cut; it looks like the seam gave way.  I guess it's possible after several years of use and washing, it just fell apart.


So - was it simply a matter of circumstance?  Or did one of these two pigs snip the seams?

And who do you think was the unfortunate pig that got dumped out of the hammock when the cord came loose?  I wish I had been home to witness that.

Knee Deep in Clover

We have several patches of clover in the yard.  This one is the girls' favorite.  Doesn't it look lovely?

Unfortunately they didn't get to enjoy it for long.  The mosquitoes had come out in force that evening.  Pinniped was willing to brave the annoying buzzing to get her share of clover.  Cannoli decided it was more than she was willing to endure and hid in the cozy.  Knowing that guinea pigs have such thick skin, we wondered if the mosquitoes could actually draw any blood.  However, in the time it took for me to take this shot, I decided it was time for all of us to go back inside.

We shall have to return another day!