Culling a mother guinea pig 1 week after delivery?

[Ghost]

In David's heard, I noticed a female that had an eye infection. She got over the infection but you can tell she is scared by it. In addition she is getting on in age. I don't know how old she is, since David dose not keep records. But, I do remember her pattern from before I joined RT. You can tell by looking at the condition of her fur that she is getting old for a GP.

I'm assuming that a GP herd breeds best when the elderly sows are replaced by younger sows. This would also be a good time to cull her because, there are many young sows that could fill her place. I would also prefer her body be utilized for nourishing David's carnivores. If someone just finds the old sow dead, the carcass will just go in the burn-pile. It will be sad for me to see her go, because she is only one of only two GPs that I recognize from when I first started watching the colony of feeder rodents. But I knew that was her fate from the first time a saw her.

Back to my main question, She is plumping up and she will pop in the next week or two. Do you think it would be best to wait a week after giving birth before culling, so as to give her last pups a fighting chance? I know she will probably be pregnant again soon after giving birth. I'm thinking the fetuses will be small a week after the previous birth, and if she goes to a python the new fetuses will also provide some protean.

 

[GBov]

I would give her a couple of weeks with them before dispatching her. They get a better start in the herd that way.

 

[ladysown]

do you have other sows pupping at the same time?

If so a week will do, but otherwise I'd give those pups two weeks with mom.

 

[Ghost]

Over the past few weeks, and as I started writing this Mar 25 update, I was flip-flop-ing back and forth in my mind as to whether or not "Mother White Spot" (nick name) should be culled at the end of her pregnancy. I had been thinking, I should just let things happen and not influence the death of White Spot. I suppose if I just let things go she will eventually die of something, most likely die giving birth. I have decided that she should be culled but, I still do have questions as to when her dispatchment should take place.

In my latest post to Guinea pigs: working herds, I layout the herd situation. It works out as way to raise GPs that requires less human labor. But, living in one big herd can reduce the life-span of breading sows. White Spot has had a good life, but you can tell by her eyes and fur that she is past her prime. She might be capable of living out two or more pregnancy cycles, but each one will be a role of the dice. It seams that the herd as a whole would be better if she was replaced.

I don't want to be too critical of David, but I sometimes get annoyed with him. I don't think that David really takes the GPs seriously enough. (for a more detailed description scroll down to the Mar 25, 2019 update of THIS POST) When I was talked about culling a GP several weeks in the future, David couldn't fathom it. He culls ad-hoc rather than from a cull list. He doesn't cull pregnant or nursing GPs, that is what makes it less likely he will pick White Spot, unless I direct him to cull her.

As I said, while writing this all out, I have decided that White Spot needs culling. My issue is the when part. As White Spot has aged, she seams to take on the appearance of a pregnant sow all the time. Since the GPs live like the herd in the video as above, it is hard to tell who's babies are who's. That being, I don't even know when she dropped the litter. I looked her a few days ago and she seems less fat, but she still has that "preggo" look. She also had a stretched out nipple(sigh of nursing). I do think that she dropped the litter. Perhaps, I should have taken pics once per week to get some sort of date.

I do want to give her some time to nurse. Living in a single large herd, the males do what they do. I have come to accept that whenever she dies, she will die with fetuses inside of her. I suppose I will just have to time her death early on in her pregnancy.

I hate to end the post on a downer, but any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated.

 

[ladysown]

just do the deed anytime then. Seriously. If you agonize over it you are just delaying the inevitable.

 

[GBov]

just do the deed anytime then. Seriously. If you agonize over it you are just delaying the inevitable.

:yeahthat:

 

[Ghost]

:yeahthat:

-- Minor content warning --
Yeah, you guys were right, delaying only served to increase my stress. Once the task was complete things are pleasant once again. I have to remember that the herd doesn't stress over such things such things. It is only I with my complex brain that has the ability to have such worries. I think the event is best summed up with the following poem...

A guinea pig was netted
A crack sound was made
A hind leg twitched
A life was lost
A cat was fed
The herd moved on