A few questions

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seren

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Hello, I have taken on a male guinea pig from a friend's dad who didnt really have time for him and, to be honest, i dont think he was cared for particularly well. They have only had him 7 months and got bored of him :(

I have had guineas before, when I was younger and I was very happy to be asked to take him as they are such great little animals! I just have a few questions.

Firstly, I know that they like company. He is only about 9 months old, will he accept a younger male as company? Does anyone know of any rescues in the Glasgow area? I am willing to travel if there are any further away.


Next, he is currently in the bottom half of my rat's cage (a ferplast duetto, which is actually and avery - http://www.petcentreonline.co.uk/ecommerce/Scripts/prodView~idproduct~145.htm ) I took the rat's shelves out so he just has one level. I think it may be a bit small for him, but it is bigger than the hutch he was in and so hopfully will do for now. My rats are kept on shredded cardboard so I am using that as litter and he has lots of hay, a box, food, water bottle etc... Is there anything that I can add to his habitat? I do have a garden and am planning to get him a grazing ark for the summer.

He is very scared, Although I have provided a box, he doesnt seem to understand the concept of going into it. I think he has been left in a bare hutch for his entire life :( I think because he is used to living in an enclosed wooden hutch away from the house (i think he was in the green house) the light and noise of my rats are probably making it worse for him. Every time I move, he jumps. Does anyone have any ideas on calming him?

He has eaten, both hay and some celery and I have put in some brocali and obviously some dry food (just the stuff from asda, I will have a look at the reviews to decide what food will be best for him long term.

Anyway, sorry for the essay, I'm sure there were some other questions that I have missed out but that will do for now :)
 
Hello seren :) Good on you for taking this little guy in! :(|) Does he have a name yet?
I'd advise getting him a little friend but i've heard a few stories of it being quite tricky to bond two boars. But i know hardly anything on the matter so I'm sure someone more knowledgable than me could help you out there.

His cage probably seems very scarey too him, especially if hes come from something so small and by the sounds of it clostraphobic to a cage thats quite tall and open. All piggies are very nervous to start with, hes get used to things in time. I'd try and sit by the cage and talk to him softly, maybe introduce your hand with a tasty bit of veg for him. That'd get him used to your hand and trusting you more. Then after a while try stroking him. Really just do all you can to reasure him, slowly but surely. He must've been so alone in that little greenhouse so he needs to get used to company.
Also try him with other veggies. My piggies favs are parsley, kale, pepper and cucumber. Try not to give too much cucumber and celery as they're diuretics (i think i spelt that right).
Also i wana just let you know what dry food i feed my girls. I feed them P@H Guinea pig nuggets. I just feel that their dry food in nugget form provents them from selective feeding so they get all the nutrients they need.

I hope i helped. Good luck with the little guy! :)p
 
seren said:
Firstly, I know that they like company. He is only about 9 months old, will he accept a younger male as company?

Is there anything that I can add to his habitat? I do have a garden and am planning to get him a grazing ark for the summer.

Does anyone have any ideas on calming him?
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So, a bit of an angering story, but on to the questions.

Well since he's nine months it would actually be better for you to get him a companion now rather than later. I couldn't reccomend any rescues as I live in Ireland. When, if, you get him a companion you should introduce them slowly. I got my only guinea pig a companion a while back and he became fond of his friend. I put the two of them on the floor, towel at the ready so if they were going to fight I could separate them. They ran up to each other and cuddled together :)

Well guinea pigs dont really have a "habitat" as such but they do need a constant supply of hay, dry food and water ( which you no already), and so the kitchen is born ! You already have a hidey hole for him so thats his bedroom sorted. Thats it really maybe a toy ? I stufff an old sock with hay and tie it in a knot, a pillow and push toy. Good idea for the summer also.

Calming can be a problem, my piggie Charlie is very skittish and calming can take a while on a daily basis. You should pick him up ( supporting the back and behind) place him on an old towel on your lap facing you, then just rub him and he should calm, this will not only calm him on your lap but you will learn that he will grow on you and you on him. He will get used to you walking by the cage ect. but it will take time.

I really hope this works and best of luck,

Alan.
 
Thank you for the ideas. He was called Danny by his original owners, I'm not sure if I will change it, I will see what suites him as he calms down.

This morning when I came down, he was sitting in the middle of his hay looking quite happy, of course when he saw me he ran back to hide behind the box.

I will go veggie shopping tonight and I will phone the SSPCA to see if they have any ideas about finding him a young friend.
 
Oh good luck with him. As soon as he gets used to you he'll be a fab little piggie! I think its great you took him in from what sounds like such a lonely home!
Post on this thread what you decided to call him if you do wanna change his name :)
Let us know how hes getting on

Take care x :)p
 
oh dear this is so sad! congratulations on saving him.I would get him a friend now while he is still terrified as they will be more likely to bond over the scary world and think they need each other to survive than to want to kill each other
 
Well done for taking this little lad on. I'm not sure how far away Gretna is from Glasgow, but Hels on the forum here is based there and you may be able to get a piggie train organised to get a friend for him. Alternatively daftscotslass, one of the moderators on here is from Scotland and knows a lot of the rescues there, it may be worth contacting her too?

Don't worry about him being skittish, even under ordinary circumstances it's very normal for piggies in new surroundings to be comfortable, just start as you mean to go on with handling and noise etc so he quickly learns what to expect and wont be so scared.

As for housing, what about a C&C cage? Good examples can be found here: www.guineapigcages.com and can often work out cheaper than a shop bought cage which doesn't provide as much space as a C&C arrangement can, if you need any help sourcing the stuff near to you, we can all help, grids can be bought in B&Q and Screwfix for around £18, the correx you can get from a local signmaker from the Yellow Pages for about a tenner for a large sheet. A 1.2m cage the minimum suitable size for 2 pigs can be around £60 - £90 depending where you get it. www.zooplus.co.uk do good size rabbit cages (1.4m) for about £70 or so.

For general care, I would recommend a visit to both www.barmy4boars.co.uk and www.cavyspirit.com both of which contain brilliant information.

For now, just enjoy your new little man and let him settle in with cuddles and good quality fresh hay and veg. There is a safe food list here in the Food section of the Boards.

I know all about people getting bored of their animals - a colleague of mine asked me to take in her pigs less than 4 weeks after she impulse bought them... :{

Best of luck :)
 
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Thank you for the replies :)

He is becoming a bit bolder, although still very jumpy. He is also becoming quite vocal :)) He is taking food from my hands which has to be a good sign.

I am considering changing his name to Ludo, I'm not sure why, it just suites him. I took a picture on my phone, its not very good but will upload it when I can find the cable.

I contacted Hels and she has a number of young males to choose from, so it looks like he will be getting a friend soon, as long as I pass the home check
 
Well done you! Just to let you know, he might also just be a naturally skittish piggy. I've got Garry who hides all the time in his pigloo - his cagemate is Minty who is as bold as brass! Garry runs away when anyone comes into the room, but as soon as your back is turned and he thinks noone is looking, he's fine and is out tucking into his food, popcorning and lounging by the hay! He also likes cuddles and happily sits on my lap for ages!

When I first got my piggies, I handled them as much as possible, so that they could get used to me and see that they were safe with me. When holding Ludo, perhaps try allowing him to hide in the crook of your arm if he feels safer there.:)

Good luck with finding him a friend....I'm looking forward to photos!
 
me too!

Hi, I'm pretty new to guinea pigs, i got one as a companion for my rabbit, bad idea, so furby moved in with me, but i felt he was lonely so i got another, both are male, and both seemed to get on fine straight away, only took a few seconds for them to recoginise a fello piggie, but i'm getting suspicious, everyone seems to say it's difficult to mix two males, towels at the ready etc, i just put my two in the cage together and they ran into their bedroom and haven't looked back? does anyone know, could i be that lucky or could they still decide not to like each other? cause i love them, and they need company of other piggies, so dont want to end up ever havng to separate them....furby is soooo much happier since i got buzz lightyear....buzz is here a week now, and only today seems to be settling and eating a bit more, but seems unable or unwilling to chew a carrot? furby loves them, think he may need a calorie controlled diet, but i am a little worried that buzz does not seem to eat much....gave him apple today, dont think he ever saw it before, but he didn't eat the skins, just ate the flesh off it? his front teeth look the same at furby? any idea's??
 
Sounds OK to me! I've only ever bonded one pair of boars - Ben and Dave. And it went well. There was a bit of chasing, but nothing more and they settled down quickly. There's still the odd bit of chasing from Ben every now and again, but it's probably just because he's proving his 'boss piggy' status! Just make sure they've got plenty of space and I find it helps if I let them have a run around out of the cage often.

Give it a little while and see what Buzz seems to like food wise. My boys are really fussy! If he's still reluctant to chew things, then perhaps get him checked over at the vets.
 
It could just be that Buzz has never had fresh veg before, and so doesn't know that it's food. I'd give him a little time, and hopefully after watching Furby enjoying his veg for a while, Buzz will twig on to the fact that it must be pretty good stuff. Could also be that he's not sure about the foods you're offering, so maybe try some different things to find what he likes.
 
Some pictures of ludo:
2009_0123ludo0085.jpg


2009_0123ludo0084.jpg


2009_0123ludo0080.jpg


He is a little eating machine and loves his veggies! The cage I have him in is bigger than it looks in the photos, he just pushed the cardboard box into the middle
 
Hi! What a sad story. It makes me angry to think of people getting any animal and then not taking care of them. But anyway, sounds like you're doing a good job with him. The name really suits him, and in case you wanted to know he's a Tortoishell and White guinea pig with really pretty markings. I have a boar called Junior who is also a T+W and although I may be biased, I think they have the best personalities out of all of the guinea pig breeds. Junior is really cheeky and such a people-piggy and it sounds like Ludo is going the same way. Good luck with the homecheck, hopefully gorgeous Ludo will have a little friend very soon :)
 
thanks, i noticed yesterday that he was getting fond of the soft apple bits so i sliced sone apple and carrot really really thin and i think he is learning to love them....tried cucumber too, but neither seem terribly interested.... i'll give him a few more days to settle.... i did notice earlier that at one point buzz was in the bedroom, and furby wanted to go in, and ah...buzz told him where to go.... furby did the teeth chatering thing and they sorta stared each other down, i was waiting to see what ould happen, when someone made a noise and they both legged it into the house! i watched for a while and furby put his head donw and went to sleep, i hope that's the worst it ever gets, cause furby really is a different pig since i got buzz.(as in much happier and more active and friendly)
New question though? I did mention i am new to these little guys.... but.... buzz has a really smelly back end?? furby doesn't....... i'm still a little reluctant to bath him, as his cuts are healing really well, but one or two small scabs still, and i dont want them to come off too soon.... should i just wipe it wit some cotton wool and water? he still plays dead if i turn him upside down, so hopefully he mite let me? should i be looking out for anything specific that may cause this? it looks (without too much stressful poking) to be a bit dirty, but not around the outside if you know what i mean? smelly tho....
 
From what I've been reading (far too many times a day), I think male guinea pigs have scent glands back there, and the scent seems to vary from boar to boar. If you did a forum search for scent gland, I'm sure you'd find some other threads with advice on ways to deal with the problem.
 
seren said:
Thank you, I'm already very attached to him :)
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Awwww I'm so glad :)) He looks so lovely!

Ive seen some lovely males in my local rescue...i dont think i have enough room though :( I wish i had more space!

Enjoy your little ludo. He looks like hes really settled in and i'm in love with his ears! Hes got the same colourings as my girls but their markings are different.
Is he named Ludo from the furry and kind monster thing from the Labyrinth?

Take care x
 
When I got george he had never had veg. I had to put carrot in his cage about 4/5 times before he ate it. I originally got him to eat it by buying a bunny kabob (it's a skewer thing that hangs from top of the cage. I cut it up into loads of pieces (think that made it smell more) then stuck in on the skewer.

He now will just eat it out of his bowl or off the plastic floor on his top level. it's just a matter of time at first I was worried but now I know just to introduce something new every week or so. He now only eats carrot & celery. I have had two goes at brocolli but no joy yet but will keep trying & I bet he will eat some in a week or so!
 
Yep, his name is from Labyrinth, I have a horrible feeling that who ever ends up being his friend will be called Hoggle! :red
 
seren said:
Yep, his name is from Labyrinth, I have a horrible feeling that who ever ends up being his friend will be called Hoggle! :red
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The labryrinth is possibly one of my favourite films!
Its a lovely name though, very fitting for his character :) But hes nothing like him looks wise :)
haha or you could call his future new friend Sir Didymus (who ive always thought looks alot like a yorkshire terrier but hes suposed to be a fox?) or Ambrosius!

Take care x
 
I passed the home check (yay) and I may be getting a little friend for Ludo in a couple of weeks :<>

Ludo is still a bit scared, but seems happy, especially when eating! At the moment he is sitting in his lovely pink igloo!
 
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