Reaching a compromise, the family of four settled on guinea pigs instead. Even so, getting a hold of their furry friends wasn’t easy. Many folks who were putting guinea pigs up for adoption had long waitlists.
But they soon struck gold with two white albino guinea pigs. These aren’t as popular as regular guinea pigs because of their red beady eyes. But the Gomez brothers were smitten with them all the same.
“When we first got them, they were very shy and would hide when we approached them. With time, however, they started opening up, being very noisy and demanding with their loud squeaking.
“The longer they have no food, the louder they get. However, they’re only like this with us,” said Isra, who is a university student.
The brothers agreed that the personalities their guinea pigs soon grew into mimicked their namesakes. The more adventurous one of the two, Cooper, is named after the charismatic FBI agent Dale Cooper of “Twin Peaks”.
Isra recalled how Cooper once began whining animatedly thinking there was fruit inside his backpack. Close enough – it was a fruit-scented vape. But kudos to Cooper all the same for his sharp sense of smell.
Another time, Cooper found a bag of unopened pet food. And giving in to his greed, he expertly bit a hole in the bag open and helped himself to most of the food inside, recalled Isra.
He said that they’ve since found new ways of fending off Cooper’s knack of finding food by hiding it in hard-to-reach spots around the house.
Renton, on the other hand, is named after a character from Irvine Welsh’s book “Trainspotting” – and funnily enough, Renton’s a big film buff, once showing his displeasure when the TV was switched off.
Guinea pigs are herbivores by nature, so fruit-scented vapes aside, it is no surprise that Renton and Cooper love munching on cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, carrots and apples.
“They can only have a small amount once every two weeks mainly because it contains high amounts of sugar which could cause a number of health issues for them,” said Isra.
While fruits are their main love, Renton and Cooper’s refined taste buds mean that they also dislike certain fruits like pears, mostly because these aren’t nearly as sweet as red apples.
“We don’t regret getting the guinea pigs. It’s funny how our parents weren’t so keen at first. We do remind our mother who didn’t want to get a dog as it would mess up the house. The guinea pigs do that now but she’s ultimately fine with it.
Cheeky, greedy and cute as buttons, the guinea pigs are also famous among outsiders.
“Everyone seems to know them – even the man who sells vegetables to our mother! He’ll always call our mother up to tell her when they have stock of the vegetables the guinea pigs like. They have really become part of the family,” said Isra.
This article was written by Alena Nadia @ FMT Lifestyle. Read more pet stories here.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PET: FMT Lifestyle readers are invited to send in pictures (landscape format) and a short video (if any) of their furry, scaly or feathery friends to [email protected]. Don’t forget to include details like your pet’s name, age, breed and a short story about them.