Friday, March 4, 2011

Oh deary me.

Usually when I haven't written in a while, I make some comment about what a bad blogger I am or how things have changed drastically.
They have. I am having to do something I never thought I'd have to do.

I have to say good-bye to half of my herd.

Yes, it's true. I feel like a terrible pet owner but the truth is, I should probably have done this a long time ago, when they were younger. It would have been much easier on all parties involved.
There are several reasons why I need to do this.

1.] I am allergic to them. And not just a little. Sneezing, runny nose, itchy mouth/eyes, watery eyes, etc. are not just symptoms I get when I touch one of them, pick them up or hold them. I have them all the time. I have been miserable since we moved out of the yellow house in the beginning of February. I am also allergic to the hay, but not as bad.

2.] I don't have the space. I've had to split them up and most of them are living in pet store cages. No one is in an adequately sized cage right now. This makes changing their cages even worse because that's when I start sneezing horrendously and the mucous starts a-flowin'. Having to go through that once is bad enough, but having to go through it five times is a nightmare. I take allergy medication on the day that I change their cages, which helps a little, but not much.

3.] I am physically not able to care for all of them. I was supposed to have a surgery on my ankle to remove built-up scar tissue from an old injury. I have been delaying it for over a year due to lack of insurance. It has been slowly getting more and more painful to walk. I cannot take pain medication for it, as even the strongest of doses does just about nothing. Every time I have to change their water, feed them, play with them, etc. I have to go up and down a flight of stairs, which is very difficult for me. I don't know when I will have the surgery but even after that I won't be able to walk for about a month.

4.] None of this will change any time soon. I am not able to care for all of my cavies, and I am not doing right by them keeping them in their current conditions. Sophie-Mo, Rocky, Natasha, and Olive will be staying with me and I hope to get a good-sized cage built for them as soon as I can, and get them back on fleece, which should help.

You can see their Guinea Pig Home page here.

2 comments:

  1. Oh, I'm so sorry! This is terrible. My prayers to you.

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  2. I'm sorry to hear you have to give up your cavies! I just found your site today and I really appreciate all the great info. I hope your re-homing search is going well.

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