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Rest in Squeaks, Bitters.

jaycriae

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Jun 18, 2014
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Joined
Jun 18, 2014
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When I was sixteen years old, on my first day out of training as an animal shelter volunteer, I was busy when my mother and grandmother came to pick me up- because, happy day, someone was being adopted! Three someones, in fact. A mother Rex guinea pig and her bonded female cagemate were being adopted, and another family was taking two month-old daughters. It was a great thing to be a part of, except... there were actually three daughters, Lisa, Linda, and Prieta, and neither family wanted Prieta. I couldn't stand this. She was perfect, why didn't either family want her? My family was easier to convince than I'd expected- it helped that she looked like a fuzzy version of the brother guinea pigs that we'd lost years prior.

bitters baby.jpg

I already had a guinea pig named Odeta (and one named Theo), so the new baby's name was changed to Bitters. She had quite the personality, and would remain the loudest and most energetic of my piggies during our entire time together. Sometimes I would be on calls with my friends, and she would start wheeking for veggies or attention, or just talking because she felt like it, and everyone would say, "Hi Bitters!"

She was always the most trusting of my piggies in many ways, happily letting you pet her inside the cage however you wanted, and eating even her most precious veggies out in the open instead of running away to a pigloo or a corner. The sweetest and kindest, in that she would never bite- though her kisses sometimes let you feel her teeth, they were gentle, and she improved at them over time.
And Bitters was always the first to figure out puzzles! If I put a cup full of veggies on top of a pigloo so they were too tall to reach, she would be the one to run up, stand her front legs on the side of the pigloo, stre-e-etch, and grab the brim of the cup with her teeth and pull it down so everyone could have veggies! She was also the fastest eater, so when the others would take her food away she wouldn't bother trying to get it back, instead she'd just move on and eat more in the time it took them to run away with it.

Theo's picking on Bitters got worse over the years, and in March Theo bit her and drew blood, and so since then Theo has been living in one 2x2 square of cage and Bitters and Odeta lived in a 2x3 section, with a partition made of grids that they could still see and smell each other through.

Bitters was never a lap pig, always preferring to run around or climb, but if you were sitting in a comfy chair she would climb all over you and burrow through the blankets in your shirt without fuss, especially if you were playing video games. She enjoyed screens and buttons, and always seemed fascinated by laptops and the Nintendo DS family whenever they were presented to her. Her favorite food was oranges, but I very rarely gave any to her- only for her birthday. She would eat anything, though, and she would beg for anything I was holding, be it actual pig food, fruit, another guinea pig, Advil, or her own poop.

So it was alarming when she decided this past two weeks that she didn't like peppers very much anymore. She would still eat them, just very halfheartedly, and often she wouldn't finish. She was also wheeking much less. Odeta went to the vet for rales (crackles) a week ago, and I discussed Bitters' condition with the vet, who prescribed antibiotics for both Odeta and Bitters, just in case. Bitters has always had sensitive lungs, and in her medical thread I've worried about CHF, though it turned out to be allergies. I own an air purifier which I bought for the purpose of making Bitters more comfortable in my room.

It wasn't her lungs, or her heart though, that did her in. It was sudden bloat and GI torsion that hit last night. I woke up this morning later than usual, went to feed the pigs at 12:45 pm, and knew something was wrong when there were pellets left, and Odeta wasn't begging, she was just sitting down and looking at me. Bitters was already gone.

I only had Bitters for four years and one month. I never in my life would've expected her to be the one of my three piggies who left me first, being a year and a half younger than the other two. I still can't truly believe she's gone. I'm not the only one- Odeta looks for Bitters in each pigloo and then begs me for her each time I return her to the cage.

I miss you already, little Bitters, my loud, fuzzy, and sweet baby. You were perfect, and I'm sorry for the pain you must have experienced in your final moments. I'm sorry I wasn't with you, and I hope Odeta was good to you. I hope the Rainbow Bridge has all the delicious orange slices you can dream of, the ones I never let you eat and still would keep from you, if only you were still here for me to try and keep your tummy safe. I love you.

bitters collage.jpg
 

spy9doc

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Oct 9, 2011
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Oct 9, 2011
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Another of our furry friends gone too soon. Fly free over the Rainbow Bridge, Bitters! :love: Just know how much you were loved and treasured.
 

Guinea Pig Papa

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May 12, 2015
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May 12, 2015
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My heart is absolutely breaking for you, @jaycriae. I am so very, very sorry.

I know that Bitters knew how much she was loved, and I know that she understands that you always did everything you could for her. She loved you for it. What a sweet, adorable little girl.

She's now gone to the Rainbow Bridge to meet all of her old friends, and to make new ones. She's going to lie in the sun and munch the greenest of grass, the biggest of dandelion leaves, and whatever else her little heart desires. All while she waits for the day you take her home again.

Rest in peace, Bitters.
 

Squiggles

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May 29, 2018
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Joined
May 29, 2018
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[MENTION=35161]Guinea Pig Papa[/MENTION], you always write the sweetest parting posts. I always tear up when I read one of your rainbow bridge replies. [MENTION=32120]jaycriae[/MENTION], I'm so sorry for your loss. I just lost my boy of almost seven years on June 11th. It never gets any easier.
 
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