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3/01/2009

Peter Piper Picked A Peck of Pickled Peppers

Exactly one week ago, we buried Penny out in the back yard under the tree where Ami lies in rest. I hadn't realized it until today, but their deaths were exactly five months apart. Last weekend was hard and emotional. A little way into last week though, the clouds parted and let in some sunshine.

This past Tuesday night, we adopted two young guinea pigs! Not to replace Penny, but to fill that emptiness and bring new life into the house. I know some of you might say it's too soon. Go ahead and judge, but I don't think so. Everyone is different and honestly, it has helped me immensely.

I held off on making the announcement until I could get them checked out by the vet. For one, it's very difficult to determine young pigs' gender and we knew if we had a mixed pair, we might have to return one. Also, I did want to make sure they are as healthy as they seem to be. As near as the vet could tell, they are both female and fit as fiddles. Going by appearance alone, we are pretty sure they are sisters.

So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce Pepper and Pickle:

picklepepper2
Pepper and Pickle

E had named them before we'd even decided for sure (well, I hadn't decided...ha ha!) if we'd be adopting them. He named Pickle first for the pickle shape her body takes on when she's stretched out.

picklepepper1
Pepper and Pickle

I'd emailed some photos to a friend, who suggested I take their picture next to a soda can so she could get a better idea of their current size.

picklecan
Pickle and Diet Coke® can

Pepper is slightly larger, but only by a few grams. I will get some better photos, but have been trying to let them adjust to their new surroundings and not freak them out too much. We are learning a lot about them every day. Pepper is more dominant. They had their fair share of tussles, which is normal as they work out the pecking order.

Both piglets are getting much braver about taking food from our hands. They love romaine lettuce, blueberries, carrots, apple, and peeled orange slices. They sort of like cucumber, but no where near as much as Penny did. We'd hoped they would like bell peppers due to the high Vitamin C content, but nope. They won't touch it. Luckily, they also love their hay and have figured out, after a few days, how to drink from the water bottle.

The vet thinks Pickle and Pepper are between 4 and 6 months old. They will grow quite a bit more, so we're working to get the office in shape to put the big cage we're assembling for them. It's a fun new adventure.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I sure as heck wouldn't judge your decision. If they make you happy, then I am very happy for you. I was just thinking about you yesterday, in fact, when I was at the local animal control because there were 2 friendly guinea pigs there. I've never seen any before who didn't immediately run away. These actually wanted to be touched. I'm looking forward to hearing about these little cuties.

Shayne said...

Congrats on the new kids! (And anyone who has the nerve to tell you it's too soon can suck it :P )

madretz said...

I don't like bell peppers either.
wait, that's a lie...I don't like green bell peppers, red/orange/yellow are ok.
They are soo cute!

Anonymous said...

Oh, I love the names. You'll be able to make up tongue twisters about them ... they are cute!

Anonymous said...

Oh that is great! They are adorable :) Love their names!!!! Can't wait to see more pictures and some videos. Hope L.G. is doing well with his recovery.

Anonymous said...

looking forward to seeing lots more pictures of your new cute family members!

ren said...

yeah, i wouldn't eat the bell peppers either, naaaassssssssty.

can't wait to see 'em!

Brenda Griffith said...

Welcome piglets! Jessie's hamster Tuffy is a, uh, heck, I don't know! Jessie has a friend in the first grade whose hamsters had babies. Tuffy looks more like his daddy than his mommy and is partially named for the tufts of hair he has sprouting from his lower back legs and ears.

The Mad Doctor said...

Yay! Piggies :-)

So glad that have a great family to join.

The Mad Doctor said...

errr that *they* have a family to join.

Darlene said...

CONGRATULATIONS! They are adorable!!

Nanette said...

They're soooo cute! Em wants to hold them and squeeze them and name them George!

And I know I'm super mega-OMG-please-don't-hate-me late with this, but I'm so sorry for your recent losses.

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