[Gpdd] [HEALTH]<Neutering>

[Janneke Staaks]

Hi Karen,
 
Yes, I have experience with neutering boars. I had my boar Jan neutered after he charmed his way into me and my girls life. When he died, i decided to get a neutered boar out of a rescue (which was Igor). Mostly because I really hated going through the surgery. I was so scared he would die, because it would be my fault since he was healthy when he went into surgery. (hmm.. Jan is probably telling his rainbowbridge buddies "she had a hard time??...I lost my family jewels..") But to be honest, I didnt regret it. Jan lived very happily with his girls and the surgery wasn't that bad (although Jan did develop an abcess, which soon healed after treating it)
 
But anyway, this is how I went about it. I did have a vet, but i didnt have a good feeling about him. So I called every vet in the neighbourhood and asked them a couple of questions:
- Do you have experience with neutering guinea pigs? (if yes, how many a month..)
- What type of sedation do you use (gas is safer than an injection)
- what are the costs? (they range immensely, and i was just a poor phd student back then)
- do i need to do anything before surgery? (if they tell you no eating before the surgery, hang up the phone really fast)
- how old does my guinea pig need to be (in the netherlands; around 9 months and at least 700 grams (1 lbs, 8oz.)
In the end, I didnt choose the cheapest vet, but a really nice women who patiently explained the whole process to me and seemed to be able to handle my overprotective mommy syndrome/(wanna)know-it-all disorder (in other words, I trusted her). I also asked someone from a local rabbit shelter for references.
 
After Jan's surgery, they called me and I could pick him up. He was already awake, but he deed sleep a lot after he came home. At home I had a clean cage waiting for him. I covered the cage with clean towels and a warm water bottle covered with a towel (not hot!!! really important since he might not be very mobile just yet). Every day I would remove the top layer of towels and put in a clean one. I had lots of hay for him and veggies (parsley makes them hungry), a water bottle and i the beginning a water bowl. Jan's stitches dissolved, so that wasnt a problem. He did develop an abcess, which is not uncommon in castrations (if you want to know more about how to treat them, let me know).
 
Jan spent 6 weeks on his own, next to the girls cage. When I finally introduced him, everything went effortless. The girls accepted him right away.
 
I do have some reservations though.. Take into account that guinea pigs do not have such a great memory (although they vary..). They might not recognize eachother after being a week apart. And they might end up settling ranks every week. If this happens, you might have to consider taking in another pig who travels and lives with him all the time. I guess that also depends on his and your girls nature. It could also be the case that they miss eachother and you boy will get lonely during weekdays. My suus is very attached to her cagemates and when Jan died she lost a lot of wheight until Igor came and threaten to eat everything in the food bowl. You can also opt to take an extra pig right away, this way you dont have to put him through surgery at all. Dont take this the wrong way ;-) In the end, it's your decision and we'll support and advise you whatever you do.
 
Grtz&wkz!
Janneke
 
Lots of wheeks!
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