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Feeling very guilty

LlamaPatronus

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Jan 4, 2018
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Location
Birmingham
My cheeky 9 month old piggy passed away yesterday from heatstroke. Me and my partner drove from Birmingham to Sheffield (about 2 hours) and it was just too hot. We tried to keep the pigs as comfertable as possible, my partner was sat in the back with them, and was constantly checking on them and giving them water/veg to keep them hydrated. But when we got them out at the other end Luna was in a really bad state, and there was nothing we could do (she passed whilst I was on the phone to the vet about to get back into the car with her).

I feel awful for doing this drive with them on such a hot day and I feel like such a bad piggy mum for not postponing it until it was cooler. My 3 other babies are all fine, but obviously upset and missing Luna as much as I am.

She was such a happy pig, right up until her last day, and always enjoyed life, I just wish she got to enjoy it a bit longer.

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I’m so sorry for your loss.
She’s a gorgeous guinea pig, I’m sure she had a lovely life 💞.
Please don’t feel guilty, it’s not your fault. You gave her a great life and you couldn’t have known. I’m sure she’s zooming happily over Rainbow Bridge and eating lots of veggies 🌈🌈🌈
Be kind to yourself 💖
 
BIG HUGS

I am so very sorry for your loss! How devastating for you!

Please be aware that guinea pigs regulate their body temperature not by sweating or panting but by increased blood flow through the ears and the other extremities. This is not the most efficient way - but then they normally live in thick undergrowth and only come out at dawn and dusk when temperatures are their most moderate.
They don't need more water but being kept as cool as possible. It is very tragic that you got caught out on what unexpectedly turned out to become third hottest day in recorded history - instead of the predicted 31 C Birmingham was in the end over 35 C and it was indeed like being blasted by a furnace when you were out in the hot breeze! :(

You can sadly never go back to undo what has gone wrong; but as I have learned myself, you can make sure that you never repeat a mistake again and hopefully help others to save lives in the future. You will always live with the pain (as do I with my own mistakes and misjudgments) but what counts in the long run is what you make with it constructively.

Please also remind yourself that you have given Luna all your love and a lovely life. Guinea pigs count their lives by happy todays. She only had one bad day. I am sorry that her body couldn't cope with it.

Please make sure that her companion is OK and is able to eat; concentrate on her wellbeing for now. Weigh daily at the same time. Full or partial GI stasis (the guts stopping to work and the piggy not eating/being lethargic) can be a potentially deadly aftereffect of heat stroke in survivors.

Here is our hot weather and travel (including a chapter on hot weather journeys) information:
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
Travelling with guinea pigs

Looking After a Bereaved Guinea Pig
Human Bereavement: Grieving, Coping and Support Links for Guinea Pig Owners and Their Children
 
BIG HUGS

I am so very sorry for your loss! How devastating for you!

Please be aware that guinea pigs regulate their body temperature not by sweating or panting but by increased blood flow through the ears and the other extremities. This is not the most efficient way - but then they normally live in thick undergrowth and only come out at dawn and dusk when temperatures are their most moderate.
They don't need more water but being kept as cool as possible. It is very tragic that you got caught out on what unexpectedly turned out to become third hottest day in recorded history - instead of the predicted 31 C Birmingham was in the end over 35 C and it was indeed like being blasted by a furnace when you were out in the hot breeze! :(

You can sadly never go back to undo what has gone wrong, but as I have learned, you can make sure that you never repeat a mistake again and hopefully help others to save lives. You will always live with the pain (as do I with my own mistakes and misjudgments) but what counts in the long run is what you make with it constructively.

Here is our hot weather and travel (including a chapter on hot weather journeys) information:
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
Travelling with guinea pigs

Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike

Thank you for this, and yes we have decided that unless it's an emergency we will not be driving with the pigs again when it's over 25 degrees (and in the case of an emergency will be doing everything we can to keep them cool and comfortable)!
 
Thank you for this, and yes we have decided that unless it's an emergency we will not be driving with the pigs again when it's over 25 degrees (and in the case of an emergency will be doing everything we can to keep them cool and comfortable)!

Please take the time to read and bookmark the links in my post. I hope that they will help you, including the grieving guide.
 
I am so very sorry for your loss. The pain when we feel guilt for the loss of a loved piggie is devastating ... even when we know how well we cared for and loved our piggie. I truly empathise and know this feeling well ... currently living with acute guilt and regret that I trusted my local vet with the care of my little Melvin and this sadly resulted in him being PTS last week. It makes the loss feel so painfully acute.
I have taken comfort in the wise words of @Wiebke above ...

"You can sadly never go back to undo what has gone wrong; but as I have learned myself, you can make sure that you never repeat a mistake again and hopefully help others to save lives in the future. You will always live with the pain (as do I with my own mistakes and misjudgments) but what counts in the long run is what you make with it constructively. Guinea pigs count their lives by happy todays".

I have felt like an awful person in the misjudged trust I placed in the vet, but trying to see that Melvin had a wonderfully pampered life prior to his last days (my father called my piggies "The Pampered Pigs"!), and all the choices I made were out of love ... even if my choices were tragically misguided. All I can do is learn from them, and @Wiebke honesty above about her own experiences was immensely helpful for me to read, and truly hope it helps to comfort you also.

I am sure your piggie Luna had a wonderful life in your care. Please be extra kind and nurturing to yourself as you grieve x
 
Sorry about what happened. It's just a mistake, not something you would have wanted to happen 😔. One of our friends left her Guinea pigs in her conservatory in the heatwave a few weeks ago and they both died, she felt Terrible about it. She had a really bad family emergency and forgot all about them being in there. 😔
 
Thank you for posting your tragic, heartbreaking experience. Even it is makes one owner think twice before attempting something similar, you have saved a life.
It must have been a very hard post to write.
 
I’m so sorry you lost her. Massive hugs.
Sleep tight beautiful Luna xx
 
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