I'm thinking about getting a soft toy to give Little Bear after Bruin's inevitable euthanasia in the coming days (see herehttps://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/here-for-chf-pigs-congestive-heart-failure.185939/)- how similar to Bruin (huge brown pig) does this toy have to be? I can't find an actual brown guinea pig plushie. I was thinking about a brown bear or horse or anything, but I'm not sure if Little Bear is going to decide to chew on the toy or what's safe.
I'll also be moving the cage (a pet store 2ftx4ft cage) next to my c and c cage with my other pair. They won't actually be able to see each other for now - will the smells and sounds of other guinea pig suffice, or is that more like torture since he can't see and interact with them? Little Bear is likely a very old pig with cataracts, so finding a partner for him now would be useless since he'll probably be dying soon too. My existing pair, Chico and Amigo, bicker a ton and with Little Bear being so timid and half their size, I don't want anything happening to him.
Hi!
Much more crucial than the shape or feel of the toy is that it should ideally carry Bruin's scent and be already in use when he passes. Keep in mind that guinea pigs have a much finer sense of smell and that new toys often don't smell appealing to them.
It would still be good if you moved Little Bear closer for more of a feel of company and for more stimulation. How old is Little Bear?
I have successfully introduced a 5 year old cantankerous widow into my then cataract group. As soon as she realised that the other two sows had the same problem as her, she was happily fitting in and became a devoted sidekick to Tegyd, who she was initially totally afraid of. Mali, while the oldest of the three rambunctious blind sows, lived to around her 8th birthday with the renewed zest of life and got on really well with seeing 3 years Big Iola, who joined her and gentle husboar Terfel in their last months. She even played arthritic waddle-zoomies and 'dodgems' with Iola, intentionally ploughing into her at the end of a run, the way youngsters do. Good thing Mali couldn't see the funny looks she got from Iola!
You can find a video of blind Mali 'zooming' in this guide here:
'Popcorning' and 'zooming' - joy and exuberance (videos)
The oldest bereaved depressed piggy I have ever bonded was Calli, aged 8; she and fellow diva peru Tegan (the little baby in my avatar) slowly made friends through the bars and eventually moved in with each other. Calli lived to celebrate her 9th birthday thanks to a renewed zest for life. Tegan went on to live with other bereaved sows she knew from the big childhood group until shortly before her own 8th birthday a year ago.
And then there was 5 years old Bryn Oscar the name deaf, who came here to live with my then first generation of old and creaky sows. According to the rescue, he was a sad gent with now interest in him whatsoever due to his age. What I came home with was a Casanova meets Houdini. Bryn lived the last year of his life in the fast lane until age and arthritis caught up with him big time. I can never think of him but without a big grin on my face; he packed a life time's worth of fun and games in this year with me - and when he passed away, it also felt like he had been here for a life time...
Could you get into contact with either Texas Rustlers Guinea Pig Rescue in the Dallas/Ft Worth area or Second Chance Guinea Pig Rescue in the San Antonia area? Texas is unfortunately such a big state but there are very few decent piggy rescues.
