allie: a eulogy for a guinea pig

Last December, my wife and I adopted two guinea pigs from a rescue shelter.

I've never really had a connection to a pet before. I had severe allergies as a kid so I never had a dog or a cat. I did have a couple of pet lizards, but you can only bond so much with reptiles in a terrarium.

We decided to get guinea pigs almost as a whim. We were planning on getting a dog, but our landlady nixed the idea. We discussed other possibilities, and somehow came upon the idea of piggies - big and cuddly enough for some level of companionship, but not high enough maintenance that our landlady would freak. We did some research and came across the LA Guinea Pig Rescue in Chatsworth, and went to see the piggies available for adoption.

The first piggie we chose was a five year old named Allie, and the second was a one-and-a-half year old named Ludwig (whom we renamed Luna since she's a girl). 

Allie was far and away the more docile of the two. When we try to pick up Luna, she kicks and squeaks and runs, while Allie would squirm but stay quiet. I think Allie may have been a cat in a former life - she loved to sit in someone's lap and be pet, closing her eyes and making a happy rumbling noise. She also shed like crazy and had a tendency to pee on people's legs, but nobody's perfect.

Allie was a comforting presence. When we let her out of the cage, she would putter around and make a little curious noise - "putt putt putt putt." While Luna would be a burst of lightning squeaking and running back and forth, Allie would take her time and look around inquisitively.

With Allie and Luna, I began to understand for the first time the connection many people share with their pets. I hear others talk about how much they love their dog or their cat and it honestly just used to confuse me. "They're just animals," I'd silently think to myself, trying to be empathetic. Since I've become an adopted-guinea-pig-father, I get it now.

Allie had been kind of lethargic for the last few days, and yesterday evening she began having trouble walking. We tried to give her a carrot, and she meekly pecked at it then put down her head. We put her in a box and sped down to an exotic animal hospital in Torrance, but she died before we were even out of Inglewood. It's scary how quickly it happened.

I never thought I'd cry over a rodent, but I had some tears for Allie last night. We only had her for less than four months, but she left an impression and we'll certainly miss her.

Late last night my wife and I went out with a couple of friends with pets of their own who have met our guinea pigs. They consoled us over a meal at a Japanese restaurant, and it was nice to have someone who understood that even though Allie was "just a guinea pig," it hurt to lose her. Now I'm writing this as Luna, the younger piggie, runs around the floor next to me. Here's hoping we have more time to spend with her.