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In early January 2003 I adopted a little boy
chin. He's a standard grey with the most beautiful eyes, and
reckoned to be about 7 months old when I got him. Very skinny, and more
than a little shabby-looking. He'd apparently been rescued from very
neglectful owners, and had shared a cage with other chins who'd bullied
him, so he'd lost a lot of tipping on his fur through biting (he's not a
fur-biter himself). He was then passed to a rescue centre, then to
another temporary home, from where a chin-lover took him in. Much as she
loved him, she had many other chins, and found that this wee man
definitely needed a lot of tender loving care and cuddles, so felt it
better that he go to a home where someone could provide this. I quickly
named him Oliver, as he reminded me so much of the little urchin boy in
the movie!
Such a little sweetie despite this very bad start in life! I fell in love with him straight away, but felt so sad to have him snuggle inside my jumper and go to sleep - so unnatural for a chin! He was so subdued. Within a couple of days though, his spirits began to rise, though he didn't seem to have much of an appetite - he wouldn't even take a raisin when offered! His starting weight when he arrived was 461g, 20g of which he promptly lost, though he regained most of it in the following couple of weeks.
Since then (it's now the end of January) he really has blossomed. He lives in a little cage of his own (little, so that he doesn't over-exert himself, and work off any weight gain!). He's positioned in between my two other cages, as he enjoys the company of the girls, and frequently chats to them. When out for a free run, he loves to explore his surroundings, and no longer wants to snuggle - he's much too interested in investigating everything else now! He has such a beautifully placid nature, and displays no sign of temper at all - no wonder he was so easy to bully. I often wonder whether he realises he is here for good, or whether he expects to be moved on again, poor soul.
As for his weight, it is a bit of a struggle to get it up a little. He gets his daily ration of pellets, an inch of Enervite, Abidec vitamins added to his water, plus a teaspoon of oats twice a week. On this regime, he still has gained very little, so I'm now stepping up the supplements by adding wheatgerm (high in protein), as well as Vitamin B12 (which increases appetite). I'll keep you posted on his progress, though I have been reliably informed that some chins take several months before starting to pick up. Other than this, he's bright-eyed, alert and pretty healthy-looking! I have also noticed a marked improvement in the condition of his skin and coat, even if these first few weeks. I shudder to think what his diet might have been before he was rescued!
I'll keep you posted on his progress!
10 January 2004 UPDATE:
Well Oli has been here for almost exactly a year, and he's a wonderful little boy! He has a very special place in my heart. Still living alone, it's been an ongoing battle to get his weight up enough to consider the "snip" operation for this wee lad, as I am convinced he'd be happier with a little friend. He now has a new bigger cage built specially for him (I've made this one roomier to accommodate a new mate one day) It looks like we may indeed be nearly there now! At the minute he has a bit of a sticky eye, though, so we're attempting to deal with that first and foremost - the search for a girlfriend will just have to wait a little longer!
Still not too happy to be over-handled, he is otherwise a very chirpy little fellow - when out for his run he hops about quite happily and only a couple of weeks ago he summoned the courage to jump on the sofa! (He has never been so brave!) Inside his cage, he loves to snuggle up to your hand, and my girls often pop into his cage for a few seconds to rub noses and say hi (I daren't leave them unattended though - we don't wanna be having babies!) EVERYONE loves Oli (even Reba, the "anti-social" chin!)
10 May 2004 UPDATE: Oliver's Castration
Update 09 September 2005!!
We
have now finally found Oliver the perfect wife - in fact two wives! They
have gotten along from the very first moment they met - Cherry and her
live-in friend Lily have taken to Oliver right from the off! Cherry is a
7 year old homo ebony and her wee friend is 4 year old tan-white Lily.
Here the girls are, settling in nicely and trying to squeeze into the
dustbath with Oliver - they really are a happy new family! Gorgeous
girls they are, with beautiful temperaments - just right for my wee boy,
so we are all very, very happy!
More pics soon!
(Last Modified 29/11/2006 )