Four guinea pigs at Annette Street Public School were found dead on Monday morning. Their deaths were likely caused by an unexpected increase in the heating there, according to the Toronto District School Board.

A fifth guinea pig, named Olaf, made it out alive, because he was not at the school on the night of the over-heating.

“Caretakers were in the school during the day and reported no issues with either the heat or the pets at the time,” said Ryan Bird, spokesperson for the TDSB, in a written statement to the Star. “The animals were in enclosures on tables away from the heat sources, and with enough food and water for the weekend.”

The problem is being investigated by TDSB staff, said Bird, who added that a new heating system was installed in October and it “has experienced some fluctuations in temperatures.”

Bird said that he could not produce a list of any other schools retrofitted with new heating systems.

Nancy Keenan, the school’s principal, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Emily Simpson, a parent of an eight-year-old girl who attends the west-end school, said she was told that heat went up to about 40 degrees, a circumstance she called “upsetting.”

“Because guinea pigs are cold-weather animals they’re very heat intolerant, and so they basically died from heat-stroke,” she said.

While conceding that the episode was an accident, Simpson, a veterinarian by trade, said she hopes similar incidents don’t occur elsewhere and that the problem is fixed across the board. If it isn’t resolved, she added, the school won’t have any of the animals left for the students to enjoy and learn from.

The animals tend to float from home-to-home, where kids can care for them, Simpson said.

“It’s a terrible way for these animals to die after all the joy that they gave these kids.”

For three weeks during the holidays, Pepsi, one of the deceased, was at Simpson’s house, and her daughter bonded with the critter.

“Everyone in the class takes turns taking care of the pet in the classroom,” she said. “My daughter certainly took a lot of pride in helping to care for this particular pet.”

Guinea pigs are common classroom pets in Toronto because they are friendly and low-maintenance compared to other animals, Simpson said.

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Bird said animals such as guinea pigs are not tracked centrally, but underscored their importance when it comes to teaching kids about responsibilities attached to providing for them.

Of course, it’s a lesson that adults can learn, too.