FKSPCA:  RESCUE TAILS / “A BOX OF GUINEA PIGS”

BY TAMMY FOX-ROYER
Executive Director Florida Keys SPCA

On January 17th, the Florida Keys SPCA received a call from an employee at a local bank near a small pocket park. She had found a box of “hamsters” and needed someone to pick them up.

Luckily, one of our volunteers lived near the park, so we asked her to immediately pick up the box to keep the animals safe until an Animal Control Officer could get there. Without hesitation she went outside to get the box and to her surprise it was a box of guinea pigs!  Unfortunately, in the few minutes it took her to walk to the park, the guinea pigs had knocked the box over and were scattered around the park.  Our volunteer counted about six of them, a couple of adults and a few babies.  A staff member arrived at the park and helped the volunteer catch four of the animals but a few more were too skittish to be caught by hand.

A live trap was placed out near the area where they were hiding out. They checked the trap every 30 minutes, hoping to catch the last two and within a couple of hours, they were successful.  All six guinea pigs were safe and sound!

As the team was packing up all the supplies, they heard another squeak coming from the bushes. They looked around and spotted another guinea pig, so they set the trap back up and waited for another hour.  With no luck catching the last one, they left the trap set up and the volunteer checked on it throughout the night. By early next morning, the 7th guinea pig was successfully in the trap.

With the help of many different people we were able to save seven Guinea pigs – three adults and four babies.  And all of them have found great homes thanks to Guinea Pig Rescue.

The lesson here is simple:  never, ever abandon your pets.  It is so sad that the owners felt they had no other choice but to leave them in a box in a park. The shelter takes in all animals — no questions asked. We even have an overnight night drop off where a pet can be safely placed 24 hours a day.

If you cannot care for your pet for any reason whatsoever, please contact us at the FKSPCA by emailing me ([email protected]) or calling our animal control hotline (305-304-5964).

[livemarket market_name="KONK Life LiveMarket" limit=3 category=“” show_signup=0 show_more=0]