Death of cousins GP

Question
Hi there, My name is Soledad S. and I have a quick question for you - well here we go..

My cousins Guinea Pig "Chica" has die! She has been with us for bearly a year - Since Christmas last year - She was a gift from Santa. My cousin is mmm, out of town and I know that she is going to have a lot of questions for Mom and Dad..and sisters.

Here is what we know so far...

Monica(cousin) left on Tuesday Early morning - On Monday Chica was on the grass under the wired top of the cage - She was there because her cage was been cleaned up and she loved it.. mm(It wasn't the first time), it takes about a good 20 - 30 minutes to get it clean(the cage) ..knowing Monica maybe she played with her and then put it back inside the cage...

Tuesday afternoon - she was sleeping, which my Aunt says that she never did.., then she toked it out of the cage to check on her just to notice that her chin and nose where all purple? could it been bruised? and she was shivering.. I was not there to be exact, but all I know is that after what my aunt saw, she decided to take her to the vet. But she did not make it.

Now I do not know nothing about the Guinea Pigs but maybe you have an idea... I love my cousin Monica she is a great kid she is only 12 years old and I know she will be really upset, she is not in town, she is coming home tomorrow. please help me to find some explanation to it!

Thank you

Sole.  

Answer
Soledad --

I'm sorry to hear about your cousin's guinea pig.  It sounds to me like she might have gotten into something she shouldn't have when she was outside eating.  There are some foods and chemicals (like some people use to treat their lawns) that are toxic to guinea pigs, and if she ingested any of those, she could easily have been poisoned.  There are a few other options, but I would say that accidental poisoning is your most likely option.

Hope this is helpful.  If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me again.

Lorena