Story and photos by Anne Cosgrove Wimberly
It’s nearing the end of summer. Big-box stores host crowds of college students who purchase towels, bedsheets, laundry baskets, garbage cans, and hay for their dorm rooms and apartments.
Hay? Possibly, if you’re like 17-year-old Nevaeh Tucker, a resident and pet sitter from Moore, Oklahoma. Tucker is about to load her car with sundries necessary for her freshman year at Oklahoma State University. Noticeably missing will be her three guinea pigs, Bellatrix, Luna, and Narcissa, who bring her comfort with their nightly chatter, silly vegetable-eating antics, and lovable, furry stature.
Tucker loves holding the roly-poly piggies, whose weight and warmth provide a sensation similar to that of a weighted blanket. She is optimistic that by this time next year, she’ll have an apartment large enough to house herself, her piggies, and a roommate.
Tucker considered several options to choose the college that best fit her interests and the needs of Bellatrix, Luna, and Narcissa.
Academics
Tucker compared the benefits of three institutions before settling on OSU. “I chose the one farthest from my house mostly because it’s the one with the best psychology program,” she said. “I love my animals, but my education comes first.”
She plans to drive home at least every other weekend to visit her human and furry family members.
Finances
Even though Amanda Downs, Tucker’s mother, will care for the guinea pigs while Tucker studies in Stillwater, she is still responsible for paying for their food, toys, and hay. “They drink bottled water,” Tucker said. The minerals in tap water can cause health issues in guinea pigs, so bottled water is a cost she is willing to cover.
Tucker also expects to pay for gas and travel expenses. She works at a chain restaurant in Norman and plans to transfer to the branch in Stillwater. She has worked to save money for college and a future apartment.
Downs is quick to add that she won’t let Tucker fail financially. “We’re willing to help as long as we know she’s doing everything in her power to care for herself and her pets. We’re not just going to let her or the animals starve.”
Accommodations
Some institutions require students to live on campus during their freshman year. Freshmen don’t always receive their first-choice dormitories, and not every dorm allows pets. A dorm-swap event is offered early during the academic year. “I’m immediately hopping into the dorm swap,” Tucker said. “I got stuck with three roommates.” She hoped for fewer or no roommates because she plans to bring a different pet to campus — her emotional-support dog, Snooki.
Not many people certify pocket pets as emotional-support animals possibly because, according to Tucker, dogs and cats “can hold their bladder. Guinea pigs cannot. They live in their own little house where they can go wherever they want.”
Which brings up another point to consider…. Shared college living spaces are small. Potential pet owners must make certain that there’s enough space for roommates first and pets second. Tucker’s guinea pigs live in a four-foot by two-foot enclosure, which is why she wants to find an apartment as soon as possible.
“I have to do all of freshman year in the dorms, but after freshman, I’m getting an apartment. Once I get a roomie, everybody’s moving to Stillwater,” Tucker said.
Pet Care
Downs and her husband, Ricky, know how to care for Bellatrix, Luna, and Narcissa. He likes to talk to them, and she is comfortable with the daily care of feeding, watering, and cleaning. Guinea pigs shed and require a regular regimen of baths and brushing to maintain healthy skin and hair.
Tucker also trusts a family friend who owns guinea pigs to help care for her trio. “She helps us trim their nails,” Tucker said. “She gives them whole carrots.”
Tucker never thought she would find a local guinea pig community. “We found two other really good people that if, you know, we have to go somewhere for an emergency and said, ‘Hey, can you watch the pigs?,’ they would.”
Access to a professional in the form of a friend or acquaintance is a good idea so the entire burden of pet care doesn’t fall on family members.
Scheduling
Once at OSU, Tucker will be in classes, possibly join some clubs, and work at her part-time off-campus job — all of which requires time and mental and physical energy. Because she switched to
homeschooling during the COVID pandemic, she has had her own schedule for the past five years. As an incoming freshman who plans to bring her pooch to school this year and later add her guinea pigs, Tucker is figuring out a schedule. “I’m trying to work on a better schedule to wake up and make sure everybody gets fed before I go to class. Having my job right now is really helping out because they want me to come in early mornings.”
Next summer, keep an eye out for a car full of hay, guinea pigs, and a little dog on its way from Moore to Stillwater. When you see that car, give a nod to Nevaeh Tucker, a successful second-year psychology student and full-time pet owner.
