Pig Planet: The Adventures of Baozi and Ace

C Cole-Chakotay

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2014 6:36 am


What a nice tribute to Ace! I can tell from reading it how much you loved and cherished Ace and Baozi.

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Breadfan4

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2014 8:20 am


So sad to read about Ace. She has always been one of my favorites on GL. RIP little piggy, and all the best to you, Pigwidgeon.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2014 10:26 am


I am so sorry you lost her.

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AldenM1
Supporter in '21

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2014 10:33 am


I'm sorry about Ace. It sounds like she had a gentle, peaceful end after a year full of love, though, and you can't ask for much more for a piggy. Thank you for giving that to her.

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GP_mum
Supporter in '13

Post   » Mon Mar 24, 2014 10:02 pm


So sorry for your loss of Ace. They do leave us much too soon.

Cinnabuns Legacy

Post   » Tue Mar 25, 2014 1:27 am


I am so sorry you lost your lovely girl. She had a life full of love.

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pigwidgeon

Post   » Tue Mar 25, 2014 11:49 am


Thank you everyone for your kind words.

Today was one of the worst days of my life. We brought Ace to our priest to be blessed and then took her to the vet clinic for cremation. Her ashes will be returned to me. They'll sit on the shelf next to Baozi's. When I got home, I dismantled the cage and packed up all my guinea pig stuff. It was one of the hardest things I've done. I found some treats I hadn't had a chance to give to Ace yet and cried and cried.

I still have a huge full bag of hay left, a bit of bedding, and a big bag of pellets. I was considering giving them to my niece for her pig, but I'm worried that whatever Ace had might be contagious. I disposed of the hay in the cage, but I did touch the hay in the bag with my hands after handling Ace or refreshing her hay (when she was healthy). I'll talk to my vet, but I don't believe the reason for Ace's illness was ever determined, and I don't want to do a necropsy (it's probably too late, anyway).

The rest of my pig stuff, the fleece and cuddle cups and whatnot, are packed away to bring with me wherever I might go for future piggies. I've decided to take this opportunity to do something I always wanted to do, teach English overseas. I'm probably going to South Korea. Once I'm there and settled, I may adopt little Korean piggies. If I do, I will tell them about the two very special girls who came before them.

My Mom wonders how this experience hasn't put me off rescuing. The way I see it, as painful as it was to lose my piggers, the joy they brought before outweighed the pain. I always felt it took a special kind of person to love a small creature like guinea pigs, because their lives are so short (compared to dogs and cats) and they're so fragile. I think I'll always have guinea pigs, once I get settled and am not so nomadic.

I'm working on a tribute video for Ace. Working on these videos helps me to get through it. I almost feel like she's still with me sometimes.

It's still such a shock to my system to not have piggies anymore. Even with the cage taken down, I always catch myself thinking I'd better check on Ace or see if she wants a treat. I had the pigs for such a short time--just over a year--it feels surreal sometimes, like I dreamt them.

Tahnks to anyone who read this. I couldn't sleep, and I had to work all this out and thought maybe you guys would understand.

Crazy4me

Post   » Tue Mar 25, 2014 12:21 pm


I'm so sorry pigwidgeon. Please be gentle with yourself, and take as much time as you need to grieve.

And I agree it does take a special kind of person to love a small creature like a guinea pigs or ratties, and I believe once you are out on your own, you will welcome a couple of pigs into your life again.

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pigwidgeon

Post   » Tue Mar 25, 2014 7:41 pm


Thank you, Crazy4me. I've been looking into exotic vets and shelters in the Seoul area (since I will most likely apply to GEPIK and be assigned a public school in that area) for some little Korean piggies to adopt once I'm settled. It's hard since I don't know the language very well, but i did find an exotic vet who speaks English! (and hopefully I will be better at Korean once I get there).

I'm still going to hang out at the Lynx and read you guys' chronicles. I love guinea pigs and until I can have more piggies of my own, I enjoy reading about you guys' pigs and seeing their cute photos. Some people have a hard time with that during their grief, but for me, I find it comforting. That, and working on Ace's video tribute.

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pigwidgeon

Post   » Sat Mar 29, 2014 8:10 pm


Image

I finally finished my Ace tribute video. I think it helped me a lot. She was such a special little piggy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aauWtngYZ4M

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Lovemypigs
Supporter in '17

Post   » Sat Mar 29, 2014 9:00 pm


Awwww.....what a beautiful tribute!!! That made me smile to watch her - never to be forgotten.

Looking forward to you having new piggy stories sometime in the future. Wishing you lots of luck planning your new adventures.

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Breadfan4

Post   » Sun Mar 30, 2014 8:04 pm


Beautifully done! Ace was well loved.

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