Special Guest Blog: That’s a Mighty Fine Town

To mark Guinea Pig Awareness Week, we have a very special guest highlighting the value of their welfare:

Howdy y’all, the name’s Sheriff Diesel and I hear you folks are celebrating Guinea Pig Awareness Week.

I’m in charge of this fine town of Hog Springs at Northumberland Zoo. Hog Springs is home to a group of rescued guinea pigs and when we heard there was opportunity to pioneer a new town, we jumped at the chance. Rescue centres are full are animals of all kinds looking for their forever homes, and guinea pigs are no exception. A solitary life for a guinea pig is nothing to say Yee-haw about, in fact we prefer to live with a friend or in a group.  

As I walk down the main street admiring our town and all the fine folks within it, I take note of the comings and goings and all the things we have here. There are many buildings along the main street which make for great cover, important for us town folk as we can be on edge in open spaces. Our instinctive response is to run inside the nearest shop if we feel threatened, so having many buildings helps us feel safe to venture out and explore the town daily. After leaving my sheriff’s office I’ll head to the saloon for a quick pick-me-up, then move on to business at the town hall. I can grab a bite to eat at the mercantile, then call in at the surgery to see what the doc has going on.

One of our residents, Mississippi, can often be seen at the barbers, she needs regularly brushing to keep her long, silky hair in good condition you know. On the outskirts of the town there’s an abandoned mine, where you can often find bandit guinea pigs, like Pixie & Dixie, plotting their next devious plan. They robbed the train a few months ago by blowing up the tracks and I’m sure they’ve found a way to escape jail already. Those yellow-bellied critters do keep me on my toes, but it keeps the town interesting, enriching you might say.

Mississippi

I watch on as the rest of the townsfolk venture out across the plains surrounding Hog Springs, where they have grass to graze on. Grass and hay make up 80% our diet, so not only is this part of a healthy diet, the grazing also lets us stretch our legs and explore the land. I hear tale of something called a ‘hutch’, where guinea pigs don’t get the exercise they need. Sounds like some folk don’t know the full needs of guinea pigs, we really do enjoy space to explore and can be quite adventurous when we feel safe. Calamity Jane found her way here from that very background and we’re pleased to see her thriving here.

When we can’t access the pastures during rainy days, we have lots of delicious timothy hay offered at The Pig Inn. Alongside the grass and hay we also harvest crops of vegetables and Burgess Excel guinea pig pellet. This provides us with a balanced diet including that all important vitamin C, as we guinea pigs can’t make our own like other animals can.

As the sun sets on a day at Hog Springs, the three-story Pig Inn hotel comes to life. This hotel features multi-level housing for the town’s residents, not to mentioned it’s heated if the temperature gets below 10 degrees. Although we are called Guinea pigs, we’re not from Guinea at all, our ancestors are from South America where the sun warms the land all year round. The Pig Inn is safe heaven where the guinea pigs all gather for the evenings festivities, following a drink or two in the saloon. If any big storms come rolling through or it’s a bit chilly outside, we have plenty of space indoors to keep the townsfolk entertained.

Well folks, I hope you enjoyed hearing all about my beloved town of Hog Springs. Thank you kindly for passing the time with me.

- Sheriff Diesel, Sheriff of Hog Springs
(Associate contact – Lucy Edwards)

All blogs reflect the views of their author and are not necessarily a reflection of BIAZA's position