Solo Guinea pig - advice

[Amy Barton]

Hi, unfortunately we lost our Guinea pig Daisy last week due to old age (6.5). We now only have one guinea pig left, Peppa, who is also 6.5. Sadly, Peppa will be our last Guinea pig for the foreseeable future as we feel our lives are going to become a lot busier in the next couple of years so we cannot commit to another 5+ years of owning guinea pigs. We gave Peppa time to say goodbye to Daisy after she passed away, she sniffed Daisy for a few minutes so she knows that she has passed away. Peppa Is in good health currently but she did suffer from a stroke in august which left her blind in one eye and paralysed in her back legs (now recovered full use of her back legs). She spends most of her days sleeping and resting but she is still very mobile and doesn’t suffer from any age related joint problems or arthritis. Basically I’m looking for advice on how we can keep her happy and enriched for the rest of her life. She is coping okay with loss of Daisy and is still eating her food and playing her toys. She stopped wheeking for her dinner for a few days but she has started that again and has started to get excited again when its time for veg. We have been weighing her daily and she is maintaining her weight (850 grams). We have got her lots of new toys and (healthy) treats which she has been enjoying and we are constantly checking on her and spending time with her throughout the day as there is always someone in our house to do so. As of tonight we have also started taking her out the cage and putting her in our bed when we give her her vegetables so we can spend time cuddling her and stroking her. If anyone could give us any advice on how we can develop a really good blond with Peppa to help her feel less lonely and what we can do to keep her enriched and happy that would be a real help. I know that we cannot replace the bond she would gave with another pig but it is just not practical to get another Guinea pig, especially considering Peppa is 6.5 - if I could I really would

edit - Peppa lives indoors

 

[Siikibam]

Firstly I’m sorry for your loss. What a great age to be though, you took/take good care of them.

I know it’s not what you want to hear, but you really can’t replace or provide the companionship another piggy would. It’s just not possible given the nuances of their communication and what they’re actually saying.

I think you have (possibly) two options. The first is finding a rescue that will let you ‘foster’ some company for your girl until she passes away. Even if it’s through a grid it would be better than nothing. You’d then ‘surrender’ the foster piggy back to the rescue. The other option is unpleasant and I think it’s not what you want either - surrendering your girl to a rescue. She could go on to live another year, and that would be a long time to be ‘alone’.

I’m sure you will do what is best for your girl, as you have already been doing all these years. Take good care of yourself and may your free girl sleep well.

PS below is some enrichment ideas for piggies as well as guide on lone piggies.

Enrichment Ideas for Guinea Pigs
Single Guinea Pigs - Challenges and Responsibilities

 

[Amy Barton]

Firstly I’m sorry for your loss. What a great age to be though, you took/take good care of them.

I know it’s not what you want to hear, but you really can’t replace or provide the companionship another piggy would. It’s just not possible given the nuances of their communication and what they’re actually saying.

I think you have (possibly) two options. The first is finding a rescue that will let you ‘foster’ some company for your girl until she passes away. Even if it’s through a grid it would be better than nothing. You’d then ‘surrender’ the foster piggy back to the rescue. The other option is unpleasant and I think it’s not what you want either - surrendering your girl to a rescue. She could go on to live another year, and that would be a long time to be ‘alone’.

I’m sure you will do what is best for your girl, as you have already been doing all these years. Take good care of yourself and may your free girl sleep well.

PS below is some enrichment ideas for piggies as well as guide on lone piggies.

Enrichment Ideas for Guinea Pigs
Single Guinea Pigs - Challenges and Responsibilities

Hi, I am so sorry I completely missed your response! In terms of companionship we haven’t made any decisions yet, we have just been getting over the loss of daisy and getting Christmas and New Years out the way. Peppa is doing really well right now, due to Covid we have been working from home a majority of the time so we have been able to spend a huge amount of time with her during the day. Her cage is in a room we spend most of the day in as well so she is never really alone even when she isn’t out playing or for cuddles we still talk to her and give her treats through the cage bars.
She is always popcorning when we get her out to play and loves being taken out for cuddles. I read the guidance on the forum about how to communicate with Guinean pigs in terms of stroking around their eyes etc. and also how to care for a solo pig. She has actually developed quite a personality and has become very sociable with us, she loves smelling and licking us but she isn’t afraid to chatter her teeth at us if we take too long to give her a treat or her veggies. She still has a huge appetite and we have been weighing regularly - she has actually put a bit of weight on.
In terms of long term companionship from another piggy I think fostering might be an option especially if/when we are required to be in work more often and have less time to spend with peppa. Although, peppa does have health issues which we would probably have to take into consideration - she suffered a stroke earlier in the year which left her paralysed in her back legs. She recovered the use of her back legs after vet treatment and round the clock care from us but she can still be slow/wobbly and fall at times Daisy, her cage mate who passed, did bully her a bit after her stroke and did take advantage of her being a bit slower at eating/moving around so an older/slower pig would probably be best suited for Peppa. Unfortunately we don’t really have the space to have another cage next to hers - this would have been a good option as we wouldn’t have had to worry about the foster pig being too much for peppa with her mobility issues.
Thank you so much for you reply!

 

[Free Ranger]

A few years back I had a boar-in-waiting after a neutering operation. It was weeks until we could get him a 'wife' and I used to take him to my friend's in a cat-box. She also had a lone male and while we couldn't put them in together there was certainly a lot of interaction through the bars. We both hoped it was better than nothing as the boys didn't seem to be aggressive with each other. Her old boar was ferociously territorial and had (literally) fought all attempts to find him a companion (male or female) but was OK with the caged visitor. Perhaps you have a friend with piggies?

 

[Siikibam]

@Free Ranger that companionship needs to be 24/7 and not on and off.

If you find her a friend she gets on with them there shouldn’t be any bullying because she’s slower etc. I hope you can find her a friend.

 

[Free Ranger]

Yes, that's the ideal isn't it.
I wish you luck with your lovely old girl whatever way you can manage. It's great that you're thinking about making her retirement years as happy as possible