It was never our intention to come home with a new pet, especially one that's a member of the rodent family. We just stopped by the pet shop to pick up supplies for our ailing bunny rabbit. While stocking up on honey-nut treat sticks and bunny chow, we noticed a sad looking guinea pig in a cage with some hamsters.
At first I thought "what a hog, he's sitting in the food bowl", I didn't realize that he was there to escape attack. We started to take a closer look. "Oh no", gasped my wife, "look at his ears, they're all torn up and bleeding". Indeed they were, and all of the hair atop his head had fallen out! It was obvious this poor creature was in distress. Then it happened, he jumped off the food bowl and made a break for the water bottle, followed by a malicious band of sharp-toothed hamsters. As he was trying to quench his thirst they attacked his behind, "EEEEEEEEEEEEEE" was all he could say. We maneuvered around the cage to get a look at his backside and were shocked, it was bald and covered with bloody sores!
We were LIVID. "How could you allow this to go on", my wife fumed at the store manager, "this is outrageous, we're reporting you!". "Now ma'am" said the bothered looking manager, "we will separate him at once". We stuck around for a while to make sure they really did separate the poor cavy, and headed off for dinner.
My wife and I couldn't finish our dinner, we were too upset. "They probably stuck him in a little box in the back", "maybe they'll just throw him away", "or sell him for snake food". Five minutes later we were back at the bad pet store on a rescue mission. "Give us the poor little thing and some supplies and we won't report you" I barked. And we were right! They HAD put him in a little box in the back.
It's been about eight months since that night, and as I type this story all I have to do is look to my left to see that we made the right decision. He is nice and plump now, and has grown a great wave of hair on top of his head (the Elvis look). I am always amazed at his appetite, in fact, he is standing on the edge of his food bowl right now going cuiii cuiii, give me a snack or I'll scream....well, off to the kitchen.
