Thinking of next steps

Lady Kelly

Lady Kelly

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Feel like I need to pour my thoughts out on the forum. Hubby refuses to discuss it at the moment as he thinks it's a knee jerk reaction to losing Daisy and maybe he's right but then it doesn't mean it shouldn't be discussed.

Right now I'm thinking of what I never thought I would ever do, rehoming the piggies. I have always felt bad that we don't have the space indoors for them. I do everything I can for them and they have all stayed healthy and well over winters and summers. Since having my daughter they get handled maybe twice a week at most (definitely once for their weekly health check) and although they don't need more human interaction (there are 3 of them and certainly Lily would be happy to be never held) I feel there are a few things running through my mind.

1. Since I got pregnant I have said these would be the last of the piggies for a while. I know at some point that means rehoming as I won't leave one on their own but when to re-home is another matter.

2. Despite our best efforts at training the dog he is too distracted in the garden and pees everywhere. This means that I simply cannot put the run out for the piggies anymore so they are confined to their hutch.

3. We are looking at moving house. Maybe not immediately but if we do move then it will be to a village location. We are lucky at the moment, in the city with a really sheltered area of the garden for them. We do have foxes come into the garden but they never go near the piggies because we have lots of takeaways nearby so they don't have to hunt their food basically. In a village this isn't going to be the case and I'm scared that being outdoors will bring about a traumatic ending to them and I would never forgive myself.

4. They are all middle aged at the moment. I'm scared that if I surrendered them when I have just one left they might be elderly and no one will adopt them.

I know there is no rush for me to make a decision and maybe once Jessica is at nursery 3 days and I'm only working 6 hours those days I will have time for more cuddles with them but it doesn't change the other thoughts. Argh why is my mind tormenting me over this
 
It's a tough decision but it's clear you've got your piggies needs at the heart of your decision making. Don't feel rushed into making your mind up I'm sure your piggies are happy for you to take your time. As someone from the country side I would say our foxes are a lot more shy and completely nocturnal and there are a lot less of them so as long as your piggies are in a shed or secure run they should be fine.
 
It's a difficult topic, but I think you are right to open it up to discussion.
Listing your concerns and getting feedback will hopefully give you a clearer picture of the best thing to do for you (and the family).

Firstly I would say that the limited amount of handling is not something I would personally worry about. As they live in a nice social group, human interaction probably isn't that high on their list of needs (apart from the weekly health check of course which they do get).
Very few of my piggies have loved being handled, and those that have are very specific about who can handle them, so I never view guinea pigs as pets that need lots of human contact. Honestly rather than a cuddle most of mine would far prefer me to give them a loo roll stuffed with hay and forgave and leave them alone to destroy it!

One solution to the grass time issue could be to set up a permanent run in one spot and put a smaller secondary fence around it about 1 foot away from the main run. We have this set up for our rabbits and the secondary fence is to stop cats getting too close to the run. We have a very old buck who loves to sleep in the sun, but is deaf and blind and we worry about a cat getting their paw in and hurting him. In your case this would stop the dog peeing on the main run.
But this takes up a lot of space and will depend a bit on your garden and how much space you have to keep permanently set aside for the piggies.
Cut grass gathered from elsewhere in their hutch might be a good solution too.

I think it is good you are thinking about this now.
Give yourself time to really consider the options.

Maybe approach a local rescue for a chat - you have an amazing set up and a bonded group who have been well card for. A rescue might be willing to work with you and explain the options and keep you informed if the perfect home does come up. Equally addressing the reality of handing them over may make you realise you aren't quite ready for that step right now.

Good luck Kelly. I know whatever decision you make will always be done with the best interests of your piggies at heart.
 
What a hard decision to make.

I wanted an older girl to bond with Meg and Christian. I didn't think they would cope very well with a frisky and energetic youngster when they were in their twilight years. So there will be people out there who will want older piggies. Patsy fitted in very well with Meg and Christian and when Christian went to join his brother Dennis at the Rainbow Bridge, she bonded almost instantly with Betsy and it was Meg and Betsy who had to decide who top piggy was and in the end Betsy won.

Apart from the weekly check and moving into and out of the run on a daily basis I don't really handle mine that much especially in the Winter when the temperature changes in the garage and the house are too great. In the Spring/Summer/Autumn they get more cuddles. My thoughts are that they aren't that keen on it so why stress them out and they are happier with their own kind than with humans. As long as they are well looked after, fed, watered and cleaned out regularly then they are happy.

You are thinking of what is best for your piggies and putting their interests and welfare above your own. You will reach the correct decision in time once you have had a chance to discuss it and think about it for a while.
 
Whatever you do i am sure it will be right for you and the piggies. One thing to keep in mind is that if you move house you may have room for them indoors or your new property may have a garage/shed/outhouse where you can keep them. So i wouldn't rush into making a decision.

I know you love your piggies and you will always have their best interests at heart.
 
The reason its so hard is because you care so much :hug:

Another random thought - our local rescue has a retirement run and any more mature pigs that come in tend to go straight into that herd rather than be put up for adoption. I'm sure if one does then others do too. If you did reach the point of having just one elderly pig she may well find a permanent home in a setup like that rather than being lonely.

Such a good idea to start thinking about it when its NOT a pressing issue, so you can plan and do your best for your piglets :luv:
 
Thank you everyone, so glad on this forum posts can be made like this without judgment and everyone is really helpful.

I told hubby I posted it and that man knows me better than I know myself. The reason he didn't want to talk about it is because my brain is thinking it's easier to go through one loss (rehoming) than several losses (2 deaths and rehoming).

There's some very valid points about being in the country and space for the piggies. We absolutely have to have a garage for the hubby's "toys" and many of the houses we look at have extra spaces/summerhouses so there could be more scope to keep them safe than we have now.

Boris came from a rescue that I had to sign to say if there was any reason that I couldn't keep him he would be returned to them so, not wanting to split the group, they would all have to go there. Even just the thought of contacting them to enquire has filled me with anxiety and upset me so I know that I:m definitely not ready to re-home them
 
I feel you're right to be thinking about it now, whilst it is a hard thing to think about you are being less emotional now than if you had already lost more of your herd.
We live on the edge of a village in the countryside and whilst I know there are foxes around it has been a very long time since I have seen any sign of one in my garden or even on our road, or dogs do probably serve as a slight deterrent so you may find having a dog yourself this may be the case for you too. We are lucky enough to have a large garden and our dogs stick to certain areas in the garden to do what they need so I am able to put the run out for grass time, this is strictly monitored and they are shut in when the girls are out, we have a large shed where they currently reside and when they move out it's into a purpose fenced area that is right next to the house, and whilst it wouldn't stop something getting in we feel the risk is quite small.
Any decision about the animals we love is always hard but because they are part of our family but thinking about it in advance is never a bad choice. X
 
At some point we all have these thoughts and they are good to put out in the open. And by thinking out loud and by sharing thoughts here, it means you don’t need to take any decisions suddenly if your circumstances change. You are at a stage in your life where you have a huge amount responsibilities and calls upon your time, with a young family and work.

I don’t think handling is an issue. Your piggies live in a social group and are happy together. Mine live indoors and only get handled on average once or twice a week for weight/health check/nail clipping. Only Boris and Ralph actually enjoy a cuddle. Evie and Hazel detest being handled. Holly and Iris are neutral. So for me, handling is less of an issue.

And as for keeping piggies outdoors you have always done a fab job of keeping your piggies outdoors. You really have. As to whether in a new location you may have fox activity, it’s hard to know until you find your new home. But by them you may have space for a shed or garage to keep their hutch in, or even space indoors.

I can assure you that if you get to your last piggy and he/she is elderly and alone the rescues are entirely sympathetic and do their best to find them a companion to live out their last days. Often they stay as permanent fosters in our rescue, so that they don’t do through the upheaval of rehoming after surrender.

It’s a lot to think about. But it’s good to have started the thought process so that when the time comes, you have an idea how you want to proceed.
 
I’d think it very much depends on if you can feel at ease if they went to a rescue or if you would be constantly wondering whatever happened to them. Personally I wouldn’t do anything right now as you are grieving and need to take time to come to turns with your loss. Moving to another property may open up solutions too. I think you would miss them terribly, if they have each other’s company then a twice weekly cuddle is fine
 
It’s very healthy to talk openly about a difficult issue like this and it also takes courage.
Others have already said what I would say so I will only add - you will know in your heart if or when it’s right to rehome your group.
I’m glad that you feel this a safe and supportive place for this discussion.
 
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