Poor, poor Button.
I had Button and Fizgig out on the table last night, after the girlies had gone in. But I forgot to remove one of the girls' boxes. It's a low box with fairly small holes cut in the top so the smaller girls can whizz in and out when the big ones are bothering them.
Button obviously hasn't looked in the mirror lately, because he tried to go down through one of the holes. Joe found him stuck with just his bum sticking out of the top. I tried supporting him and turning the box over in the hope that he would slip out backwards, but the hole was stuck firm around his 'waist'. We had to tear the box off him to get him out. Poor boy, he needed a big cuddle after that.
In the interests of laziness and fewer cages I thought I'd see how my neutered boys, Button and Fizgig, got along with the girls. We're at the stage now where they are out together almost all day. The girls are making free with the boys' cage, but the boys aren't allowed in the girls cage - they get chased out again.
Anyway, the point of this is that Blaize, who's about 12 weeks old, has fallen head over heels for Fizgig. She follows him around and sleeps on him when he stops.
I keep getting an image in my head. Do you remember a slightly squiffy Scarlett in Four Weddings and a Funeral, saying to the big American chap "I think you're lovely". Well that's what Blaize reminds me of. She's totally besotted with the big fat squish.
I have the boys in with the girls now. It's had an unexpected side effect. Shorty tried to bully Button the way she bullies everyone else in the cage now that she's gained some confidence. He didn't fight, but he didn't submit either. I think he won his point. But she's actually behaving better towards the other girls as well, which I didn't anticipate.
The two boys are actually coming out to run around instead of just finding a comfy spot and dozing off. Shorty has had the wind taken out of her sails a little. Good effects all round.
Shorty isn't being nicer because the boys are in there. She's ill. The glands on her neck are extremely swollen. Vets tomorrow.
Right, we've done the vet. He can think of four possibilities
Conclusion: go back in a week to see if there's any change, but take her back immediately if she gets noticeably sicker.
We were killing ourselves laughing this evening.
Wren was doing the usual trick of taking the paper from the box on the table to make a nest in the cage, in the left hand corner. But Morticia was waiting at the top of the ramp, so every time Wren got up there with a piece of paper Tishie grabbed it to take to her nest in the right hand corner. Sometimes Wren managed to get past her, sometimes Tish got all of the paper, sometimes it tore and they ended up with half each.
I think it was the cheek of it that got to us. I laughed so much my face hurt!
I took Shorty back to the vet because I've been worrying about her. I'm much happier now. This vet didn't think it was an abscess, as it's not attached to the skin and it feels too lumpy. The scab has gone - I picked it off the other day. She said she'd think it was a mammary tumour from the feel of it but it's further forward than that should be, unless its 'sneaking up on us'.
So the plan is to do an 'investigation' on Tuesday. They'll put Shorty out and see if they can draw anything out of the lump. If it is an abscess they'll still have to operate because it's so deep inside.
At least I feel that we're doing something.
Annette
Last modified: Friday, 11-Mar-2005 09:09:18 GMT
