Remembering Cannoli

I adopted Cannoli (then called Nutmeg) on St. Patrick's Day in 2012.  She was a tiny little thing with a funny swayback, especially compared to big, hippy Pinniped.  (Look how tiny she is in those first two photos!)  She was wheeky and opinionated, but loved being with another guinea pig.  She'd snuggle with Pinniped, even when Pinni bit her.  Pinni wasn't sure what to do with this mini pig that stuck like velcro.  But Cannoli eventually won her over; they lived quite happily together.

When Pinniped died, Cannoli was pretty lonely.  She was never fond of people - she enjoyed her guinea pig company.  Boadicea was adopted as a Boxing Day present.  Once again, Cannoli found herself on the receiving end of a beating.  She had no problem being second in the pecking order - but that didn't mean she'd give up on all the best food and sleeping spots.  I eventually learned the yelling and screaming was less about Noli being picked on as much as she was holding her ground.  She and Boadicea eventually toned down the noise.  It's hard to say which cagemate was Noli's favorite.  She was generally a laid back, homebody of a guinea pig.  She was happiest in familiar surroundings with her guinea pig buddy.  The less traveling, the better.

Cannoli was ridiculously vocal for such a wussy pig.  She'd wheek loudly for food, then run and hide when I appeared.  Silly pig.  She'd burble whenever she moved around - it was easy to tell where she was in the cage or the room.  She tell everyone in earshot if Pinniped or Boadicea encroached on her food or territory.  It's mine!  Go away!  She was generally timid around humans, but not so with other guinea pigs or on her own during floor time.

For not being a people-pig, Noli was certainly entertaining.  I loved watching her floor-time antics, playing with her toys or just tooling around.  She had a thing about the pellet bowl - she would drag it all around the cage.  Cannoli did that from the day we brought her home, no matter where the bowl was, or how big it was.  The pellets came with her. 

She became quite a rotund rodent while living with Pinniped.  Then she began dropping weight after Boadicea arrived.  Noli was eventually diagnosed with an overactive thyroid.  She had a hard time keeping on the weight, but remained happy and active.  Cannoli died suddenly on March 30th, 2016, likely from heart failure brought on by the hyperthyroid.