helen105281
Senior Guinea Pig
Sadly we had to say goodbye to Ellie earlier this week after her back legs suddenly stopped working and she did not respond to various different treatments. She has left behind her beloved Barley who she had lived with for a couple of years.
Ellie came to live with us as a baby in 2011 as a friend for our diva pig Terk. She would not bond with the other pigs in the herd and so we decided that a baby sow was our best bet. They bonded really well and were together until we lost Terk at the age of 7. Ellie would not bond with any of the other pigs so we took her dating at Animal Lifeline in Surrey and we came home with 1 year old Barley. They were besotted with each other and Barley loved sitting and grooming her. After a while there was a fall out in one of the herds and Star and Jessica joined them. Sadly we lost Jess after a few months but Star was with them until we had say goodbye to her earlier in 2015 due to renal failure. Star used to confuse Ellie a lot as Star was very bright and Ellie not so much. She used to get in the front of the pigloo and go straight out the back and Ellie really couldn't work out where she had gone. We adopted Maud and Robyn a few weeks ago to live with Ellie and Barley but had not been able to bond them yet due to Maud needing longer to settle. This had meant that Ellie and Barley's cage size had had to reduce but she took this in her stride and seemed happy as long as she still had Barley (it was the size they had shared as a pair previously anyway). When her legs went she showed us what a fighter she was and would not give up, and it was this that made our decision so hard. She was also a heart pig and was on the highest Benazepril dose of all our pigs and occasionally needed diuretics too.
Here are a selection of photos, starting with her and Terk (plus Terk on her own - as the rest are in the depths of Photobucket), then with Star and Barley and finally with Barley including one from the last few days where he was looking after her.
Night night Boo Boo, we love you so much and so does Barley. Go cause chaos with Terk at the bridge, am sure she was waiting for you.
Ellie came to live with us as a baby in 2011 as a friend for our diva pig Terk. She would not bond with the other pigs in the herd and so we decided that a baby sow was our best bet. They bonded really well and were together until we lost Terk at the age of 7. Ellie would not bond with any of the other pigs so we took her dating at Animal Lifeline in Surrey and we came home with 1 year old Barley. They were besotted with each other and Barley loved sitting and grooming her. After a while there was a fall out in one of the herds and Star and Jessica joined them. Sadly we lost Jess after a few months but Star was with them until we had say goodbye to her earlier in 2015 due to renal failure. Star used to confuse Ellie a lot as Star was very bright and Ellie not so much. She used to get in the front of the pigloo and go straight out the back and Ellie really couldn't work out where she had gone. We adopted Maud and Robyn a few weeks ago to live with Ellie and Barley but had not been able to bond them yet due to Maud needing longer to settle. This had meant that Ellie and Barley's cage size had had to reduce but she took this in her stride and seemed happy as long as she still had Barley (it was the size they had shared as a pair previously anyway). When her legs went she showed us what a fighter she was and would not give up, and it was this that made our decision so hard. She was also a heart pig and was on the highest Benazepril dose of all our pigs and occasionally needed diuretics too.
Here are a selection of photos, starting with her and Terk (plus Terk on her own - as the rest are in the depths of Photobucket), then with Star and Barley and finally with Barley including one from the last few days where he was looking after her.
Night night Boo Boo, we love you so much and so does Barley. Go cause chaos with Terk at the bridge, am sure she was waiting for you.
