Lost a family member tonight (ANIMAL)

[MizzouRah]

My kids Guinea pig passed away tonight.

My wife had him outside letting him gourge himself with grass and went inside for a few mins.. when she came outside our dog had jumped the little fence we had made for him and had carried him off to play with him. I'm guessing the trauma killed him :( . My wife is really taking it bad as our dog has never jumped that fence before - of course someone is always outside with the guinea pig.

The kids came home from softball and I had to tell them both. What a terrible feeling to see them crying like that. The little guy was so much fun to watch eat various vegetation and I'm proud of my two girls taking care of him so well.

We're taking them to the pet store tomorrow to pick out a new member of the family. Adriann now rests in the back yard right in the spot where he used to chop on grass.

[Passacaglia]

Sucks to hear. I hope the kids don't blame the dog.

[MizzouRah]

Sucks to hear. I hope the kids don't blame the dog.

I almost lost it on the dog and I know he didn't mean it. When I let him back outside he was looking all over for his "friend". The kids aren't mad at the dog one bit though. Good for them.

My 11 year old daughter did want to be part of the burial, which I don't blame her one bit. My 5 year old wanted to see him and say a last "goodbye". Go figure.

[Celeval]

Sorry to hear it... hope all goes well tomorrow, it can be tough replacing a pet like that.

[MizzouRah]

Sorry to hear it... hope all goes well tomorrow, it can be tough replacing a pet like that.

Ya, I hope I'm not wrong thinking it's best to replace him quickly.

We took them to the pet store last week and the guinea pig there just had babies.

[Lathum]

Sorry to hear, it sounds like the dog is just as sad as the rest of you are

[sterlingice]

:(

SI

[MizzouRah]

Appreciate the replies. I almost grabbed a handful of carrots this morning to greet the little fella. :(

[CleBrownsfan]

Sorry to hear about that... the same exact thing happend to Stanley when I was a kid :(

[MikeVic]

I had three guinea pigs once and I loved them. They had distinct personalities. Sorry to hear about yours passing.

[rowech]

If it helps, my dad actually killed my dog growing up. Backed up over it with the car and the dog didn't hear the car because the neighbors next-door were having someon cut down trees.

[oliegirl]

We had 2 Japanese Dwarf Hamsters...one night last week the cat(s) knocked the cage over - we found one hiding in a cabinet, but the other one was missing for days and presumed dead. Sure enough, when I was vaccuming over the weekend, I picked up the dog bed (giant pillow thingy) and there was the little hamster body...it was disgusting, had been laying there for more than a day or two and the pillow had been hiding the smell. Not sure if he died from suffocation under the pillow or if he was played with and then "hidden" by either the dog or the cats. Anthony took it well, I think because the other one survived.

[flere-imsaho]

Sorry to hear about your sad news.

My brother had a guinea pig when we were growing up. Lived much longer than we expected, so he died while my brother was away at college. My mother found him (the guinea pig) one morning slumped over his food dish, which was a fitting way to go as he was a little porker.

[MizzouRah]

Again, thanks for the kind replies.

The kids are on their way to pick out a new one. :)

[bbor]

I have owned Guinea pigs for a while now.They are great little pets.Last fall i had 2 passaway on me in a matter of weeks.I'm not ashamed to say that a tear came to my eyes when they passed.

I now have 2 new guineas and look forward to sharing the next 6 or 7 years with them.

[SackAttack]

Let me join in with my condolences.

Am I the only one, though, who read that topic title and thought "somebody got mauled by a bear"?

[MizzouRah]

:)

We have a new addition, should be picking him up next week. The kids are so happy.

[BYU 14]

Sorry to hear about that, Pets can really become part of a Family and I know I have taken the loss of Pets real hard in the past......I definitely feel for you.

[molson]

I had one of those wacky little bastards as a kid. He used to squeal like crazy when my father came down the stairs in the morning until he fed him. He was the one that fed him, and he wouldn't squeal like that for anyone else coming down the stairs - he knew the difference between 4 or 5 people, somehow.

[JediKooter]

Sorry to hear about your guinea pig. I uses to have a couple of them, Elvis and Priscilla. Elvis died from a respatory infection and Priscilla lived to a ripe old age of 8.

Again, my condolences.

[MikeVic]

I had one of those wacky little bastards as a kid. He used to squeal like crazy when my father came down the stairs in the morning until he fed him. He was the one that fed him, and he wouldn't squeal like that for anyone else coming down the stairs - he knew the difference between 4 or 5 people, somehow.

I loved that. At around 5pm each day, we could hear the squealing from upstairs. They made sure we didn't forget to feed them.

[Synovia]

Ya, I hope I'm not wrong thinking it's best to replace him quickly.

We took them to the pet store last week and the guinea pig there just had babies.


PLEASE dont buy pet store pigs. Theres WAY too many pigs out there at this point. Go down to your local shelter and grab some. They'll generally be spayed/nuetered already, and in much better shape.

[MikeVic]

PLEASE dont buy pet store pigs. Theres WAY too many pigs out there at this point. Go down to your local shelter and grab some. They'll generally be spayed/nuetered already, and in much better shape.

I got mine from a farm. And it turned out one was pregnant, so we got three for the price of two. ;)

[TonyR]

Sorry about the family loss. We gave my mother-in-law my wife's cat to take care of while we moved from Laredo to Falfurrias to Kingsville (in a 3 month span) and I miss having a pet around the house. And he's staying there on a more permanent basis.
How are Guinea Pigs around kids and other pets? (i.e. cats)
Not trying to thread jack btw.

[Karlifornia]

Do all guinea pigs make that bleating sound constantly, or was it just the one I had when I was younger?

If so, that gets added to "The List of Animals I Will Never Let My Children Own"


The List Of Animals I Will Never Let My Children Own
Birds (any species)
Fish (water and filter maintenance alone are annoying)
Spiders (nope, sorry...not a fan)
Guinea Pig (pending on answer in thread)


Sorry your kids suffered the loss...I'm sure they'll be over it in no time...

[MikeVic]

They make a cute squealing noise when they're hungry. :D

[bbor]

They make a cute squealing noise when they're hungry. :D


Which is always:D

My pigs don't squeal until they hear teh fridge being opened.

[Synovia]

Do all guinea pigs make that bleating sound constantly, or was it just the one I had when I was younger?

If so, that gets added to "The List of Animals I Will Never Let My Children Own"


The List Of Animals I Will Never Let My Children Own
Birds (any species)
Fish (water and filter maintenance alone are annoying)
Spiders (nope, sorry...not a fan)
Guinea Pig (pending on answer in thread)


Sorry your kids suffered the loss...I'm sure they'll be over it in no time...
Fish are way less maintenance than cats and dogs. ( I have cat, dog, pigs, fish)<br><br>Guinea pigs, like everything else, have personalities. Some are very loud, some are quiet. They make lots of different noises though

[st.cronin]

I think fish are actually more maintenance than cats.

[Synovia]

I think fish are actually more maintenance than cats.
It depends on what the tank is, and how its set up. My fish tank (72g reef) is definitely more expensive than the cat, but pretty much everything is automated, and theres very little maintenance. <br><br> I probably spend about the same amount of time on tank maintenance as I do cleaning the litterbox. <br><br>S.O. gets a cat and I'm the one cleaning the damn litterbox?

[LoneStarGirl]

I raised guinea pigs growing up, I had 2 and they kept mating. Squeakers and Champagne. But I dont think I ever let them go outside, they were fast little boogers and I was always afraid a bird or cat would come and get them.

[MizzouRah]

PLEASE dont buy pet store pigs. Theres WAY too many pigs out there at this point. Go down to your local shelter and grab some. They'll generally be spayed/nuetered already, and in much better shape.

Seriously? I thought they only had dogs and cats.

[Suburban Rhythm]

As an alternative to the guinea pig/hamster route...we have owned 3 hedgehogs.

They are more expensive to buy than guinea pigs, but similar in that they are not very high maintenence. And much more unique. Once they learn your scent, they'll let you handle them just like you'd do with other small animals.

To piggyback off you story, the last one we owned died a few weeks ago. We weren't sure how to point out to our 3 year old that the hedgehog had died. We told her she's taking a nap and was going to hedgehog heaven.
She later told my mother 'Flaky (Snowflake) is laying on a pillow and taking a little nap'

[MizzouRah]

A hedgehog? Have any pictures? I find that quite interesting.

Oh... and was one of them named "Sonic"? ;)

[Suburban Rhythm]

A hedgehog? Have any pictures? I find that quite interesting.

Oh... and was one of them named "Sonic"? ;)

I'll have to dig up some pics. Never one named Sonic. However, one was a male, so I got to name him...and after days of deliberation I settled on Spike.

[MizzouRah]

I'll have to dig up some pics. Never one named Sonic. However, one was a male, so I got to name him...and after days of deliberation I settled on Spike.

:)