Should I send Penny away?

[CasaDe]

Such a difficult thing to ask! Here is the situation:

I am Penny's main caregiver. My kids are 11 and 8.

I have been placed on medical bed rest, and have no indication of how long it will last, but I will be on restricted activity even when not on bed rest for quite some time. Consequently, I can no longer care for Penny.

My daughter (the 11 year old) has been caring for her, but she also has picked up a large number of other home responsibilities (all the cooking, much of the cleaning and some of the laundry), so even though she has the desire to care for Penny, she doesn't really have the time to do it properly.

Penny has been out of her cage only once in the two weeks since I've been ordered to rest. She is getting daily food and fresh water, and plenty of treats, but not nearly as much affection and attention as she usually does.

Should I try to re-home her?

 

[starshine123102]

Do you have a spouse that could help the kids with Penny?

I know that is sort of a "duh" statement, but I know when I'm not going to be home the pig comes with me because I don't trust my boyfriend to take as good of care of her as me. His only job is to give her a carrot in the morning and sometimes he won't even remember to do that. :grumpy:

Good luck, and feel better!

 

[CasaDe]

Do you have a spouse that could help the kids with Penny?

He doesn't understand that guinea pigs need affection. In fact, he often stops my daughter from "wasting time" with the guinea pig when there is something else to be done. He's not home most of the day, but he certainly wouldn't be helpful.

He thinks piggy poo is gross! Imagine that! hmy:

Thanks for your wishes of good health.

 

[starshine123102]

I know the feeling. My boyfriend won't pick up poos either unless I beg him. All say to him is "What are you going to do when you have kids?" I really don't understand it. It's not gross like dog poo which is mushy. It's little pellets that get swept up!

It drives me nuts how people think I'm nuts for loving a GP so much. The way I see it is that it's a living, breathing, feeling animal and deserves as much love and affection as a dog, cat or kids etc.

Since he won't help with the pig, could he help you daughter with something else, like the dinner making, so she has more time to care for the pig and be a kid?

 

[krittercrazy]

What a tough situation to be in. Your daughter is to be commended for stepping up and helping out so much.

Re-homing Penny is of course a family decision to make. It is a very good reason to find her another home. How large of a cage is she in? I know some swear by floor time. For my guinea pigs, they have large cages and do not get floor time. It is just one more area to clean and more laundry for me.(My dogs make floor time dangerous too.) If Penny's cage is large enough, then perhaps floor time could be sacrificed to help with the families current situation. At the same time if you decide that it is in eveyones best interest to find Penny a new home, don't feel guilty.

I hope that you are feeling better and back on your feet soon. And be proud that you have such a wonderfull daughter.

Man, am I slow. In the time it took me to type this up, ya'll had a whole conversation!:cheerful:

 

[CasaDe]

How large of a cage is she in?

She's in a (shudder) store-bought cage. We never had room for anything bigger, so we made sure she came out every day for play time.

I hope that you are feeling better and back on your feet soon. And be proud that you have such a wonderfull daughter.

Thank you! I am very proud of my daughter!

My husband is doing a lot of the work already, aside from working full time. It's actually a bit amusing - he is definitely feeling like the unappreciated housewife!

 

[hueyeats]

Wow, what a great daughter you have to help out.

What does your daughter say? Does she still want to keep Penny or is she overwhelmed by all the chores? Let her have her say in it...

If it is too much for her, it would be best to rehome your piggy.

 

[breezy2]

Can your 8 year old take on some of the responsibility? Or is there any way you could build her a bigger cage, not you but someone. I agree if they are in a bigger cage floor time is not as much a necessity as in a store bought cage. A bigger cage may seem like a lot of work, but for me it really doesn't seem any harder. If you can't get anyone to spend time with the piggy, due to other obligations, and you can't get a larger cage. I would sadly re home her, if it were me and I was in that situation, but as someone else said that really has to be a decision you and your family need to make.

 

[PiggieMamaKelly]

Do you have a relative that would be willing to take her during your bed rest/reduced activity? I would certainly be willing to be a temporary home for one of my family member's pets if the pet was so dear to their hearts.

 

[CasaDe]

What does your daughter say? Does she still want to keep Penny or is she overwhelmed by all the chores? Let her have her say in it...

She would be heartbroken to realize I'm even thinking of re-homing Penny. I don't want to do the wrong thing for Penny just to make her happy, though.

Can your 8 year old take on some of the responsibility? Or is there any way you could build her a bigger cage, not you but someone.

My 8 year old is immature. I let him give her treats, but Penny is safer if he doesn't get very involved.

Unfortunately, we just don't have room for a bigger cage. We have a small home, and have tried to work this problem over a number of times.

Do you have a relative that would be willing to take her during your bed rest/reduced activity? I would certainly be willing to be a temporary home for one of my family member's pets if the pet was so dear to their hearts.

Unfortunately, the relatives are all far away.

The thing about re-homing her that bothers me is that most people seem to picture guinea pigs as animals that live in small cages 24-7. So even if I re-homed her or had a friend watch her, I'm not sure she would be treated any differently. The family we adopted her from kept her in her cage at all times unless they were cleaning it, which was about every 2 weeks! It makes for a tough decision. I want something better for Penny!

 

[nailzz]

He doesn't understand that guinea pigs need affection. In fact, he often stops my daughter from "wasting time" with the guinea pig when there is something else to be done.

CasaDe,

I think you've answered your own question - if adequate re-homing circumstances are available for you, I'd consider it. My wife and son do help with my 3 boars but I take primary responsibility for them. If I were sick, I've trained my wife to jump right in. I wouldn't have gotten any pigs if I couldn't rely on her for backup - it's why we don't have a dog now.

It doesn't sound like you have enough resources (while you're ill) to take care of the human needs in your home with an eleven year old doing all of the cooking and the majority of other chores, in addition I'm sure to her homework, little brothe and personal time. I think leaving Penny in the sole care of elementary school aged children is just a bad idea all around. When real "heartbeats" are involved, children cannot fairly be asked to shoulder that responsibility - even though they're eager.

I think the only question to answer here is "what's best for Penny?" I have a few suggestions that may help:

1. Perhaps you could buy another young sow (and a bigger cage - petsmart has longer cages now that are over 3 feet long) to partner with Penny. This may make her less lonely and monopolize a bit of her time if you're not going to be down for too much longer. It will take a few weeks to quarantine and acclimate the two but it's worth it long term.

2. Get a responsible babysitter for your temporary situation. Someone perhaps with other family members that are willing to chip in and help. Of course you would have to write out care instructions and talk to them daily.

3. There may be reputable 4H breeders in your area, that would be willing to babysit for a time. Check the internet.

Nailzz Out

 

[CasaDe]

...in addition I'm sure to her homework, little brother and personal time.

Actually, since we homeschool, my daughter has no homework and can attend to Penny throughout the day. She's also good at finishing her work, so usually is done with school around 1 p.m. Of course, there are all the other household chores to do right now. If I wasn't in bed, this is really the ideal set-up for a piggy. Sigh.

There may be reputable 4H breeders in your area, that would be willing to babysit for a time. Check the internet.

This is a stroke of genius!!! I will check right away!

 

[starshine123102]

Could you have her stay with the vet and not a breeder? I would think that a vet would give her better care.

 

[CasaDe]

Could you have her stay with the vet and not a breeder? I would think that a vet would give her better care.

Well, the problem is that I have no idea how long this will last, and once I'm out of bed I'm approved for very light duty only. I'll see what I can find, though!

 

[breezy2]

You might want to look into 4H breeders a little deeper before handing her over to them to care for her.

ETA: Another option may be seeing if anyone on these boards would like to take her. At least you would know that they know how to care for a guinea pig properly. Not that they all necessarily do, but they do know how to.

 

[5guinea5pig5]

If your husband won't help with the pigs could you ask him to atleast help out with your daughter's chores so she has more time for the pigs?

 

[Peggysu]

If you didn't live on the other side of the country I would definitely try to help you out!

 

[AnimalHouse36]

I personaly would not give my guinea pig to a breeder!

I ditto the looking into a vet. Maybe find one who wants to know what it's like to own one. Or someone who is expericenced and would be willing to care for them. But I'm sure they'll be a price.

Is there any room in your bed roomfor a bigger cage? That would be ideal for a place in your position Since your on bed rest hearing your voiCE might help with the whole socializing thing.

If all else fails it may be best to find her a home as hard as it is.

I wish you a speedy recovery and a quick solution!

 

[CasaDe]

You might want to look into 4H breeders a little deeper before handing her over to them to care for her.

ETA: Another option may be seeing if anyone on these boards would like to take her. At least you would know that they know how to care for a guinea pig properly. Not that they all necessarily do, but they do know how to.

That's true, and a pretty good option. Probably the best one so far!

If your husband won't help with the pigs could you ask him to atleast help out with your daughter's chores so she has more time for the pigs?

I don't want my husband to sound like a slacker. He has a very demanding full-time job, and he's picking up as much of the housework as he possibly can. He also has to take me for any number of doctor visits and tests throughout the week, then has to make up the time at work. He's just about maxed out as it is.

I really appreciate all the suggestions and the help from everyone!

 

[Mhera]

I'm in rather the same situation, but I'm the one that wants the best for the guinea pig with irresponsible parents. I cannot drive, nor do I have a job so I'm totally dependant on them to get things for her, but they aren't. Might sound disrespectful, but they got me a pig without knowing the full responsibilites it took to take care of her, and now they complain when I tell them what it takes. So they are procrastinating getting her a bigger cage, cagemate and other things to have for a happy piggy. I understand that they are busy with "other things" but I'm not going to sit and watch while my guinea pig is unhappy. My parents just can't handle the concept that I'm growing up, since my older brother is not. I just want what's best for my pig, even if it includes giving her away :weepy: .