[Gpdd] RESCUE - part 3 of the never ending story

[Penny Charlesworth]

I was too late home from work yesterday to post the last part of this story. Sorry that it is so long but the tale grew in the telling. For those of you who have had enough kindly skip to the next post!

It was Christmas Day and I was serving up lunch to a houseful of family and guests when the phone rang. My first thought was to let it go to the answerphone but my conscience got the better of me and I answered it.

"You've got to come and get these guinea pigs NOW! They've all got mange." I listened to a few similar sentences before I realised that the caller was the woman from the strange "school". It was well over a year since I had last seen her.

I tried to get a word in and explain that I couldn't come to her house right now. I had taken in an unwanted litter of 5 the previous week, who were still in temporary accommodation. I was desperately trying to think on my feet. She had 6 piggies, the vet's out of hours fee was £80  ( around $140 ) per pet ( probably more for Christmas Day ) plus the consultation fee and the drugs and the caller was miles away. I try to do my best for piggies in need but how could I fit in 6 more that would have to be quarantined in cages that I didn't have. She was not going to help with costs and I am not running a charity! The vet would be shut for several days over the holiday season. It was not fair to leave my senile mother in the care of my guests but I could not take her with me for a long journey in the cold. So I had to compromise. 

I gave her the number of a pet shelter, who owed me a few favours as I have taken "unrehomeable" piggies from them and also provided trees and plants for their new wildlife sanctuary. I found the 24 hour RSPCA  emergency number, that of a vet near to where she she lived and two people who did pet rescue on a much grander scale than my little effort. I asked her to please ring me back if none of the folk could help and went back to serving my, by now rather cold, Christmas lunch. As soon as everyone was served, of course, guilt set in. I left my meal and went back to the phone. In England we can dial a number to retrieve that of the last caller and I got the message "number withheld". After so long, I had forgotten that she had an unlisted number.

I worried about those piggies and hoped that she would call back. Was it better to assume that one of the people that I had suggested that she call was able to help and that she never bothered to let me know? She was so weird that common courtesy was probably beyond her. I will always feel guilty but I am only one person and cannot take them all in. I never heard from her again.

Well that's the end of my story. I feel so sad telling it that I probably should have ended it at Part 2. I wish that Cavies Castle had been inexistence then as they would have known many other people who could have helped. I could only do my best.

This strange place was not the worst piggy accommodation that I have ever seen. One stands out way in front of all others and became the subject of posters that I put up when I used to have a stand at RSPCA pet days.

Now it is someone else's turn to tell a story. Let it be a happy one!

Regards to all people and piggies from Penny and the Piggyfriends.