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Loss Of One Guinea Pig

M

Moo Moo

New Born Pup
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Hi, hope someone can help. On Sunday one of my boys passed away. Georgey was nearly 7 and hadn't been ill, it looked like he'd just fallen asleep, so I'm hoping it happened quickly and was just old age. Gary, his BFF, is now on his own, he seems okay and is eating but this morning he looked like he was looking for Georgey. He saw Georgey in the bedding area so I think he knows he has passed away. I don't want him to get lonely but he has spent his whole life with Georgey and I don't know what to do for the best.
Is he better on his own if he's okay or is he better with a new friend?
 
Sorry to hear your piggy has died, 7 was a good age he must have had a lovely home with you.
Gary would be happier with a new friend to socialise with. The best way to match him up is to take him to a rescue that does boar dating if you can manage this. There is a list of good rescues on the green bar at the top of the page see rescue locator, some of these do dating.
 
piggieminder said:
Sorry to hear your piggy has died, 7 was a good age he must have had a lovely home with you.
Gary would be happier with a new friend to socialise with. The best way to match him up is to take him to a rescue that does boar dating if you can manage this. There is a list of good rescues on the green bar at the top of the page see rescue locator, some of these do dating.
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Thank you, that's really helpful. They have had a lovely home and life so I'm taking some comfort from that. Hopefully if it was a heart attack or something sudden he wouldn't have known much about what was happening. We are all missing him massively but my main concern is keeping Gary happy and well.
Thanks so much I will let you know how I get on.
Is there a time frame to let him adjust or should I start looking now?
 
I would start looking now, sometimes it can take a while to find a suitable friend. It's worth ringing the rescues near you they will advise you and will probably want to do a home visit. I hope you find Gary a friend soon.
 
So sorry for your loss :bye:

The exact same happened to me, my little Trifle passed away unexpectedly and her roommate (and best friend) Truffles was squeaking hysterically while circling her body :(

Truffles stopped eating properly, and just lay in the corner looking miserable for the rest of the day :(. We got her a new friend Toffee as soon as we could, and she instantly perked up and went back to her old self, so I would recommend getting Gary another little friend, he'll love the new one just as much I'm sure!

Good luck to you both!
 
I'm very sorry for your loss. Seven years old is a good lifespan for a guinea pig, not that it's much comfort when we lose them. In my experience, guinea pigs are happier with a friend, so if you plan for more guinea pigs in the future, getting a new companion would probably be the best option for him. How old is your remaining piggie?
 
Hi there, l am so sorry for your loss.
Safest to get him a new male
I have Usually found guinea pigs to cope well with loss but like most things
To do with animals there are no hard and fast rules ,
On one occasion a boar of mine went into a extremely bad decline after losing his cage mate. , the only thing thay saved him was making a division down the center of his cage and putting a new boar on the other side ! The transformation was almost immediate


Though l have never experienced such intense behaviour in a sow ?
 
Thanks everyone for your sympathies and advice. Gary is also 7 as we got him and Georgey at the same time.
I've got in touch with a local charity which rescues pigs and we are on the waiting list for a new friend for Gary, so fingers crossed. They specialise in introducing new guineas into an existing home so hopefully Gary won't be on his own for much longer.
He still seems ok in himself and is squeaking/eating but he's never been on his own before.
Hopefully soon I'll be able to post that Gary and his new rescue friend are getting on.
 
We have had this situation twice this year and both times the remaining piggy became very quiet and sad on losing their mate. I found a lady who lives not to far from me and rescues piggys who had a sow available. Unfortunately for our boy who lost his mate she didn't have one a available and we really didn't want to wait because he seemed so sad and wasn't eating as much. As soon as we got him a baby boar he was a new piggy! He loved him straightaway and we would find him cuddling him for the first couple of weeks. Because your boy is 7 I would put a time limit on how king your prepared to wait for a friend to be available. If it's too long i would explore other ways because he needs a friend asap!
 
Amysmom said:
We have had this situation twice this year and both times the remaining piggy became very quiet and sad on losing their mate. I found a lady who lives not to far from me and rescues piggys who had a sow available. Unfortunately for our boy who lost his mate she didn't have one a available and we really didn't want to wait because he seemed so sad and wasn't eating as much. As soon as we got him a baby boar he was a new piggy! He loved him straightaway and we would find him cuddling him for the first couple of weeks. Because your boy is 7 I would put a time limit on how king your prepared to wait for a friend to be available. If it's too long i would explore other ways because he needs a friend asap!
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Thanks for the advice it's appreciated he seems much quieter tonight so going to give it until the weekend then look at other options.
His Dad has just been in with his favourite treat (celery) & he wasn't really bothered so maybe it's starting to sink in?
 
Moo Moo said:
Thanks for the advice it's appreciated he seems much quieter tonight so going to give it until the weekend then look at other options.
His Dad has just been in with his favourite treat (celery) & he wasn't really bothered so maybe it's starting to sink in?
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It took a couple of weeks for one of our pigs to show signs of grief and once she did she started to lose weight. Did he see the body of his cage mate?
 
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