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:

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.

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.

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.