K.C.
Ooh, that's a bummer. Unfortunately with guinea pigs, by the time they show any signs of sickness, it's often too late to save them. In the wild, they're often prey, so if they show any weakness, they get picked off. So over the years, they've developed to hide signs of bad health until they're super unhealthy/on their deathbed, then they pretty much die. We also learned this firsthand when our guinea pig developed pneumonia. I spent $200 on an x-ray and antibiotics, only to have it live another 8hrs or so. And I was super diligent about its health since our first one died much like yours, with no signs whatsoever, just dead one morning in its cage. It was devastating to me, but as a small pet owner, I know it happens. Just like the owner of your temporary pet will understand that it sometimes just happens. It's entirely possible the guinea pig was already ill when you took it in. Unless the 15yr old girl was a guinea pig expert or a vet, it's probably unlikely she noticed anything was wrong either. I think your girls DID experience what it's like to have pets. The reality is, small animals, guinea pigs, hamsters, etc, more often do not have a long life. You do hear of animals that life for YEARS, but for the most part, this is just not the case. Taking loving care of a small pet, only to have it pass away, then grieving for it and moving on is all part of pet ownership. Unfortunately, your girls experienced the bad part too soon. There's also a lot of great experiences with owning a small pet. Guinea pigs, especially, are friendly, greet you when you walk into the room, let you pet them and are really pretty great. I loved our guinea pigs and sometime in the future plan on adopting another one. I hope your girls aren't too traumatized to give pet ownership a consideration. And if you do decide to get a guinea pig, consider adopting one instead of buying one from a pet store.
