Lethal guinea pigs discussion - Page 6

**Matt & Guins** · #**101** 07-20-05, 03:21 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by salana

No--RnRn (lethal) x Rnrn (dal) means that each baby has a 50% chance of being a lethal, 50% of being a dal. The chances of 7 dals and no lethals being born are 1 in 128.

Sorry, yes there is.

But, as I was sayin, those dally babies born are/were in that 50% of dally babies to be born, and micros are not always present in litters.

**Erin8607** · #**102** 08-04-05, 02:51 pm

I'm a little late on this because I didn't get a reminder that there were recent posts here, but...

On 7-22 Patrick went to the vet with one of my sows, he was in a soft sided carrier next to her in a plastic tote. He rumbled the whole time and definatly showed intrest in getting himself some.

His testicles took awhile to become apparent, but they are there now in full view now that he's 4 months old. I'm sure that he could probably reproduce given the chance.

Not sure why so many people feel that these animals cannot be bred or breed.

**salana** · #**103** 08-04-05, 05:05 pm

Einstein gets almost as excited about the ladies as Jackie (nobody could possibly be quite as excited as Jackie). He's played with the spayed sows several times, and rumbled at them quite happily. In fact, the only reason Suzi didn't pee on him as much as she pees on Jackie was because Einstein went side to side instead of homing in on the butt.

Einy also had a delay in his testicles becoming apparent, and seemed to have a delay in sexual maturity--rumbling and humping started later than with Jackie.

I've read about 6 lethals reproducing, counting Symphony. Similar genetic mutations can cause sterility in other animals, but apparently not in guinea pigs. Lethals should be treated as if they're as fertile as any other pig.

**Alanas** · #**104** 08-05-05, 08:47 am

Symphony has had three pups. They are all healthy. Symphony is doing well, I took her to the Vet for a check - up and my boys are all separated from the girls, I am having the boys de-sexed tomorrow. I know I have made many mistakes in the past, and that is because my cavies were kind of dumped on me, and they were pregnant. At that time I hadn't read this site or Guinea Lynx. I am now doing everythhing by Guinea Lynx and Cavy Cages instructions. I do not allow breeding, I don't believe in showing now that I understand what show cavies go through.

**salana** · #**105** 08-14-05, 09:22 pm

How is Symphony doing? Einstein has a URI that he just can't seem to kick completely. He's on three nosedrops and he's been on three antibiotics. Lethals seem to be more susceptible to other illnesses, possibly from just their problems eating producing a poorer state of health. Of course, Einstein seems to have more problems eating than most lethals that live significant amounts of time.

Also, Einstein is now 2 years old! His birthday was July 31st.

**Alanas** · #**106** 08-15-05, 10:33 pm

Symphony is really well. She did lose a bit of weight there but she has now put it back on. I have been hand feeding her more often to make sure she gets her fair share of the fresh vegies, because she eats much slower than my other piggies she doesn't get as much if I don't hand feed her. Getting concerto desexed next Tuesday because he is getting depressed being separated and the girls miss him too.

**Ly&Pigs** · #**107** 08-15-05, 10:37 pm

GET WELL SOON EINY! (I meant to post that in caps)

**salana** · #**108** 09-05-05, 03:29 pm

I just wanted to update to say that Erin's lethal, Patrick, seems to have deformed sinuses. This may not sound like a big problem, but his teeth are having elongated roots that grow up into these deformed sinuses. This is affecting his breathing so much that, at 5 months old, he's having constant breathing problems and may need to be put to sleep soon. This despite eating well and putting on plenty of weight and otherwise being happy and healthy.

**Erin8607** · #**109** 09-05-05, 05:34 pm

He was eating well, gaining weight and all around healthy.

Now, he cannot breathe from his nose. All of his breathing is through his mouth which causes him to aspirate food into his lungs then cough for a few trying to get it all clear again.

He was going steadily to 1 pound 5-6 ounces, he is now below 1 pound because I cannot get enough food in him without nearly suffocating him.

**Erin8607** · #**110** 09-06-05, 10:35 pm

[font=Arial]Copied from GL thread "True Verifiable Ages of Guinea Pigs"[/font]
[font=Arial]---[/font]

[font=Arial]Patrick - PEW Lethal abyssinian
April 3, 2005 - September 6, 2005

Had an appointment to euthanize him due to severe upper mandible genetic deformaties causing breathing problems that caused him to cease breathing for periods and didn't allow him to eat properly without aspirating.

He died naturally before the appointment.

He will be sorely missed by all the NE Ohio piggie rescue helpers and quite a few who've gotten to know him online.[/font]

**Erin8607** · #**111** 09-06-05, 10:52 pm

I'm a jerk, his birthday is 4/3/05. I never get it right unless I type it up like that. My brain is scrambled. I'm sure he'll forgive me now that he has all his teeth and he can breathe the nice smell of sexy sows in the wind.

**Slap Maxwell** · #**112** 09-07-05, 07:21 am

I'm so sorry Erin. What a life he had, though.

**Sabriel** · #**113** 09-07-05, 08:35 am

I'm sorry for your loss Erin

I'm sure he's somewhere eating up a storm and rememebring how hard you tried to help him eat.

**Ly&Pigs** · #**114** 09-07-05, 11:18 am

I am so very sorry Erin.

I fixed his birthdate in your thread.

dalmatian_fan · #**115** 10-05-05, 01:06 pm

Wow did you guys know that if you breed a Lethal with any other guinea, no matter what colour or breed, you will always get Dals or roans? Whatever the lethals parents were you will get them back in the litter 100% of the time. It is a very long story of how I got to know that, and it's quite sad too, and filled with my stupid brothers mistakes, but if anyone wants to hear it just shout

dalmatian_fan · #**116** 10-05-05, 02:52 pm

Okay I am bored so I'm gonna tell you my story anyway. It is pretty long so just skip it if you dont wanna read.

In Mangawhai we dont have a grocery store so I have to go to Wellsford to get food. I decided to look in on the local animal shelter. There was an all time high of abandoned guineas, five. I fell in love with a little tri colour crested sow and a Lethal boar. The staff at the shelter told me he was fixed so I brought them both home. I named them Harmony and Elmo. Well, I soon discovered that Elmo was entire after all and soon had a chubby Harmony running around. I waited the big day and raced out to the hutch one morning to find four little black and white spotted babies in Harmony's nest. Wondering how this happened I took them all the way to Whangerai toa guinea pig specialist and found out that they were Dalmatians. A friend of mine came with me to Whangarai and decided to get guineas of her own and left with two boars. The specialist explained about the Lethal/dal thing and told me how to sex babies, and why I should never breed dal to dal. I wasn't going to breed anyway, but I was amazed at all the colour varieties of dals so left with a chocolate dal (Ernie) and crested black dal (Bert) boars, to keep Elmo company.

I kept the four baby dals as they were all sows, but I didnt believe what the specialist had said about Lethals having all dal or all roan babies. So I paired Harmony and Elmo once more. This time she had five babies, and they were all Dals. Three were sows, two boars. One of the boars was stillborn but when the other was weaned, I gave him to my friend who went with me to Whangerai, and kept the three sows.

When the three sows were about 3-4 months I went on holiday for three weeks, leaving my brother to look after my pigs. He maintained that he always wanted a Dal but I didnt want to breed Elmo and Harmony again. Of course, he didnt know about the dalxdal rule and plonked Ernie and Bert in with Harmony and her seven daughters.

I came home to find Bert had attacked Ernie and he was almost dead. Five of my sows were pregnant, Harmony, two daughters from the first litter and two from the second. All I could do was nurse Ernie back to health and wait for the babies. Thankfully, Ernie made a full recovery. Harmony had the first litter, five but no dals. Then one of her oldest daughters, four dals with crests and no lethals! Then her two youngest had their litters at about the same time. One contained chocolates, so it looks like Bert didn't dominate Ernie has much as he thought. One was a Lethal and born dead. The other litter contained two dals and a Lethal boar with a crest! He survived and I kept him, naming him Big Bird. The last litter was born to my favorite of Harmony's daughters. It had two healthy dals but she died giving birth to a Lethal, which didnt make it.

Anyway, I gave the babies out amoungst my community. I didnt keep any except for the crested Lethal, Big Bird, and the daughter of the dal I lost, whom I called Saphire.

Now I have many more guineas as I adopted all I could whenever one came into the animal shelter, so I got one of two every couple of months. I got 6 in the first year. I have rows of averies in my back yard but I keep Elmo and Big Bird inside. THey're my favorites and I dont want anything to ever happen to them.

**C&K** · #**117** 10-05-05, 03:09 pm

I am not sure how you missed it, but at the top of the forum page is a rather large disclaimer that reads:

Quote:

This forum is run by a guinea pig rescue and is a rescue-friendly board.
Intentional breeding and/or showing "how-to" discussions are not welcome in this forum.

I don't think that anyone here wants to go through the genetics of dalmations or roans. I personally find it a tale that is

User Name		Remember Me?
Password