Okay, so a bit of a story first!! The day started out pretty stressful, but had a good ending, I promise.
Jackie (Soyala_Amaya, runs Kansas City Hedgehog Rescue) was out of town this weekend & I was going to watch Danu since she's still on antibiotics for a UTI. On Friday, Pancake, the rescue who came in at 800g, had a severe hibernation attempt. After lots of cuddles and observation, we decided she was doing okay enough & that I would bring her home along with Danu for the weekend. Unfortunately, Pancake didn't recover very well from the attempt & was still very out of it on Saturday night. She didn't eat Saturday night either, so I started syringe-feeding this morning. When Jackie got to my place, we figured out she was severely dehydrated & started giving her Pedialyte. She seemed to be having trouble swallowing and breathing though, so we got worried enough to head to the emergency vet.
So here come the silver lining parts of the situation! First, we found an amazing emergency vet!! They were willing to see hedgehogs, which is rare enough. The vet we saw also seemed to have a little experience with hedgehogs - he knew how to handle her, their usual behavior, and was good at getting her mouth open for a look. He confirmed that she was severely dehydrated & that most of her symptoms were due to that. He gave her sub-cutaneous fluids to help get her rehydrated, and gave us antibiotics for a URI as well.
Now, the bill was already amazingly low for an emergency vet - it came out to only $160 for the visit, sub-q fluids, antibiotics, and a couple cans of Hills A/D!! Well, during the visit, my background in wildlife rehab was mentioned, and the vet took notice. He brought out his Easter surprise - two wild bunnies that someone had brought him this morning after they'd been attacked by a dog. He asked me to take them, so I brought them home & will be taking them to the local rehab tomorrow after work. The vet gave us a $45 discount for taking the bunnies, so I only paid $115! We couldn't believe how cheap it was. Needless to say, we found our emergency vet from now on!!
So, on to my Easter present...Well, I've been in love with Pancake since she came to Jackie three months ago. After having her at my house this weekend, I decided to add to the zoo. Jackie immediately said yes, so....Bindi has a big sister!!! And I get Pancake snuggles ALL THE TIME! It's going to be a rocky few days while I get her back on her feet, but hopefully she's feeling better with more fluids into her. Lots of Pancake spam will be joining my usual thread soon!
Jackie (Soyala_Amaya, runs Kansas City Hedgehog Rescue) was out of town this weekend & I was going to watch Danu since she's still on antibiotics for a UTI. On Friday, Pancake, the rescue who came in at 800g, had a severe hibernation attempt. After lots of cuddles and observation, we decided she was doing okay enough & that I would bring her home along with Danu for the weekend. Unfortunately, Pancake didn't recover very well from the attempt & was still very out of it on Saturday night. She didn't eat Saturday night either, so I started syringe-feeding this morning. When Jackie got to my place, we figured out she was severely dehydrated & started giving her Pedialyte. She seemed to be having trouble swallowing and breathing though, so we got worried enough to head to the emergency vet.
So here come the silver lining parts of the situation! First, we found an amazing emergency vet!! They were willing to see hedgehogs, which is rare enough. The vet we saw also seemed to have a little experience with hedgehogs - he knew how to handle her, their usual behavior, and was good at getting her mouth open for a look. He confirmed that she was severely dehydrated & that most of her symptoms were due to that. He gave her sub-cutaneous fluids to help get her rehydrated, and gave us antibiotics for a URI as well.
Now, the bill was already amazingly low for an emergency vet - it came out to only $160 for the visit, sub-q fluids, antibiotics, and a couple cans of Hills A/D!! Well, during the visit, my background in wildlife rehab was mentioned, and the vet took notice. He brought out his Easter surprise - two wild bunnies that someone had brought him this morning after they'd been attacked by a dog. He asked me to take them, so I brought them home & will be taking them to the local rehab tomorrow after work. The vet gave us a $45 discount for taking the bunnies, so I only paid $115! We couldn't believe how cheap it was. Needless to say, we found our emergency vet from now on!!
So, on to my Easter present...Well, I've been in love with Pancake since she came to Jackie three months ago. After having her at my house this weekend, I decided to add to the zoo. Jackie immediately said yes, so....Bindi has a big sister!!! And I get Pancake snuggles ALL THE TIME! It's going to be a rocky few days while I get her back on her feet, but hopefully she's feeling better with more fluids into her. Lots of Pancake spam will be joining my usual thread soon!