I now understand the hair ring issue better. Last night was my first experience with both the check and the removal process. You'd think I'd have done this before since I've always had males and have had chins just a bit longer than I've been a member here. It's never been a problem - until last night.
Miesha, my mosaic, was the hapless victim. He was doing the classic frequent cleaning motion as I was checking the cages before going to bed. This was supposed to be a quick once-over check for necessities as it was really late and I was exhausted. Hm, can't ignore that motion when you see it though, so I reached in to see if he needed me to check him out. He looked unhappier than usual. Kind of uncomfortable. You just know when they're out of sorts. And he was a bit swollen once I could finally glimpse beneath him. So I scooped him up, and sure enough he had something in the sheath. He doesn't like to be held and he did
not want me messing with him. Still, I was surprised he didn't bite me the way I expected to be bitten. He never pierced my skin even though he pinched me a couple times as if to say "I mean it. If you touch me there again I will
so hurt you!"
I understand why this would be a vet visit for some. It almost was for me. The ring was huge! Wishing I'd paused to get a picture. His penis was almost purple and looked a bit raw, and he would not hold still the whole time I was trying to move this thing off this sensitive area one-handed without pinching or pulling or otherwise hurting him. I'll be doing a check at least once a month from now on to try to catch rings before they become like that again.
In the end, he was bouncing about the bathroom like nothing had happened while I swept a chins-worth of fur off my cloths. Once I set him down, he cleaned himself thoroughly, then started moving about more normally, eyes clear and alert, free of the discomfort of that lump. He even had his usual "accident" (both my chins have no issues "using" my bathroom floor. "sigh" The swelling was gone by morning and to be honest, I don't think it was from the ring. I think it may have been from his attempts at self-removal. The ring was above the rub mark and would not slide off. I had to break it up, which took a bit of time with a wiggly chin in one hand and only my fingernails to work with. I'm exhausted. He may not mind being up until 2am but I could have really used the sleep. Wish me luck. Checking Sonic tonight.
