Today the 12/16/12 twins (one mosaic and one blue-eyed white) went to their new home. They will be part of a petting zoo that will (in part at least) help with therapy for special needs people. I'm so happy that they're going to be employed to help other people! I'm hoping their new family will keep me in the loop about when they open so I can share that here - and maybe get some folks out there to see the boys, and enjoy the petting zoo experience.
All kinds of updates! All of the 12/15/12 guinea pig babies have found homes. I have two more girls who could have babies within the next week or two (though I expect it to be a longer wait than that).
Four adorable Syrian (teddy bear) hamsters will be ready to go this coming Saturday. Two are black and white and two are brown and white. Another litter of Syrian hamsters is due 1/23 with a new male (we'll see if he's a better performer than the previous male). Gerbil babies are doing well. The litter of four from Ruby and Dean were born 1/4/13 and should be ready for new homes around six weeks old (2-15). I now have three female chinchillas in nursery cages awaiting babies (likely not until February). One is a beige/mosaic pairing, one is a homo-beige/ebony pairing, and the other is a brown velvet/ebony pairing. It'll be interesting to see what colors the new ebony male throws. After months of trying, Mama Bun kindled a litter of four baby bunnies on 1/9/13. There are three reds and one white. The dad is a purebred New Zealand Red, mom is a mixed breed (possibly New Zealand/Himilayan?). Babies will be weaned at six weeks old (2/20). Still no babies in the dwarf hamster cage, but she's getting big, so soon I would think! Happy New Year everyone! Welcome to 2013. Onion went to the vet on 12/26 and after an exam and a flourecin stain, he was deemed healthy, healed, and ready to find a new home! Yay! He and brother Parsnip await their forever home(s) now.
The guinea pig babies are getting big. They're eating well and using a water bottle now too. They'll be ready to go to new homes January 5th (in four days). The chinchilla babies are growing well, and they're so adorable! Their mom takes such good care of them. New hamster babies were born 12/29/12 to one of the calico satin girls. There are only four, but it looks like they're dark, like daddy (panda markings). Diamond and Richard had twins 12/16/12! One blue-eyed white male, and one mosaic male. They will be eight weeks old on February 10th, 2013. As though the last few days haven't been completely filled with all kinds of cuteness with new babies arriving, I also have an Onion update. Onion is doing fantastic! I believe his ulcer is completely healed. There is no more divot, he no longer squints, all puffiness and pink around his eye is gone, and his eye is no longer weeping. His cornea is however covered in blood vessels (that helped him heal, but block his vision now), so he will still need to return for more vet work (poor guy just can't catch a break). With any luck Onion and I can get this figured out by the end of the week!
Onion - Today I was met with grim news. Even on his second antibiotic, Onion's eye has worsened. His condition is now very severe. I was given a third antibiotic (to be administered 6x per day for a week, then 4x per day the following week) and told to come back in a week or two. It's highly likely that he will lose the eye. If (or more aptly When) Onion's corneal ulcer ruptures, he will need surgery to remove the eye (or to be put down). This procedure was estimated at $250-$300. If the new antibiotic works, I will know by 12/14. On the other side, if the antibiotic fails, I need to raise $300 to assure he can get his surgery. There is a Paypal link on the Rescue page, and there is a donation container at the local pet store (Pet North in Brainerd).
Rumplestiltskin - A new interesting turn of events with Rumple today. After a thorough physical exam, it was descovered that Rumple does not have testicles or a penis. That said, Rumple doesn't have a properly formed girl part either. That said, my next option is to wait until Rumple is old enough and bring him/her back to have spay surgery. From there the vet staff can confirm if there is a uterus in there. It's possible that Rumple is a female with malformed genitals, or potentially an intersex kitty. There was no comment on trying to fix Rumple's bottom, I think even the vet has given up on that, but they did confirm that Rumplestiltskin remains "not fit for sale" at this point in time. Autumn - Next week Autumn will go in for her FIV/FeLeuk test. If she's negative, she will have a new home for the holidays! I've never had any of my rescues test positive (knock on wood), but I'm still nervous. Autumn was outside before she came to me, so it's possible, and if she's positive I'm not sure I can find her a home. Parsnip - Still here, perfectly healthy and waiting for his forever home. If he's still with me when Onion goes back to the vet, I'll bring him with for a rabies vaccination. Pants and Smee - The baby guinea pigs will be meeting with a couple tomorrow that may adopt both, so they can stay together! Yay! Harry - Still here, healthy and waiting for a forever home. Guinea Pigs - One of the new guinea pigs appears to have been bred when we brought her home. We may have a surprise litter soon! Hamsters - I've added a pair of dwarf hamsters and a pair of gerbils to my breeding lines. We'll see how these new ventures work out. Chinchillas - I have two male chinchillas that I'm trying to find a non-breeding home for. Next litters are due in January and February 2013. I'm thrilled to announce the birth of our very first ebony chinchilla kit! She's a medium ebony out of a dark ebony show-quality male and a beige female from my own bloodlines. She's a little on the small side, but her mom is taking excellent care of her.
Wolf has a new home waiting for him now. I'm so excited for him, because I know this lady will give him everything he could ever want and then some. Wolf will be well loved and well cared for. Good thing too, because I had toyed with the idea of keeping him for myself. Alas, I don't need another permanent pet, so with much debate and a few tears, I've made my peace with sending him off to a forever home.
Now, if anyone is insterested in Chunk, Boy, or Whimsy... They'll be ready to go in a week! Or if orange is more your color, the boys and their mom will be ready on November 6th. Chinchillas are within the proper time frame now, so we're on baby watch (though neither is particularly large or showing signs yet). I'm guessing babies will be here closer to Halloween. I won't keep you waiting... here are the updated photos of Autumn's adorable kittens! You might notice that Onion's left eye looks funny. It was last to open and one morning it was a little goobery, but I'm keeping a close eye on it (no pun intended), to make sure it doesn't turn into an infection (or if it does, that we get antibiotics for him right away). You can really tell Onion and Parsnip apart (Onion has a big fluffy head and Parsnip has a sleeker face... Parsnip is the runt). I still can't tell Mango and Pumpkin apart as easily. I think Mango has a narrower face than Pumpkin, but you have to look at them both together to tell who you're looking at. The chinchillas are succesfully switched. Two nice round mamas-to-be in nursury cages, and three girls introduced to males. I'm expecting both pregnant girls to deliver by Halloween at the latest. One of them was paired with my newest male for his first breeding. I'm excited to get some show-quality ebony bloodlines in my herd (and the possibility of a tan/chocolate chinchilla excites me to no end). The three girls going in with males now will be due next year in January. I'll have to pick up another nursery cage by then. The sable/satin hamster babies are doing well. They'll be ready to go Thursday! Another litter is due soon (satin/silver calico), and I just put the satin male in with my second silver calico female, so more babies in about 2-weeks! I attempted putting Mama Bun with Big Red, but while he was more than willing, she wasn't. We'll try them together again tomorrow.
Wow! Autumn's kittens are growing by leaps and bounds! I had to upgrade their "nest box" so they'd stop climbing out. Can you believe they're three weeks old already? I'm hoping to get updated photos taken and posted tomorrow, depending on my work schedule. I got confirmation, all five of them are set for spay/neuter surgery on November 5th! Yay! Now to just fatten them all up so they meet the 2-pound requirement.
Mama Bun didn't take on my first attempt at breeding her. I think we'll try again. I'm going to see about putting them together tomorrow, again, depending on work schedule. That would put the due date around October 25, and babies ready to go December 6-20 (6-8 weekd old). Just in time for Christmas! Not that bunnies really top the list for a winter holiday, but still. If it doesn't take again, I'll have to sell Mama Bun and find a newer female. I don't know how old she is, so perhaps she's just reached the end of her breeding usefulness. Tomorrow is also the day for cage changes for the chinchillas. The two girls who've been with males will be moved into nursery cages to await their new arrivals, and I'll be putting two new girls (my babes that I held back for breeding) in for the first time. I'll also be giving my oldest female one more chance. She's young, but she's missed two breedings in as many years. If she doesn't produce this time, she'll be retired and I'll find her a good pet home that will love her throughout the rest of her life. |
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