My guinea pig passed suddenly

[Theocross3]

Hello all,

My guinea pig, Ophelia, died last night very suddenly. My mother went out to check on all three of them and found Ophelia lying still and struggling to breathe, or to even hold her head up.

She was very very ill, and upon holding her I knew she probably wouldn't make it. She died in my hands less than halfway to the vets.

I've had a guinea pig die before, 2 ½ ago. Her name was Lunar. Both her death and Ophelia's were at a relatively young age of about 3 ½ years old. 

We originally got Lunar with her sister Cosmos, who is still alive today and apparently has 9 lives as she has faced a lot in her lifetime. She's on her way to be 6 years old next month, blessed thing. Ophelia also had a sister named Venus, who is also still alive and is keeping Cosmos company.

My guinea pigs are very important to me; we got them just before I turned 13, I am 18 now. Our reason for rescuing them was because of my autism, they were originally meant to be therapy pets and were not meant to be a responsibility of mine. I obviously took on the responsibility of looking after them and got better at it year on year.

Ophelia died very suddenly. Yesterday morning, I went out to give them food and Cosmos and Venus were acting normally, as was Ophelia, or so she appeared. She was sat up fine and looked generally okay, so I thought nothing of her being poorly at all and went to sixth form as normal.

It's thought that she might have had a stroke or a heart attack, which guinea pigs can apparently get for simply no reason at any age. She was also overweight through no fault of ours, as we fed her healthily just like the other two; she just didn't run around as much.

I'm just feeling a bit weird about her death. Lunar also died suddenly, but less so as she got ill beforehand, and died a couple weeks or so later. I feel less sad about Ophelia than I did about Lunar. I cried for about a week when Lunar passed. Ophelia has just left me feeling a little empty and strange.

My guinea pigs are very important to me, but I can't help but think I should've cried more at Ophelia's death, especially considering she died in my hands on the way to get her help.

Can anybody tell me why I feel this way? Does anybody have any advice on how to help how I feel?

[foreverhis]

Welcome.  I'm so sorry you have lost your beloved Ophelia.  It must have been such a shock to have her suddenly become so ill.  I'm glad that you were holding her though because it means that when she passed from this world, she was surrounded by your love.  That matters; it really does.

Of course I can only speculate as to why you feel the way you do in that it is different from your losing Lunar.  It sounds as if when you lost Lunar you had not experienced the death of a pet so close to you.  You had no idea how you would feel, what you would do, or anything like that.  With Ophelia, you understand more because you have had grief before and because you are a little older and more mature.  I don't say this to mean that adults experience any less pain with deep loss.  We grieve just as hard and just as long.  As a young adult, your brain is still growing and your feelings are maturing, so maybe you think about Ophelia's death differently as well.  And for it to be so sudden, in the blink of an eye really, is a huge shock.  Feeling empty and strange is part of that kind of shock.  Don't be surprised if not too far down the road you suddenly feel as you did when you lost Lunar.  The shock will ultimately diminish and all the rest of your emotions in grief will be there.  It's completely typical to go through this evolution.

You've found a really good place to be.  The members here all understand, are all going through it.  We're all different and our grief is unique to each of us, but we do "get it."  Some are further along and some, like you, are just starting out.  Please come here to talk, read, question, or whatever helps you.  We listen to each other, comfort when we can, give advice when asked, and are a community of people who understand each other.

(BTW, I love the names you've given your guinea pigs.  They are wonderful.)

[KayC]

19 hours ago, Theocross3 said:

Can anybody tell me why I feel this way?

I am so sorry for your loss/es.  No one expects to lose a pet so soon. 

As for not crying more, everyone reacts differently in grief.  Some cry, some done, some on down the road.  Shock can set in, numbness, so it delays our response or ekes it out a little at a time as we realize they're gone.  I didn't cry much when my Lucky died (I felt guilty about that although I know it's not something to feel guilty about) but I still mourn Arlie (dog) 2 1/2 years later!  One thing I've learned is to not question grief...how it displays, time frame, etc.  We're all individual, so is our grief, and each loss hits us uniquely too.  There is no right way or wrong way to do this.  It just is, we try to get through it as best as we can, learn to adjust/cope as best as we can, but it's a process.

I'm sorry you're having to go through this at all. 

I hope the thought of this brings you some comfort, they may not show a guinea pig, but you can bet all animals are there...

 

 

[Theocross3]

1 hour ago, KayC said:

I am so sorry for your loss/es.  No one expects to lose a pet so soon. 

As for not crying more, everyone reacts differently in grief.  Some cry, some done, some on down the road.  Shock can set in, numbness, so it delays our response or ekes it out a little at a time as we realize they're gone.  I didn't cry much when my Lucky died (I felt guilty about that although I know it's not something to feel guilty about) but I still mourn Arlie (dog) 2 1/2 years later!  One thing I've learned is to not question grief...how it displays, time frame, etc.  We're all individual, so is our grief, and each loss hits us uniquely too.  There is no right way or wrong way to do this.  It just is, we try to get through it as best as we can, learn to adjust/cope as best as we can, but it's a process.

I'm sorry you're having to go through this at all. 

I hope the thought of this brings you some comfort, they may not show a guinea pig, but you can bet all animals are there...

 

 

Thank you so much for your kind and thoughtful reply, and the links you've provided have been very helpful. Thanks again

[KayC]

Come back to read/post any time...there are others going through the same...