No More Gracie =(

Today was one of the days we pet owners dread the most: when we see a pet's health deteriorate and we know we have to have to euthanize our critter.

In our case, the critter was Gracie, a guinea pig we loved more than we ever thought possible.

We acquired her from one of The Wiffee's co-workers in 2008. Gracie had already been well-socialized and was used to being handled and petted. We both enjoyed holding her, but it soon became obvious that I was Gracie's favorite human. She gave me "puppy-dog eyes" (even though she's a guinea piggy) when I petted her, and she trained me to pet her in all the right places. She also "kissed" me by licking and nibbling on my lips, and she often would hold perfectly still so I could do the same to her. She never did this with The Wiffee OR with the previous owner, and, needless to say, this endeared her to me tremendously.

Every so often, Gracie would have days when she wouldn't eat or drink anything for a day, then the next day she'd be perfectly fine. But last Thursday (9 Dec), she stopped eating and drinking, and she never really restarted. We took her to a vet on Saturday for some answers, and we got a few more answers today. Bladder stones, often a genetic predisposition in guinea piggies, were filling the space in her bladder. Cystic kidneys, which were undoubtedly shutting down and causing even more problems. And she was developing labored breathing. Plus, she was slowly starving and possibly dying of thirst as well (she was bloated, so I'm not sure if she was dehydrated and bloated at the same time). Her kidneys were enlarged and didn't feel right to the vet.

So, as hard as the decision was to make, we decided to have her euthanized today. We probably shouldn't even have waited this long, but we still had hopes she might rebound, and it's so hard to let go of critters we love so much.

Now, many tears later, we have to undo all of the habits and things we did for Gracie, and it'll be hard -- she became so ingrained in our daily lives. I had never been so attached to a pet before -- and as you might expect, I'm having a really hard time dealing with this right now.

Major surgery for me at Thanksgiving. Losing our beloved guinea piggy just before Christmas. I can't predict how I'll feel in a few days or weeks, but for now I'll just say: I'm just not in the mood for a holiday.

We love you, Gracie, and we believe you loved us, too. RIP, you cute, lovable piggy, you. =(

A Squeaker in Disguise

The Wiffee and I acquired a very cute and adorable guinea pig over a month ago. As with bunnies, we melt at the sight of guinea pigs. Because of their tendency to whistle and "squeak," we often refer to guinea pigs as "squeakers."

The former owner was unable to keep the squeaker (named Gracie) because of changes in work schedule, kids and a pet dog. Gracie has a quieter environment now, and we have time to hold her (she's VERY well socialized!) and give her goodies to eat.

She's a "rough-haired" type, meaning her fur always looks disheveled, and is black and white (the brownish coloring in the photo isn't really there). Sometimes she looks like a skunk without a tail!

A squeaker in disguise!

More About Bunnies

My favorite pets of all time have been: guess what? BUNNIES!!!

Bunnies are low-maintenance pets. They can be paper-trained, believe it or not. We've had bunnies that have had the free run of the rooms we kept them in and really didn't have to clean up much after them. They always had a cage on the floor where we kept their water bottles and food, and those little critters "did their business" in the cages. So the cages needed cleaning every day, of course, but the room itself was pretty much OK, except when the bunnies were shedding.

I was never creative when it came to naming them. One pair was a brother and sister--they were simply "Girl Bunny" and "Boy Bunny." The third and fourth (we didn't have them at the same time) were both named "Bunny." Our last critter was the only lop-earred rabbit we had, and it came with a name: "Maggie." The previous owner thought it was a female, until a trip to a veterinarian uncovered the truth: "she" was a "he"! But the name stuck.

We once had a guinea pig, too, in between bunnies. They're cute,too. They squeak and whistle and scurry around in their cages. And they always have this expression like they're constantly startled. Cute. Very cute.

Some day we'll probably get another bunny (or guinea pig). But for now, we're too busy to take on the responsibility of having a pet. And we do have the wild bunnies outside. They won't let us pick them up or pet them, of course. But they're still cute!