Cakey’s Story, so far…

Nosey...

Nosey…

Cakey joined our family 6 and a half years ago. At the rescue centre my step-daughter was torn between him and his brother or another pair of pigs. I loved the look of this brown “wild-looking” animal and persuaded her that they were the pair for us. In the car on the way home she named them “Mr Cash” and “The Cake”.

It soon became apparent that The Cake was a pretty special pig. From the start he was super friendly and full of character. He’s always made it very clear what he likes and dislikes and will nibble my arm to tell me when he’s had enough of being held. It wasn’t until I met other guinea pig owners that I learnt that he is a “crested Golden Agouti” – a name that sounds suitably grand.

Cakey’s life took a turn for the worse when Mr Cash died at the age of one. Cakey was heart-broken and cried all night. It was a very humbling experience to see an animal mourn. I then had to make a choice between getting him neutered and pairing him with another boar. I couldn’t find anyone to help me with the pairing process and so arranged for him to see the vet for what should have been a simple operation.

As soon as I saw him post-op I realised something was wrong. It turned out that the vet had used cat gut suture to sew him up and he was seriously allergic to it. The original vet shirked all responsibility and in tears I ended up driving him long distances to see a guinea pig proficient vet. This vet showed me how to syringe feed him and introduced me to Chrissie at Gorgeous Guineas who helped me nurse him back to health. It took about a month of constant care and I had to take Cakey to work with me so I could feed him throughout the day!

Luckily he survived this trauma and found a new friend in Lemony Skips, a cream and white smooth-haired sow. Seeing him rumblestrut his way round a lady pig was hilarious as he’d only lived with a boar until now. He spent a happy three years with her until she sadly had to be put down due to breast cancer. He didn’t seem too upset when she died and gave her a cursory lick goodbye.

Within a week though his health had taken a nose dive. He suffered from gastric stasis and bloat, which the vet suspected was triggered by the death of his mate. For the second time in his life I had to give him round-the-clock care. I was determined to get him through this illness and did not want him to die with Critical Care on his golden mane! After ten days of medicines, fibergel and Critical Care he recovered.

Once again Cakey was in need of a companion. I didn’t really want to adopt another pig and be caught in a cycle of pig adoption in order to keep them in pairs. By now he was five years old and going a bit grey. I seriously considered handing him over to a guinea pig retirement home but none of them looked good enough for me to give up my beloved friend. I explained my plight to some guinea friends and one of them offered me the option of “borrowing” a sow from her with the knowledge that I could return her if Cakey died before she did. This seemed like the perfect solution as I knew she would be going back to a great home, making the handover easy.

And so Cakey came to meet his third housemate, Mabel. She is a fantastic crested tri-coloured pig who is full of beans and very cheeky. Cakey is completely besotted with her and follows her around as much as she will let him. They sleep head to head and he’s always trying to nibble her ears. She is without a doubt his favourite friend and I’m really pleased that he will be living out his final days in the company of someone he adores.

When his time does finally come I will be pretty devastated. I’ve had lots of animals in my life but only a couple have shone out as being really special. Cakey is one of them and I will remember him always.

Cakey and Mr. Cash

Cakey and Mr. Cash

After his op when cat gut caused an adverse reaction but was the catalyst for discovering a good vet

After his op when cat gut caused an adverse reaction but was the catalyst for discovering a good vet

Cakey and Lemony Skips

Cakey and Lemony Skips

After Lemony died Cakey went downhill and needed syringe feeding

After Lemony died Cakey went downhill and needed syringe feeding

The love of Cakey's life, Mabel

The love of Cakey’s life, Mabel

 

 

 

 

 

January 29, 2013   Posted in: Health, Inside The Hutch, Miscellaneous, One Is Not Enough, Planet Guinea, The Pig Issue