I've had a really terrible year with my rodents, and have lost some amazing little ones in some horrendous ways. And now I have another vet visit tomorrow with Lambchop who has had a swollen eye for the last 12 weeks or so that hasn't responded to treatment. Over the last week it's become more difficult to open his eye to give him his treatments, and when I did manage to open it I can hardly see his eyeball. But I can see multiple little bloody lumps :( I'm hoping it's not tumours, but to be honest I feel like it's a losing battle as if it was anything else it would have improved by now, not still be getting worse :( I'm not even sure how comfortable he is - Lambchop has always been a very lazy mouse who spends all day in bed and only surfaces for food which is still the case. He runs whenever he hears me now though, but his other eye is still really bright and clear. If it is a tumour he won't have long, and to make it worse he's in with his lonely brother Bandit who has been pulled out of two groups now because everyone attacks him :( Bandit can't cope on his own :(
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Rainbow Bridge: Daisy, Peach, Ivy, Penelope, Hazel, Ruby, Clover, Peanut, Minnie, Ginger
Anyway, Lambchop saw Laura on Monday night. At the present minute she thinks it could be a really bad case of conjunctivitis (unlikely though as he hasn't passed it to his other eye or to anyone else :( ) or a type of infecion that she has seen in cats before (sorry, I can't remember the name of it :( ) She can't rule out a tumour, but is willing to take swabs from both the surface of Lambchop's eye and from the eyelid itself (which has now started to split it's so swollen :( ) It means he's had to come off all meds for it just now so they are out of his system for when she does the tests, and he will need knocked out briefly. Hopefully the swabs will grow in culture and let Laura pinpoint the infection, or show what it is if it isn't an infection :( In terms of treatment, it may be targeted antibiotics (dependent on the results), removing his eye (which he might not survive as he struggled to come around from the anaesthetic when he was neutered) or having him put to sleep if those options are ruled out :( So we are very far from being out of the woods yet :(
I've managed to find some one who has some mice for Bandit as active company so will be picking up a friend or two at the weekend but won't introduce them until Lambchop has had his tests done at the vet (Tuesday next week.)
April, I'm really sorry to hear about little Chubs :( He's been such a lovely little hamster, and such a cheeky little man too. I hope that if he does decide that it's his time to go to the bridge that he goes quietly in his sleep :( ((hugs))
I unfortunately have sad news :( The Friday night before Lambchop was due to go to the vets again he became clammy, cold and something was going on in his stomach :( He seemed really very ill although the swelling in his eye had reduced to half of what it was. I phoned the vet to cancel asking him in as I was sure he wouldn't make it. By Sunday night he had lost half his body weight, and some of his fur. He seemed to perk up again a little on Monday and was eating again but by Tuesday night I knew he definitely wouldn't have much longer :( He passed away a few hours afterwards :( Bandit his brother is really missing him and hasn't been himself since Lambchop passed away despite having some new company (more on them once I get more photos.) I'm hoping he perks up a bit with time, but an concerned as his respiratory infection has been worse the last few days and I think it's because he is so stressed and lonely without Lambchop :(
I'm so sorry about Lambchop. I'm glad you were able to get Bandit some company and I hope he perks up soon.
Inktober sounds like a challenge.
And yes, inktober has been a challenge. It's involved doing a new ink drawing to a set theme every single day. It's been fun, but it's been difficult fitting it in sometimes.
Thanks Nicky.