Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue

MGPR's 2008-2009 Annual Fundraising Campaign

Kelly’s Story:
An Invitation to Support Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue

It appeared that Kelly had not been receiving the medical care he needed from his previous owner when he came to MGPR. He had several serious, but curable, medial issues including mites, bumblefoot (and infection frequently caused by living in a cage with a wire floor) and, most seriously, some of his teeth appeared to have been broken.

At his first vet visit Kelly was sent home with a bag of medications for his various ailments and with instructions to his foster family to carefully monitor his ability to eat as his broken tooth grew back. He was a friendly guinea pig and quickly showed that he would make a great companion for the lucky family that would eventually adopt him.

Kelly had to be taken to regular vet appointments where the doctor would monitor and trim the broken teeth because they were growing crookedly. At one of his visits the vet determined that his bottom front teeth were malformed and they were surgically removed.

After this operation Kelly returned to his foster home with another bag of medications to prevent infection. One week later the vet determined that his molars needed to be trimmed and that his first oral surgery was not healing properly. A second surgery was performed to trim his molars and more medications were prescribed. This was followed by more ups and downs and a total of four surgeries. His vet bills have totaled over $1,200.

Please note that we are not complaining about the cost. The vets that support MGPR offer us extremely low rates for their services and we know that they frequently don’t cover their own expenses. We treasure them and couldn’t afford to operate without their support.

Unfortunately Kelly had some more bad news in September when he was diagnosed with severe osteoarthritis in his knees and ankles. For many guinea pigs this would mean that life was not worth living. But his vet was again able to prescribe a regimen of medication that controls his discomfort.

One of our foster families, already caring for a special needs guinea pig named Squeeks, offered to see if Kelly (on right) and Squeeks would get along. Squeeks has her own long medical story that resulted in a central nervous system abnormality known as a “head tilt”. As you can see in the photo below they are getting along very well and are enjoying the extra attention they get because of their status as “special needs” guinea pigs.

Our goal at MGPR is to help as many guinea pigs as possible find permanent homes where they receive the care, love and respect these wonderful animals deserve. Although most of our rescues are not as dramatic as Kelly’s, they all result in animals that were formerly rejected or improperly cared for getting a new life in a happy home.

• $100 (to care for guinea pigs like Kelly for 6 months)
• $50 (to care for guinea pigs like Kelly for 3 months)
• $$$ (or any other amount is appreciated! Every dollar helps us!)