When you feel that you are well established, there would be no more surprises.

I must still be a layman because my guinea pig has a severe case of bloat. She’s not in G.I. Stasis, and yet her bloat is so severe that they took 3 views on the x-rays just to make sure her stomach wasn’t twisted like a dog.

They wanted to hospitalize her. I cannot afford that this year. I asked if they ever send Ringers home, and they said they do. This is lactated ringers: a sterile liquid solution used to re-hydrate a furry family member by being injected under the skin and creating a small hump that their body will absorb

Uh huh. I will be administering subcutaneous fluids to Lily over the next week, along with baby gasx, a higher dose of meloxicam, cisapride, liquid vitamin C, and 3 handfeedings a day. Today at the vet she received an injection meant to help break up the gas in her stomach, and they administered the first round of sub-qs.

Now if I can pull my head out of my butt (where it’s currently lodged in frustration) the reality is that this should be better than having a mass or a cyst, like I’d planned. But, I have experience in those, and none in this, so I feel completely drained and had nothing to prepare for. If Lily gets over the hump this week, she should be able to go on with her little punky haired potato life.