DECEMBER'S GUINEA PIG OF THE MONTH--Eliot!

$784.50 raised so far! WOW! Keep forwarding Eliot's story, and please consider donating!

Meet Eliot

from GA Rescue

Atlanta Metro Guinea Pig Rescue!

The director of AMGPR, Lisa Sharp, writes: 

I went to sex some pigs at an owners house from 2 accidental pregnancies (pet store sold females as males).  While looking at the babies, I noticed one of the mamas having trouble walking.  The owner didn’t have the money to care for her so she asked me to take her as well as the babies.

Eliot is just a baby herself, probably no more than 4 months old at this point.  This means she was impregnated at about 2 months of age…an age when she should have been using all of her nutrients to grow her own body.  Instead she had FOUR babies to grow and then, after delivery, nurse.  This leeched all the calcium and vitamins from her. This along with poor nutrition in her former home, her hips were destroyed, rendering her back legs practically useless.  One is stronger than the other but she still can’t zoom and popcorn like a normal pig her age loves to do. She will use them only when she is startled to get back into her cozy sak.  Even then, she uses one leg more than the other.

Despite the trials she’s gone through during such a short life, she is the SWEETEST little pig.  When I walk in the room she comes out to greet me and begs for attention.  She gets excited when veggies come and eats like a horse!  She also keeps herself very clean.  Her spirit is strong and we are going to work hard to get her body stronger.

Eliot will remain a sanctuary pig in the rescue for her life.  We are going to make every day of her life count and hopefully be better as the years go by.  We will treat aggressively with acupuncture, laser therapy and supplements in her diet.  Our hope is to help her body regrow some tissue and strengthen her bones so there is no further damage.  During the first several months I expect to be at the vets every 7-10 days for acupuncture, maybe stretching that out if we start seeing results.  X-rays will be taken periodically throughout the process to gauge progress.

Monthly expenses (at least over the next 3 months) are expected to be:

Food/hay/veggies: $20

Laundry                 : $ 5

Vet visits               : $120

Xrays                      : $115

Supplements        : $30

Our goal is to raise $362.50, enough for five weeks of Eliot's care. Can you pitch in or forward Eliot's story?

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*Please send checks made payable to Lisa Sharp to:

PO Box 72301
Marietta, GA 30007

Lisa Sharp is the director of AMGPR. Please reference Eliot or SAGP in the subject line.

DECEMBER'S GUINEA PIG OF THE MONTH--Mahi Mahi!

Total so far: $405! We have met our goal!

Meet Mahi Mahi

from CA rescue

Cavy House!

Sue from Cavy House writes on 12/2:

We have a very sweet little black crested female named Mahi Mahi who just had surgery yesterday. She came to us pregnant and quite huge. The last week of pregnancy, she morphed into a pancake - very round and she also flattened out vertically too. She started dragging her hind legs behind her at times which we assumed was just because of the extra weight.

She ended up having 5 pups - and all of them were average to large size pups (100-150 grams). The poor girl. She regained use of the legs after she had the pups - but then intermittently drug them behind her again.

Our vet took and x-ray and discovered the poor girl had broken both hips! So yesterday she had surgery to fix both hips - cleaned out the joints, removed the broken femoral heads and sewed her back up. She is on pain meds and eating and pooping so we're optimistic.

Our fundraising goal is $300 for Mahi Mahi, and this will cover only a fraction of the surgery and the initial appointment /x-rays.

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*To avoid Paypal fees you can also log in to your paypal account, select "Send Money," and type "sbduhamel@sbcglobal.net" in to the "to field." Then select "personal" at the top tab. The default status should be "gift." Leave this as-is. Then enter your gift amount. Cavy Companions thanks you for going to this extra trouble!

Checks can be made to "Cavy House" and sent to Cavy House, Sue DuHamel, PO Box 324, La Honda, Ca. 94020.

UPDATE FOR COCOA!

So far we have raised $271 out of $270--we've made our goal!

We've also raised a C&C cage--photos of Cocoa in his new palace below, with his two friends:

$ 10,362.80

DECEMBER'S GUINEA PIG OF THE MONTH--Cocoa!

Meet Cocoa

from NJ rescue

Helping All Little Things!

Cocoa is a 4 year old male guinea pig who was turned into the rescue when his owners had to move and couldn't keep him. When he came through our doors his nails had never been cut. They were curling into his feet and causing him much pain. Over time we were able to cut them down and he has become the sweetest pig we have ever met. While waiting for his forever home, he helps the rescue educate children on the proper way to handle and care for guinea pigs at presentations and Expos.

How Can You Help?

We are trying to fundraise $270 for this dear pig, as well a C&C cage. I have extra grids I can send, can anyone provide Coroplast? (Ideally in NJ, so shipping isn't crazy, or a referral to a nearby sign dealer and a donation).

The $270 is broken down as follows: $46 a month for pellets (shared with other pigs), $40 a month for veggies, $50 for a vet visit (if needed), $16 for a month of bedding, $8 a month for Vitamin C.

Please click below to donate, and post in the comments section if you are able to send a donation for coroplast, or coro itself.

UPDATE: THE CAGE HAS BEEN ORDERED! Thank you Deb!

Also on the wishlist are cozies (please see our banners to locate a cozy vendor, many of whom have discounts for rescues), fleece, towels, and hay.

Update for Big Boy and Rosie

We've raised $460 out of 280! We met our goal!!

Don't forget to give the gift of sponsoring a guinea pig this holiday! See the below post for details.

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To avoid paypal fees send checks to:

Checks can be made to "Cavy House" and sent to Cavy House, Sue DuHamel, PO Box 324, La Honda, Ca. 94020.

Holiday announcement

Give the gift of Sponsoring a Guinea Pig!

This month only, gift memberships are available at Sponsor a Guinea Pig! Donate in your friends and family's name, and they'll receive a notification of your gesture!

Gift donations begin at $11, or $8 for three or more gift donations. Simply click on the donate button below, or mail a check or money order to Cavy House, and then email sponsoraguineapig@gmail.com with the name and address of the recipient, and any message you would like included.

They will receive a gorgeous handmade guinea pig card in the mail letting them know about your gift. Thank you to Beth Henry for donating the cards!

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To avoid paypal fees send checks to:

Checks can be made to "Cavy House" and sent to Cavy House, Sue DuHamel, PO Box 324, La Honda, Ca. 94020.

DECEMBER'S GUINEA PIG OF THE MONTH-Big Boy and Rosie!

Meet Big Boy and Rosie
from CA Rescue

Cavy House!

"Big Boy is one of the most awesome guinea pigs we've ever had come in to the rescue. He is very sociable and has gotten even more so since coming here. He absolutely loves a good chin rub. When he sees my son (the best chin-rubber) walk into the room, he immediately starts walking out to meet him, rumble-strutting and purring the whole way. He keeps up the purring as long as you want to rub his chin. He is such a happy guy and we're so lucky to have him.

"Big Boy hasn't had it too easy though. In March of this year he was dropped off in the night-drop box at a local shelter with no information about him. The vets checked him over and decided he had scurvy, urine/fecal incompetence, urine scald, impaction and and a lump on his chin they couldn't check because he was too wiggly. They recommended that if rescue could not be found that day, that he should be euthanized.

"On 3/18/09 we pulled him and took him to our vet where it was determined he had Cervical Lymphadentitis (CL). This was treated successfully with antibiotics. Our vet said he did not have scurvy. On April 7th we found some more lumps under his chin, armpits, and the inguinal region. Our vet said to bring him in immediately.

"Big Boy was found to have lymphoma, which does not have a good prognosis. Most guinea pigs die within a couple days of diagnosis. Most people opt not to try chemo, instead just keeping the piggy as comfortable as possible. Our vet thought it was worth a try, and wanted to try a higher dose of chemo than he tried on other patients. We were a little leery, but if could be treated without adverse side effects, it would be worth the effort. The protocol included L-Sparginase injected every three weeks and Prednisone twice a day (orally).

"On 4/14/09, at Big Boy's one week post-chemo check-up, we were quite excited to find Big Boy's cysts smaller! We were even more excited to find out on May 21st that his lumps were no longer palpable! And Big Boy was feeling great-at 1300 grams, we even caught him running a little and doing a couple popcorns!

"We are now more than seven months post-diagnosis and are crossing our fingers that things keep going as well. His chemo has now been drawn out to every four weeks instead of three weeks. We have seen no adverse effects, in fact, he looks happier and healther than when he first came in. His weight and appetite have held steady--he can put away a good pile of hay in no time.

"He has picked up a girlfriend, a cute red and white Peruvian named Rosie. She was depressed over losing her mate when she came to us and would not eat. We tried lots of things and finally decided to introduce her to Big Boy. He immediately perked her up and she started eating and recovering. They have been very close since then (as close as you can be with a divider down the middle of the cage). They often are nuzzling through the grid. Big Boy and Rosie even recently raised a foster pup who lost his mother at birth.

"So that's Big Boy's story to date. He's a special piggy."

Our goal is to raise $280, enough for four months of medicine. The Prednisone is $32 a month, and the chemo (L-Sparginase) is $38 a month, totalling $70.

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To avoid paypal fees send checks to:

Checks can be made to "Cavy House" and sent to Cavy House, Sue DuHamel, PO Box 324, La Honda, Ca. 94020.

FINAL TOTAL FOR PEACHES

We've Surpassed Our Goal!

Sponsor a Guinea Pig has raised $450-
$131 over our $269 goal!

that's almost twice as much
as we intended to raise-THANK YOU!

"Thank you!!" says Peachie!

DECEMBER'S GUINEA PIG OF THE MONTH-Peaches!

Meet Peaches

from the MD/DC/VA rescue

Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue!

Peaches is a five year old sanctuary guinea pig with Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue. She is a very special girl who has been living the good life for over a year now, when she wasn't supposed to even live through her first night with the rescue. Each month Peaches's medical care costs the rescue $134.50-we are trying to raise enough for two months of her medical care! That's $269. This includes the office exam ($22.5o) an incisor trim ($15), her Meloxicam ($23), critical care ($28), Cosequin ($11.50), Benazapril ($11.50), and Metronidazole ($23).

Will you consider giving the gift of continued care, in the form of a $1 donation (or larger) today?

When Peaches first arrived at the rescue, she was too weak to stand. She had an ulcer in her left eye, a fungal infection in her ears, bumblefoot, mites, teeth issues, and weighed less than a pound. Peaches had to be fed every hour on the hour throughout the night for days.

Now this miracle piggy, who has defied all expectations, is a grand diva of MGPR. She's become addicted to Critical Care (the food supplement that pulled her through those first nights) and eats that around the clock as well as regular meals! She's developed a healthy and unique wheek known as the TRUMPET, and all who meet her fall in love. She now weighs just under two pounds, but acts like she's the biggest of the herd.

Peaches has to visit the vet every month for a tooth trim, and gets a general check up. She has been diagnosed with heart issues, a fused spine due to malnutrition through her youth, severe arthritis in her knees, and her ear infection continues to occur. She is on five different medicines. Since the vet makes them fruit flavored she's addicted to her medicines too-if her caretakers are late she lets out the TRUMPET!

Thank you for being an advocate for those who cannot help themselves. Please pass Peaches's story and this site on to others.

(Want more of Peaches? Here's one of many videos of Peaches on YouTube. How did I find them? I filmed them :) My fiance and I are her caretakers. Don't worry though-all donations go straight to MGPR, who pays for Peaches's medical bills. We're just lucky enough to foster her each day! If fostering sounds like something you'd be interested in doing, why not find a local rescue through Petfinder.com?)