Elusive Guinea Pig Rescued From Prospect Park

PROSPECT-LEFFERTS GARDENS, BROOKLYN -- This little piggy almost got eaten in Prospect Park.

An elusive guinea pig abandoned in Prospect Park was rescued from a hungry hawk Saturday night by a concerned resident who spent a week trying save it, according to the little critter's new host.

"I couldn’t stand knowing there was a helpless and vulnerable animal in the park and the clock was ticking on his survival," said Dustin Dis, 45, who first spotted the rodent runaway Wednesday night. "I was just happy that my wife and I could help."

Dis and his wife Kelso Wyeth, 31 were walking their rescue dog Otto near the Cleft Ridge Arch Saturday evening when they spotted the guinea pig that had been evading the grasp of locals trying to help him for the past week.

"Animal lovers with time on your hands: there is a guinea pig living in the bushes," a concerned Prospect Lefferts Gardens mom posted to the local Facebook group Saturday. "The problem is catching the elusive little devil."

Dis spotted a red tail hawk perched on a nearby lightpost and knew he had to act quickly if the little pig were going to survive, he said. He whipped one of Otto's peanut butter biscuits out of his pocket, lured the guinea pig into his arms and carried him home, said Dis.

"He was very calm and just let me hold him," said Dis. "He looked small, so I assume he’s not full grown, but he’s very underweight."

"I don’t think he was fed properly before being dumped in the park."

The little critter purred as Dis and Wyeth bathed him, cleaned his ears with q-tips and fed him a vegetable dinner, Dis said.

The rescued guinea pig was named Nick Cavy in honor of the Australian musician who had his 61st birthday on Sept. 22, the same day the guinea pig was rescued, and is slated to perform at the Barclays Center on Oct. 26, Dis said.

"The guinea pig has dark hair like Nick and he likes to hide inside things so Nick Cave seemed like the perfect namesake," said Dis. "My wife, Kelso, later pointed out that guinea pigs are also referred to as cavy."

When Dis posted the news of the rescue to the Prospect Lefferts Gardens and Brooklyn Neighbors Facebook group, he was dubbed a hero by reisdents who had previously tried and failed in the endeavor.

"You are amazing!" one resident wrote. Added another, "Thanks for doing this!"

Dis said he cannot keep his new guest forever (Otto and Dis' pet cat Gloria might enjoy Nick Cavy in the wrong way), but he has been reaching out to local animal rescue organizations, vets and neighbors to find him a permanent home.

"There are a lot of great people doing work in our community helping to rescue and rehome stray cats, dogs, abandoned pets, and injured wildlife," Dis said. "They do far more for the animals, often without any funding or outside help, than I did with rescuing Nick."

"A note to people that are thinking about dumping animals. There are people that you can reach out to that will gladly take your animals. You don’t need to abandon them."

This is not the first time guinea pigs have wreaked havoc in Prospect Park. Animal rescuers saved 27 guinea pigs found scurrying through the grass in May 2015, DNAinfo reported at the time.

And the following month, a guinea pig met a less happy end when a Brooklyn resident roasted one on a skewer over a Prospect Park barbecue grill.

Photos courtesy of Dustin Dis