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Lethal white extra calcium requirements?

Eriathwen

Eriathwen

Senior Guinea Pig
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Heya, I think this is in the right place? Apologies if not! So, for those who don't follow my thread, back in August I took on a gorgeous pair of lethal white brothers.

To start with they were very thin, crawling with lice, covered in bite wounds from the other males they were living with and in the beginning of gut stasis, all at just 8 weeks old.

They've come on in leaps and bounds while in my care, I have so far been caring for them in the way I care for my other blind, deaf and/or neuro piggies which seems to be working well for them.

I am still researching as much as I can however, as obviously lethals aren't like any other special needs piggy I've cared for before. While doing so I found someone saying they have a higher requirement for calcium than other pigs, I was just wondering if anyone else has found this to be true? While I can see the logic, I dont want to end up in the position of causing bladder stones as obviously being more fragile, id like to avoid aneasthetic as much as possible!

I have found that they both, to some extent, aren't absorbing nutrition as well as non lethals, however they are still gaining weight at a healthy rate for a normal pig with syringe feeds every 12 hours (down from 4 when I first got them!) They are very capable of eating for themselves, providing their veg is sliced up or grated for them.

Also, if anyone has any additional anecdotal information on keeping lethals as healthy as possible I'd be absolutely open to hearing it. I'd like to learn as much as I can about these guys that may not be in any of the more easily accessible information found online about them.

Pictures of the boys as thanks for making it through that little essay 😅

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I don't know anything about caring for lethals, but just wanted to say that your boys are lovely! They are lucky to have found a good home, a lot of people unfortunately wouldn't even have given them a chance!
 
Freela said:
I don't know anything about caring for lethals, but just wanted to say that your boys are lovely! They are lucky to have found a good home, a lot of people unfortunately wouldn't even have given them a chance!
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Thankyou! I've already been called cruel for not having them put to sleep 🙄 but they are the most fearless, happy and confident little pigs I've ever had. They absolutely love their little lives. Never seen anypig popcorn so much 😅 anything other than giving them the best chance of as normal a life as possible was never an option.
 
Eriathwen said:
Thankyou! I've already been called cruel for not having them put to sleep 🙄 but they are the most fearless, happy and confident little pigs I've ever had. They absolutely love their little lives. Never seen anypig popcorn so much 😅 anything other than giving them the best chance of as normal a life as possible was never an option.
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That's awesome! It frustrates me that people would advocate euthanizing an animal that has underlying problems but is living a happy life with help and support! I haven't had lethals, but I did have a pig with chronic medical issues, Sundae, for almost 7 years. I had several people ask me why on earth I didn't put her down rather than keep paying medical bills (she had ongoing meds for years, multiple dental procedures, etc.) It just boggled my mind that anyone would say that... she was our pet, we adopted her for better or worse, and not a single cent that went towards keeping her happy and her medical issues managed felt wasted to me! Giving her a happy life until she passed away at almost 7 is one of the things I'm so happy I was able to do and totally worth any time and energy and money we put into it!

Here's a pic of Sundae. She's been gone some years now, but we still miss her. She was a really good girl!
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Freela said:
That's awesome! It frustrates me that people would advocate euthanizing an animal that has underlying problems but is living a happy life with help and support! I haven't had lethals, but I did have a pig with chronic medical issues, Sundae, for almost 7 years. I had several people ask me why on earth I didn't put her down rather than keep paying medical bills (she had ongoing meds for years, multiple dental procedures, etc.) It just boggled my mind that anyone would say that... she was our pet, we adopted her for better or worse, and not a single cent that went towards keeping her happy and her medical issues managed felt wasted to me! Giving her a happy life until she passed away at almost 7 is one of the things I'm so happy I was able to do and totally worth any time and energy and money we put into it!

Here's a pic of Sundae. She's been gone some years now, but we still miss her. She was a really good girl!
13732058_10157142332195557_4540617219989238075_o.jpg
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Aw shes gorgeous! Reminds me of my Daisy.
You're exactly right, just because they're small, rodents, more work, expensive or whatever other justification people try to use..doesn't mean their lives have less value :(
 
Eriathwen said:
Thankyou! I've already been called cruel for not having them put to sleep 🙄 but they are the most fearless, happy and confident little pigs I've ever had. They absolutely love their little lives. Never seen anypig popcorn so much 😅 anything other than giving them the best chance of as normal a life as possible was never an option.
Click to expand...
Some people are so heartless, take no notice for their ignorance x
 
Freela said:
That's awesome! It frustrates me that people would advocate euthanizing an animal that has underlying problems but is living a happy life with help and support! I haven't had lethals, but I did have a pig with chronic medical issues, Sundae, for almost 7 years. I had several people ask me why on earth I didn't put her down rather than keep paying medical bills (she had ongoing meds for years, multiple dental procedures, etc.) It just boggled my mind that anyone would say that... she was our pet, we adopted her for better or worse, and not a single cent that went towards keeping her happy and her medical issues managed felt wasted to me! Giving her a happy life until she passed away at almost 7 is one of the things I'm so happy I was able to do and totally worth any time and energy and money we put into it!

Here's a pic of Sundae. She's been gone some years now, but we still miss her. She was a really good girl!
13732058_10157142332195557_4540617219989238075_o.jpg
Click to expand...
Aw she was beautiful. My Ted had dental problems for many years and I have had those comments too, but Ted was the happiest little piggie I’ve ever had. He had a zest for life too, some people are very cruel often without realising just how much their throwaway comments hurt
 
We've had a number of lethal piggies, here at TEAS, over the years and they are the most happy, delightful little characters. They've all loved life to the full and actually have seemed happier than 'normal' piggies. With regard to the need for extra calcium, this isn't correct. I've always fed them in the same way that I feed all the other piggies.
 
No advice here but thank you for taking them in. Those two little fellas are so very lucky to have found you.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
We've had a number of lethal piggies, here at TEAS, over the years and they are the most happy, delightful little characters. They've all loved life to the full and actually have seemed happier than 'normal' piggies. With regard to the need for extra calcium, this isn't correct. I've always fed them in the same way that I feed all the other piggies.
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Thankyou! That's reassuring to know :)
 
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