Cream Puff and Mount Skittlemore the Camp Runoia guinea pigs were feeling a little jealous that the chickens had their 15 seconds of fame on the Runoia blog so here is their moment of stardom.
Life outside of Camp Runoia is fairly entertaining for everyone’s favorite ‘farm’ pets. They have a large cage in the living room (‘but mum it’s too cold in the mudroom’!) at the Bolduc-Jacksons so are generally the center of attention. Most of their day is spent eating – who knew that 2 such small creatures could eat so much!? Breakfast is lettuce and leafy greens often with some strawberry tops thrown in, lunch is a delightful blend of guinea pig pellets and all day long the hay buffet is open. There are always plenty of treats too, their favorites are fresh fruits and veggies but they will happily eat the commercial snacks.
A change from the summer is that their winter bedding is made of fleece and old towels rather than sawdust and shavings. It seems to keep them warmer and drier but still needs changing every couple of days. It helps with waste reduction too as it can just be throw into the wash.
Did you know that we have an entire Runoia Pinterest board dedicated to interesting articles about guinea pig care. There are even guinea pig birthday cake ideas for those dedicated cavy lovers.
The farm and garden program at Camp Runoia provides campers with the opportunity to experience animal care, grow organic food and learn about farm to table principles. Many girls enjoy the responsibilities of growing things and taking care of the pets. We hope that Camp Runoia campers will maximize all of the opportunities that activities at camp have to offer. Getting to snuggle a guinea pig is certainly a perk.
Cream Puff and Mount Skittlemore look forward to seeing you all back at camp and getting lots of snuggles and snacks from the Runoia vegetable garden.
Harmony Land Camp “HLC” is an ideal introduction to camp life for younger campers. The campers not only have the safety net of their own counselors and fellow HLC campers, but also the opportunity to engage with older children and returning campers during meals (especially the outdoor meals served picnic style two days a week), at the waterfront for swim class and recreational swims, and during the all-camp assembly each morning. For my daughter, being in HLC eliminated the sometimes overwhelming feeling of wondering which activity to try next, and also reduced any potential worry about whether or not she would have a “friend” in that activity. There’s more info on HLC 
Women are still working hard for equal acceptance in the field of medicine. Yes, it is possible to be a successful physician while possessing two X chromosomes and a uterus! Admitting women to medical school did not become vogue until the mid 1900’s, mere decades ago. More recently a female physician’s offer to help during an inflight medical emergency was allegedly dismissed by a flight attendant, presumably because she did not fit the stereotypical idealization of what a physician “should” look like. Certain medical specialties are still dominated by males. And, yes, many people still assume that the female physician or med student in the room is a nurse.
Camp Runoia has a tradition of the losing team cheering the team who wins. It’s almost a game to see who can cheer first. Who thinks of others before themselves? Who praises a job well done? And who accepts defeat with humble gratitude to all the players who helped the team get as far as they could? The value of children learning how to lose graciously or win with good sportsmanship builds life long skills.
