5 Guinea Pigs Are Now Home

Over the weekend 5 guinea pigs found homes. Alex and Ander the piggies found a home with Blake and his crew of Pumpkin the hamster and Raphael the rabbit. We are thrilled that they found a home together since they are quite bonded to each other. Then Cashew, Almond and Hickory all found a home together also, what more could we ask for? When two or three or more pets have a bond with each other, the last thing we want to do is split them up in order to help the adoption process ( since many people are searching to adopt only one pet) We stress the need for them to be adopted together and then celebrate and praise the people who do adopt multiple pets in order to keep them together. It's too traumatizing to split up everlasting friends. That's why we adopted our two cats Marty and Melissa together, they are brother and sister. I was interested in Marty but once Sue from Wyoming County SPCA told me and showed me how attached his sister, Melissa , is to him, there was no way I could split them up. It was either adopt them both, or not adopt them at all. Hey, I love them both, I had to adopt them. They made themselves at home right away and became friends with the other cats very quickly. We now have 6 cats, our maximum amount and Melissa and Marty are perfect Murphy cats, they are family.
I have a 10:30 appointment for KC to see Dr.Tomaschke, he will be trimming and shaping up her beak.
Pictured above is Alex, Ander, Hickory, Almond, Cashew and Marty and Melissa the cats.

June Bug and Belle, Wisteria

Last week was a very nice week ( except for being sick over the weekend, could have done without that) Wisteria the little girl guinea pig was adopted. She was born here from one of the female guinea pigs that was abandoned behind a business building. Wisteria has a great new family , they already have a girl guinea pig that they love dearly. Out of all the young piggies we have here they fell in love with her very quickly. Then, June Bug and Belle found their forever home. They are a male and female sugar glider pair. We did get June Bug neutered right away. Their new Mom and Dad are new to caring for gliders, but they did a lot of research and are well prepared. They also have plans of upgrading them to a much larger cage and buying them new pouch sets and toys. They will be happy suggies :)
I bought a bunch of new toys for the female rats Carnation, Petunia, Rose, Carnation, Lilac and Rosetta. Some new hammocks for them since they destroyed and soiled their other hammock beyond recognition and washing. And some new hanging bird toys, jingle balls and chew stuff. River the rabbit also got a new chew tube and balls to play with. I love getting and giving them new toys to enrich their days while they are here.
While playing with our own Patagonian conure , KC, it seems her beak is slightly overgrown and deformed. I can't believe I didn't notice it happening before now. It is bothering her because she can't close her lower mandible all the way. I will call the vet's office first thing tomorrow and see how soon I can get her in. She will need Dr.T to shape up her beak back to the way it was.
Pictured above is Wisteria and June Bug and Belle

Sugar Gliders at the Erie County Fair?

I have heard from quite a few sources that there is a breeder selling sugar gilders at the Erie County Fair. I am not sure if they are actually selling the gliders right on the grounds , but I am sure they selling them at some point to anyone who will pay the money. The truth of the matter is , is that people don't go to the fair to buy sugar gliders, so these are all impulse buys. Not thought through, planned or researched. What really infuriates me, is the information that these people are giving to the unsuspecting public. They are telling people that 1.) sugar gliders can be and like to be carried around all day long 2.) they don't smell 3.) they do better by themselves and bond to people better as a lone sugar glider 4.) do better in a smaller cage 5.) Don't need a vet 6.) only need some fruits and pellets for food 7.) are the greatest pets and do well with kids. All of this information is the furthest from the truth and very WRONG! I fear for all the sugar gliders that are now not being taken care of properly because people were misinformed. I also fear that these gliders will , in the future, not be wanted anymore because people thought they were something that they are not. I am not sure if this is true at all, but I was also told by a source that they are selling Marmosets at the fair as well. Marmosets are the smallest of the primate family and do not make good pets at all.
If you have any information regarding the sugar gliders or marmosets at the fair please e-mail me with what you encountered rachel@lifelongtails.org please let me know what you saw and what you were told. Or even if you saw the sugar gliders or marmosets while you were there. If you happened to have bought a sugar glider, please contact me, I would love to help you out by giving you proper care information. Thank you.

Cotton Candy and Morsel Adopted, Retired Hamsters

Last week there were two wonderful adoptions. Cotton Candy the baby guinea pig was adopted into the home of Nicole who also adopted Doogie and Bubba the guinea pigs and Snowflake the hamster in the past. Cotton Candy is now joining his new brother guinea pigs. Although Doogie is constantly showing off to Cotton Candy that he is top piggy ( last we heard) , in time, he may accept Cotton Candy into his cage (territory). Morsel the rabbit was also adopted. He was brought here with his Mom , Chelsea , and all his siblings. He was just a tiny baby when he arrived. He grew up here and was eventually neutered, now he is home and happy :)
I decided to take some hamsters off of Petfinder, I have retired them from adoption. Mainly because they have reached an age where they are now senior hamsters. They weren't adopted before they hit the year to year and a half mark, and dwarf hamsters usually only live a year and a half to two years, it's a sad truth. I figure it is not the best time for them to be adopted , as wonderful as adoption is, there is still stress involved when they are moved into a new home and have to acclimate to a new place. A young hamster would adapt to this no problem, but an older, elderly hamster may have issues with the move. So, they are now going to spend the rest of their time with us , cozy in their homes ( cages) being cared for the same way as they have been. Some of the hamsters are in foster homes, and I will be contacting their foster Mom's to let them know about this decision. I am sure they will be okay with letting them stay for the duration. The hamsters I retired are Tiny , Teeny, Tim, Michael, Jim, Otto, Stanley, Thread, Lace and Ribbon. They are all Russian dwarf hamsters and are a little over a year old now. It's a shame that they didn't find a home while they were in their prime of life, but they have been family to us and we do enjoy caring for them.
Pictured above is Cotton Candy, Morsel and Tim the hamster

Too Costly?

I've been thinking on a matter a lot. What I hear a lot is; "My hamster has a problem but I'm not taking him to the vet , it costs too much" or even " I'm not spending 50 dollars on a 10 dollar hamster." Each time I hear these words I literally wince in pain , and think of that poor suffering hamster that may never get treatment or get better. And there are many people who have this mentality about all sorts of pets, reptiles, rabbits, parakeets,etc. I just can't bear it, and that is the main reason why I started a rescue for the little pets, because many times they don't get the treatment and care that they do deserve. Life Long Tails is a safe haven for all little ones, where they get the best foods, treats, toys etc and if they arrive here with a medical problem or develop one we will get them to the vet for prompt treatment, we don't even think of the costs, we want them treated and get to feeling better. Donations and adoption fees help us a lot with achieving this goal.
What I have also thought about is the fact that people are always willing to drop a lot of money to fix a car or add onto a car. Many people don't even think twice to do so, and this can be a lot more expensive than a vet visit! Hundreds to thousands of dollars into a car, a machine. but when it comes to their pet who is living and feeling a vet costs too much. *insert angry face* I understand a car is needed in everyday life to get to point A to point B, but I don't see how a car gets better treatment, faster treatment and treatment in the first place where a pet doesn't. To me, that is completely wrong. That is my opinion, that is how I feel about each individual pet. They are regarded higher to me than any car, machine or leisure item and they will always receive treatment and I will always spend the money for their benefit over "items" or "novelties" That is what this rescue is about and everyone who is involved in this rescue whether your a board member, someone who has adopted, fostering or someone who supports us. Thank you for sharing and following in my passion and beliefs and train of thought :)

Losses over the week

I don't know why, but this week turned out to be tragic. 3 of the adult guinea pigs that came from the 50 plus abandonment "case" passed away. First we found out that, Zelda, an adult male that was in foster care was found , gone, in his cage. He didn't show his foster family any signs of bring ill, in fact he had been eating and playing cheerfully right before. Then I received a call from our board member , Christine, who is fostering the majority of these guinea pigs, that her boy, Sherwood had stopped eating. She was on her way to taking him to the emergency vet. It was found that his gut mobility had stopped and needed some help with getting his gut going again. She was instructed to force feed him Critical Care. In the meantime, I had piled hay, veggies and pellets in with all the piggies I have. And I love to watch as they bull dose their way in and start chomping away. Except I noticed Phoebe wasn't eating and was hiding in the back corner. I grew very worried, so I took her out of the cage to separate her from all the pigging out females and let her easily get at her own food. I provided her with hay, pellets, apple, carrots and Kale , and she didn't touch any of it. So , I then tried force feeding her critical care. But she wouldn't take it , wasn't even attempting to chew or swallow. So I stopped , I didn't want her to wind up taking the food the wrong way if I forced it too much. I kept her warm and then woke myself up at exactly 8 AM when our vet opened, only to find that Phoebe has passed during the night. The foster Mom's and myself are devastated and heart broken. We want so much to help every one, but when this happens, it crushes us.
Here are pigtures of Phoebe and Zelda.

Parker and April

I can't believe we are already into August, time has been going by too quickly.
within the past week Parker the rabbit and April the guinea pig were adopted. Parker is an albino boy that was surrendered with is Mom , Chelsea ( also recently adopted) When we took the baby bunnies in to see Dr.Fijas to have them all sexed, Dr.Fijas was a little baffled as to what parker was, they aren't as evident when they are that young. He appeared to be a girl and Dr.Fijas was 90 percent certain he was, I kept on re checking him and he still appeared girl-like. Until recently, when a couple of things dropped on him that only boys have and that proved to me that he is in fact, a boy. I was calling him Pandora, since We were so certain of a girl, but I changed him name to Parker once we knew. Thankfully he was housed with spayed female rabbits. All the other babies Dr.Fijas was 100 percent certain on, and have been correct because they are now all fixed. Hey, we all make mistakes, we are only human. Parker's Mom didn't mind learning that the rabbit they were applying for was a boy instead of a girl. They loved his looks and personality and still wanted him as part of the family. April is a 4 year old guinea pig, her new Mom, Cathy, Just recently lost a 5 to 6 year old guinea pig that left a female Guinea pig of theirs, all alone. This guinea pig is also 4 years old, so we are hoping April is a good match and will become great friends with Cathy's Piggy.
On Tuesday we took Kevin and Panda the ferrets, and Layla the rabbit to see Dr.T. Kevin and Panda went in for Rabies shots and a check up. I let Dr.T know that they seemed a bit too itchy than what I would like to see. And he found that they do indeed have ear mites. They are now getting ivermectin drops in their ears once a week for six weeks. until those six weeks are up, they will not be adoptable. Layla is the rabbit that was found loose and abandoned in a park. She checked out good and healthy :) She does have some scarring in two places up near her neck and shoulder blades. Dr.T said they are in perfect placement to have been tooth marks like a mouth had been on her. Looks like she was able to get away from a predator or dog, she survived an attack! The wounds are already very well healed, and she'll probably always have the scars. The poor girl, what a terrifying thing to go through. She's is a survivor.
Pictured above is Parker and April.