wheekly
Junior Guinea Pig
Hey everyone-
I wanted to provide an update on Pumpkin. I have posted a lot about her recently so I am sure that some people will be familiar with her.
She experienced a very fast decline yesterday and today. I had a gut feeling that there was absolutely no way that this was just arthritis. It looked very neurological. She was falling on her side, wobbling back and forth (it almost looked like vertigo), and she was unable to right herself.
I fed her critical care throughout the night every few hours. I held her through these little fits she had, they looked like seizures but most likely were muscle spasms and a reaction to intense pain. It was extremely scary and distressing but I hope she knows I was there for her in the best way I could be.
I was able to bring her to the emergency vet today after keeping her stable with critical care all night. The vet said that she doesn’t doubt that she definitely has arthritis due to her age and stuff, but that “this likely wasn’t the most prominent issue”. To her, it seemed like something greater - namely maybe nerve generation, something else neurological, or even cancer. She couldn’t say, but she was confident that it wasn’t arthritis that was causing this.
To me, that makes a lot of sense. She experienced such a fast decline, and the wobbliness just didn’t line up with arthritis. It truly looked neurological. The vet observed that it seemed like a “rear/hind end issue”, and that she could tell that Pumpkin didn’t really understand where her hind legs were.
She gave us the option to take her home and try steroid treatment as well as a gut stimulant, but we could tell she wasn’t very confident in that. It *could* work, but there’s a big chance it wouldn’t, and it would just prolong her suffering. She informed us that her life, at least for a while, would consist of around the clock nursing care. This meant more suffering for her.
At the grand age of 7, and with her rapidly deteriorating condition, I made the decision to put her to sleep today. The vet agreed with me that it was the kindest thing to do for her. She looked so tired at the vet, and fell over on her side right before the doctor even came in the room. I knew it wasn’t fair to put her through any more suffering for the slimmest chance of her maybe improving (for how long? to what extent? and what if she never did?).
I knew in my heart that the right thing to do, the kindest thing to do, was to euthanize her. I felt like her tired eyes were telling me that she was ready, and that she’s had enough. Just petting her made her flinch in pain, and holding her, moving her, or feeding her sent her into seizing fits.
I at least now feel like I have some answers. I could never understand or comprehend the fast decline. Not even 0.95 ml of meloxicam had any impact on her pain. It was definitely more than arthritis. It also helps to know that it was nothing that I could have prevented, unfortunately, this is just the reality of owning a guinea pig (especially a very old one).
So as I write now, she is resting peacefully. Part of me feels relieved, because I know that she is now no longer suffering. She didn’t suffer longer than she had to, and 99% of her life was full of happy days. She lived 7 years pain free, never had an issue. Her only unhappy day was last night and today. I’d say that’s pretty good.
I hope she knows that I made that decision based on my love and care for her. I felt it was right. I didn’t want her to suffer any longer. It was so hard watching her seize all night. I was blessed enough to be able to be there with her through it, as difficult as it was. I hope she felt my presence. She knew we loved her so so so very much.
RIP Pumpkin, my soulmate in animal form… 2016-2023
I wanted to provide an update on Pumpkin. I have posted a lot about her recently so I am sure that some people will be familiar with her.
She experienced a very fast decline yesterday and today. I had a gut feeling that there was absolutely no way that this was just arthritis. It looked very neurological. She was falling on her side, wobbling back and forth (it almost looked like vertigo), and she was unable to right herself.
I fed her critical care throughout the night every few hours. I held her through these little fits she had, they looked like seizures but most likely were muscle spasms and a reaction to intense pain. It was extremely scary and distressing but I hope she knows I was there for her in the best way I could be.
I was able to bring her to the emergency vet today after keeping her stable with critical care all night. The vet said that she doesn’t doubt that she definitely has arthritis due to her age and stuff, but that “this likely wasn’t the most prominent issue”. To her, it seemed like something greater - namely maybe nerve generation, something else neurological, or even cancer. She couldn’t say, but she was confident that it wasn’t arthritis that was causing this.
To me, that makes a lot of sense. She experienced such a fast decline, and the wobbliness just didn’t line up with arthritis. It truly looked neurological. The vet observed that it seemed like a “rear/hind end issue”, and that she could tell that Pumpkin didn’t really understand where her hind legs were.
She gave us the option to take her home and try steroid treatment as well as a gut stimulant, but we could tell she wasn’t very confident in that. It *could* work, but there’s a big chance it wouldn’t, and it would just prolong her suffering. She informed us that her life, at least for a while, would consist of around the clock nursing care. This meant more suffering for her.
At the grand age of 7, and with her rapidly deteriorating condition, I made the decision to put her to sleep today. The vet agreed with me that it was the kindest thing to do for her. She looked so tired at the vet, and fell over on her side right before the doctor even came in the room. I knew it wasn’t fair to put her through any more suffering for the slimmest chance of her maybe improving (for how long? to what extent? and what if she never did?).
I knew in my heart that the right thing to do, the kindest thing to do, was to euthanize her. I felt like her tired eyes were telling me that she was ready, and that she’s had enough. Just petting her made her flinch in pain, and holding her, moving her, or feeding her sent her into seizing fits.
I at least now feel like I have some answers. I could never understand or comprehend the fast decline. Not even 0.95 ml of meloxicam had any impact on her pain. It was definitely more than arthritis. It also helps to know that it was nothing that I could have prevented, unfortunately, this is just the reality of owning a guinea pig (especially a very old one).
So as I write now, she is resting peacefully. Part of me feels relieved, because I know that she is now no longer suffering. She didn’t suffer longer than she had to, and 99% of her life was full of happy days. She lived 7 years pain free, never had an issue. Her only unhappy day was last night and today. I’d say that’s pretty good.
I hope she knows that I made that decision based on my love and care for her. I felt it was right. I didn’t want her to suffer any longer. It was so hard watching her seize all night. I was blessed enough to be able to be there with her through it, as difficult as it was. I hope she felt my presence. She knew we loved her so so so very much.
RIP Pumpkin, my soulmate in animal form… 2016-2023
