I believe my "heart" guinea pig, Sidney, is nearing the end of his life. I don't know how old he is because he had been abandoned when I found him three years ago, and he was an adult then. Anyway, he developed a lump on his side. I took him to the vet, and they did a biopsy, which was inconclusive. I declined to have the lump removed. A couple of months later, the lump had gone away! Then earlier this year it came back and quickly became huge, definitely too big to try to remove. It doesn't seem to bother him, and it's only been in the last week or so that he cut way back on eating and drinking. When I hold him, which I do for hours every day, he stretches out and yawns, and doesn't seem to be in any pain. Another thing is that twice I've observed what I think were seizures while I was holding him. His body would kind of vibrate and his eyes would roll up. It would last several seconds, and then he would open his eyes, yawn a couple of times, and act just fine. So with the lump growing and the fact that he's barely eating or drinking, and now these seizures, I know I might lose him soon.
I'm sorry this is so lengthy, but I wanted you to know everything that might affect your advice! After all that background, my question is, how can I tell if he's suffering and it would be kinder to have him put to sleep? Of course I would prefer to keep him going as long as possible and hopefully be holding him when he passes, but making sure he's pain free is the most important thing. Thank you.
I'm sorry this is so lengthy, but I wanted you to know everything that might affect your advice! After all that background, my question is, how can I tell if he's suffering and it would be kinder to have him put to sleep? Of course I would prefer to keep him going as long as possible and hopefully be holding him when he passes, but making sure he's pain free is the most important thing. Thank you.