My Sweetsy was a Coronet guinea pig. I purchased her and her twin sister Sissy, an American shorthair, at the El Cerrito PetCo in September 2016. Sweetsy was the runt of the litter and I even asked the store manager if she would grow larger! My two girls brought so much joy into my life while I went through a long divorce. I lived in Point Richmond at the time and loved coming home to them both after work and playing with them on weekends. They were extraordinarily sweet girls who rarely ever fought.

Because Sweetsy had extremely long hair she needed extra personal cleaning every week. At some point she developed a large cyst on her lower back which – fortunately – was successfully removed. She later developed a second cyst on her upper back and the stitches came unraveled. By the time I moved to Santa Rosa in 2019 Sweetsy had a serious infection. One of the wonderful vets at Wikiup Veterinary Hospital successfully restitched her, and she went on to live a wonderful life until May 2022.

My twin girls and I celebrated their birthday every single year and always spent Christmas together.

At age six, Sweetsy developed a problem in her ovaries and became so ill she could not eat. For two weeks Sissy and I sat by Sweetsy’s side, and I force fed her. By May 1 2022 Sweetsy was too weak to move. I called the vet at 9 pm that night and begged her to please put my dearest Sweetsy to rest. She met us at her office to administer injections while I held Sweetsy as tight as I could. There was one tiny little squeak from her and then my beautiful little Sweetsy crossed the Rainbow Bridge.

My girl and I had an extraordinary bond and it is taking me a long time to heal from her loss. Sweetsy was the light of my life and she will never be forgotten. She was a true little beauty, inside and out. To this day her seven-year-old sister Sissy and I miss her dearly.