Unfortuntely today I lost my eldest piggie, he had seemed to grow really ill from what I suspected what pneumonia today was the day of his tests at the vets but he didn't make it
I'm heart broken and don't think I could be strong enough to get a new cage mate for my other piggie.
The problem is I go on holiday in one month, I have a friend who pops in and normally feeds them, gives them lap time and attention while I'm away but they're normally together, now he's alone I'm worried that this hour of lap time won't be enough to keep him happy.
Can anyone advise anything or think he will be okay, I've looked at boarding but the only ones near me I really don't trust the reviews and couldn't trust he would be looked after.
Hi! I am very sorry for your loss!
It is difficult to consider getting a new companion for your remaining guinea pigs because cavy and human needs are never as far apart from each other as after the loss of a piggy. However, companionship is much more vital for guinea pigs than for humans.
You are not getting a new guinea pig for yourself, but for your bereaved piggy. You do not have to bond with it, love it or have any feelings whatsoever about it until you are ready; humans grieve for longer than guinea pigs although either species doesn't grieve any less deeply. Any relationship with a new piggy will come in its own time once you are ready for it. It is going to be very different.
With you going on holiday, it would be REALLY good if your surviving piggy had company and was in a stable relationship by the time you left because with the loss of the companion and then the loss of you (as you cannot tell it that you will be back) it is going to be a very sad time. You can see that time until you come back as your time out and see a new piggy in the light of a boarder until your head and heart are clearer and you have gained a little distance.
I have been through acute pet bereavement myself - and was faced with urgent need to find a friend for an acutely pining piggy ASAP, whatever my own feelings were! Seeing Dizzy turning her face away from the world and refusing to eat or to look at me after Minx' death was tough.
I was not able to have any feelings whatsoever for the new arrival that Dizzy chose at a rescue a little distance away for several weeks, apart from a certain amount of anger that Dizzy had to fall head over heels for a similarly marked and coloured piggy...
However, Llewi did kind of sneak into my heart without my really noticing and later became the patriarch of my big group I built up around him once I had come to terms with the loss of my Minx, who even 10 years after her passing is still my most special piggy ever.
Seeing what an enormous difference a new companion for Dizzy has made, I have never rued putting my own needs and feelings behind my pets' and would do/have actually done the same again and again. \
There are times when my piggies give me love and strength; but there are times when I have to give them love and strength back - and sometimes that is at a time when we are both in need!
If you can, try to see whether you can get to one of our recommended rescues. Some will board piggies and use the time to bond them with a new friend, but of course not all. It is however worth enquiring!
Looking After A Bereaved Guinea Pig
Recommended UK rescues:
Recommended Guinea Pig Rescues
REcommended rescues in some other countries:
Guinea Lynx :: Rescue Organizations
