Sunday, March 17, 2024

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 On behalf of all the Piggyfriends, Rafael is here to wish everyone a very happy St. Patrick's Day.


Orla was going to be in our photo this year as Slave's pendant would have showed up well on her bright, white coat but I was picked up to have my nails trimmed and, as Slave had her camera at the ready, I became the...er.. victim. Not that I minded as I was rewarded with a carrot for being a good boy.


Please join us in raising a glass on this special occasion....


.......filled with fresh, green grass of course.


                                                   Slainte! Cheers! Good Health to you all!

Sunday, March 10, 2024

The Prairie Pigs Light Our Candle


 Here is Attila, standing guard over our Peter Gurney Memorial Candle.  So many piggies and friends of piggies now at the Rainbow Bridge to think about!  We spent a quiet hour watching our candle and remembering.  Thanks to Cindy, Audrey, Oliver, Scottie and Coke for organizing this event each year.

Saturday, March 9, 2024

Candle Lighting at the Piggyfriends



Some piggies do not behave very well on what should be a solemn occasion.  We wanted to use Peaches this year, as she is the very image of the piggy on Peter's book, but first of all she tried to light her whiskers on fire.


Then she was more interested in the boars in the pen behind her, but it does make an amusing out-take!


We can always rely on Bella to pose nicely for a photo, so here she is showing how it is done.

In memory of our dear friend Peter, who loved piggies as much as we all do!

We Lit a Candle in Swannanoa, North Carolina


Ceilidh, Shannon and some small friends wish Peter Gurney a Happy Birthday from Swannanoa, North Carolina, U.S.A.

 

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

On March 9th, We Remember Peter Gurney

                                        

 Oliver here!  I am one of the organizers of the Peter Gurney Memorial 
Candle Lighting, which takes place on March 9th.

The Guinea Pigs' Daily Digest has held this event every year since Mr. Gurney passed away in 2006.  It's a time to remember and celebrate guinea pig advocate Mr. Gurney, as well as other friends and loved ones who have gone to the Rainbow Bridge, whether they were human, furred, feathered or finned.

We hope you can join us!  All you have to do is light a candle (which can be real, virtual or electric) at 
8 p.m., wherever you are, and keep it lit for an hour if possible.  At 9 p.m. your time, others in 
the next time zone will light their own candles and in this way, our little light travels around the world.

You don't have to be a member of the GPDD to participate.  Just let us know where you lit your candle (please include city or town, state or province and country) so we can include you in our list of locations. (No personal names will be listed.). You can do this by sending a note to PG_Memorial@gpdd.org (http://gpdd.org).  

We hope you will help us shine our light around the world --- thanks! 

Wednesday, February 14, 2024

On Valentine's Day, We Are SMITTEN!




First we'd like to wish everyone a very Happy Valentine's Day! 

Second, and of utmost importance, we received quite a lovely note from Charlotte and Emily of the Prairie Pigs, asking us to be their Valentines!  We happily accepted.  This is the letter we sent back to 
Charlotte and Emily: 

"Dear Charlotte and Emily,

We have never received a Valentine letter before <blush>, and we hope you will forgive our tardiness in answering. We have spent much of our time popcorning in happiness and reading your note over and over.  "Just once more!" one of us will say.  Please take our delay as a tribute to your lovely words.  We can only hope to come close to your eloquence.
In short, our answer is a very happy "YES!"  We would be very honoured to be your Valentines.  You are beautiful, thoughtful and smart ladies, and we admit we have awakened our parents at night a few times as we sighed in admiration at your photos.
You have most definitely captured our hearts, which we freely give to you!

LOVE and KISSES, and FOREVER YOURS!!!

OXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

πŸ’—πŸ’—πŸ’—Scottie and CokeπŸ’—πŸ’—πŸ’—"


(We wanted to put exclamation marks after every sentence but tried not to. )

Having seen their photos, we asked our mom to print them out so we could admire them night and day. Then we asked our mom to take our photos with theirs.

We decorated their photos with hearts. Emily is on the left, and Charlotte is on the right. (I, Scottie, must note that Charlotte and I look quite alike, and somehow it turned out that we are in similar poses.)

I, Coke, admire Emily's coloration and think she has excellent taste in veggies.

We send love and kisses!

We also wrote a poem for you:

Ladies, thank you for your Valentine's note.
We appreciate everything you wrote.
Your thoughts are better than any treat.
You are the true definition of sweet!

Love is in the Air in the Frozen North

 I should have known something was up!  At the beginning of January, Emily and Charlotte began to ask whether or not we could do a Valentine's Day post for the blog this year.  It seemed a little early for that so I just told them we could think about it a bit later, but they seemed to be very impatient about waiting for an answer.  

Soon after that, I noticed that when I got up in the morning, sometimes things seemed to be moved around on my computer desk, as if someone very small was trying to find a way of boosting themselves up to use the keyboard --- who could that be, and why?


Then --- this!!! One morning I came downstairs and surprised little Emily, who appeared to be guiltily admiring Cindy's piggy Coke on the computer!  Oh my goodness, what was going on?  I decided I had better pay closer attention to what those little girlies were up to.  Teenage guinea pigs are like teenagers of any species, after all --- they do sometimes get these romantic notions into their little heads.  


Then I was cleaning cages a few days later and decided to sweep out the very furthest back corner of the girlies' cage --- what on earth???  Where did that poster of Scottie come from, and could that be my sweet, innocent little Charlotte casting such amorous glances at it?  (I hadn't noticed before, but they do look a bit alike, don't they?  Maybe that match was just meant to be!)

Even more shocking was the piece of paper I found folded up very small and hidden under a pile of hay at the back of their pigloo.  Yes, it was a love letter from my little girl piggies to Scottie and Coke!!!

"Dear Scottie and Coke,

We have a very important question to ask:  will you be our Valentines???  We have seen your pigtures on the blog, and we think you are sooo handsome and intelligent.  We printed out some of our favourite photos of you so we could look at them secretly and we even had a few enlarged into posters.  There are some rude and boorish boars living in our immediate vicinity and we don't want them to know!  They think rattling the bars of our cage and honking at us will make us love them, but they are wrong!  Our hearts belong to YOU!!!  We hope you feel the same way.

LOVE and KISSES,
XOXOXOXOXO
πŸ’–πŸ’–πŸ’–πŸ’–Charlotte and EmilyπŸ’–πŸ’–πŸ’–πŸ’–"

Of course, I immediately sent a message to Cindy so we could put our heads together and come up with a plan, only to discover it was already too late.  The girlies had figured out how to send their message and Cindy had just discovered that her boys had already responded; their message to the girls was on its way at that very moment.  It seemed as if we could no longer stand in the way of True Love, which had already triumphed over cage bars and thousands of miles of separation.


So, my little girls are getting their Valentine's Day post after all.  Perhaps they are old enough for boyfriends, at least long-distance ones, and I know their hearts are in the best of hands (er...paws) with Scottie and Coke.  Happy Valentine's Day from Emily, Charlotte and all of the Prairie Pigs (with special love going out to two handsome boars far, far away)!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

 Hello Readers,

Valentine Piggyfriend here. Yes, that really is my name! I came here to live at Piggyfriends on that special date with my brother so Slave wanted to name one of us Valentine and it was me.

I am here to introduce a lovely romantic story featuring our friends Charlotte and Emily of the Prairie Piggies (along with their Slave Pat) and Cindy's boys, Scottie and Coke, who many of you know from the GPDD and you will have seen them here too.

I have many lovely girlies with whom to share this special day and here is one of them. Our Bella.

Valentine's Day arrives here in England earlier than some of the places where you, our lovely readers, live so keep watching and enjoy!!

Thursday, February 1, 2024

Episode Four: Coming Home.

Pinky and Brownie have had a lovely holiday in Bermuda, but now it is time to come home. Here they are at the airport.


"Look out of the window," says Pinky." I think that must be our plane. Do you have our tickets ready?"

 


 

"Yes!" replies Brownie. "We are all set to go. We just need to find Mom and Dad."

Meanwhile Shannon and Ceilidh are getting excited, knowing that their friends will soon be coming home.

 

                                                       -------------------------


The following day, Shannon and Ceilidh are looking out of the window.


"Look, Ceilidh!" says Shannon. "There is Auntie Karen, bringing home Mommy and Dad, Pinky and Brownie from the airport. They have been away in Bermuda for two whole weeks."



The piggies are so happy to see their friends again.

"You must tell us all about your adventures in Bermuda." says Shannon. " First of all, we must ask Mom to cut up this fruit for us." says Ceilidh. " You must be hungry after your journey."


                                                  Welcome home little piggies!

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Episode Three: Excitement at Piggyfriends and a Stormy Day in Bermuda.

"Hey guys! Come and look at this." calls out Bella Piggyfriend. " We have a postcard all the way from Bermuda."



"It is from the Piggyville Plushies, who are there on holiday. What's that, Rafael? No. I don't know where Bermuda is, but I think it is further away than Brighton. Please do not chew the edges, Rafael. We all know what happens to your name cards. Look where you have eaten the "R" from your own name!"

Meanwhile, back in Bermuda, the Plushies are having to stay indoors as there is a huge storm raging outside. They managed to send a photo to Shannon and Ceilidh back home in N.C. before they all decamped to the basement to wait it out.


"We thought that we were having bad weather," says Bella when the Piggyfriends receive the photo, "but that looks really nasty. I hope that it doesn't spoil the rest of their trip."

As Pinky and Brownie cannot go out today to take more photos, they have sent Bella a text, which she is going to read out to the Piggyfriends....

"Hello Bella. We wanted to tell you that we have been to Bermuda before. Eighteen years ago, when Mom and Dad were married here, their Best Man and Maid of Honour gave us plush piggies to them as little wedding gifts. We have stayed with them ever since, so we would like the Piggyfriends, together with the Piggyville Girls back home, to join us in saying a big piggy hello to James and Donna, who might be reading this story."

"Ready, guys and girlies," says Bella. " All together now....HELLO JAMES and DONNA!!!"

" Aaah!" says Bella. "Aaah!" chorus all the Piggyfriends.

Sunday, January 28, 2024

Another Day in Paradise: The Piggyville Plushies go Shopping.

Shannon and Ceilidh of the Piggyville girls were excited to receive some more photos from their friends Pinky and Brownie in Bermuda.

Today, the plush piggies visited a gift shop.


" What do you think are in all those tubes?" asks Shannon. "They might be full of biscuits," replies Ceilidh, "but we could use them to make some additions to our houses when they are empty."


"Look at those pretty pink and blue boxes, Shannon!" exclaims Ceilidh. "I think that it says "truffles" on those boxes, so they are not for guinea pigs," says Shannon. The girls eye the boxes, thinking what lovely additions they would make torn up for piggy house extensions. 

Pinky and Brownie send a text to the girls back home saying that they are going to a bar next. "Aren't they a bit young for that?" asks Shannon. " They will probably be allowed in with Mom and Dad" replies Ceilidh. 

And they were!

Here they are, perched on the bar......


......and now they have climbed up on this display of bottles.


Be careful girls! That is a long way down.

Friday, January 26, 2024

A Trip to Bermuda

We are about to go on an adventure with the Piggyville Girls.


" Hey Shannon. " says Ceilidh, " It looks like Mom and Dad are packing our suitcase for a vacation!".


 

" The label says Bermuda," says Ceilidh. "All packed and ready to go!"


" Oh no!" says Shannon. " It looks like Pinky and Brownie are going to Bermuda...not us. We are going to stay home with Auntie Karen, who takes care of us when Mom and Dad go on vacation.

      



Pinky and Brownie have arrived in Bermuda; they sent this photo of themselves with their Mom at the airport.

"I wish that we could have gone too." says Shannon. "Maybe they will send us some more photos." replies Ceilidh.

A few hours later, the Piggyville Girls received the next photo; this one shows Pinky and Brownie going out to eat at a restaurant.


" I hope that they serve veggies," says Ceilidh. " I wonder what piggies eat in Bermuda?" replies Shannon. "I bet they have wonderful veggies and fruit growing there that we have never seen before!"

Monday, January 8, 2024

Our First Boxing Day

We have received a report from Ceilidh of the Piggyville Girls!

"The Piggyville Girls were excited to read the recent blog post about Boxing Day.  We know our friends the Prairie Pigs and the Piggyfriends celebrate Boxing Day on December 26.  We do not have this holiday in the U.S., but after reading the blog post, we realized its significance to guinea pigs and have decided to take on this new tradition.  To mark the occasion, my sister Shannon was inspired to design and build a special cardboard box for our first Boxing Day!"


"Here is Shannon, proudly showing off her creation.  As you can see, she has quite a flair for architecture and has used available materials, like a cardboard tube and a paper bag, to enhance the entrance and produce a lovely extra play area for us. (I am not as imaginative as my sister, but I did help with the decoration by chewing around the edges for that nice lacy effect.)"




 

Tuesday, January 2, 2024

Piggyfriends make New Year Resolutions

 It is hard to make a New Year Resolution like the humans do.

 


 

Benedict Piggyfriend is thinking about what to write. " I cannot give up chocolate and Slave would worry if I wanted to lose weight. What can I write with my pen? I know!!"


"This will make Slave happy as I always leave my cucumber."


" I know that she wants me to eat it as it is good for us piggies so maybe I could try."


" How about this Slave?"


 

" I may have to think about this some more," says Benedict. " Have the rest of you Piggyfriends written anything yet? This is hard."




Monday, January 1, 2024

Guinea Pigs Make New Year's Resolutions Too!

 It has been a whirlwind year for Charlotte and Emily, the newest Prairie Pigs.  They were born in early March, spent six weeks with their mum and were then shipped to a pet store, where they were sold to a family of rambunctious kids.  Fortunately, the kids' parents were keeping an eye on things, and soon concluded the kids were not gentle enough for small pets like baby guinea pigs. Less than a month after leaving Mum, Charlotte and Emily ended up at the local Humane Society shelter.

Then their fortunes improved!  Here at the Prairie Pigs, Lovely Rita had been rambling around by herself in a double-size cage, and Slave had been watching for a chance to find her some friends.  When she heard there were two little girl piggies at the shelter, she headed off to scoop them up before the shelter had even had a chance to post their pigtures.


Here are Lovely Rita and her new protΓ©gΓ©es soon after they arrived, enjoying some grass for the first time.  As you can see, Charlotte and Emily were tiny and at first, they were very respectful and followed all LR's orders very well.  Now, eight months later, they are rebellious teenagers, but Lovely Rita is a big girl who is ready and able to lay down the law (though Charlotte is a bossy little thing who tests the limits regularly).  Emily is still the smallest, but she is feisty and so quick she can evade her two cagemates with ease.  Little by little, they have worked out the power structure and made peace with each other, as piggies almost always do.

Still, there is always room for improvement, and the three Girlies have decided to celebrate their first New Year's together at the Prairie Pigs by each making a New Year's Resolution.


Lovely Rita's Resolution is to be more patient with the little girls --- unless they are trying to steal a dandelion green right out of her mouth, of course: even the most saintly piggy could not be expected to put up with that!


Charlotte's Resolution is to be a better pig person: not to steal food from LR and Emily (or perhaps to do it less frequently, anyhow) and not to argue so much about who gets to sit where.  She is really working on this.  Here is a rare photo of Charlotte sitting peacefully and thoughtfully, not bothering anyone! 


Emily's Resolution is to EAT EVERYTHING!!!  She is tired of always being the pipsqueak and intends to become such a humongous piggy that she will never again have to worry about LR and Charlotte trying to muscle her away from the food dish.  

Do your piggies have New Year's Resolutions?  Let us know!  In the meantime, all of the Prairie Pigs would like to wish the Undercover Guinea Pigs community out there a very Happy New Year and a peaceful, happy and healthy 2024!

Happy New Year 2024


Everypig at Piggyfriends would like to wish our readers a Very Happy and Carrotful New Year 2024.

Caoimhe was in charge of party arrangements.....

..........but Tamworth drank too much of the carrot wine and had to be helped home by the staff.


See you all in 2024. Take care everyone and watch that carrot wine. It is potent stuff!

Tuesday, December 26, 2023

A Very Happy Boxing Day from the Prairie Pigs!


 "What ho, Tiny Human," says Arthur Pendragon.  "I like you!  At last, a piggy-sized human!  I think you and I could be friends and hang out together!"

Arthur is here to wish everyone a Happy Boxing Day: that is a holiday celebrated on the day after Christmas in the U.K. and Canada, and since piggies love a good cardboard box to renovate or nap in better than almost anything, it is considered a sort of special guinea pig holiday.  (We think the humans might have originally intended it as a day to box up Christmas leftovers to take to those less fortunate, but since piggies seldom have any leftovers at all, celebrating the humble but versatile cardboard box works better for us...)

P.S.  That card behind Arthur with the Christmas tree and the two piggies travelled all the way from England, sent by our Auntie Penny and always has a place of honour!

Monday, December 25, 2023

Merry Christmas to all our Readers!!

 

Bella here. On behalf of the herd of Piggyfriends, I would like to wish all of our readers a very Happy Christmas with stockings full of carrots, cucumbers, chicory, lettuce and whatever you like best. 

Personally I like grass best of all and our Slave's son has come to stay and will be fulfilling that need.


Happy Holidays everyone and everypig. xxxx

Slave says Nollaig Shona, which she assures me means Happy Christmas but I only speak Pig.

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Confused Piggies

 

 

"Look at these toy piggies!" says Cobweb. " They look very much like my best friend, Tamworth."


"Look at these toy piggies!" says Tamworth. " They look very much like me."


"Oh that is you this time," says Cobweb. " Let us ask the staff to hang the toys on the tree so that I don't get confused."


" That is better," says Cobweb, " now they won't be given our carrots by mistake."