Our family counts 2 toddlers, one of 1 year old and one of 3, and four guinea pigs. Getting rid of the piggies when Ms M was pregnant first time was out of question. And some strict limits are in place regarding the interaction between piggies and kids.

First and most important, piggies are not toys. They have their life and they should be left in peace to live it. This doesn’t exclude playing with them, but the moment the piggies are not comfortable anymore, the play stops.

Since Lil’ M’s birth, piggies started to adapt to the new life. Parents and kid too, but this is about the piggies. New noises, lots of noise in general, toddler jumping on the couch, toddler getting in te cage and stealing food, you name it.

Now Lil’ M jumps from the back of the couch on the couch and Spock and Data keep munching their food like nothing happens.

Lil’ G brought new challenges in the family. He started walking earlier and he didn’t understand much about inflicting pain at that age. So all he wanted was to get in Spock’s and Data’s pen and play with them. That’s why their exit to the couch was blocked. Actually the entrance to their cage was blocked. 😀

Now Lil’ G is big enough to bend over the fence and try to pet them. Weirdly enough Spock accepts it! He usually doesn’t accept being touched.

While Lil’ M steals their veggies and pellets, Lil’ G takes the water bottles and drinks the water. So Ms M must check the food bowls and the water bottles before going to bed.

The difficult part was when Worf died. This had to be explained to Lil’ M and she insisted on playing with Kirk to keep him company and be his friend. She used to ask to be put in his cage and stayed there talking to him and giving food.

Once she insisted on putting a spinach leaf on his head and on hers too and said they were wearing hats. Kirk was not disturbed.

Of course, the adults were always around and the cage is big enough for the piggy to have enough room to hide from the toddler.

Now that Kirk and Archy live together, Lil G goes to the fence and tries to say their names. Achy and Kik. 😀 He even gets super excited when the piggies are roaming in the cage.