For all you Brownie fans

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SavingBrownie

Post   » Fri Jan 26, 2007 12:56 am


Thanks RShevin, for filling new people in. And thanks everyone for the good ideas. Yesterday was the first day I left Brownie for eight or so hours and I think he was okay. I left him with treats (and of course, the pellets, hay, and water he always has) and a lot of toys--a computer paper ball, a little paper bag, and a toilet paper roll--and he really liked them.

Lynx--right now he has a 2x2 C and C cage that ChelesGP built. I know that's okay for a single pig, but I feel like his pigloo and cuddle cup take up a lot of room, so I'm thinking about maybe expanding it to a 2 x 3. We don't have room for much more than that, though.

Talishan--the good thing about living in our dorm is that it's always perfectly heated even though it's snowing a ton outside (and we don't even have to pay for it!--at least, not directly). So the temperature is okay and maintenance won't bother him. The one thing that totally freaked me out this week was that some dumb kids let a ferret loose in the building. Thank goodness he got caught right before I had to leave Brownie alone.

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rshevin

Post   » Fri Jan 26, 2007 1:10 am


I'm glad he enjoyed his toys and did alright on his first long day alone. I know he missed his mommies but I'll bet he was alright. You sure live in some dorm! We were allowed to have fish, fish, and fish.

Talishan
You can quote me

Post   » Fri Jan 26, 2007 6:44 pm


" ... that some dumb kids let a ferret loose in the building."

Ferrets are predators. Please make sure nothing can get into Brownie's area/room while you all are gone. That would have freaked me out, too.

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truffie
I gave AGAIN, dammit!

Post   » Fri Jan 26, 2007 7:32 pm


I'm so glad to hear Brownie is doing so well! I wouldn't worry about Brownie having a friend - obviously he is thriving without one, and it sounds like he gets more attention than some people give their human children:) Some pigs are indeed happier alone, and I would not rock the boat. I also wouldn't think twice about the one day each week that he is alone for 8 hours - I guarantee it is bothering you much more than it's bothering Brownie! He is just adorable.

SavingBrownie

Post   » Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:04 pm


Hi! I haven't posted in a while due to being totally overwhelmed with school and work. But this week is Brownie's 5 month anniversary with us and I wanted to tell you guys how great he's doing.

First of all, he now weights 2 lbs, 8 ounces. He's HUGE. I think when we originally got him he weight 1 lb, 3 ounces. ChelesGP has an extra 2 x 3 cage, so we're going to enlarge his cage from a 2 x 2 now that he's the chunkiest thing ever.

He's really become our apartment mascot, which I never thought would happen. Originally, I had to take care of him nearly all the time and we had some apartmentmates who actually didn't really like him. Now everyone's really attached. Case in point:

Somehow, everyone discovered that when stressing out about midterms, the most relaxing thing to do is snuggle Brownie in your lap. I came home from school last week and rushed to Brownie's cage because I'd been away for quite a while. He was gone. I went looking for him and found him in my apartmentmates lap. She was petting him with one hand and turning the pages in her chem book with the other hand. He was purring. It was so cute, but I was just a teeny it jealous. I said, "Leah, can you let me know when you guys are done?" She said, "Well, actually, Simone gets him next."

I have to get on a waiting list to spend time with my own pig!!! I couldn't believe it. It was really funny. Of course, by the time it was my turn, he didn't want to snuggle anymore, but we played together on the floor.

Oh--and another thing. Almost weekly, someone from the apartment will go shopping and I'll ask them to get me ONE thing. Something memorable, like milk. And they will invariably forget my item, but will come home with three different sale items they think Brownie would want. He's really turning into our whole apartment's pig.

He has a schedule now that we're all comfortable with. When only a couple of us are home, we give him floor time. It ends up being at least 2-3 hours a day. He used to run and hide under the furniture, but now we make him an obstacle course out of boxes and he putters around and explores. Then he runs to the fridge and begs. He's really, really cute.

Oh! And one more funny story. When we all had to be gone for a few hours, we got him some new toys. One of them was a bell. BIG mistake. He actually learned how to use it. We had a big study session in our apartment, and he decided it was time for some love. All the sudden we heard DING! DING! DING! My roommate gave him some veggies--a bigger mistake. When he was done and we were on the most complicated chem chapter yet, we got another round of DING! DING! DING! We're total suckers and didn't want to take his toy away because he really loves it, so we tried to ignore it. This might've worked with a pig who's not as insanely spoiled as Brownie, but Brownie kept at it. "The equilibrium DING DING concentration of DING H2O molecules DING DING DING is so much larger than the concentrations DING of the H3O+ and OH- ions DING DING that it is effectively constant DING DING." It was hysterical. He is such a brat!! Finally, I took him out and snuggled him. I have to be the biggest wimp ever.

Thanks so much for all your help, you guys. I've attached a couple pictures so you can see how nice his fur looks and how fat he is. When I get new batteries for my camera, I'll post some cuter ones and see if I can get a picture of him ringing his bell. :)

Image

Image

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JaneDoe

Post   » Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:10 pm


What a beauty!

Nice work!

cutemomomi
Obey My Authority

Post   » Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:16 pm


Look how happy and handsome he is under your care, he has definitely come a long way. : )

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rshevin

Post   » Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:20 pm


Those are such wonderful stories! I'm so happy Brownie and you found each other. I can't think of a more beautiful ending.

klynne

Post   » Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:28 pm


<one of the biggest smiles ever on my face>

Thank you.

Tracis
Let Sleeping Pigs Lie

Post   » Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:01 am


He is just so darling and round now! What a handsome guy.

I am so glad that your roommates adore him too. He deserves a happy and spoiled life. :)

Happy anniversary, Brownie!

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Fossil Barb

Post   » Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:49 am


Look at all that shiny fur. What a snugglepiggy and sooo handsome. I love those lips as well.

His Royal Highness is lucky to have you. You've done an incredible job and he deserves his human harem after his horrible start in life.

Keep the stories coming and hope school is going well.

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cavyslave8
I GAVE, dammit!

Post   » Mon Mar 05, 2007 1:15 am


Those are great stories, they made me smile. He really is lucky to have you. He's so handsome.

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