Mellow & Emm - The story so far!

[JarBax]

I am so excited…

A while back, Daftscotslass got in touch to see if we’d like to join forces to help out at the Scottish guinea pig rescue, Thistle Cavies. Unfortunately, we couldn’t make it all together, but my son and I went there from my parent’s house (saving an extra 2 hours travel) 3 days ago. Seems like 3 months!!!

What an incredible place! 89 pigs – down from over 100, loads of different breeds (lots I’d only seen in pics here), and wonderful people! After a lot of cage cleaning etc, and a bowl of soup, we had a look at the 4 girl pigs Wendi was happy to adopt…I’ll not pretend - we were hoping for wee pigs. However, the young ones weren’t well enough to be re-homed. These four, around 9 months old, had come from a huge rescue, a visitor attraction which has since closed down. The pigs were kept 60+ to a cage, without hay, bedded on wood chips, and fed half a cabbage a day. Martin said that sometimes the cabbage was slimy, and he saw the pigs trying to eat the woodchips. Thistle ended up having to buy every pig.

All had suffered from malnutrition, overcrowding and neglect. We chose the first and last pigs Wendi showed us.

All 5 (one was reserved) were extremely skittish – seriously racing about the cage in fright. The first pig was just gorgeous (my heart melts). She was dark, and hairy!! A bit of a mega mix, part Peruvian, part abbysinian with a bit of sheltie crossed with English smooth. The best of all worlds!

The last was the most nervous of the lot. A tri-coloured smooth-coated sweetie, wavier than Marble, her colouring made a fantastic pattern on her back! Her ragged eye ‘lids’ and ears showed more clearly than the first pig, signs of the neglect she had suffered.

For adoption purposes, we called the first pig Misty (it was really misty on the drive up!), and the second, Mazey because of her crazy – Mazey coat!

We took Misty and Mazey home to my folk’s house for the night. I put them in an old cage, next to Mary and Marble’s makeshift pen for the night

Time for some pigtures!
The first pic!
Venturing out for a nibble
Mary investigates

[JarBax]

Yikes! Get me a mod - my text's gone mad!!!

[nonamian_girl]

Aw, they are beautiful!

[JarBax]

Continued...

That night, my son and I debated names for ages. We decided that Misty should be called Mellow, (as she is, (compared to Mazey anyway!)). Mazey, we decided upon Emm, because of the huge 'M' on her back! So, for formalities, we have Misty Mellow and Mazey Emm, or Mellow and Emm for short!

For those of you that don't know, that makes four 'M's :- Mary, Marble, Mellow and Emm!!! Mary is soon to turn 2, Marble is herself around 9 months, and Mellow and Emm are 9 months ish too. And it is a bit on an 'ish' - their nails are a fair bit thicker than Marbles, though they are about the same size, hmmm

After a dreadful journey home - my son with Mary and Marble in their carrier at his feet, and Mellow and Emm in a box on his knee, kept getting dead legs/ pins and needles, so the 2 hour journey took more than 3! I prepared the bathroom for M, M, M and Emm's arrival (from here-on-in known as the Ms!) - Mary and Marble on the floor, and Mellow and Emm in the bath! As I took them from their box, I popped them on the scales. At last weigh-in, Mary was 1030g (she was the 'runt' of the litter), and Marble was 919g. I was totally surprised, cos was even beginning to think that Mellow and Emm were bigger than M&M...Mellow was 794g, and Emm was 880g. Yikes! I have ordered some Oxbow Cavy Performance, as I am a bit concerned that they are so light.

More pics...

Hiding in their box (isn't Mellow incredible? My brother said she looks like a porcupine! I prefer a furry ball!)

And finding the food! You can just see Emm's M!!!

[PiggieMom]

Congrats on the adoptions Jarb! They are gorgeous. They'll gain weight with you for sure. I bet they're so thankful to find such a great mommy.

[JarBax]

Oops, I forgot the link to the Thistle Cavies rescue of over 100 pigs :

http://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/...e-pigs-uk.html

[JarBax]

After an hour or so in the bath, it was clear that Emm really is very nervous. While Mellow tentatively ventures out and about, in true piggy fashion, Emm sticks her nose out her box and darts back in 5 or 6 times befor stepping out. Then when she does pluck up the courage to emerge, it's another 4 or 5 mad dashes for safety before she makes it to the veggies. I'd have put their weights the other way around, because by the time Emm's got to the food, Mellow has scoffed most of it!

A couple more pics:

Mellow enjoying having the plateful all to herself! Emm, made it to a pepper (for which she is yet to aquire the taste!) Back to the safety of the box! "Is this my better side?"


Next installment coming up soon...

[Percy's Mom]

Originally Posted by JarBax

Yikes! Get me a mod - my text's gone mad!!!

All fixed. Sounds like you had an amazing time!

[fairysari]

Congrats on the new additions. Mellow *does* look like a porcupine. I wonder what type of pig she is. Her black fur is really beautiful too (though I bet clipping her nails won't be a piece of cake! )

[JarBax]

Thanks PM, that is much better!!!!

Fairysari, Wendi told me that Mellow is an abyruvian sheltie crossed with english smooth! (i.e. a wee bit of everything all mixed together!) I would perhaps dare to call her an 'abyruviporcusheltie' cross! She isn't actually all black, (and even the black isn't jet) - she has some grey strands (!) and some little buff wisps, but they don't show up in pics!

Funnily, the thought struck me on the journey home, that I'm going to have to try and tackle Mellow's black toe-nails! Help-me-boab! I'm bad enough when it comes to Mary and Marble's pink nails, and can even manage their odd brown ones - but black?!!! And they need trimming! Emm's are worse - but I will leave it a while, til they feel more settled. (Nothing whatsoever to do with my nerves!!!)

[JarBax]

Meanwhile...I was downstairs in the sitting room bringing about the cunning plan I had to accomodate the new, extended cc cage!

Or so I thought!

I will keep this relatively short, as plan on relating the whole episode in all it's gory detail in the cages section. I decided at some wholly inapropriate moment in manoevers, that this would be a good time to lift the old carpet, and smelly underlay, which I had been planning on doing the 7 years we have lived here. So, the process was somewhat delayed!

It did, however mean that Mellow and Emm had a quieter time, as I wasn't constantly popping in to see how they were getting on!

So, from Mary and Marble's 3 x 4, there is now a mis-shapen 3 x 5 (missing corner to accomodate ridiculously large armchair!). The 1 x 4 loft now has a 2 x 6 extention, under which is much-need storage (As I seem to have lost all previous storage areas due to switch-around scheme!)

Here is a pic or two - I know I always struggle trying to visualise a cage in grid measurement configurations!



The cage is divided - Mary and Marble have a 2 x 3 on the left, with the ramp leading to their original 1 x 4, while Mellow and Emm have a crooked 3 x 3 on the right. The 2 x 6 apartment is as yet out of bounds - I intend opening the whole thing up once they have met without grids, and get along as a herd! (Note, the 2 x 6 will have a ramp, similar the the first, but running adjacent to it.)

(The floorboards still show the staining of the era - over 100 years old! I will have them sanded - eventually - but have a kitchen to 'do' first!)

More on this in a mo.

[daftscotslass]

Was Mellow the one with the soft, soft fur that had grey running through it? I'm sure I blow dried her at one point! The one that was related to her (same dad but different litter I think) looked like a pineapple but was gorgeous too! Lovely piggers, I'm sure Emm will come around very quickly.

[JarBax]

As Mellow and Emm were given a clean bill of health (bar needed weight gain) by Wendi, and have been treated with invermectin (sp.) as a precaution (though neither pig had mites), I am following her advice on introductions. Which basically are to have them in the divided cage, until they no longer seem to even notice eachother, then try out a division - free introduction on neutral territory.

So far, so good. I have the divided cage bit underway!

I put them in the cage last night for the first time, and after a wee bit of exploring, added a plate of freshly picked grass each (next to the divider - thanks for that tip Judy!). They immediately tucked in! Once satisfied, there was a bit more exploring then, they really seemed to notice eachother, and what a noise! All four went into a frenzy of teeth chattering, and rumbling! I'm not used to it on such a scale! It really didn't last long, just a spate or two, before they all settled down. (phew!)

[JarBax]

Yes Daft! Mellow is the one with the softest dark hair with grey running through it! You've met!!! We saw her sister too - she did look pineapplish! She was the one of the five who was reserved. Wendi said that when Mellow first came in, she was going to call her 'Scottie', because with the hair-loss around her face, she looked just like a wee scottie dog!

Emm is already a lot more relaxed, it was the loveliest thing ever this morning - she has this really high pitched wheek, and as soon as Mary started, after hearing the fridge door, Emm joined in. Then when I brought in their veggies, Emm ran, wheeking high pitchedly, to the front of the cage, almost climbing out to get to the veggies! Mary and Marble always get excited, but never run right up to me! I hope Emm keeps doing it! Another thing, I was thrilled to see Mellow and Emm drinking from their water bottle in the bath! Mary and Marble have never been remotely interested in drinking water - though I've tried out every bit of advice given. Maybe they will copy Mellow and Emm?

[Piggy92]

I love Mary, shes so cute.I love her colors!