I suppose some guinea pigs might not go out in the garden much.  Some may have to go out whether it’s raining or not.  I don’t know.  I only know that when Mummy’s home and it’s warm enough, and dry enough, we go out in the garden to eat the grass.  She calls it lawn-mowing.

This summer, Bertie has been in his own run, Oscar has been in his, and Midge, Biggles and I have been in the other – usually a much bigger one.  Mummy says it’s because we have three times as much grass to get through than the others.  I know it’s also because she likes it when we all run around together and are sociable.  I like being sociable too.

We socialise in the morning, on the floor in the kitchen, and we do that all year round.  I like doing that, because it’s always the same temperature, and there’s hay in a box to jump in and munch.  We (Midge and I) have been running around with Biggles, once he started being friendly and not aggressive to us.  He’s a bit bossy, but nowhere near as bad as Bertie.  Bertie and Biggles just attack each other, so Mummy makes sure they aren’t in the same place at the same time.

Just recently, Bertie has been more sociable with me, after Mummy has taken Midge upstairs.  Mummy noticed, so she’s giving us more time to get along.  Bertie’s getting much better all round – he comes over to ask Mummy for a head scratch sometimes, which she likes doing.  His nose is better now; those two black spots have disappeared.

I think Mummy might put Bertie and me in a run on the grass together, to see how we get along.  Midge can socialise with Biggles okay, although he’s not very patient with him.  It’s funny, because they look very alike.

Oscar and Midge and I went to see Dr Sally this week – Oscar and me for a check-up, and Midge because he’d set a new world record for heavyweight pigs.  She checked him over and he’s fine.  She checked us and we’re pretty much the same as we were although my lump’s got bigger.  They decided that they’d give us a summer in the garden to see what Dr Sun and Dr Greengrass can do. It’s not as easy to ignore my lump as it was, but Mummy gives me something every day to make sure it doesn’t hurt, and I’m getting used to it.

Dr Sally wants to see us again next month.  That’s a date, then, Dr Sally!