u/FunctionUpbeat7126

I came home from work at 11pm on tuesday to find my elderly guinea pig with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy foaming at the mouth, gagging and spitting up. I tried to give her heart medication but she regurgitated everything back up. I immediately loaded her into her carrier and drove 45 minutes to the emergency room.

She was taken back and monitored while I waited to see the vet. At 4am, I finally got into a room and they told me they put her on some medication to ease her symptoms but to take her home for the night and come back in the morning when the guinea pig specialist was in. I made an appointment, drove home, got changed and went to work exhausted.

After work, I came home, she looked horrible. She was skinny, frail, and her fur was all scraggly dull. Her lips were blue. I rushed out so fast and got her to the vet, who caught me in the parking lot, in my car to take her back and help her. I knew in the back of my mind what was probably going to happen.

When I went in, they told me that even if they did all the tests, none of the outcomes were treatable. I looked at her and just knew she needed to rest. I stayed in the room with her as she went. I’m just heartbroken.

Her cage mate (her daughter) hasn’t squeaked, she always had more boundaries than my elderly girl but now it’s just us two. I don’t know how she will do without her mom. I haven’t stopped crying.

Any words of wisdom are much appreciated. She was my first adult pet, I live alone so it was really just the three of us. Now it’s just two.

Walking out of the vet with an empty carrier was absolutely one of the worst moments of my life.

Just found this Reddit and I’m hoping this is the right place to share.

I’ve been a dancer my whole life. I was lucky enough to find a full timed salary position working in dance education. The hours are good, the pay is pretty decent. I live in an area that has a ton of dance jobs that rehearse after working hours so I’ve been able to get my fill artistically after work. Recently, I was reached out to by a HUGE company in my area. This is by far the biggest opportunity I’ve ever had and THEY contacted me without an audition. Someone must have seen me in another show and hunted down my contact information, which is a huge honor for me. The issue is, since this performance company is so big, they rehearse during the day and pay 40 hrs a week.

I asked my job if I could work half days for the 4 week rehearsal period and they SAID NO. My entire team is filled with other dancers and actors so I truly thought they’d say yes. They told me I’d have to quit. I don’t want to quit, and once the rehearsal period was over, I’d have my days free again. I really do enjoy the company I work for but I trained my whole life for opportunities like this and now I have to choose.

Part of me thinks it’s time to quit and run. Apply to work on tours and cruise ships, I’ve saved up enough money. But then part of me wonders if it’s worth staying for the stability. I’m 25F. I feel like I will live with regret if I don’t quit my day job. I just thought they’d work with me for the 4 weeks. I’ve been with them for 3 years, I never call out, I’m always at work early, I hold a lot together for them. I’m really really shocked. I came up with multiple plans on how I’d complete my work working half days. Is it time to move on? Do I just run like hell and fight to be a dancer? This economy terrifies me. I have a pretty good savings but it’s a very hard decision.