Salvatore is still alive. . . .

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Pat Shields

Pat Shields

Adult Guinea Pig
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Location
USA MO, Ft. Leonard Wood area
Thank you all so much for your input and help; all criticisms and suggestions are very welcome as they put my lack of knowledge in its proper place and help to orient my actions correctly.

I got the vit C tablets and made a weak solution with one and some electrolyte water; he is not swallowing or at least not so that I can see, but I put some in his mouth with the expectation that some would get inside him and that maybe this would energize his system. I also bought the baby foods and started off putting the carrots in his mouth, not forcing as I don't want him to choke.

The issue with the vet is not that I won't take him or I can't, it is that
♥ I am quite a distance out in the country
♥ The veterinary care here is not oriented to small pets, they are all horse and cow doctors and will not even see the "exotics"
♥ My veterinarian has fellows who come out of school and have current knowledge about rodents, lagomorphs, and the like, but if their office is not open there is nothing I can do, there is no emergency medical care here for small animals
♥ The shop I got him from had no knowledge that he was severely ill (neither did I, I just thought a nice warm baby shampoo bath would take care of the dandruff and that some fresh veggies would take care of the malnutrition)
♥ This part of the nation has been struggling mightily with laws regarding incompetent care of animals for sale; it was a major referendum in this state during the last election, passing anti- "puppy mill" legislation to enable penalties for people who raise dogs for sale in deplorable conditions with inadequate food and water, caged their entire lives, no exercise, no veterinary care, living in feces and urine. They are just now dealing with the dogs; Rodentia are waaaaaaaaaaaaay down on the list of priorities.
♥ I can call offices all day and night and shout what an emergency it is and I will be told every time sorry, we don't take that sort of case. If services are not here, they are not here. We don't have the same laws enforcing care here; in fact, we have hardly any laws at all, and what laws there are apply mainly to large animals and even those are not very specific. Americans and their inhumane treatment of animals and sense of entitlement toward them - that's another entire thread if not a new forum. We could talk, girlfriend.

I can do the subQ fluids IF I have the equipment, which I don't, but I am going to head for an emergency horse and dog clinic 100 miles away which might sell me the needle and saline solution as soon as I log off of here.

Please rest assured I am not just letting him die. I've got him into an intensive care situation as closely as I can get him, and he actually turned his head to see what was going on when I took him out to syringe him the food and water. And on the bright side - - he had burrowed more deeply into the towel, the alfalfa pellets had been disturbed, and there were minuscule poopies in the front of the cage. I still expect him to die, poor dear, but where there is breath, there is hope, and his eyes are still bright and focused.

Stay tuned.
 
Aw, we're praying for this little guy here - you're doing an amazing job with the limited resources you have :)
Certainly will be staying tuned for progress reports, he knows he's in great hands :)
 
So pleased to hear that he is still with you. You are doing a great job with what you have available to you.
 
You are doing brilliantly, keep it up, hope all your love and care pays off.

Hang in there Salvatorie your new mummy and all of us want you to get well xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
Fingers and paws crossed here, so very pleased that you have him and he is still with you. Love and hugs to you all. x
 
It does sound like he's in very good hands Pat, and I can understand your frustration with the lack of veterinary care for small furries. I guess we are just spoiled here in the UK and don't realise that other countries may not be able to offer the same facilities as our own vets can. I hope I didn't offend you in my previous posts? I realise now how difficult it must be for you. Sorry! I really hope your little guy pulls through. X
 
Bless you Pat - fingers crossed - good luck x
 
healing thoughts from us

I have for years been fully aware of the different standards of welfare our country has compaired to others and sometimes it is easy to forget on forums that its a whole different ball game in other countries. The UK is very spoilt to be so animal welfare aware and have organisations and the general public that do care a lot about how animals/pets are treated.
 
Pat you are doing so well, keeping Salvatore in my thoughts. x
 
Thanks for the update Pat, your doing the best you can which is brilliant, I for one will certainly be checking back, hope the little guy hangs in there x
 
cavykisser said:
It does sound like he's in very good hands Pat, and I can understand your frustration with the lack of veterinary care for small furries. I guess we are just spoiled here in the UK and don't realise that other countries may not be able to offer the same facilities as our own vets can. I hope I didn't offend you in my previous posts?
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Oh, darlin', never any offense taken; as I said, all criticisms and comments are welcome as they help to orient me in the right direction.

Pepperdog said:
I have for years been fully aware of the different standards of welfare our country has compaired to others and sometimes it is easy to forget on forums that its a whole different ball game in other countries. The UK is very spoilt to be so animal welfare aware and have organisations and the general public that do care a lot about how animals/pets are treated.
Click to expand...
There is so much I wish to say about this subject that my mind is on overload and I cannot fully express myself. I will just say that if I had all the money back I have spent rescuing poor, starving creatures, getting them spayed and/or neutered, I would be a wealthier person. People here seem to have a laissez-faire attitude, not recognizing that animals, even the littlest ones, have feelings too, that they can suffer, that a dog is not a yard ornament to exist at the end of a chain, and that they cannot fend for themselves when one tires of them and drives them to another location and throws them out. A family I know from church was driving home and they saw a box on the railroad tracks; they felt compelled to investigate, and it had kittens in it. Someone had taped up kittens in a box and left it on the tracks for the train to kill them. That is the most horrible thing, I think. I have called the police or the sheriff many times about terrible animal conditions or abandoned animals and the last time I was told if the stray dogs are coming around bothering me I should just shoot them, as the county has no rural animal control resources. I saw a starving horse and her foal once; what caught my attention was the baby was eating dirt it was so hungry. I called the sheriff; they went out to investigate, but they could do nothing unless I filed a criminal complaint and had the owner arrested. I didn't do that as the man was on hard times and could not afford to buy feed. BUT AT LEAST HE COULD HAVE HAD THE DECENCY TO RELEASE THE ANIMALS FROM THE ENCLOSURE INTO THE FIELD WHERE THE DRIED GRASS WAS. He eventually re-homed the horses, good for him. I'll stop now, I can see myself taking off in a direction other than talking about saving a little guinea pig. Just suffice it to say that obtaining humane treatment of animals is a constant battle around here.
 
Do you know what Pat? We have an American tv programme here in the UK called 'Animal Cops' and it portrays a completely different story to your one above.
In the programme officers (with guns!) are constantly out on patrol on the look out for animal cruelty. You see arrests and seizures of animals all the time and my original thoughts were, 'Wow!, we need that sort of thing in this country' Now after reading your post I'm not so sure that this programme isn't some sort of propaganda put out to appease the public!
 
I havent watched that cos that sort of thing upsets me too much but * think I the states it varies, I mean America is so huge and some of it so out in the sticks there's places we barely know about, let alone enforce laws on. I think it shows your cities and well know places but the outback, that's a whole other story....
 
what can i say pat? you are doing the best for animals in a place that clearly has a problem with animal welfare, you are too a very caring forgiving person, i wish you all the luck with salvatore, and anything else which comes your way.i really wish i could help you more than just words xx
 
without turning this thread into a full on discussion about world wide welfare, yes there are some programmes that are shown on tv with rescuers working to help animals, but what they show is just the tip of the iceberg and often in countries several times larger than the uk, imagine how difficult it can be to "police" animal welfare on such a large scale.

You are doing great by helping out as much as you can, hats off to you for actually making a difference.
 
I am so relieved he is still with you. You are wonderful to care for him. I am so hoping he makes a full recovery. I am so angry with the pet shop for neglecting him. :(
 
So glad to hear Salvatore is still hanging on Pat. Keep up the good work, you know everyone's here for you. You are an angel to neglected animals, I'm crossing everything, hoping he'll take some food from you soon. x
:laluot_29::laluot_29::laluot_29:
 
cavykisser said:
Do you know what Pat? We have an American tv programme here in the UK called 'Animal Cops' and it portrays a completely different story to your one above.
In the programme officers (with guns!) are constantly out on patrol on the look out for animal cruelty. You see arrests and seizures of animals all the time and my original thoughts were, 'Wow!, we need that sort of thing in this country' Now after reading your post I'm not so sure that this programme isn't some sort of propaganda put out to appease the public!

gogoguineas said:
I havent watched that cos that sort of thing upsets me too much but * think I the states it varies, I mean America is so huge and some of it so out in the sticks there's places we barely know about, let alone enforce laws on. I think it shows your cities and well know places but the outback, that's a whole other story....
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Yes, you two have it figured out exactly. In populated areas, or in areas with more money, more things are available. Animal Cops (I've seen it and can't bear to watch it) does take place in areas with more resources and established resources. There are other areas in the nation with nearly zero animal problems, but they are usually areas of vast agricultural situations and a population that is not very concentrated, and if there are animal problems there is no one around to see them anyway. Here I am in a relatively impoverished rural county, very little industry, the majority of any productive farming having to do mainly with keeping cattle on acreage, with a mobile population because of the local military base, so people come, go, discard their animals, and if they live here permanently on these "farms" tend to be careless and neglectful as they don't have any money anyway. Believe me, there are those of us who, if we had the money, would have the "Animal Cops"-style patrols and would make sure penalties for animal abuse and neglect were enforced and the people were prosecuted and more importantly EDUCATED. But here in this county I think there is ONE trailer with a cage affixed to it and a sign on top that says "Animal Control" that might be used to take in a mangy dog IF they can find someone to go get it.

Off on a slight tangent - I and others have stolen dogs from abusive situations to save them; if we had to wait until the "right" thing were done by the "right" agencies using the "right" procedures, the poor things would be dead after suffering. Yes, we can go to jail for our "crimes". But the way I see it, I might have done something illegal, but I never did anything wrong.
 
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