[Gpdd] HEALTH, in response to Stan

[Bellarobi at aol.com]

Stan,
I could not agree more with you. Too many guinea pigs suffer because it is 
hard for owners to put them down, and exotic vets make a lot of money keeping 
them alive. 
Yet, the worst I think is to have surgery on a guinea pig and then it dies 
anyway. I have been with many of my small animals when they needed to be put to 
sleep. It only takes a split second and they are out of their misery. I guess 
the hard part is to decide when to try to help and when to let go. Most vets 
do not make it any easier because they do not suggest putting a sick animal 
down. They would be quickly out of business, I suppose. 
GPDD is a great source of network and I definitely think that it is worth 
finding out as much as possible before deciding on surgery.
One thing I learned is: insist on pain medication for post- surgery. Some 
vets do not believe in it. Start syringe feeding as soon as possible, because 
pain meds make guinea pigs drowsy and they can not be for very long without food 
or water. They deteriorate very fast.

good luck to all the people with sick piggies out there,
Marion