Best places to buy a guinea pig?

ItsKatyMS

ItsKatyMS

Junior Guinea Pig
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Okay so I’m thinking of getting a guinea pig and my family wants me to go to a place called Fishbowl which has 50% Absolutely horrid reviews and 50% excellent reviews and my mother doesn’t want to travel across state to a professional breeder and I’m just wondering where do most of you get yours and what places do you recommend? Like a PetSmart? PetCo?
 
Rescue is best in terms of ensuring a healthy pair of piggies that are well bonded. Here is the guinea lynx list of rescues by state to see if there is one close to you Guinea Lynx :: US Guinea Pig Rescue and Shelter Organizations

At the end of the day, if a reputable rescue isn't within travelling distance there is no "good" place to buy from. Breeders aren't regulated and we often hear stories of less than desirable individuals unloading ill or pregnant piggies on unwitting customers. Same with pet shops where sexes aren't always accurately confirmed etc. Leading to unexpected pregnancies or health problems. If a reputable rescue isn't an option there is no one 100% safe place, when that happens we must make our own judgment based on visiting places and questioning staff as to whether we feel the risk is small enough to purchase.
 
I would recommend you try looking for rescues in your area first- they will give you the best advice and healthy pigs. Google 'guinea pigs for adoption near me' or 'guinea pig rescue near me'.

Please get two- in Switzerland it's actually illegal to have just one!

Are you planning on keeping them indoors? Bear in mind pet shop cages are on average way too small 😬. Most people on here seem to have c&c cages, or homemade versions as they're fairly simple to put together 😊

Good luck!
 
Agree with what every else said but also have a look at the sexing guide and see if you can sex the guinea pigs yourself as often with bought piggies the “male” ends up being a “female” etc
 
Thank you so much
Lady Kelly said:
Rescue is best in terms of ensuring a healthy pair of piggies that are well bonded. Here is the guinea lynx list of rescues by state to see if there is one close to you Guinea Lynx :: US Guinea Pig Rescue and Shelter Organizations

At the end of the day, if a reputable rescue isn't within travelling distance there is no "good" place to buy from. Breeders aren't regulated and we often hear stories of less than desirable individuals unloading ill or pregnant piggies on unwitting customers. Same with pet shops where sexes aren't always accurately confirmed etc. Leading to unexpected pregnancies or health problems. If a reputable rescue isn't an option there is no one 100% safe place, when that happens we must make our own judgment based on visiting places and questioning staff as to whether we feel the risk is small enough to purchase.
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GuineaDigs said:
I would recommend you try looking for rescues in your area first- they will give you the best advice and healthy pigs. Google 'guinea pigs for adoption near me' or 'guinea pig rescue near me'.

Please get two- in Switzerland it's actually illegal to have just one!

Are you planning on keeping them indoors? Bear in mind pet shop cages are on average way too small 😬. Most people on here seem to have c&c cages, or homemade versions as they're fairly simple to put together 😊

Good luck!
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Thank you so much! I’d love to get two, however I’m getting one this Summer because I’ll be home most of the time. When I go back to Academy next year, if my Guinea starts showing signs of loneliness then I’ll get him a friend. I’m definitely going to make sure the cage I get or make will be the proper size as well. I will absolutely look into a rescue as well!
 
ItsKatyMS said:
Thank you so much


Thank you so much! I’d love to get two, however I’m getting one this Summer because I’ll be home most of the time. When I go back to Academy next year, if my Guinea starts showing signs of loneliness then I’ll get him a friend. I’m definitely going to make sure the cage I get or make will be the proper size as well. I will absolutely look into a rescue as well!
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I don't think your Guinea will be happy alone... although we can spend all day with piggies they do need a friend who is not human.. Imagine spending a long time not talking to another human - that is what it would be like for your guinea... Please get 2 if you can - they will love you for it...
 
ItsKatyMS said:
Thank you so much


Thank you so much! I’d love to get two, however I’m getting one this Summer because I’ll be home most of the time. When I go back to Academy next year, if my Guinea starts showing signs of loneliness then I’ll get him a friend. I’m definitely going to make sure the cage I get or make will be the proper size as well. I will absolutely look into a rescue as well!
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Unfortunately a reputable rescue is unlikely to re-home to you. Guinea pigs are social animals who need company of their own kind. Regardless how much time we humans can spend with them it can never be a replacement for company of their own species. For this reason any good rescue would refuse to re-home a piggy who was going to be kept alone
 
As herd animals they need company of their own kind as do rabbits and horses. I wish you the best of luck in your search.
 
Is there a reason you just want one? I can't imagine the workload/ cost is much different (please correct me if i'm wrong as i've never had just one). From what i've heard the more you have the more you see of their personalities, you get to watch them interact and run around in piggy trains and snuggle together and play tug of war with their food 😂
 
Welcome to the forum.
You’ve been given excellent advice.
The forum has very good information threads which help to understand why piggies shouldn’t be single as well as why we are pro rescue.
It’s good that you have joined the forum and I hope you will find support as well as information here
 
I’m going to try and get two for all of you who are concerned but if my mother says no then there’s nothing I can do. But I’ll try!
 
ItsKatyMS said:
I’m going to try and get two for all of you who are concerned but if my mother says no then there’s nothing I can do. But I’ll try!
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Please try - show her the information on the forum x
 
GuineaDigs said:
Good luck!

Please don't think it's all negative here- you know what people get like about animals 😂

Make sure you post pictures when you have them 😊
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This isn't about negativity. It's about the welfare of the animals involved. Both the RSPCA and the Humane Society advocate keeping guinea pigs in minimums of pairs for a very good reason. It is my personal opinion that it would be better not to take on a guinea pig at all than to take on a lone one
 
Great news. They are Herd animals. I have a lone piggie just now who's lost his friend and I'm in the process of searching for a friend for him.
 
Good! But I would say (and it may not go down well) if she refuses two then please hold off until you can get a pair. Be aware that boars need more space than sows (140cm+). Don’t be fooled by the pet shops who try and sell you small cages. If you can rescue then all the better.

Good luck!
 
also don’t forget guinea pigs can - and will - cost a lot of money in vet bills! People think because they’re not cats or dogs that they don’t need to see a vet, they do, and an exotic one at that. Taking on Guinea pigs is a big responsibility and they are by no means an easy pet
 
Little Ones said:
also don’t forget guinea pigs can - and will - cost a lot of money in vet bills! People think because they’re not cats or dogs that they don’t need to see a vet, they do, and an exotic one at that. Taking on Guinea pigs is a big responsibility and they are by no means an easy pet
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They are by far the most difficult animal i have had to look after. Out of a dog, rats, hamsters, gerbils ( gerbils are the easiest for me). Guinea pigs seem very fine tuned, the slightest thing out of whack and they fall like a ton of bricks
 
SkyPipDotBernie said:
They are by far the most difficult animal i have had to look after. Out of a dog, rats, hamsters, gerbils ( gerbils are the easiest for me). Guinea pigs seem very fine tuned, the slightest thing out of whack and they fall like a ton of bricks
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I’ve owned cats and hamsters too and I 100% agree, guinea pigs are so fragile in the sense that just about anything can severely impair them/kill them. Hay poke, bloat, loneliness, URI, UTI, etc etc. As soon as I see something slightly wrong with my guinea pig he’s straight to the vet and always needs some kind of medication, on top of the flat fee the vets charge for seeing him. They’re so good at masking illnesses too so they can be more severe than they seem. Definitely the most difficult pets to care for.
 
I’m well aware they take lots of time and effort and attention to detail. I’m very determined to do my best and make sure they are in tip top shape! Also, my mother said yes! So I’ll be getting two males soon (within a month or so) and I’m very ready. We’re looking at top quality cages for them as well. We’re going to make sure we do this right!
 
Yes. I love my c&c cage. The more room the better especially for males who may be prone to fight if its too small an area once their dominance hits.
 
Fingers crossed your mom agrees to a pair... they are much happier, plus they are much more interesting, as you get to see more of their natural behaviors and personalities come out. I really enjoy the dynamics between my pigs. They really are very sweet animals, there is a definite bond between them and their natural behaviors can be fascinating.

As for where to get them, as everyone has said, a rescue is best. That said, I totally understand that rescues are not easily accessible everywhere and guinea pigs are harder to come by in rescues in the US and Canada, as opposed to the UK. So if you end up at a pet shop, I would suggest that first and foremost, you want to go somewhere that has them separated by gender. Otherwise you risk bringing home a breeding pair or females that are already pregnant when you buy them. I'm not sure if you have PetSmart in your state or if their policies are the same (I'm in Canada), but the PetSmarts here separate by gender- one store will have females, another males. It's a much better system. You also want to look at the health of the pigs- is there anyone in the cage who looks sick? Runny eyes? Runny nose? Bald patches? Scaly skin? Even if the pigs you choose look fine at the time, if there are others housed with them that are ill, you run the risk that they already have a latent illness that will show up when you get them home. So if you need to go to a pet store (as I did), try to find one that has pigs separated by gender and that doesn't have any ill-appearing pigs so that you are less likely to run into illness/unplanned babies. Hope this helps a bit!
 
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