Herbert not Eating... :(

[Storm1974]

Woke up this morning to Herbert laying very still on top of his box. Straight away I knew something was wrong when I stroked him and he didn't move much, then I picked him up and he didn't race off like he usually does. When I picked him up out of the cage he felt a bit bloated and he hasn't eaten anything this morning not even his favourite foods, let alone any hay!

We made up some crushed up pellets in water to syringe into his mouth, but it was mostly water that we could suck up, though I did put some of the bits of the more solid bits into his mouth, but I know that's not enough!

We have to go out at 10, for something very important today and we will be out about four hours, so really don't know what to do and worry about leaving him! After syringing him, we put him back into his hay pile but he's just sitting there not eating!

We know that he has to regularly eat hay otherwise he will get gut stasis and he's not pooing as much as normal, but how do we gut the fibre into him if the syringe is mostly picking up water?!

Will get him to the vets first thing tomorrow if he hasn't improved. Just don't understand it, he was fine last night and when I came into the living room (where their cage is) around 3pm or so, he was stretched out comfortably on his box, with his foot stuck out behind him looking absolutely fine!

Just don't understand it! He's not sucking in his sides, no sneezing, clicking, or anything that would suggest a respiratory infection, but just looks sort of uncomfortable all the time like 'maybe' he can't toilet or something..... He barely drinks any water, so I always give them plenty of cucumber and wet down their food, and normally that seems to work fine.

 

[Storm1974]

Herbert is around a year and a half.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Acute bloat/gut issues can strike with frightening speed but it cannot wait until tomorrow for a vet to see him. He needs to see an emergency vet today/now.
He needs pain meds and gut meds straight away. Bloat and other gut issues are very painful and are an emergency.

You need to cut the tapered end off the syringe to get it to pick up. Pellet mush is more coarse than recovery feed so it doesn’t go through as easily. Please cut the end off and syringe feed him now.

Make sure you are weighing him daily to monitor his food intake and to keep his weight stable. Log the syringe feed quantities he takes - he needs a minimum of 40-60ml (40ml per day being the minimum spine for survival where no hay is being independently eaten) but aiming for 60ml is best.
He needs to be syringe fed little and often - around every two hours during the day depending on the amount he takes at each feed (and a very poorly piggy won’t take much at each feed). It’s about total quantity given in a 24 hour period so make sure he has a feed last thing at night and first thing in the morning to enable you to get some unbroken sleep.
Lack of poop is due to the bloat/gut issue and he likely hasn’t been eaten enough hay for a day or so already (poop output is 1-2 days behind food intake).

Thread 'Emergency and Crisis Care as well as Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment'

Mar 14, 2019

1 Statement
2 Emergency assessment and accessing vets
- How urgent is my guinea pig's problem?
- Finding an emergency vet
- Seeing a vet not familiar with guinea pigs (including lists of safe and dangerous medications)
3 First Aid care and easily available products
- General 'always have at home' stuff and comfort measures for very ill guinea pigs
- Improvising support feed; recovery formulas, probiotics, vitamin C and...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 4
• Forum: Emergency Information and Care

• 

Thread 'List Of Life And Death Out-of-hours Emergencies'

Oct 30, 2017

You need to contact and ideally see a vet at any time of the day or night as a potentially life or death emergency if your guinea pig has got these symptoms:

- heavy or heaving breathing problems, this can include a visible effort with your piggy’s breathing (usually the abdomen sucking in and out showing they are using their abdominal muscles to breath) and any kind of open mouth breathing, these are signs of respiratory distress

- seizures or loss of consciousness. For any fit which lasts more than around 2 minutes the vet should be called, also if your pig is...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 0
• Forum: Emergency Information and Care

• 

Thread 'Digestive Disorders: Not Eating - Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement)'

Oct 23, 2017

Overview
1 Not eating (anorexia) and the importance of syringe feeding fibre
2 Soft poos and runny diarrhea
3 Acute bloat (severe dysbiosis) - blockage - twisted gut - persistent milder bloating
4 GI stasis (no gut movement)


Severe runny diarrhea, bloat, blockage or a twisted gut, GI stasis and excessive salivating in guinea pigs that are not eating are absolute life and death emergencies that need to be seen ASAP by an out-of-hours vet at any time of the day or night or that should be seen by a vet as...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 2
• Forum: Wiebke's Home Care Support Guides

Thread 'All About Syringe Feeding and Medicating Guinea Pigs with Videos and Pictures'

Mar 9, 2022

Introduction
1 Choosing the right place to medicate/feed your piggy
2 Guinea pig whispering and asserting your authority
3 Recovery products and emergency improvisation
4 Syringe recommendations
5 Weight monitoring: your biggest ally
6 Weight loss guidelines and when to step in with feeding
7 Syringe feeding amounts/frequency advice
8 Practical medication and syringing tips
9 Medicating and feeding cooperative guinea pigs (videos)
10 Medicating and feeding uncooperative guinea pigs (hold pictures and tips)
11 The line between life and death
12...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 0
• Forum: Health & Illness

• 
• 

 

[Wiebke]

Woke up this morning to Herbert laying very still on top of his box. Straight away I knew something was wrong when I stroked him and he didn't move much, then I picked him up and he didn't race off like he usually does. When I picked him up out of the cage he felt a bit bloated and he hasn't eaten anything this morning not even his favourite foods, let alone any hay!

We made up some crushed up pellets in water to syringe into his mouth, but it was mostly water that we could suck up, though I did put some of the bits of the more solid bits into his mouth, but I know that's not enough!

We have to go out at 10, for something very important today and we will be out about four hours, so really don't know what to do and worry about leaving him! After syringing him, we put him back into his hay pile but he's just sitting there not eating!

We know that he has to regularly eat hay otherwise he will get gut stasis and he's not pooing as much as normal, but how do we gut the fibre into him if the syringe is mostly picking up water?!

Will get him to the vets first thing tomorrow if he hasn't improved. Just don't understand it, he was fine last night and when I came into the living room (where their cage is) around 3pm or so, he was stretched out comfortably on his box, with his foot stuck out behind him looking absolutely fine!

Just don't understand it! He's not sucking in his sides, no sneezing, clicking, or anything that would suggest a respiratory infection, but just looks sort of uncomfortable all the time like 'maybe' he can't toilet or something..... He barely drinks any water, so I always give them plenty of cucumber and wet down their food, and normally that seems to work fine.

Hi
BIG HUGS

I am ever so sorry about the bad timing.

Please brace yourself that Herbert is very, very ill and that his body may likely already have started to close down Once this happens, there is no way back. We cannot say whether that is from severe bloat (dysbiosis), blockage or a twisted gut or the bloating is secondary to acute heart failure. It can happen right out of the blue and without warning at any age. I have lost piggies of all ages either way myself. Not your fault but it is a devastating experience and even worse when it clashes with a family event you cannot pull out of.

Make sure that he is warm but not hot (a half-heated snugglesafe is best) and as comfy as you can make him; allow him the option to move away if he feels too warm.

Call an out-of-hours vet for further advice asap. You find them by googling for out-of-hours services for your area. If he is in severe pain, then please try to see a vet for mercy euthanasia on the way to the event.

Thread 'A Practical and Sensitive Guide to Dying, Terminal Illness and Euthanasia in Guinea Pigs'

Feb 20, 2020

Overview
1 Your mental health, sensitivities and work commitments
- Mental health and support resources
- Sensitivity aspects
- When work and other commitments clash
2 Life or death emergency – Can my piggy be saved?
- Contacting a vet clinic at all times and link to life and death emergencies list
- What to do if I cannot access vet care instantly?
- The need to save up for emergency vet access...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Wiebke's Home Care Support Guides

• 

My thoughts are with you, having been in comparable situations.

 

[Storm1974]

He was absolutely fine yesterday, was eating plenty of hay and pooing a lot. My OH just told me that he did have poos in his cage this morning when we cleaned them out.

I have just fed him some more solid mix of pellets, with my fingers and he did seem to get quite a bit and actually chew on it. But we will try the syringe with the cut off end as well.

I'm not sure what to do about the emergency vets, our vets cost enough as it is, but obviously we need to consider this if it means he will die without it!

We do have some pain killer tablets we got from the vet last visit we had, so have given him some of this and he is looking a lot more relaxed now and comfortable.

We have to go out soon, I just hope he will be ok until we get back..

 

[Storm1974]

Hi
BIG HUGS

I am ever so sorry about the bad timing.

Please brace yourself that Herbert is very, very ill and that his body may likely already have started to close down Once this happens, there is no way back. We cannot say whether that is from severe bloat (dysbiosis), blockage or a twisted gut or the bloating is secondary to acute heart failure. It can happen right out of the blue and without warning at any age. I have lost piggies of all ages either way myself. Not your fault but it is a devastating experience and even worse when it clashes with a family event you cannot pull out of.

Make sure that he is warm but not hot (a half-heated snugglesafe is best) and as comfy as you can make him; allow him the option to move away if he feels too warm.

Call an out-of-hours vet for further advice asap. You find them by googling for out-of-hours services for your area. If he is in severe pain, then please try to see a vet for mercy euthanasia on the way to the event.

Thread 'A Practical and Sensitive Guide to Dying, Terminal Illness and Euthanasia in Guinea Pigs'

Feb 20, 2020

Overview
1 Your mental health, sensitivities and work commitments
- Mental health and support resources
- Sensitivity aspects
- When work and other commitments clash
2 Life or death emergency – Can my piggy be saved?
- Contacting a vet clinic at all times and link to life and death emergencies list
- What to do if I cannot access vet care instantly?
- The need to save up for emergency vet access...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Wiebke's Home Care Support Guides

• 

My thoughts are with you, having been in comparable situations.

Oh no, we are certainly NOT prepared for that!!! He was absolutely fine last night and yesterday!!!

He can't be dying, we love him and he's all that Bramble has got, and Bramble has already lost his brother, back in February.

 

[Wiebke]

Oh no, we are certainly NOT prepared for that! He was absolutely fine last night and yesterday!

He can't be dying, we love him and he's all that Bramble has got, and Bramble has already lost his brother, back in February.

BIG HUGS

If Herbert is apathetic and in major discomfort, then he needs to see a vet now and you have to concentrate on his welfare and needs before your own desires and feelings in any life or death emergency; especially in a situation like yours. Life is not nice or fair. And sometimes you are not even given the grace of enough time to take it all when two clashing things happen at once..

You are going to have all time to not be OK and deal with the shock and everything afterwards when you are back home but right now you have to be strong, do what is necessary and just get through the day as best as you can. It is going to be one of the worst days of your life but you can get through it and let it all out afterwards. It is doable if you focus just on the task at hand and compartmentalise as best as you can.

I totally feel for you.

 

[Wiebke]

How is Herbert and how are you?

 

[weepweeps]

I hope he is ok

 

[Storm1974]

As soon as we got back in earlier today, we started syringe feeding him with the broken off syringe, as advised, and also started syringing some water into him, after the food, but he just won't take any of the food or water from the syringe willingly. He is just totally lethargic and doesn't want to eat/drink anything.
He doesn't seem in pain, but he's not moving from his hay tray. He just seems to have given up and we have tried feeding him every couple of hours or so, since we got back home (around 2pm), but he's not really taking much in at all from each syringe, it just seems to coagulate in his mouth and we don't think he is ingesting anywhere near enough.

Dear sweet Herbert. I actually think this must be my/our fault in some way because it's the second time in 7 months that a young (Bracken was only 6 months and Herbert is only around 1.5 years) piggie of ours has died in similar ways, and we've only owned three in total, since last August!

We will try to feed Herbert again before bed, it's going to be a horrible night I know.

Also we will make a vet appointment for him first thing in the morning!

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m so sorry. As he won’t take food and is lethargic then I afraid it sounds as if his system is shut down.
All you can do is be with him and keep him comfortable

Sending hugs

Thread 'A Practical and Sensitive Guide to Dying, Terminal Illness and Euthanasia in Guinea Pigs'

Feb 20, 2020

Overview
1 Your mental health, sensitivities and work commitments
- Mental health and support resources
- Sensitivity aspects
- When work and other commitments clash
2 Life or death emergency – Can my piggy be saved?
- Contacting a vet clinic at all times and link to life and death emergencies list
- What to do if I cannot access vet care instantly?
- The need to save up for emergency vet access...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Wiebke's Home Care Support Guides

• 

 

[CTWC]

I am so sorry to hear this Not much help but a few times on here they have said keeping their head slightly higher than their body if it's their time to go over the Rainbow Bridge helps them to feel more comfortable and just speaking to him so he knows you're with him

 

[Storm1974]

I am so sorry to hear this Not much help but a few times on here they have said keeping their head slightly higher than their body if it's their time to go over the Rainbow Bridge helps them to feel more comfortable and just speaking to him so he knows you're with him

Thanks for this. I know it's wrong, but I have spent almost my entire evening crying over him.

I will try just talking to him before I 'try' to go to bed, but it's hard without bursting into tears.

 

[Wiebke]

As soon as we got back in earlier today, we started syringe feeding him with the broken off syringe, as advised, and also started syringing some water into him, after the food, but he just won't take any of the food or water from the syringe willingly. He is just totally lethargic and doesn't want to eat/drink anything.
He doesn't seem in pain, but he's not moving from his hay tray. He just seems to have given up and we have tried feeding him every couple of hours or so, since we got back home (around 2pm), but he's not really taking much in at all from each syringe, it just seems to coagulate in his mouth and we don't think he is ingesting anywhere near enough.

Dear sweet Herbert. I actually think this must be my/our fault in some way because it's the second time in 7 months that a young (Bracken was only 6 months and Herbert is only around 1.5 years) piggie of ours has died in similar ways, and we've only owned three in total, since last August!

We will try to feed Herbert again before bed, it's going to be a horrible night I know.

Also we will make a vet appointment for him first thing in the morning!

I am ever so sorry but I do think that Herbert is sadly no longer able to process any food and is already well into his journey to the Rainbow Bridge. Please take the time to read the guide about what you can do for Herbert and for yourself in the coming hours.
It contains useful information and advice for a natural death at home, so you do not feel as helpless and have a bit more of an idea what to brace for in the very last stages when oxygen deprivation sets in. It can be somewhat upsetting if you have never witnessed it before and don't understand what is happening. Thankfully Herbert will be mostly out of it by then.

It is not your fault; it just happens. You cannot do anything about genetic dispositions - the most common cause in younger piggies - or the current rise of cancer in guinea pigs, not to mention other issues. As humans we are wired to reflect everything back onto ourselves, irrespective of whether it is relevant or not. Your feelings of guilt are in fact an expression of how deeply you care; you wouldn't have them if you didn't love and didn't bother about how well your piggies were looked after - they say in fact exactly the opposite of what you feel.

I lost two piggies of mine very unexpectedly last month; one who must have most likely had a fatal heart attack during her morning pellets, seeing how I found her lying dead in the cage, and the other, a sturdy, seemingly healthy 3 years old who didn't come out for dinner (but had still tucked into her afternoon grass as normal) and who was apathetic, unable to eat and obviously in organ failure. Maelona passed away in the very early hours of the morning not even 48 hours after Heilin. It was in the wake of this summer's heatwave but more likely helped on by the extreme high humidity since the room never went beyond 24 C. I lost another 3 years old over the turn of the year to a fast growing tumour of the thyroid which was soon starting to impact on the windpipe. Yes, it has been tough on me as well but I know that I have done my best, even if I had to keep telling myself that in recent weeks.

You can never choose when and what from your piggies die. You only ever have your pets on a loan that can be cancelled without warning at any time. Guinea pigs don't have a concept for an average life span. What they measure a good life by is happy todays. As long as you have given Herbert those, you haven't failed him in any respect and you haven't failed yourself either because that is the part that is in your control. The rest simply isn't. Losing two younger piggies in sucession and without warning is tough, though.

Please seek help from the free Blue Cross services tomorrow. It is OK to not be OK but there is help out here in the UK. Talking it out of yourself before the vicious 'guilt' mind loop that is characteristic for the onset of the grieving process can really take hold is the best thing you can do for yourself - and for Herbert's memory. You don't want to spoil that with your self-recriminiations. It wouldn't be fair on him, would it?
Pet bereavement and pet loss

Just be here for Herbert but do not overwhelm him with your own emotions; project those away from him and keep it gentle for him. Continue to keep him warm but not hot as his body is breaking down and failing blood circulation will make him feel cold. The warmth from a partially heated snugglesafe can make it easier for him to let go but also accept that he may feel too hot at some stage; it is something you have to manage as you go along.
If his breathing becomes laboured, please slightly lift his head with a soft rage so it is just above the chest in order to make breathing that little bit easier but unless that is the case, just keep him as comfy as possible as he is now.

There are also some practical tips on what you can do for yourself while sitting with a dying piggy in this link here:

Thread 'Pet Owners Anxiety - Practical Tips For Sufferers and For Supporters'

Mar 1, 2022

This article has been written for Guinea Pig Magazine issue 62 in May 2021 and is shared on this forum with the permission of the magazine. The copyright for this article remains with Guinea Pig Magazine.

Overview
1 What is Pet Owners Anxiety?
2 What can I practically do when I suffer from it?
3 What can I do when dealing with an anxiety sufferer?
4 Conclusion
5 Practical Resources


We are all often in equal measure excited and scared at taking care of a new pet or pet species, and frightened...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 3
• Forum: New and Wannabe Guinea Pig Owners Corner

• 
• 

And of course our human grieving guide , which can help you with spotting some of the strange, unexpected and rather nasty places the grieving process can take you - especially with an unexpected and traumatic death.

BIG HUGS

Thread 'Human Bereavement: Grieving, Processing and Support Links for Guinea Pig Owners and Their Children'

Jun 29, 2019

Overview
1 The grieving process
- Loss and the start of the grieving process
- Grieving with a terminally ill guinea pig
- Going through the grieving process
2 Ways of coping
- Expressing and processing your feelings
- Regaining your guinea pig
- Burial and marking the passing
- Dealing with special days
3 How do I tell my children?
- Finding local support lines and charities
-...

• Wiebke
• Replies: 3
• Forum: Wiebke's Home Care Support Guides

• 

 

[Storm1974]

Thank you for your kind reply Wiebke and I am also very sorry to hear of your sudden losses with your beloved piggies..

We went to bed last night as we were so tired and we knew that darling Herbert was not really aware of much and just seemed to want to be left alone, but also seemed calm and comfortable. We didn't have a heated pad sadly, but he was snuggled in his hay and we put a woolley hat over his body to keep him warm. Needless to say neither of us slept much during the night, and when I got up to check on him early this morning, he had passed looking peaceful, thank goodness!

His next door neighbour Bramble is pretty much his normal happy, indifferent self, but of course there is no rumbling coming from him (He used to rumble at Herbert through the bars almost all of his waking hours, when he wasn't eating or sleeping!). Still we know he will get lonely very soon, so despite our grief, we will have to quickly plan another friend/friends for him. He has never been on his own for more than a week because we can't stand the thought of him being on his own for any long period of time, it's just not right for Guinea Pigs to be alone.

Yes it has been very, very hard having to deal with the loss of two young (and much loved) piggies in just over 6 months and it has almost made us want to stop/ have a break from owning small animals (before that we had pet rats - owned around 30 from about 2005-2011, so had to deal with tonnes of premature deaths then too!), but that would mean that we would have to rehome Bramble, which would break our hearts and we just couldn't do that ever!

So we'll just have to keep going on and give them the best life we can for as long, or short that it is, and try to accept that if they die young that it is most likely nothing that we have done, just bad genetics or something.

We are going to so, so miss Herbert and his funny antics.

 

[Storm1974]

One thing I can think of with Herbert that I don't think was quite right, was that from the day we got him, his poos were really tiny compared to Brambles' and not banana shaped like his either. We at first, put it down to the fact that he had been eating a slightly different diet to Bramble and assumed that his poos would change in time, but they never did, they always stayed tiny and not quite shaped right.

Maybe that was something going wrong inside of him? I did put a post on about it once, but people told me that it was quite normal to have different shaped poos, but I'm not so sure.. He never ever did 'adult' sized ones.....

 

[CTWC]

I am so sorry for your loss popcorn happily over the Rainbow Bridge Herbert and look over Bramble

 

[Storm1974]

I am so sorry for your loss popcorn happily over the Rainbow Bridge Herbert and look over Bramble

Thank you CTWC, Herbert did love to popcorn, especially when he heard the hay bag being opened!

Thank you to everybody else who has replied so kindly, also. Today is going to be a very difficult day.

But as everybody knows, life does go on, despite our grief, so I have just created this post because we need to think about Bramble now, and we are getting a bit stressed out wondering what to do next.....

Thread 'Herbert Died.....What next for Bramble?'

Monday at 9:12 AM

Herbert (Brambles' next door neighbour) sadly died the early hours of this morning, and it has left poor Bramble all on his own, yet again, after losing his brother seven months earlier. Then we got Herbert and they didn't get on, but happily lived side by side (Despite Brambles' almost constant rumbling at him through the bars!) until yesterday.

When Brambles' brother died, I didn't waste any time looking for another friend for Bramble, despite our deep grief, because we couldn't bare Bramble being on his own. So it was just one whole week until Herbert moved in and Bramble...

• Storm1974
• Replies: 36
• Forum: Housing, Enrichment and Seasonal care

• 

 

[Storm1974]

Just another thing I forgot to add, there is a rescue I follow on FB (Mandys Guinea Pig Rescue) who has plenty of piggies always up for adoption, and we also got Herbert from this rescue, though he was being fostered local to us. This rescue is about 40 miles from us, and they always ask that regarding bonding, you take on the pig/s, have them live next door to your existing pig for a few weeks before you try to bond them. So need to take that into account too.

 

[CTWC]

Yes I'm no expert at all I'm trying to find the boar bonding guide to attach but the main things are introducing on completely neutral territory and for boars it's a one day thing it either works or doesn't no separation then try again. You are being so selfless thinking of Bramble so quickly.

 

[CTWC]

https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/hello.209065/post-2933844

 

[Storm1974]

Yes I'm no expert at all I'm trying to find the boar bonding guide to attach but the main things are introducing on completely neutral territory and for boars it's a one day thing it either works or doesn't no separation then try again. You are being so selfless thinking of Bramble so quickly.

Yes it is very tricky with boars.

We have to be selfless, because Bramble is now a lone pig. If we had at least ONE other, we would wait a while.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for your kind reply Wiebke and I am also very sorry to hear of your sudden losses with your beloved piggies..

We went to bed last night as we were so tired and we knew that darling Herbert was not really aware of much and just seemed to want to be left alone, but also seemed calm and comfortable. We didn't have a heated pad sadly, but he was snuggled in his hay and we put a woolley hat over his body to keep him warm. Needless to say neither of us slept much during the night, and when I got up to check on him early this morning, he had passed looking peaceful, thank goodness!

His next door neighbour Bramble is pretty much his normal happy, indifferent self, but of course there is no rumbling coming from him (He used to rumble at Herbert through the bars almost all of his waking hours, when he wasn't eating or sleeping!). Still we know he will get lonely very soon, so despite our grief, we will have to quickly plan another friend/friends for him. He has never been on his own for more than a week because we can't stand the thought of him being on his own for any long period of time, it's just not right for Guinea Pigs to be alone.

Yes it has been very, very hard having to deal with the loss of two young (and much loved) piggies in just over 6 months and it has almost made us want to stop/ have a break from owning small animals (before that we had pet rats - owned around 30 from about 2005-2011, so had to deal with tonnes of premature deaths then too!), but that would mean that we would have to rehome Bramble, which would break our hearts and we just couldn't do that ever!

So we'll just have to keep going on and give them the best life we can for as long, or short that it is, and try to accept that if they die young that it is most likely nothing that we have done, just bad genetics or something.

We are going to so, so miss Herbert and his funny antics.

HUGS

The young deaths are always hardest to deal with because as humans we see the lost years. But it doesn't automatically equal with doing something wrong. Organs do not fail just like that in normal good care in piggies who only have just turned adult, there is something more in play that you cannot control or anticipate/prevent.

Having to warn a forum member that their piggy is likely dying is always upsetting for me, too. Especially in such a stressful situation. But there are times when action has to come before any diplomacy. It is ultimately much more damaging to know that you have failed your piggy in the most fundamental of ways by ignoring the warning signs than being told to snap out of your shock and denial and to make any necessary dispositions asap.

Bramble may have lost his sparkle but as long as he is eating and drinking, he will hold for 1-4 weeks or even over 6 weeks in the case of neutering. Give him a few days to do his own grieving. Instant companionship is only needed when the companion is giving up on life themselves and then after an emergency vet trip to check for an underlying health issue. Acute pining is actually rare. Often you can trigger the eating reflex with a syringe feed.

Take good care of yourselves and give yourselves time to rest and digest both the shock and the loss. It's OK to be upset and to have all the suppressed feelings from yesterday come up over the coming days, so you can let them out. They need their space now that the crisis is over.

PS: Try to give your guinea pigs the happy todays in good care they want and live with them in the day. As long as they get those, you are not failing them however long or short the actual time. Old widowed adoptee Bryn has taught me that; he packed a life time's worth of fun and games into the one year he had with my old Tribe ladies and me until old age caught up with him, aged 6 years. It is never the length of time but the quality of life that counts. I bless every piggy of mine that does live a good life span because I know I that can never win them all and that sooner or later there will be a bad run again - that is simply down to playing long term averages. But I also know that that particular pain is exclusively an owner's pain... and part of the price we pay for all the joy and richness pets add to our own lives.

 

[Wiebke]

One thing I can think of with Herbert that I don't think was quite right, was that from the day we got him, his poos were really tiny compared to Brambles' and not banana shaped like his either. We at first, put it down to the fact that he had been eating a slightly different diet to Bramble and assumed that his poos would change in time, but they never did, they always stayed tiny and not quite shaped right.

Maybe that was something going wrong inside of him? I did put a post on about it once, but people told me that it was quite normal to have different shaped poos, but I'm not so sure.. He never ever did 'adult' sized ones.....

Please be aware that your intense soul-searching is still your automatic guilt reflex in full action and try not to get hung up on unanswerable 'what ifs' just so your urge to find fault with yourself can get its teeth into something and have a dance with you.

HUGS

 

[weepweeps]

Thank you for your kind reply Wiebke and I am also very sorry to hear of your sudden losses with your beloved piggies..

We went to bed last night as we were so tired and we knew that darling Herbert was not really aware of much and just seemed to want to be left alone, but also seemed calm and comfortable. We didn't have a heated pad sadly, but he was snuggled in his hay and we put a woolley hat over his body to keep him warm. Needless to say neither of us slept much during the night, and when I got up to check on him early this morning, he had passed looking peaceful, thank goodness!

His next door neighbour Bramble is pretty much his normal happy, indifferent self, but of course there is no rumbling coming from him (He used to rumble at Herbert through the bars almost all of his waking hours, when he wasn't eating or sleeping!). Still we know he will get lonely very soon, so despite our grief, we will have to quickly plan another friend/friends for him. He has never been on his own for more than a week because we can't stand the thought of him being on his own for any long period of time, it's just not right for Guinea Pigs to be alone.

Yes it has been very, very hard having to deal with the loss of two young (and much loved) piggies in just over 6 months and it has almost made us want to stop/ have a break from owning small animals (before that we had pet rats - owned around 30 from about 2005-2011, so had to deal with tonnes of premature deaths then too!), but that would mean that we would have to rehome Bramble, which would break our hearts and we just couldn't do that ever!

So we'll just have to keep going on and give them the best life we can for as long, or short that it is, and try to accept that if they die young that it is most likely nothing that we have done, just bad genetics or something.

We are going to so, so miss Herbert and his funny antics.

I’m so sorry. Sweet dreams Herbert.

 

[MnJ]

I am so sorry for your loss