Yesterday, Saturday June the 11th, Charlene and I had to put the sweetest guinea pig in all the land, Tuppenny down when the vet told us that she once again had tumours growing in her which were putting her in a lot of discomfort. She was almost 6 years old.

A couple of years ago, she had an egg sized tumour removed from her ovaries, but she was younger then, and came through that surgery amazingly well. The vet didn't think she'd make it through another. On Thursday we first noticed that she wasn't her usual self, and on Friday she pretty much stopped eating, just sleeping as much as she could. When we petted her, she still purred, but she just wasn't herself.

You could feel a big lump on her side, and she complained whenever you touched her side. The trip to the vet confirmed our worst fears, and our poor pig had to be put down.

She was an awesome animal. I haven't ever had a pig before, Charlene had two when she was a kid. Tuppenny was bold, she was gentle, and she had a hilarious personality. She never bit anyone, though she did nip at you if you were bugging (but never actually grabbed hold). She'd give you headbutts if you were bugging her, and pushed things out of her way. The best part of her was the way she would run from side to side of the room.

Charlene was amazing with her. The constant handling of her when she was little made her totally comfortable around people. She was never timid, never frightened, and would welcome attention whenever she would get it.

I'm glad we got to spend as much time as we did with her, I wish she could have met our baby, and our baby could have gotten to know our cool little pig, but it wasn't meant to be.

Tupp, you were the best pig anyone could have asked for. Thanks for the memories, the house isn't the same without you, and we miss you.