"I will never love again"... or so I thought
Brutus: Destroyer of Worlds
In my junior year of college, I lived with a friend I had known since high school. We had gone through a lot together, and she knew me better than almost anyone. She could tell I was lonely. I missed my cat Stripes and my dog Miko, I needed someone waiting for me to get home. I needed someone furry to snuggle while I studied.
One day, she found exactly what I needed: a cute blob of fur with some serious attitude. She brought him home immediately. I saw him and fell in love. Her bf at the time donated a big aquarium, and the adventure had begun. I spent all of my extra time finding out what I could about piggies online. I found a lot of conflicting information. I did upgrade to the biggest pet store cage I could find, he had unlimited timothy hay (and alfalfa as a treat). I gave him baths and regularly cut his hair (we called it his afro) and nails. (He hated the laundry basket, because that's where he would get the hairdryer. He would scream.) I did the best I could, but I didn't have everything right: I put vitamins in his water. For the most part, the only veggie he got was carrots. He never saw a vet, or got treated for mites etc (even though he was a pet store pig).
Right away, I could tell he had such personality. Brutus was an only pig, and he knew he was the boss. He knew he could squeak or clang his water bottle against the cage, any time day or night, and I would come running. If he heard a crinkle, he'd week so loudly and sit on his back legs begging for a treat. Playing with his water bottle was a fun hobby, I had to clean his soggy cage so often. He was quite a snuggler too. He would've stayed in the hood or front pocket of my sweatshirt forever if I'd have let him. His favorite was to nibble on and burrow in my long hair while he patrolled from shoulder to shoulder. I was smitten, he was the best.
Pictures to come.
In my junior year of college, I lived with a friend I had known since high school. We had gone through a lot together, and she knew me better than almost anyone. She could tell I was lonely. I missed my cat Stripes and my dog Miko, I needed someone waiting for me to get home. I needed someone furry to snuggle while I studied.
One day, she found exactly what I needed: a cute blob of fur with some serious attitude. She brought him home immediately. I saw him and fell in love. Her bf at the time donated a big aquarium, and the adventure had begun. I spent all of my extra time finding out what I could about piggies online. I found a lot of conflicting information. I did upgrade to the biggest pet store cage I could find, he had unlimited timothy hay (and alfalfa as a treat). I gave him baths and regularly cut his hair (we called it his afro) and nails. (He hated the laundry basket, because that's where he would get the hairdryer. He would scream.) I did the best I could, but I didn't have everything right: I put vitamins in his water. For the most part, the only veggie he got was carrots. He never saw a vet, or got treated for mites etc (even though he was a pet store pig).
Right away, I could tell he had such personality. Brutus was an only pig, and he knew he was the boss. He knew he could squeak or clang his water bottle against the cage, any time day or night, and I would come running. If he heard a crinkle, he'd week so loudly and sit on his back legs begging for a treat. Playing with his water bottle was a fun hobby, I had to clean his soggy cage so often. He was quite a snuggler too. He would've stayed in the hood or front pocket of my sweatshirt forever if I'd have let him. His favorite was to nibble on and burrow in my long hair while he patrolled from shoulder to shoulder. I was smitten, he was the best.
Pictures to come.
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- Obey My Authority
And Luckiest Girl saves the day, I was just about to ask for Brutus's picture. : )
You did such a nice job with his hair, I can't belive I am still giving Mojo haircuts from hell now after he has been here for over an year....
I know there is more to come, ...
*tappa*
You did such a nice job with his hair, I can't belive I am still giving Mojo haircuts from hell now after he has been here for over an year....
I know there is more to come, ...
*tappa*
Brutus came back to school with me after going home for break. We came back a day earlier than planned because there was a big snowstorm coming and I didn't want to miss any school because of bad roads. I remember coming out of the shower and wondering why he hadn't bossed me around for a while. That's when I noticed something was wrong. His back legs weren't moving anymore, he was dragging himself around.
I called around to some vets, none of the local ones were open or had any emergency information on their phone message. I finally talked to an on-call vet in Portland (2-3 hours away from Farmington, and that's without a snowstorm). She said they'd see him if I could get him there, and that it would be at least $100 just for the emergency visit with nothing else. My car was on the verge of falling apart and had no snow tires. I didn't know what to do.
I called back and asked if there was anything I could do to keep him going through the night. She said I had to keep water in him and put veggies and pellets in the blender to syringe feed him if I could. She didn't sound as if he would make it through the night.
After finding a friend who was also back in town to stay with me, I did what I could for Brutus (which wasn't much). He died in my arms that night. I still cry thinking about it, and how I could and should have done so much more for my sweet baby Brutus.
I had him cremated and eventually scattered his ashes in a beautiful field. He would have loved it there. My heart was so broken, I didn't think I could ever bear to have and possibly lose a beautiful pig again.
I called around to some vets, none of the local ones were open or had any emergency information on their phone message. I finally talked to an on-call vet in Portland (2-3 hours away from Farmington, and that's without a snowstorm). She said they'd see him if I could get him there, and that it would be at least $100 just for the emergency visit with nothing else. My car was on the verge of falling apart and had no snow tires. I didn't know what to do.
I called back and asked if there was anything I could do to keep him going through the night. She said I had to keep water in him and put veggies and pellets in the blender to syringe feed him if I could. She didn't sound as if he would make it through the night.
After finding a friend who was also back in town to stay with me, I did what I could for Brutus (which wasn't much). He died in my arms that night. I still cry thinking about it, and how I could and should have done so much more for my sweet baby Brutus.
I had him cremated and eventually scattered his ashes in a beautiful field. He would have loved it there. My heart was so broken, I didn't think I could ever bear to have and possibly lose a beautiful pig again.
Momo- I knew I couldn't start this thread without digging out some pictures, that would just be CRUEL! Isn't he the cutest? If Mojo's ever in Maine I'd love to squeeze him and give him a complimentary haircut.
dgarriques- Yes, he loved her hair. I wonder if he thought he was being sneaky in camouflage...
mini'smama, I'm sure we could share Mojo when he comes to visit. I hope it doesn't come down to arm-wrestling between us after just barely meeting. :-)
I really do think Brutus was the handsome-est pig ever. He had the cutest little spot of white on his chin and a little on his shoulders too. Of course, he knew about his good looks and used them to get whatever he wanted...
I really do think Brutus was the handsome-est pig ever. He had the cutest little spot of white on his chin and a little on his shoulders too. Of course, he knew about his good looks and used them to get whatever he wanted...
Years passed and I missed my favorite boy so much. I ended up searching for piggie pictures online. From there it was looking for as much information about pigs as I could find. I was so scared that if I got pigs again they would suddenly and inexplicably die.
Then I found GL. I started learning SO much more than I ever thought possible. (I also found tons of adorable pics.) Eventually I felt ready to try again.
I started talking to my Marc about getting pets (now that we don't have roomies, it gets awfully quiet around here). He seemed pretty ok with the idea of piggies. And then, for Christmas, came the surprise:
Then I found GL. I started learning SO much more than I ever thought possible. (I also found tons of adorable pics.) Eventually I felt ready to try again.
I started talking to my Marc about getting pets (now that we don't have roomies, it gets awfully quiet around here). He seemed pretty ok with the idea of piggies. And then, for Christmas, came the surprise:
-
- Obey My Authority
Mojo's butt head is his signature look! : )
You wouldn't recognize him without it!
And let's go already LuckiestGirl, what was the surprise?
*tappa tappa*
You wouldn't recognize him without it!
And let's go already LuckiestGirl, what was the surprise?
*tappa tappa*
Truffle and Godiva
Marc said: "They were SO cute and they're sisters, I couldn't split them up. I hope this is an ok Christmas present..."
Truffle is the bigger one (at this point) and Godiva is the crested one. (We joke that it's her crown, she's a princess.) These were taken about 5 minutes after getting them:
Marc said: "They were SO cute and they're sisters, I couldn't split them up. I hope this is an ok Christmas present..."
Truffle is the bigger one (at this point) and Godiva is the crested one. (We joke that it's her crown, she's a princess.) These were taken about 5 minutes after getting them:
Truffle in the hood of my sweatshirt:
Godiva in her tube (ANY tube is HER tube):
Godiva loves her dad and her sweatshirt bag:
Truffle lounging:
Godiva in her tube (ANY tube is HER tube):
Godiva loves her dad and her sweatshirt bag:
Truffle lounging: