Written by Alison.
Cover photo of Mr Frankfurt, one of our lethal whites.
Welcome to Wheekly News. This week's news for the rescues, all of the lethal whites currently in the care of Mintie N Friends. Which is currently 8, they had there front teeth or better known as incisors. Checked over and trimmed if required. This is done every two to four weeks to prevent them over growing. This left too long can cause difficulties in eating and eventually lead to weight loss and much worse. As the lethal whites teeth here range from 1 to 4 teeth. It is important This is kept regular, as a lethal whites teeth grow at a much faster rate then a normal guinea pig.
Health hint - It is important keep check a guinea pigs front teeth regularly as even normal guinea pigs teeth can grow fast. To help prevent front and back teeth from over growing.. It is important that guinea pigs hay available at all times.. Hay is great to help grind down teeth when chewing and also overall important for a guinea pigs diet. It should make up 80% of a guinea pigs diet.
Sadly, this week there was also a falling out between Eclipse and Moonpie. Eclipse decided he no longer wanted to be friends with Moonpie and turned aggressively on him. There was a lot of teething chattering, chasing, fur ripping out and hissing.. Yes, hissing. Haven't heard a guinea pig hiss up until Eclipse.. I broke it up quickly before any real damage was done. So for now, they are living in separate cages alone. Better then Eclipse trying to tear Moonpie apart. Sadly its not uncommon for males to bond and fall on over time. I would also like to point out Moonpie and Eclipse are satins. Satins do require the correct care due to the satin coat being linked to osteodystrophy (OD), an incurable and potentially painful metabolic disease of the bones. Osteodystrophy symptoms begin showing at around 12 to 18 months of age. These symptoms include wobbly gait, problems with eating, and with sows parturition complications.
Picture of Moonpie and Eclipse.
Sheep Meets A Sheep (Short Story)
Once there was a guinea pig named Sheep. Sheep had fur that was just as wooly and thick as a sheep. One day Sheep broke free from her cage and decided to explore the house. While exploring she suddenly smelt something that made her stomach rumble in hunger. She sniffed and followed her nose. Until she came to a bag filled all kinds of food. But it was the fruit that made her wheek with excitement. She jumped into the bag and saw the most yellow and ripe banana she had seen. She thought one nibble won't hurt. She nibbled and nibbled, it was so sweet and delicious. She was so focused on nibbling, that the sudden movement of the bag being picked up startled her. She wondered where she would end up, the bag came to a stop and was placed back down. She decided to wait a little before leaving to avoid being seen. After a short time of waiting, there was some sudden movement and vibration around her. This was very familiar, she was in the car. But where was she going to end up? After awhile of being in the car, the car came to a sudden stop. Sheep waited for a little while but before she had a chance to look out the bag. The bag was picked up and on the move again. Sheep could feel the warm sun coming through the bag. She knew this meant she was outside somewhere. Once the bag came to a stop and was placed down. Sheep waited a few minutes and then popped her head out to look around. She was surrounded by a big grass field. She could see her owners setting up a huge blanket on the grass and laying out food. She took the opportunity to jump out and explore while they were busy doing there thing. Sheep decided to explore around and make sure wasn't gone to long as she would need to make sure she was back to get home. She ran across the grass field, suddenly she came to a fence. There was a small enough spot she could squeeze through and she did just that. On the other side of the fence. She looked up and found herself staring at a big wooly version of herself. It was a sheep, she looked at the sheep and let out a wheek. The sheep looked her and let out a baaaaaaaaa! It was so loud and unexpected, it scared Sheep. She quickly sqeezed back under the fence and ran back to where her owners were. By the time she got back, they were packing up. She carefully and quickly snuck back into the bag. This time, the car trip back felt faster. Once the bag had been taken out and put back inside. She snuck out and found her way back into her cage. She looked at her cage mate Chewie and told him all about everything that happened. She wondered what that loud wooly thing was. One thing was for sure she was glad to be home, where it was safe and she was with her friend.
THE END!
Illustration by Alison.
Meet Sheep, she is the inspiration for the main character of this story. Sheep was one of the many pups born from the huge Logan rescue back in April 2020. Although she is not a special needs, my son and I fell in love and had to give her a loving home. She is also fantastic company for Chewie who is a desexed male with one eye.
Picture of Sheep.
DIY Of The Wheek - Hay Roll
This is a very simple but very loved DIY, you will need the following:
- Toilet roll.
- Scissors.
- Hay.
Step 1: Get the toilet roll and cut holes in the middle. Make sure holes are big enough for your guinea pig be able to pull hay through.
Step 2: Stuff toilet roll with hay and watched your guinea pig or guinea pigs have some fun with there new DIY toy.
Picture of Malt, one of our lethal whites enjoying a hay roll.
Piggy Of The Wheek
This week's Piggy Of The Wheek is Biscuit, photo by their owner Wendy.
Want your piggy to be featured as Piggy Of The Wheek? Feel free to share a photo of your piggy to have a chance for your piggy to be Piggy Of The Wheek. Issue 2 of Wheekly News will be available from 27-06-2021.
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