Chester the Doctor

Over the weekend I began to feel sick and I

Taken by me, 11/1

would get really tired for no reason. On Saturday, my sister took Chester out of his cage and let him roam around a bit. He went up to me and started squeaking, not his hungry squeak but a different kind of squeak. He sounded upset to me, kind of like he wanted attention and wasn't getting it. He went in a circle around me but then ended up cuddling next to my leg and taking a nap. This reminded me of something I learned last year in my Spanish class.

I learned that guinea pigs or cuys, are used in indigenous practices in South America near the Andes. They are mainly used to help find and cure illnesses. After some research on the uses of guinea pigs in South America, I found that according to Edmundo Morales,

          ...Andean immigrants barbecue guinea pig meat in
          public parks the way Americans would hamburgers or
          hot dogs. While the guinea pig in its native
          environment has traditionally been raised for
          consumption, it also has had important ceremonial
          in folk medicine and in native religious practices.
          (Morales xvii)

It's really interesting to know all the things guinea pigs are important in. It is also interesting that guinea pigs can play the role of a doctor and help diagnose someone. For this though, they have to be cut open and examined after being rubbed all over the sick person's body ("The History of Guinea Pigs"). Though this does not exactly benefit guinea pigs, they still hold great importance in medicine in South America.

This made me think that maybe Chester whined when he went near me because he sensed that I was sick and wanted to warn me about it. It's good to know that my pet cares for me and is willing to help me in his own way.

Works Cited

Morales, Edmundo. The Guinea Pig: Healing, Food, and Ritual in the Andes.

     Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 1995. xvii. Print.

"The History of Guinea Pigs." The Potteries Guinea Pig Rescue: A Safe Haven

     for Neglected Guinea Pigs in Stoke on Trent. N.p., 17 Oct. 2014. Web. 2 

     Nov. 2014.