Pudge e-mail update: June 14, 2005
----- Original Message -----
From: "Hamster" Dan
To: <pudge@phuzzypets.com>
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2005 9:40 PM
Subject: pudge?
i was looking for a t-shirt on the internet that said "isnt life
great
being a hamster" cuz everyone calls me "hamster dan" and have recently
just started referring to me as "hamster" lol, and i some how
stumbled
across yer website, and i read threw all of it, and i was wondering....
what ever happened to pudge?, it never really said, and the last
update
it looks was about a year ago
--Hamster
aka "Dan"
----- Original Message -----
From: <pudge@phuzzypets.com>
To: "Hamster" Dan
Sent: Tuesday, June 14, 2005 2:34 AM
Subject: Re: pudge?
Hamster Dan!
Thanks for your interest in Pudge, it means a lot to me!
...I hardly check this e-mail account, today I coincidently signed in to
clean out all the junk mail that usually accumulates, part of my monthly
routine. The site itself however seems to get a lot of hits thanks
to
Google, but there is no indication that anyone cares. Sufficed to
say, I
don't have a lot of motivation to update the site, especially with the way
things turned out. I wrote a eulogy for Pudge on a plane trip home
from
Chicago about 5 months ago, but I haven't added it to the site yet.
Perhaps I will post this email...
As for Pudge, things did not work out the way I had hoped when I began
the website. I had compiled a ton of documentation for Pudge's
treatments:
laboratory studies, calculations for dividing Phycotene dosages for his
size
and metabolism, the people who helped, what medicines were
administered
in conjunction with the herbal treatment; I had planned to place a
resource
guide to the website pending its success. But eventually, with no
progress
in the treatment's effectiveness on Pudge's second tumor, I could no
longer
justify staking Pudge's declining health on some hopeful lab reports found
on
the internet. I eventually gave in and took Pudge in to the vet for
a secondary
surgery. The surgery went well, similar to his first surgery which
had removed
the initial tumor, this time however he had lost his appetite. In a
follow up
Pudge was administered IV fluids to counteract dehydration and it
was hoped
he would perk up. That night Pudge's condition worsened and he
passed away.
It seems like a lot of effort and money to spend for a hamster, but I was
hoping
it would be for a greater good, if not just for other hamsters but perhaps
to
inspire humans fighting cancer as well.
I have to thank my veterinarian who ushered the whole process, she
was
cautious about the herbal treatment, (and for good reason), but went
along
with it anyway. It is confiding that the vet techs at the clinic still
remember Pudge
as they reminisce that he was a very well behaved hamster who was very
easy
to work with. The procedures Pudge underwent must have been
memorable
as the surgeries were probably a option not often sought for such a small
critter.
One of the big reasons to not update the site is that the entire
process had
cost approximately $1,300 in vet bills, (I think I had single handedly
kept my vet
in business for that period of time); an amount of money no one would
realistically
spend on treatment for a hamster: which equates to a non-typical
model which
no one would follow. I was hoping the herbal treatments would be a
breakthrough
in veterinary science as well as an affordable alternative to all who
encountered
this ailment. What good came from this experience? I am not
sure. I don't want
to discredit the herbal companies who's studies I have also become
skeptical
about, (for all I know, the unique conditions they had set in their lab
for Phycotene
research could have worked, I can not be sure). Pudge's experiences only serves
as an
extraordinary story. I debated if this is a story worth concluding, at one point
it seemed as though his struggle is
the heart of the story...but I understand people
need closure, and perhaps its time
to conclude it so as not to leave people wondering
what had happened.
I'm sorry to bog you down with such a huge e-mail response, but all of
these
thoughts were en-queue in my mind since Pudge passed away. The
previously
mentioned eulogy for Pudge is slightly different than this message but it
covers
the same topics. All in all, life goes on. Since Pudge's
passing we have adopted
another hamster from the local humane society; 'Biscuit, is
now making good
use of a 'space' themed habitrail once used by Pudge.
Hamsters
are indeed wonderful creatures with personalities beyond their
size...
I enjoyed
hearing about you and your friends, and as your e-mail indicates your
appreciation for
your nickname, having the nickname Hamster is indeed a
characteristic compliment! :)
-Brandon
----- Original Message -----
From: ""Hamster" Dan
To: <pudge@phuzzypets.com>
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2005 9:40 PM
Subject: Re: pudge?
lol, that was fast, i got a reply in just less than half a day after
e-mailing u, that's quite a coincidence. Sorry about the way things
turned out. That's nice that u were willing to spend that much money
on
pudge. And yes i think it would be a story worth concluding.
I've always wanted a hamster. I've always had these visions of
buying
those tube things for the hamster to play in and connect a bunch and
hanging it from the ceiling.....im not sure how that would work, but it
sounds really cool to me. lol
I don't mind the long e-mail, i enjoyed reading it all.
--Hamster Dan
Contact Us: pudge@phuzzypets.com