A Few New Owner Questions

[Cavy_lover]

Right so I've decided I want couple of guinea pigs. Having looked online I've got some questions:

1) There aren't any rescues within a two hour drive, that have got guinea pigs (as far as I can see from the link on this site or from when I got my latest rescue bun). So how do I go about finding a reputable breeder? Or what is Jollyes Pet Shop like for live animals - are they generally health/ bred in ok conditions? I also have two pets at home stores close but heard a lot of bad about their breeding/welfare practices "behind the scenes", so was going to avoid them.

2) Am I right in thinking it's best to get two girls rather than two young boys, as there is less chance of them fighting as they mature?

3) Run - attached or separate? - I've read lots about only letting them have access to runs only on warm dry days but then I've read lots that says they should have a permanently attached run, accessible all the time?

4) I've seen quite a few pictures where the hutch floor is just covered in paper and there seems to be a litter tray but I was under the impression that guinea pigs were not litter trainable like rabbits?

5) I've heard that rabbits can pose a bordatella risk to guinea pigs - I have bunnies whose setup includes a large run attached by a run around pipe, so that it can be moved all around the lawn (so the bunnies have grazed all over - would this mean the piggies can't go in a run on the lawn?

6) Hutch wise - I've read that 2 sows need a 4x2 and 3 sows or two boars need 5x2 - is this right? How tall should it be (is 18" tall per floor ok)? Are double hutches / hutch over runs good for guinea's (obviously keeping the 4x2/5x2 minimum per floor)?

7) What's the best pellet food? Is there a chart listing all the different guinea pig pellets nutritional contents anywhere? - I only ask because there was one for rabbits and it shocked me how much nutritional variance there was and how poor some pellets were nutritionally. Also do you feed the amount guide on the bag?

Thanks (and sorry that's rather long)

 

[Harry&lloyd]

Hi and welcome . Where abouts in the country do you live? If you don't have rescues nearby support for adoption sometimes have guinea pigs in the pets at home stores in a dedicated area. I just got two girls from them and they have been very well cared for.
My girls don't have a run attached but I have made a safe area in the living room where they are free to roam when I'm home and are able to get back in their cage when they want. They also have an outdoor run for nice days.
Sorry I couldn't answer more of your questions, still a bit of a newbie too x

 

[piggyfan]

Hi and welcome to the forum. As this is a pro rescue forum you will be encouraged to rescue. It really is worth travelling to a rescue as you can be certain the guinea pigs will be correctly sexed, not pregnant, healthy and bonded. My nearest rescue was over two hours away but I got my beautiful boy from there and that enables them to rescue another piggy.

Two bonded boys will be fine and should not fight. The rescue will have already bonded them.

My guinea pigs live indoors. If they are to live outside they need a heated shed as they cannot tolerate extreme weathers. Would you consider having them indoors? You will bond much quicker with them and they will get used too you quicker too. C and ccages are great as you can make them big enough so you do not need floor time.

Generally guinea pigs cannot be litter trained. I use vetbed for mine. It is hypoallergenic and so soft for their delicate feet. You cannot use newspaper alone as they would get urine scald. This thread will teach you all about different beddings
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/bedding-for-guinea-pigs-overview.114219/

I am not sure if guinea pigs could share the garden with rabbits but hopefully somebody else can advise you. I have no garden so mine do not have grass.

You are right about the measurements the hutch should be but those are minimum so it is always best to go as big as you can. I have an 8 by 3 c and c cage for mine so they do not need floor time.

Pellets are difficult. A knowledgeable member on here @helen105281 has done research into it and recommendshttp://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/food/guinea_pig/bunny/195679 I am switching mine on to them. I made the mistake of feeding burgess without realising they contain molasses.

It is great you are researching into the care of guinea pigs before you get them.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi and welcome!

Great that you are thinking rescue first!

Could you please add your county/general location to your details. We have got members from all over the world; this makes it much easier for us to always give you the appropriate advice and recommendations for your part of the world straight away. Just click on your username on the top bar, then go to personal details/location. Thanks!

Personally, I have travelled further (by train, as I don't drive!) to get a special piggy or two from a rescue. I have never rued it after I promptly started out my adult piggy life with an unplanned shop piggy pregnancy in the middle of a major family emergency!
The rescues we recommend have all got a mandatory quarantine and pregnancy watch, they separate any baby boars at 3 weeks old (by far not all breeders do - have a look in our pregnancy section if you wish to!) and they rehome only healthy (vet checked) and well bonded piggies that take character compatibility into account. That means that you neatly avoid any of the usual pitfalls and you also have the rescue to fall back on if you happen to run into problems at any point in their piggies' lives. Make rehoming a day trip out if you can - it is really worth it!

When rehoming from one of our top standard rescues, you are also free to rehome any combination of piggies. Two baby boars have got a much higher fall-out rate while they go through the big teenage hormones at the same time, but different age or adult boar pairs are generally much more stable.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/boars-sows-or-mixed-pairs-babies-or-adults.108944/your

As we are a rescue friendly forum, it is against the forum rules to talk about breeding or to send members (or encourage them actively) to go to breeders. Please accept that.

As long as your rabbits and your piggies are not living together, transmission of diseases shouldn't be a problem. If necessary, could you reserve a part of your lawn for the piggies?

 

[gwinnypiggylove]

Pets at home stores have a 'support adoption for pets' section. In my experience, they almost always have guinea pigs in it. If not, wait a while and hopefully some will turn up.

Generally, females are less likely to fight. Boys go through a hormonal time before they are a year old and some pairs may have to be split up. However, this can happen with girls too if they're not compatible and if you get a pair of boys that are older than that and are bonded they will be fine.

Guinea pigs can't live outdoors all year round anyway (unless in an insulated/heated shed) so when they are out in good weather/warmer months it's nice for the run to be attached but it doesn't matter as long as they have sufficient space.

Guinea pigs are not completely litter trainable. You can use a cat litter box where their food/hay is as they go to the toilet most where they eat. This will contain a lot of the mess. But a good bedding around the whole cage is still a good idea (shavings, fleece, vetbed, fitch etc.)

I don't know much about this but I think as long as they are housed separately it shouldn't matter.

Some guinea pigs don't like ramps whereas others are fine with them. I would say the largest single story hutch you can get is best. For keeping them inside in colder months a large c&c cage (at least 2x3) or store bought cage (the same dimensions) is fine.

Pellets don't matter as much as hay and veggies. If your guinea pig has fresh water, a constant supply of good quality hay and a varied diet of safe vegetables then any decent pellets will do. Though I hear science selective are good and I'm switching to them soon.

Good luck with your pig adventures! I hope this helped.

 

[Cookie16]

For various reasons I couldn't get guinea pigs from a rescue, so I 'rescued' one myself from a very unpleasant situation. Not quite the same, but he still needed rescuing and I was prepared for vets bills, the 'wrong' sex or pregnancy if any of those situations arose. Luckily none have!

We used to keep our guinea pigs outside but I realised quickly that we both enjoyed the company of having them indoors, we also had our rabbit indoors. With runs outside for the nice weather, it works for us!

Enjoy finding your new friends!