Difficult Goodbyes

I probably haven’t mentioned this before, but we are in possession of the worlds oldest guinea pig. He is 7.He had a buddy who died years ago and I had read somewhere that after their partner died, most guinea pigs only lasted a year or so. Apparently Blueberry wasn’t so fond of his buddy, because he didn’t seem fazed in the least.

But lately things haven’t been looking good for him. He got quite skinny, even though he is eating all the time. And then some other stuff went wrong, that I won’t go into because it involves poop. However, he continues to act completely normal. Aside from being really hard of hearing these days, he seems just like he always has.

So we are making an appointment with the vet and I have a feeling that this might be the end of his earthly journey, which I am totally ok with because he has had a good life.

But he isn’t my guinea pig, and someone else isn’t going to be ok with this. 

Pets bring so much value to our lives, especially for kids. But unless something goes seriously wrong, you will outlive them and be required to say goodbye.

This isn’t our first. We have lost 2 dogs since we have had kids, and of course, Blueberry’s friend Cherry. Not to mention numerous fish. But I have a feeling that at this particular moment in time this one might not go down well.

We have ongoing discussions here about pets. My husband like to speculate what kind of dog he will be getting next, I like to insist there will be no more pets after these. As the one who has the responsibility of seeing them through their old age, vet visits and end of life, I really feel done. Of course, he loves them dearly and he is our dogs favorite person by far, but somehow has managed to avoid the gritty parts of pet life (as an adult anyway, he got a whole lot of it as a kid).

So believe me when I say to you that when this guinea pig and these 2 dogs have crossed the rainbow bridge, I am not getting another dog. And if he chooses to, he is going to be doing it alone. I need an emotional break.

Luckily the dogs we have are only 8 and 9, so we have some time after seeing our tiny furry friend off. Wish us luck…it’s shaping up to be a long weekend.