Introducing A New Piggie After The Death Of Another

[Kimberleypiggie]

Hello All,

Last February I brought two male baby piggies, Pippin and Oscar.

Pippin, sadly, passed away a couple of days ago leaving little Oscar by himself. His death did shock us all as we did not notice him showing any signs of illness, as new guinea owners we were super careful and checked everything that the piggies had contact with.

Since Oscar is only 4 months old, we've been advised to introduce a new piggy around the same age as him, otherwise he'd be lonely.

Any advice/tips on this sensitive matter? What's the best way to introduce them to each other?

This evening I've set up Oscar's old cage (next to Oscar's new cage) ready for the new piggy and I've noticed he has decided to relax on the side of the new cage that is adjacent to the old, as opposed to the other side.
This makes me think he is aware of a potential new friend?
When Pippin passed away, Oscar did not sleep in his usual spot, instead he's been sleeping on the side of the cage that is closest to my bedroom door (the side that is currently not adjacent to the old cage). Since the cage is right outside my door, I thought it was his way of feeling some sort of comfort by being close to us. Now that he's moved to the other side where the other cage has been set up, could he simply be missing that cage since it's his old one?

Thank you in advance

 

[Veggies Galore]

I'm so sorry you have lost Pippin Here is a thread you will find useful.

Looking After A Bereaved Guinea Pig

When the time is right for you, I strongly recommend you contact a rescue to help you find a suitable companion for Oscar

 

[LizzyHoy]

I got a guinea pig called Denise as a friend for my older pig Toni. When Toni passed away Denise was only about 6 months and she seemed to miss having a friend around. We bought a new guinea and kept them apart at first, then introduced them on neutral territory (in the bath!). Denise was the submissive one with Toni but when Shirley came along she seemed to realise she was much bigger and took on the dominant role. As soon as Shirley got big enough they swapped - I think Denise prefers being submissive and Shirley is very bossy!

The main thing with Denise was that she seemed sad without Toni but cheered up once a new guinea pig came along - I think she was missing the company rather than Toni herself.

I would advise you to make sure you are ready for a new pig yourself, when my first guinea pig died I got a new one soon after but I was never as close to him because what I really wanted was my old guinea back (I wish it hadn't been that way but unfortunately it turned out like that). On the other hand I didn't feel that way when I got a new guinea after Toni died, perhaps because I'm older now or because I also had another guinea who was still around so the transition was smoother for me.