Conditions Grieving guinea pig.... will he be okay alone?

How old is Tai?

LittleSqueakers said:

How old is Tai?

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I’m not actually sure, since I adopted them. He could honestly be anywhere between 2-5 years old

It'd be easy to say that if he was an old pig you could probably just let him live out the remainder of his life as a single pig and just do your best to give him all the attention you can. As long as he is not depressed to the point that it's affecting his health (ie not eating, weight loss, etc) then this is still an option.

However, in my experience with my Tribble pig, during the times that he was in-between cagemates, it ended up being an awful lot of work to keep him stimulated and keep him happy. When they're used to having one of their own kind with them all the time, it's pretty hard to provide socialization on that level, especially if you're a busy person (which we all are). That's actually one of the big reasons I went and got Flower even though Tribble was already an old man. I was going back to school and I knew Tribble would suffer left alone all day, despite my best efforts and despite him being very bonded with me. And I knew I wouldn't always have the time or energy at the end of every day to spend a lot of quality time with him.

I think it's not only better for the pig to have a cagemate; it's easier on the human, too. You won't have to carry that burden of being their only source of social interaction. Having two pigs was definitely easier than having one.

But of course, if you're trying to make your graceful exit from piggie-keeping, it does make matters more complicated... But if you really don't think you're up for getting more pigs, you gotta do what you gotta do. It certainly does not make you a monster.

I've been struggling with the same dilemma. Sparky's cagemate died about 3 months ago and I had originally planned to get him a little brother. Sparky is so laid-back that I figured he could deal with a young one and perhaps teach him how to be a proper cavy. Plus, it would probably put some spark back in the old boy (he's only 4 y.o.) And then Sparky became very ill.

We almost lost him to CHF (congestive heart failure) and in planning for the future, our Vet, Dr. Albin, said that Sparky would do best with a stress-free life. So, we decided not to get a cagemate. Even though we are both home a great deal, I still think that he is lonely despite tons of interaction with us. He seems to be doing so well that I'm really having second thoughts. A friend who is a championship breeder retires her sows after a couple of litters and has offered one or two of her ladies who are about two years old. Since Sparky is neutered, that certainly would be a viable solution except that we would like to start over with a couple of baby boars after he is gone.

It tugs at my heart because I know that nothing beats having one of his own kind as a roommate. I think that @LittleSqueakers has some thought-provoking comments. All the best in whatever decision you make.