Guinea pig in kids' science classroom

[Wildcavy]

I'm not sure where to post this, but could use some advice and honestly even just moral support.

I have 2 boys in middle school (7th and 5th grade). My 7th grader came home this week and announced that the science class got a new classroom guinea pig. I should note that both of my boys are special needs -- both have autism, and our 7th grader is also significantly intellectually challenged. We have 4 rescued pigs at home (1 was abandoned, two from rescue organizations, 1 from the pound). The boys adore our piggies and are sweethearts and cannot bear anyone, human or animal, being mistreated. But esp the 7th grader doesn't understand what it means for a lone piggy being left at school.

I sent in an e-mail to the teachers and asked basic questions about how the piggy was being cared for, esp at night and on weekends, what contingency plans are for weather/ power outages (we live on the eastern seaboard, and i probably don't have to tell you what the weather has been like, snow in October! Floods!). I also briefly described that a pig needs a companion, that they are social, dietary issues, cage issues (included link to this site), need for special vet. It was fairly brief as I didn't want to overwhelm at the first go-around.

I've not been able to get anything other than a confirmation that there is a science pig. I think because the piggy isn't going to be "experimented" on, that it is somehow okay to them. I see it as, frankly, abuse. And my 7th grader is under the impression that we will take the piggy home after her time in the classroom.

My husband is fully in agreement with my opposition to the piggy being in the class. I'm planning to buy some books on piggy care for the class and school library. I have also offered that, if they want to use piggy care for learning purposes, that we can contribute by doing things like tracking our piggy weigh-ins (graphing the once-per-week weights) or learning about nutrition (vitamin C production, how piggy digestion works) or even the discussions about whether cavies are really rodents.

I don't know how to explain to my kids our position without being cruel to them, if that pig is left in the class. Cruelty is an on/off switch for them. You are either nice to animals or you aren't. My 5th grader is especially sensitive to emotions and pain, and unfortunately is only now learning how to express himself. He just doesn't have the vocabulary, though we know how to read him.

We live in a very small incorporated town with a small school system (the entire student body from K-12 is about 1700 kids). However, the town was literally built around the school system, and is rightly proud of our achievements. They are also "green" and promote native plants, wildlife care, and so on. This flies in the face of it.

I haven't slept because of this, both for the piggy's sake and of course my boys. I don't know whether offering to take the piggy in on weekends is an okay idea if we offer it and I'd like some input. I don't know the piggy's health situation. We have a place we can quarantine the piggy. It would likely be better than leaving her to chance. But it would be hard to give her back. While we are looking for a companion pig for our boar, he is special needs himself and we are working with our rescue to get a particular temperment for his friend. This would make 5, and I don't know if we could adequately care for this piggy as a 6th.

I'm actually shaking typing this. Any help would be great.

[Wildcavy]

I put this in Kitchen in part because there some other, larger issues about special needs kids in our system, along with pet store cavies and such, that may come up and may not be something for the younger set.

[bpatters]

I think I'd ask for an appointment with the teacher, and print off some of the care materials from here and from Guinea Lynx to take with me, including the URLs so s/he can look up information at home. I think a face-to-face encounter would be better than an email.

Try to be positive and appreciative of what they're trying to do, but maybe suggest that a guinea pig is not the best animal to have with special needs kids because they're so skittish and the kids may not understand how important it is to be calm and quiet with them.

And whatever you decide, let us know what happens.

[nicholelynne]

Im not sure what the right thing to do in this situation would be. I think if it was me, Id go in and actually sit down with the teacher(s) and discuss the ways in which their guinea pig setup is unhealthy. It is a lot harder to ignore an actual person in your face, than an email. Maybe offer to help them design a nice C&C cage, and find a cagemate, and refer them to your vet. Buying piggy care books is a good idea. I know some of those books have bad information though. Maybe you could print up some of the relevant articles from this website, and guinealynx. Also it might help to contact the principle or maybe even the superintendant. If they start asking the teacher why they arent meeting the piggy's needs, maybe the teacher will give it more consideration.
As far as your special needs kids go, I really dont know, since I have no experience in that matter. Sorry.
I wish I had more advice to give, but hopefully someone on here will give you some help. I feel your pain though. Good luck!

[nicholelynne]

Sorry bpatters! Apparently I was typing at the same time you were! Whoops!

[Wildcavy]

I think I'd ask for an appointment with the teacher, and print off some of the care materials from here and from Guinea Lynx to take with me, including the URLs so s/he can look up information at home. I think a face-to-face encounter would be better than an email.

Try to be positive and appreciative of what they're trying to do, but maybe suggest that a guinea pig is not the best animal to have with special needs kids because they're so skittish and the kids may not understand how important it is to be calm and quiet with them.

And whatever you decide, let us know what happens.

Thanks -- if I can get an appointment, I'll go. Probably have to bring my husband with me. In professional settings I'm a cool cucumber, but with this, well it's getting to me. Part of the issue is that the science class is a mixed class -- they are mainstreamed in a couple of classes, with a paraprofessional to help them. So there are typically developed kids in the class. One of my fears is that, even if the kids are very kind and respectful to the piggy, the pig will be alone in a darkened room for 12 hours each night. I don't know what that would do to a mammal or bird. But I'll see what they are doing for that sort of planning.

[Wildcavy]

Im not sure what the right thing to do in this situation would be. I think if it was me, Id go in and actually sit down with the teacher(s) and discuss the ways in which their guinea pig setup is unhealthy. It is a lot harder to ignore an actual person in your face, than an email. Maybe offer to help them design a nice C&C cage, and find a cagemate, and refer them to your vet. Buying piggy care books is a good idea. I know some of those books have bad information though. Maybe you could print up some of the relevant articles from this website, and guinealynx. Also it might help to contact the principle or maybe even the superintendant. If they start asking the teacher why they arent meeting the piggy's needs, maybe the teacher will give it more consideration.
As far as your special needs kids go, I really dont know, since I have no experience in that matter. Sorry.
I wish I had more advice to give, but hopefully someone on here will give you some help. I feel your pain though. Good luck!

That's a great idea on the cage -- it would be an educational opportunity and if we buy it, would relieve any issues of resource needs for the school. Before I get any books, I will run them by the local rescue. I'm hopeful I can find ways to contribute to the school to help them with the program, so I'm not just complaining.

[pinky]

Is your son in regular class and an inclusion student or in a self contained class with a special ed teacher? The way to handle it will depend on who the teacher reports to if you don't get any satisfaction from them. A principal might not be inclined to get involved with anything in a self contained class. That would fall under the jurisdiction of the Special Ed dept. If your son has an IEP, look at the list of names who have participated in his last IEP and contact whoever is in charge of the dept for the district. I'm not sure how things work in the state you're at, but in IL things are looked into quicker through the special ed department than through the school. You might want to contact some autism advocacy groups to inform them of the stress it puts on your son and maybe they will draft a letter to complain on his behalf. Good luck. You're a good mom (or dad?) to jump in on behalf of your son and the guinea pig.

[Wildcavy]

They're in inclusive classes part time, pull out part time. They are at the age where they have a homeroom and switch classes. The 7th grader's science class is one that is inclusive. They both have IEPs; since it's a small school system we know the people well. But the 7th grade science teacher is not, of course, on his IEP committee.

I'm not at the point of needing to escalate it to the state level. Getting basic services was enough of a challenge so I'm not sure what would happen.

But anyway part of my concern was that I can't explain to my kids why it's not okay to keep animals like that in a classroom, when they are hearing at school that it is. They aren't sophisticated enough to understand that teachers aren't always right, but at the same time understand that they can't act out at the teacher just because we disagree.

The other part is just a genuine concern for the piggy. Maybe I'm just being oversensitive about it, but if the science teacher is teaching inaccurate things about cavies, and the kids in the class decide they want one ('tis the season!), then it gets perpetuated. The worst is that I just can't get over the picture of a lonely piggy in the dark, or possibly running out of food or getting cold and dying alone. I'll see if I can at least make the piggy comfortable by offering to build a C&C and donate appropriate food. Just have to remind myself that I can't save them all.

[pinky]

They're in inclusive classes part time, pull out part time. They are at the age where they have a homeroom and switch classes. The 7th grader's science class is one that is inclusive. They both have IEPs; since it's a small school system we know the people well. But the 7th grade science teacher is not, of course, on his IEP committee.

I'm not at the point of needing to escalate it to the state level. Getting basic services was enough of a challenge so I'm not sure what would happen.

But anyway part of my concern was that I can't explain to my kids why it's not okay to keep animals like that in a classroom, when they are hearing at school that it is. They aren't sophisticated enough to understand that teachers aren't always right, but at the same time understand that they can't act out at the teacher just because we disagree.

The other part is just a genuine concern for the piggy. Maybe I'm just being oversensitive about it, but if the science teacher is teaching inaccurate things about cavies, and the kids in the class decide they want one ('tis the season!), then it gets perpetuated. The worst is that I just can't get over the picture of a lonely piggy in the dark, or possibly running out of food or getting cold and dying alone. I'll see if I can at least make the piggy comfortable by offering to build a C&C and donate appropriate food. Just have to remind myself that I can't save them all.

I'm not suggesting you escalate to the state level. Sounds like this is a regular teacher who reports to the principal. It wouldn't hurt to just send an email the teacher and cc the principal about your concerns about having animals living in a classroom, which is a legitimate concern. There's always a bit more accountability if you cc a message. It will probably open some dialog and be constructive if you present it in a positive manner.

[Hhbean]

I'm sorry your having to deal with all this. It's hard enough trying to get others to do the right thing, but then on top of that you have your sons that need you to resolve this ASAP for them and are unable to grasp the complexity of conflicting information! I really have nothing to add that the previous posters haven't stated. I hope after you speak face to face with the teacher that everything is fixed and your boys are able to have no behavior problems spring up because of it!

[Wildcavy]

An update. The science teacher has said my husband and I can come by and see the piggy. We are also welcome to tell the class about piggy husbandry. However, she stated that 9 hours of contact with humans (consisting of being in a cage, periodically taken out by supervised students) is enough each day. She said that her research indicates that guinea pigs don't need any more interaction, and that 9 hours is more than sufficient. She said that she got the piggy from a family that was moving overseas and couldn't take the piggy, and that they'd had the piggy for over a year, and that it was clearly well-loved.

She said that they would observe the piggy for a couple of weeks and if the pig showed any signs of depression, she would get a second pig. She asked whether she could have one of mine (no) or, if not, did I know a rescue that she could get a 2nd pig. I give her credit for not wanting to get a pig from a pet store. However, we had to fill out an adoption form that was 3-4 pages long to get our 2 piggies from our rescue. The form from the county shelter where we got our 3rd pig was 3 pages long, including a contract. Both required in-person interviews, with the rescue requiring us to go to a pig meet to see which piggies worked best, and no doubt to see how we worked out, too. I don't see either one being a source for a pig that is going to be left in a school with no contigency plans. I guess I could suggest that she go to Craig's List (with suggestions on how to avoid breeders).

I've reached out to our rescue to see whether they'd be interested in letting her adopt a pig. Figure they know better than I do.

I'd feel better, actually, with the piggy having a piggy friend. That would no doubt make the 15 hours without outside contact much more tolerable. Our bonded pair largely look to us during dinner time and floor time, unlike our other 2 which like one-to-one interaction with us humans. At the same time, it means 2 pigs at risk in an emergency or weather-related closing.

I also want to do the classroom chat, but it will be hard to say "this is how you care for a pig" when the classroom itself is not desirable, at least from my perspective. I don't want to be stubborn, though, and maybe personalizing the pig will help (they are not naming the pig).

Anyway -- does anyone have an opinion on whether leaving a pig totally alone in a darkened classroom for 15 hours/day sound?

[Inle_Rabbit]

Pig needs a buddy if he's going to be on his own that long. Maybe the teacher would be willing to set up a light and radio on a timer so the pig isn't in the quite dark all of that time. Really press that pig needs a friend and maybe you can help pick a good one out from Craig's List?

[violettedream]

For something with the dark I do this with my dog whom I leave in the bathroom while I'm away (he's a chewer) You could suggest a battery powered light (I got mine for $10 at Walmart but I've seen them at the dollar store too!) Rechargeable batteries charged during the day, then put on as the last class leaves. My light and batteries usually last 9-10 hours so there would still be a time of darkness. I know there are battery operated radios too.... just a thought.

[Inle_Rabbit]

I was thinking something like this where you could plug a lamp and radio right into it that way no one could forget to turn anything on or off. About the weather, I would hope the teacher is planning on taking the pig home should there be any bad weather suspected. There are plenty of things like that on sale right now because of Christmas coming up. Check the Christmas section of the store out.

[Hhbean]

I think you should defiantly do the presentation because you would be exposing all the other kids to the proper care of piggies. Would you present to each class or just the one your son is in? Also if the kids become aware that this piggy needs a friend they could put some pressure on to get it done. Maybe some would talk to their parents and set up a weekend rotation for the piggy to stay at their house? What are the plans for the piggy come winter break or when school is out for the summer?

[Buggie_00]

I know this is an older thread but it's similar to what we faced with my eldest son last year. His 5th grade classroom had a guinea pig named Oatmeal. She was alone, in one of those small pet store cages that was maybe 20 inches long. She got fresh water daily and pellets that had seeds and such in it as well as hay and lots and lots of collard greens and an orange slice now and then. When I heard how excited my son was about having a guinea pig in his class I paid a visit to the classroom to have a peek at her. Soon after I emailed the teacher with a whole novel of information about the proper care of guinea pigs and she was extremely quick to try to change things for Oatmeal. The math group worked building a C&C cage (granted it wasn't a big one) into their curriculum, the science group did a whole unit on guinea pigs and their care. It was fantastic. She never got a buddy but she did get to "free-range" in the classroom during certain classes and always went home with someone on the weekends and over long breaks. We were able to keep her over the summer. We were fortunate we had a teacher who was open to learning and changing her views on the care and keeping of guinea pigs. My son is now in 6th grade and has moved up to the middle school but I'll still drop by sometimes in the mornings when I take my 1st grader in and drop off some bell peppers or a tomato as a treat for her.

[Wildcavy]

I'm sad to say that there isn't good news on this situation. The science teacher refused to answer any questions from us about the plans for the piggy, and asked the principal to respond instead. The principal's response was distressing -- she stated that the guinea pig is the science teacher's "personal item" and she can do with it whatever she wants. Yes, the principal referred to a living, breathing creature as a "personal item." The principal said that the pig is the teacher's responsibility and the teacher's pet, and if she chooses to keep it at school, that's her business. And that lots of schools do it, so it's okay for them to do it, too (seriously? an educator using the "everyone else is doing it" line??).

My husband and I have followed up with questions about whether teachers can keep any "personal item" / pets at school, including cats and dogs, as long as they are crated. They have not answered what the purpose of having a guinea pig in the classroom is, either -- which I think would be super easy to explain if there was an actual lesson plan around it.

There are other things in the principal's response that are more troubling and contradictory, and as the principal is new this year, I have no way of telling whether she is just clumsy at writing e-mails or if she is actually that heartless. I won't go into more details here but we'll be taking other action.

It really does say a lot about a person when they treat defenseless animals so poorly, and even more so when they won't give a reason for doing it, and tell concerned people that it's just a thing and it isn't any of our business. I can't control what that teacher does at home, and I don't want to. But I don't understand how bringing a sentient creature to school and getting kis attached to it and then saying it is just an "item" is the same thing -- as soon as they bring a pet into school for the class to take care of, doesn't that make it the business of the parents of the kids involved?

Makes me wonder how they are treating special needs kids when we aren't around.

[majorsammy]

perhaps you could talk to the other parents as well, sign a petition or something. since i'm in school too, i know that kids my age can be very compassionate about animals, and maybe the class as a whole could talk to the teacher and principal and make them see reason?

[pinky]

Have you ever considered home schooling? My sister home schooled her special needs son through middle school. It was a lot of work for her but she had control over what he was exposed which made it worthwhile for the family. He attended a regular private high school with an IEP. You might be at the point where having a pet in a classroom is legal so there's nothing that you can do to change the situation. You probably need to look at the laws that govern the treatment of animals in your state to see if any laws have been broken. I don't like seeing pets in school, either, but it sounds like you've exhausted all the avenues to get something done.