a grumble about people being too cheap to spend money on an animal:
one of my friends parents has two guinea pigs. they rescued both of them, along with a dog at some point. so yipee, good for them for rescuing these animals instead of going to a pet store or breeder, but if you adopt ANY animal (in my opinion) you should be willing and prepared to pay for the expenses, including appropriate healthcare, for those animals.
one of the guinea pigs has seemingly been suffering from pretty severe mite infestation for several months now. i had a guinea pig with mites before, and it's a pretty miserable experience for the animal. they are extremely itchy, lose hair in clumps, can get secondary bacterial infections, and even suffer from seizures. its also pretty easily treated either with ivermectin or a dose of advantage (obviously the amounts are specifically tailored to the size of the animal) based on veterinary recommendations and findings. all in all its not terribly expensive to treat, but guinea pigs are often viewed as disposable pets. they're like $30 at the pet store, so why on earth would someone want to spend any money on vet care? except, oh yeah, it's a living creature and when you accepted ownership, you also accepted responsibility. and with that responsibility sometimes comes things like medical bills.
so this pet has been suffering for several months now, and i've recommended a few times that they take it in, or at least try some less savvy methods but to no avail. the guinea pig, being left untreated for so long, also reached the seizure part of having mites not to long ago. still nothing. recently, she lost a ton of weight, and began showing other non-specific signs of being unhealthy. pocket pets do not handle disease, stress, and pain well at all, so it's no surprise to me that she's gone down hill very quickly. tonight my friend says he's pretty sure she's going to die soon. she acts very lethargic, won't walk or move around, and is bloated. to me, it sounds like this animal is clearly suffering and is an excellent candidate for humane euthanasia at the very least. but, it's all about the money, who cares if the animal suffers for a little while before it finally succumbs.
it just makes me angry and frustrated for the guinea pig. i HATE knowing that animals are suffering. if you have a pet, no matter what it is, be willing to make an investment in that pet's health care, even if it's just a small amount. i'm not asking you to spend a fortune on the pet, but i believe that you should at least be willing to help them in some way. 🙁