Guinea Pigs Cannot Live In The Wild

About a month ago, a woman named Pam was walking in a park in Worcester, Massachusetts, when she came across three guinea pigs near the path. We don't know how long they'd been left in the woods, but it was purely by the grace of God (or whoever you believe in) that Pam found them at all, found them together, and was able to catch them. Not able to take care of them, she brought the three girls to Marilyn at NEADY Cats. Marilyn fostered them for a while, and posted an adoption notice on Petfinder for them, until we had room to put them.

Reba, Rita and Rosie came to Connecticut on Saturday afternoon. Remarkably, their weight was good, they showed no fear or shyness, and there were no fleas, mites, or lice to be found in their coats. They are, in fact, quite healthy. It would seem that although they'd been abandoned, they hadn't been in the woods for long. They have bright, engaging, affectionate, immensely sociable little personalities. It's difficult to understand why anyone would want to give them up.

Marilyn did not mince her words in her adoption posting: "These 3 little guinea pigs were found in the woods. Guess some people have no sense of guilt to leave these three little cuties to fend for themselves."

This isn't the first time we've taken in guinea pigs who were abandoned outside. We've had guinea pigs who were found under front stoops of apartment buildings, on playgrounds, on baseball fields, and in the woods. I can't comprehend turning a domesticated animal loose in the wild to fend for itself. I can't imagine what people were thinking -- other than that they just had animals that they no longer wanted, and probably feared they'd be hassled if they took the animals and surrendered them to a shelter or a rescue.

For now, we're grateful that these girls were found and that they're now safe. And we'll try not to think about the guinea pigs that are not found in time.

Comments

[Aimee, PJ and Swingley]

Happy they were found by someone who gave a darn. Still makes me cry that people can be so cruel. Thank you for telling their story.

[Tumerica]

Treating creatures like objects. That's evil to me. And utterly lacking in imagination. With a minute of thought, the previous owners of those piggies could have safely shared their unwanted pets with others who do want them. How about using a little imagination. Can you picture a small kid with a happy face, holding her new piggy? Then you can make it come true. Make someone else happy. Share what you don't want or need anymore with others.

[Gretchen]

I just don't understand why people would drop pets in the woods or by the side of the road when it's so easy to drop them at the local Humane Society. They do such a great job of taking care of pets and finding them homes. There's no need for cruelty. That's where we adopted our darling guinea pig Patch (R.I.P.) years ago -- it's sort of a match.com for pets and owners!