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| Pandora aka Agent Avatar |
(Pandora) Well, I need Slave's help with this one. She says that she had the very first Piggyfriends when she was a little girl ( a VERY long time ago ). The first one came from a litter born to the pet shop lady's Peruvian sow, Lima and the second was passed on to her from her spoilt brat cousin's dad, when the girl would not look after him. There were no piggy rescues in those far off days so I guess that he was the first rescued one. When Slave and her family moved here in 1987, she had six of her own plus the Little Visitors that came to live here during the times when her friend was overseas and also her sons' school piggies that boarded every weekend and holidays. There was plenty of room here to rescue more so she did.
Slave never counts us as she says that it reminds her of lost Piggyfriends. I can't count very high but there are between 20 and 30 of us. Slave says that once she had 35. There is always room for one more.
(Sjeuf) what are the most common piggy ailments?
(Pandora) The worst piggy ailments must be skin problems, particularly mites but we are all protected by regular doses of Ivermectin and Panacur to kill mites and other parasites (tip: worming protocol). Sometimes piggies come in with mite infestations and they are very poorly. Fungal issues are also problem in cold, damp climates like ours in England as piggies originally came from the dry climate of South America.
(Sjeuf) What kind of medicine really really ought to be in the case?
(Pandora) Our Slave has a huge amount of piggy medicine in two overflowing boxes. I think that Ivermectin and Panacur are the most important drugs plus an antifungal and antiparasite shampoo. Slave has Vet Sect Repel. She has painkillers and human cold remedies, which suit piggies too. There are decongestants for bunged up noses plus a bottle of Septrin antibiotic - the best one for piggies. There is a bottle of tonic for when we need a pick me up and a human ladies' remedy for cystitis. There are meds for upset tummies and diarrhoea and Daktarin oral gel for sore mouths after dental work. She has eye drops and a cream to help wounds heal faster. She has Osteocare and a cream for mouth sores ( just in case ).
(Sjeuf) Lets talk tools! What do you really need, next to the drugs?
(Pandora) Tools? A good, sharp pair of nail clippers. Slave has a pair for human nails and she also uses these for overgrown incisors. Not for the faint hearted. Also a lot of 1ml. syringes with no needles for giving meds. With the ends cut off, these are for syringe feeding sick piggies too. Plus good sharp scissors for haircuts for our long haired friends. I don't need these. If she did not have the services of our wonderful Rodentologists, she would have a set of dental equipment too. Also there is a box of cotton buds for swabbing the Daktarin around little mouths.
(Sjeuf) Are there other essential items we've not mentioned yet and ought to be in the first aid kit?
(Pandora) Slave considers all of the contents to be essential but she says that you need to know what you are doing before giving meds.
(Sjeuf) So let's say I'm making a deluxe first aid kit, what else would you put into my kit?
(Pandora) Slave wouldn't be without a diuretic for heart conditions. She also recommends that every first aid kit should contain a copy of Peter Gurney's Piggy Potions. She is very keen on herbal remedies.
(Sjeuf) Wow, Pandora, that was really helpfull, thank you so much for having me here!
Dear readers, I hope you have enjoyed this as much as I did and got some ideas out of this. If you have any questions, post them below, I'm sure the Piggyfriends will be reading this and are willing to answer them.
Lots of wheeks!
Sjeuf
p.s. I added all the hyperlinks to the websites for extra information. Do correct me if I got it wrong or pasted a dead link into this post.
p.p.s. as stated in the sidebar, we are not vets and no rights can be claimed from this blogpost. If your guinea pig seems to be unwell, please seek out medical advise from a cavy-savy vet. Pigs can go downhill very fast.
