Today, Bert faced His Final Curtain (poaching the lyrics to 'My Way')

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

......and made his way across The Rainbow Bridge .

He was picking up, we were very sad (but not entirely surprised) when he made a down turn yesterday .
Last night , I cuddled him and put him to bed fully expecting him to have gone this morning . But he was still with us (in the very loosest definition of 'with us' )

So an early morning trip to the vet , options were discussed but honestly , there was only one outcome that was fair on him.

We met this little boar nearly four years ago, we needed a boar for our ladies and the Rescue had some neutered boars. When he was handed to me , he thought "I have 5 seconds to make an impression, there are lots of other boars here" and he did that really cute thing that they do with their back legs , stretching them downwards.
I said to DD " Oh , DD leg " and his future was assured .
(I know that choosing an animal is more involved in some unorthodox limb movement , but that did it for us!)

So , we had to say goodbye to our little boy and make the decision for him .He has two wives across the bridge , a very stroppy sow who wouldn't marry him and leaves behind his new wife GP7 .

This road does not get any easier , no matter how many times you stumble along it

I was saying to DD , I don't know what triggered it . The vet checked his teeth (fine) and felt his belly and gave him a squeeze to empty his bladder , no sign of stones visible (he didn't have a scan though) his pee wasn't chalky but it was dark.

My pigs have never bothered with water as a rule , the sows would drink in the height of summer , they always had fresh water available.

He had fresh hay and pellets daily , veg am/pm.

We gave them grass on Christmas Day from our garden, so no chemicals on it , we washed it to clean and warm it , DD knows what weeds they cannot have . They had a small plate so not over doing it .

It just seems like a progression - they stop eating and drinking . You do it for them. When they lose interest in food they pretty much lose interest in life.
He was picking up leaves , spinach , cucumber , drinking from the bottle but no interest in pellets.

He was sitting oddly yesterday . Under the spout of the water bottle in the corner . And when he walked he seemed hunched like a rabbit.

He peed on me last night and it stunk. So yes , he was dehydrated . We were syringing with an insulin syringe ( very fine) but half of it was dribbling out . Takes ages to make sure its going the right way.

They are complex little things to keep on an even keel. Some sail through life with no health issues and some do not.
I reckon he did pretty well in his lifetime though , he had a very devoted pig mum (DD) and his females .

RIP Bert xx Today you have a Bert shaped 💔 ... and no matter how often or how expected it is, losing a much loved piggie hurts+++
He fell on his paws the day you saw him in rescue😃
You and DD obviously did all you could and more to keep Bert with us, sadly it was not to be. Bloody frustrating isn't it? 4.5 seems to be a dangerous age for gps.
for you, DD and Bert's widow

I'm sure you've posted a picture of Bert before but it would be lovely to see one on this thread. He was obviously a very loved piggy.

Sorry for your loss. This is the awful part of having such lovely pets.

Oh I’m so sorry.

He sounds like he had very full and happy life. ❤️

Awwww RIP Bert safe travels please tell Peppa I miss our.little chats whole cooking dinner.😢😭

So sorry for your loss and it never gets any easier you did everything you could for him you are a good pig mum. He will be happily running. And making friends over the 🌈 Bridge. 🌹💕💕💕

So sorry

So sorry to hear this 70, poor Bert. He's had an enjoyable and interesting life with his many wives and the pampering from his slaves. His biography would be good reading! He'll be over the bridge now swapping stories about 'blasted wimmin' with Gingerpig!

You did everything anyone could do for him. Sometimes the tough decision is the right one. Doesn't make it easier though. The Fernie gang are thinking about you

Thank You all for the over the T'InterWeb flowers.

I tell you what is creepy though...........

On Jan 5th 2017 (so exactly 2 years ago today) we had GP5 PTS .

Very similar - illness , improvement , intensive pig care from DD and I (and DD when I was visiting parents) followed by a rapid decline and a vet visit to do the neccesary.

GP5 was one of his first wives (and GP4)

We are going to keep GP7 indoors completely now (apart from run time in Summer) .
We're now at the stage of one guinea-pig, she's 4&half now . She did not bond with my older girls and only accepted GP6 when she lost GP8 so I really don't think getting her a companion would work out , not even a very elderly boar .

Tomorrow we buy a box and I put him in the Pighouse till DH digs a hole .
Quite by accident we have the three boars (GP1/2/3) on one side of the garden and the sows (GP4/5/8) on the other. So he'll join the chaps in his final rest,

I will get a photo up of him soon.

Sorry about Bert. Sounds like he really had a five star home with some devoted piggy slaves. Doesn’t make it any easier but at least you know you did everything you could for him ❤️

RIP Bert sad that you decided the Rainbow Bridge was calling.

It sounds like having the one piggy is the right decision, especially with you and your dd looking after her.

We're at the one pig stage with Madampig. She's been on her own nearly a year and will soon be 5. She's been okay on her own (more confident) but does get lots of attention and is a lap-pig in the evenings. I did have some reservations about whether it was the right thing but shes happy so it has worked out.

How are you all 70?
Hope you, your DD and Bert's widow are all ok

She's (GP7) doing fine thanks East , DD takes her into her bedroom to help with homework (though GP7 isn't a qualified lawyer so I'm not quite sure how much help she is )

I was really surprised how calm DD was , I thought when Bert decided his time was nigh that DD would be distraught but it was me that was the snotty mess

She was adamant that he was not to linger , we had done all we could and this was the end of his road , which is probably one of the most difficult decisions for her to make (I thought the same so I wasn't going to over ride her )

GP7 is eating well, noisy and cuddly .
It is very strange making Pig Veg for one (especially as a couple of years ago we were feeding five )

As my DM would say, you've raised a 'goodun' there 70
Glad to hear gp7 hasn't decided to go into a decline -just to keep you on your toes mind 😃

70 - After Gingers sad demise, Madampig was adamant I didn't have to adjust to preparing food for one pig. Just to help me out she nobly opted to cope with food for 2!

Glad GP7 is fine. She's probs enjoying all the attention and homework

Aww how sad. So 70 & Fernie are both one gp families now?
I agree about 4.5 being the tricky go age.

Oh 70 so sorry for your loss. We are also a one gp family now, as Poppy passed away a year ago. With holidays, building work etc time went on, and Lady Daisy came into her own and is doing fine. She's more confident somehow, enjoys having free run of the kitchen most afternoons instead of just muttering in the corner. She's a lap pig in the evening and rules the roost. Best wishes to you all

So sorry 70, RIP little Bert. I’ve loved hearing about Bert and his wives. He absolutely fell on his little pig type feet when he adopted you