Carl Tyrrell, his son Logan and partner Tiffany were excited to bring home two guinea pigs after a visit to their local Pets at Home in Lincoln, planning to add them to their herd of 20
A “disgusted” family has told of the moment they welcomed new pet guinea pigs into their family – only to find they were “diseased” and suffering from a viral infection.
Carl Tyrrell, his son Logan and partner Tiffany were excited to bring home two guinea pigs after a visit to their local Pets at Home in Lincoln, planning to add them to their herd of 20. They had only just introduced the new additions to the guinea pig family when they started noticing the concerning signs of a disease.
They were traumatised to find they had brought home sick animals after after noticing the early signs of a strep outbreak, having been refused the sale of one animal early on after its nose was seen running. The family has complained after they were allowed to buy other “piggies” from the same enclosure of the infected would-be pet.
Pets At Home has now stopped selling the pets after discovering cases of Streptococcus, commonly known as strep, among the animals. Strep is a bacterial infection which can be dangerous in animals, and can cause guinea pigs to contract life-threatening pneumonia.
Speaking to Metro, Carl, 42, said: “The initial guinea pig we had chosen wasn’t able to be sold as she had what appeared to be discharge from the nose. We were allowed to purchase two other piggies from the same enclosure and bought them home.”
The two new furry friends, named Cappuccino and Latte, rapidly became sick over the weekend, developing runny noses and sneezing. Carl added: ‘”This is an emergency. How is that fair on the animals. They still have feelings, they are not stock.
“They knew that one of the guinea pigs in the enclosure had some sort of issues going on on Friday, so it was rather disappointing that we were allowed to bring a guinea pig home.”
The family is now worried strep bacteria has put the other guinea pigs in their herd at risk. The other 20 animals are now living separately and the family has been forced to take strict precautions, such as “handwashing and putting on different clothes” after handling Cappuccino and Latte.
The couple were also left furious at what they claimed were delays to care in treating the two pets. “We rang the store on Saturday and were told to contact the in house vet’s practice on Monday morning whom then informed me that the cost would be around £57 per guinea pig to seen, therefore £114 for both piggies,” Carl claimed.
Pets at Home Lincoln’s guinea pig enclosure has now been emptied by staff, reports Metro. Speaking to the publication, a Pets at Home spokesperson said: “We have identified a small percentage of cases of infection in our guinea pig population resulting from streptococcus equi zooepidemicus. Pet welfare is always our top priority and as a precautionary measure we have taken swift and immediate action to temporarily pause the sale or adoption of guinea pigs.
“We are in contact with Mr Tyrell about his case and have offered a number of support options. We are also contacting other customers directly who have purchased a guinea pig from us recently with detailed advice and guidance. If customers have any immediate concerns, we advise contacting their local Pets at Home or veterinary provider for further advice.”
