How I am helping animals...
is how I got interested in my guinea pigs from saving an orphaned chipmunk.
Here is the story:
Mid Sept around 15th my hubby noticed a lone baby chipmunk while outside washing his bike getting ready for his evening ride... whereby he yelled out, "Hey look! A baby chipmunk!" (Which I took it as Yeah hubby wants attention so I ignored him). About 1/2 hr later he finished his pampering of his bike & came in & told me that the baby chipmunk is outside still.
That got me curious & I followed him outside to investigate. He left me then to prepare for his evening ride (wanted to be home before dark). So I sat outside for a while & watch that baby chipmunk hoping that maybe the mommy chipmunk is nearby to pick it up. I decided to run a quick research on the net & voila, all kinds of info at the fingertips & the one that interest me most is the one that says "leave it alone or the mommy will not accept the baby back due to the scent left by a human if touched".
I kept observing the chipmunk & trying to read more info. I am torn at this point of whether to rescue the baby back home for a few reasons. #1) it is getting dark. #2) we have all kinds of predator birds at our backyard while in the front yard where the baby is at, there are all kinds of cats & dogs wondering around; not to mentioned children playing at the front yard. #3) That baby is not even budging, maybe it is hurt? #4) the temperature is dropping as it is approaching night time plus the baby is shivering.
I then saw another site that says, yes... the chipmunk mom will continue looking for its baby for a week or so plus the human scent line is false. With relief, I took the baby home.
First, I tried to warm it in a sock (it immediately went to sleep, he is awww so cute). I had gotten ready a big card box box with a cracked opened walnuts, peanuts, chinese chestnuts & some rolled oats that I left inside with a dish of water for it while I researched some more. I thought to go to a petstore to buy a puppy's formula but the site says it is not a good formula for the baby but evaporated milk/condensed milk mixed with honey very diluted can be a replacement. I have plenty of those. Next I have to find a baby syringe (which I bought in riteaid). I went about preparing the baby formula (added a few flakes for the nut taste) while the baby chipmunk sleeps.
I let the boiled formula cool a bit before loading the syringe up. Next, I took the still sleeping baby chipmunk in the sock & put the syringe near its mouth... the baby drank a syringe plus half more! I felt so happy that it wasn't going to starve.
My baby was with me for a total of 3.5 days & with that I have kept checking for its mommy (left peanuts at the front yard where I found the baby chipmunk). Meanwhile baby chipmunk has gotten out of his box twice & both times we found him at the window sill facing the front yard (he is looking for his mommy too!). Well, we finally found 2 chipmunk holes close to our front step but closer to our neighbor's yard & did noticed the peanuts were either gone or just some shells laying about.
I rejoiced & decided that I will let chipmunk go close to the burrows in the morning while everone is either at work or in school (very little human & animal activity). His tail is getting a little bushy after all & some sites recomended the time is right.
So, with a hopeful heart... I set the baby free.
I still leave peanuts, sunflower seeds, walnuts & chinese chestnuts out on occasion & I have seen my baby doing fine. Whether it found the burrow or not I have no idea but he comes to visit my front steps around the same time some mornings as if to just visit & say hey your milk was delicious haha) & boy is he fast!
Well, for the sorrow of letting my baby go free, my hubby sent me links of funny chipmunk vids off youtube & after surfing some youtube vids, I came across MoMo's youtubes on Beibei, mojo & gang. I fell in love with them on sight of course.
Did more research on-line besides youtube to get ready for my new pet pig before getting one of course & here we are today 1 month plus with my 2 adopted gals & 1 from a petstore (shame on me I know).
I adopted (thanks for all the education youtube, guinealynx, guineacages & cavymadness) a mom & daughter pair & while getting their supplies went to a local petstore where my coconut-pudding is kept (I did not buy her at first but she did caught my eye because she seemed skinny but very lively). I came home but could not forget her, she is on my mind while I settle Yam-Yam & Bubbles into their new home (& those 2 were so well fed it is not funny).
(
I finally cave in 2 days & $40 USD later (went to the petstore again for some supplies for my piggies, saw her again & told myself if she approach me from the other end of the cage to see me on the other end, I will buy her) ... bought my blue-eyed white abby from a petstore. Waaaah!!! But all I want is to love her & fatten her up like the other two.
I did quarantine her for 2 weeks before introducing her to the other 2, coco which at that point, is only comfortable with pellets & hay. While Yam-Yam & Bubbles love their fresh grass & carrots. Coconut pudding is quite tame actually but super shy. When them 3 get together on week 3, did that "get to know each other routine" dominance dance (wasn't as aggressive as others have described on the forum) all was quite OK.
I think neither of them are the over bossy type. As I observed: Yam-Yam (Mom) is quite laid back, stoic, steady dependable type (so the other 2 looked up to her; daughter of course.). Bubble (daughter) is always pop-corning here & there plus wheeked the most loudly obnoxiously out of the bunch. She is a very happy & curious piggy (the clown king), made me & my hubby laugh out at her nonsense quite a bit! Coconut-pudding (coco for short) is quite shy & quite; but have been sighted to pop-corn & doing some crazy running when bubbles is doing them too! In conclusion, I think Yam-Yam has kinda sdopted Coco (find her most morning with bunking with Coco, Bubbles is almost always outside of the bed eating, wheeking at me or doing her happi crazy dance). Yam-Yam will pop-corn just out of the sudden to "show" she can do it too! But if any of those rascal gets too rambuncious, Yam-Yam will just be strutting over like to give them a scolding or have been caught tapping those 2 heads with her chin as if to say "OK behave now".
So... those are my gals so far!
I love, love my gals! My only boy (love him too) will have to be my independent chipmunk named peanut (munk by my hubby) & the occasional endearment of micky mouse.