[Gpdd] Misc: Checking in

[Luita Dean Spangler]

Thank you Cindy, for checking in! Right now I think many of us are trying
to adjust to a newly complicated and somewhat frightening world, and
becoming so busy doing so that we overlook what remains lovely and stable,
like the GPDD. You, however, have worked so hard to keep all of us in
touch, for which I am very grateful.

My "guinea pig life" has been very busy. Ritter, as many of you may
remember, is eight years old, and in fragile health. He lost one of his
lower incisors, and the one remaining grew much wider to accommodate the
loss - something which initially frightened me, but my wonderful
veterinarian friend (who was originally recommended by a GPDD member!!)
assured me that, while fairly rare, this sometimes happens, and is very
adaptive and healthy. He also has a chronic inflammation in his lower
right jaw, which is probably related to a slow-growing tumor. When he is
on regular pain medication and antibiotics, he does fairly well, but when
he goes off the antibiotics, he stops eating, becoming rapidly weak,
lethargic and thin. So it looks like he'll be on antibiotics for the rest
of his life (At eight years old, he's no candidate for an operation).
Because of his jaw, I have to cut up his treats in very small pieces, and
he is syringe fed 4-5 times a day, just simply to keep his weight up
(currently only 715 grams!). In addition to all his other challenges (he's
also mostly blind and arthritic), he seizes when he becomes stressed (like
during vet visits, which have been fairly frequent lately). Despite all
this, he greatly enjoys his treats - grass, lettuce, cucumber, dandelions,
even grapes. And Tillie, four years old and in fine health, enjoys his
companionship. Because Ritter has been receiving so much attention, I
always give Tillie lap time when I watch the news at night.

So that's my news!

Luita
Ritter and Tillie