[Gpdd] [RAINBOW BRIDGE] Dolly Mixture SCAMP Cherry has gone

[DebJonSara at aol.com]

The more observant amongst you will have noticed that my last two postings  
were signed by just 10 Dolly Mixtures. This is because our beloved SCAMP Dolly  
Mixture, Cherry, left for The Rainbow Bridge on Thursday evening. She was 
fine  when I got in from work around 5pm, but when I went to give everyone their  
greens around 8.30pm, she was lying on her side in her pigloo. I knew 
instantly  that there was something wrong, so grabbed her up, and reached for the  
stethoscope. But there was no heartbeat - she had slipped away.
 
Cherry was born in our house on 4th February 2003, and rehomed the same day  
as Fidget, to the same family, who later returned them when they moved into an 
 apartment. Her mother was one of the Spice GIrls, Cannelle, and her sister 
was  Scruff, both of whom are already at the Bridge, as are her brother from a 
later  litter, Cannelletto, three stillborn babies and Vanilla, who went to 
the Bridge  aged about 2 weeks. Cherry had beautiful long blond hair and a very 
cheeky,  outgoing personality. She was a master wheeker when food arrived, and 
would sit  on as many greens as she could to prevent the others from getting 
them! She was  floppy like a ragdoll when you picked her up, and liked to 
snuggle. 
 
She was always an itchy pig, and had to be treated with Ivomectin, Valbazen  
and bathed with Vetsect shampoo. She was also a wheezy pig, and I often used 
to  worry about her, occasionally administering courses of Sudafed, but she 
never  showed signs of illness with the wheeziness. She did have to be treated 
with  liquid calcium for sudden onset paralysis some time ago, but made a 
complete  recovery, and even when she couldn't move her back legs, she never stopped 
 eating. She loved her food, and had not lost weight before she went.
 
I was expecting her cagemate, Scarecrow, to be the next to leave for The  
Bridge, but not for some time yet. You may remember I had been dreading the  
Dolly Mixtures reaching 5, because I thought they would all drift off to The  
Bridge one by one, but then when we founded SCAMPS I was much inspired by the  
tales of piggies of 6 or more, and began to believe that maybe some of mine  
would be that lucky as well. Cherry showed no sign at all of ill health. I am  
grateful that she didn't appear to have suffered, and I didn't have to struggle  
with medical interventions and the agonies of poor Suzy with Cocoa or Alge 
with  Chester. But it was a terrible shock to find she had gone, and so very soon 
 after Fidget. I find I am dreading looking into the cages now, in case 
someone  else has slipped away. I so wanted them all to have one last warm sunny 
summer  outside together, as last summer was such a washout here. 
 
At least Cherry did have 2 cagemates, Soulage and Scarecrow, so no one has  
been left on their own as Scrabble was. They don't particularly seem to be  
pining for her, it has to be said. But I miss her terribly, she always seemed  
such an optimistic piggie somehow, and was lovely to cuddle. I am sure she knew  
she was loved, and she must be popcorning with joy in that Rainbow meadow as 
she  meets the family that had gone before. I do now always sing my song about 
the  Rainbow Meadow every night to the piggies as I feed them, so they will 
now where  they are going as they slip away.
 
I just hope the rest of the Dolly Mixtures wait a bit longer before going  
there.
 
Debbie (and the 10 Dolly Mixtures)