Oscar and Pauly's Wild Life

6 Days

2007-11-06T23:43:00.000-05:00

The boys seem to be completely settled. They are peeing in one corner of their cage consistently. They have a number of favourite fresh foods, eat their pellets til they're gone, and consume handfuls of hay around the clock. Both boys run freely between their cage and pen and don't seem startled by human approach anymore. These are all things I was expecting to take weeks to happen! I am so proud of these two little piggies.

Pauly is the ring leader. He is always the first one out of the cage; always the first one to eat; always the first one to retire to the wood hut. He tends to hover over Oscar a bit when they are having quiet time- not at all in a dominating sort of stance- more in a way that looks almost loving and protective. I love listening to their quiet, crooning chatter when they are cuddling.

Claire is my assistant when it comes to cage maintenance. She shakes out dirty towels and puts fresh handfuls of bedding in the litter boxes. She knows exactly how much the pellet bowl needs to be filled and lets me know if their hay or freshies need replenishing. When she is spending time in the pen they let her feed them their baby carrot treat and give them gentle pets. Pauly looks like he's listening to her when she talks.

It feels like we're all falling into place nicely. I love these boys!

Guido's Fresh Marketplace

2007-11-05T09:33:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I took my usual weekend trip to Guido's Fresh Marketplace in Lenox. For those of you unfamiliar with the place, it is known for its amazing, organic, locally grown produce. I took advantage of this fact and picked up some new treats to try out on the boys.

Cilantro: They loved it! They ate almost the whole bunch as soon as it was in their cage, stems and all. Cilantro inspired some happy hops from Oscar.
Cranberries: are fun to push around but not to eat.
Kale: food of the gods. This will be a staple from now on.

For myself I got some Blue Moon apple cider sorbet. This I recommend for you humans out there.

Apples!

2007-11-04T00:56:00.001-04:00

Not only does young Oscar know what an apple is nowadays, he is actually quite fond of them. This evening, he went so far as to steal one from Big Pauly! Most of their evening today was spent in their pen space. When they wanted some private time, it was into the wood house and not the cage. Pauly has taken to meeting me at the fence to see if I am bringing him something yummy. No wheeking yet, but I think it's only a matter of time.

You can see that little white foot I am so in love with in this picture! I have decided today that Pauly is more 'Mr Miyagi' than grumpy/softy uncle. Claire has taken to confiding in him when she sits in the pen. Today she told him all about the children's museum, staying in hotels and the recent passing of my father. He is a very patient and excellent listener. I am not sure why this animal in particular has inspired her to do this, but I am glad she has someone new to talk to...

Amazing what a small amount of time and attention can do...

2007-11-02T21:10:00.000-04:00

I thought I would only be making an entry here a couple of times a week, but I am so pleased with how this day has gone that I have to write it down. Throughout the day, Claire and I made it a point to spend time in the boys' pen every hour or so. If they were amenable to it, we would hold them and pet them. Other times, we simply sat in their space watching them. By the time I left for work this evening, they were spending more time on top of the hay than underneath it. While I was gone, Pauly began hopping in and out of their cage and running around the pen, tearing in and out of the little hidey holes I left throughout the space. After each run, he would rush back into the cage, jumping right over the ramp I made him out of fiddlesticks, and rush over to Oscar as though he were telling him about the excitement outside. I am very surprised that he is proving to be the more adventurous of the two, as he is the oldest and obviously the one who spent more time in that hideous environment. They are already acknowledging me as the bringer of the treats. Oscar is much more of a mush. I can see him becoming very affectionate with proper time and attention. Pauly seems like your gruff old uncle who is a softy underneath it all. I am in love with his one white foot.

Oscar and Pauly's First Day Home!

2007-11-02T19:15:00.000-04:00

We had a nice drive from Springfield to Wynantskill. The boys spent most of the trip playing hide and seek with Claire. They like their new space just fine but have spent most of their time bundled under their hay. They had a few trips out into their pen area where they quickly found new places to hide. We even heard them purring inside their wooden hidey house. Sometime overnight they consumed a huge salad of baby lettuces and carrots with some red pepper strips. Claire and I have been taking turns sitting in their pen and talking to them. Oscar seems to be on the verge of being quite the mush. Today he sat in my lap and let me hand feed him some red pepper. Pauly seems to be the perennial grumpy old man with a bit of a soft side. Although he isn't really looking for much attention, he seems to like when I reach into the cage to scratch his back. He even leans into it a little bit! Looks like everything is going nicely on our first day!