SusieW
Junior Guinea Pig
Hi guys, I haven't been on here for a while but wondering if anyone could offer any support.
I feel I am becoming increasingly unable to cope with my guinea pigs and I don't know what to do about it. I have 8 males, living in very happy pairs. They all live in c&c enclosures on fleece (one pair live in a 5x4 c&c with a 1x4 hayloft, one pair live in a 5x3 with 1x3 hayloft and the other 2 pairs live in a 5x4 with a 1x5 hayloft that is split in half) (not happy about that enclosure size but they've taken over everywhere and only ended up on half each as they fell out) and they all have loads of huts and tunnels and bridges and stuff. The oldest pair are almost 5 years old, the youngest ones are approaching a year then there's ones in the middle. I used to have a lovely boar trio (yep, I know it's frowned upon but I've had two really well functioning trios in the past) but when my oldest pig's two friends died (the last one in September) I didn't want to get any more guinea pigs but knew I couldn't leave him alone and for the short time he was alone he went downhill really quickly. I wanted to foster a guinea pig for the remainder of his life instead of getting another permanent one, but the rescues I contacted never responded (perhaps due to covid related issues) so I couldn't find him a friend of his own choosing as I normally would and rehomed privately as I didn't want to go to a pet shop. Very long story short due to fall outs and stuff I've got eight now, mainly due to one very tricky little boar who was meant to be friends with my original pig but who hates almost every pig he's met.
I feel like a total idiot and as though people will look at me as an animal hoarder or something, because I never wanted 8, it just ended up that way). I don't really want to rehome any mainly because I'm very distrusting of other people and would worry about who had them/where they would end up/if they would live in large enough enclosures etc etc, and I do love them all individually, and I'd feel so guilty if I did, although I feel like they would be better off with someone who they could be the centre of their world instead of with me, but I feel like I'm drowning in guinea pigs and feel increasingly unable to cope with them. I clean them out regularly, (although it was twice a day poo sweeping but since I've not been doing so well it's probably been once every couple of days instead which is hard to admit and I hate myself for), I do all their basic care, weigh them weekly and stuff but I just feel like it isn't enough and as though I can't keep on top of it. Everything i own seems to have hay and hair on it which shouldn't bother me but at the moment it's just all getting a bit much. The troublesome one is a bar biter too (started when he was alone for a short time when I was trying to find someone he didn't hate), and he's in my bedroom with his buddy and their 2 neighbours, but he's taught the others to bar bite too. I've never had a bar biter before and now I have 4. I'm extremely noise sensitive due to Asperger's and sometimes they make me feel like I'm going mad. My older two pairs don't make much noise and don't bar bite (all 8 are very chatty but that's quite sweet really even when it's overwhelming.)
Six of them have long hair (three of them initially had very short hair and it just sprouted out of nowhere) and those three seem to constantly be getting wee all around their back ends. I trim the hair around their bums and try to keep it clean, but it's like as soon as I've cleaned them and trimmed them they are filthy again within a couple of days which can't be comfortable, two of them (young brothers) also have really active grease glands, and generally greasy feeling hair which i haven't seen before with other guinea pigs, and whenever I need to wash them because they've covered themselves in wee, they end up covering each other in boar glue straight after which is a huge job in itself having to cut that out of their hair! The other three have hair that grows outwards not downwards so it's not a problem for those ones at least.
I just feel overwhelmed with guinea pigs. Every time I sweep up the poo, within five minutes it seems like the enclosures are covered in poo again. I feel overwhelmed with all of it which sounds so stupid as I'm well aware of how much guinea pigs wee and poo, I've had guinea pigs for quite a few years now, since the start of 2016.
We went away last week and my friend looked after them for the week and I feel like she did a much better job than me, despite the fact that she's got loads of her own rabbits and guinea pigs, she's at vet school and doing work experience and all sorts of other things at the same time, yet she still seemed to cope with them so easily and I just can't.
I have got whiteboards and notebooks keeping track of all the hayloft clean outs, fleece changes, weights, baths, health, nail clipping and everything else but I feel like no matter what I do they are drowning me.
I feel like the worst person in the world because I do love them all so much but am starting to almost hate owning guinea pigs. I have an ex working sheepdog who is my whole life, and walk a few other dogs (I don't have a full time job as such as I have ASD and a lot of problems with a stupidly large variety of severe mental illness problems) but basically don't have any responsibilities apart from the animals, I'm 27 but still live with my mum and dad so it's not like I even have a house to take care of as well, but I feel like I can't even cope. I have clinical depression anyway but the guinea pigs are making me feel worse because I feel like I'm not doing right by them no matter how hard I try. The only thing I care about is animals, especially mine, and animal welfare, so they shouldn't be so overwhelming but they are.
I feel suffocated by the pressure of looking after them and I am starting to wonder if I should maybe rehome the two younger pairs for their own good, especially since they are the ones in the 5x4 enclosure split in half so have the least space although i know it meets their requirements, although it would be really hard. I was hoping summer would be easier since they can be out in the garden more, so less poo in the house! But it doesn't feel easier.
Sorry for such a long post. I feel completely alone and trapped and don't really know what to do. I tried talking to my mum and dad about it and they don't sympathise at all, my dad just said "well you choose to keep buying more". I'm not keeping buying more, the last one was in Jan and that was solely because the little troublesome one had ended up by himself again and was extremely unhappy. But my dad doesn't understand they can't live alone and why I didn't just leave my oldest boy alone instead of getting any of the 7. I won't be getting any more, I didn't ever want 8 but they are at least all happy in their pairs, even if I'm not!
I don't know why I'm posting this really, I know no one can do anything about it, I just feel so alone and trapped and thought maybe some guinea pig people might understand feeling overwhelmed by them and their poo although to be honest everyone's enclosures that I see always look so perfect and spotless and like everyone else is perfect!
Sorry for such a long and depressing post. Does anyone else have a lot of guinea pigs and ever feel overwhelmed by them too? Does anyone with a lot of pets have any scheduling tips or ways to stay on top of things without getting overwhelmed?
I really do love them all, it's just 8 is a bit tough.
Thanks for reading if you've got this far!
I feel I am becoming increasingly unable to cope with my guinea pigs and I don't know what to do about it. I have 8 males, living in very happy pairs. They all live in c&c enclosures on fleece (one pair live in a 5x4 c&c with a 1x4 hayloft, one pair live in a 5x3 with 1x3 hayloft and the other 2 pairs live in a 5x4 with a 1x5 hayloft that is split in half) (not happy about that enclosure size but they've taken over everywhere and only ended up on half each as they fell out) and they all have loads of huts and tunnels and bridges and stuff. The oldest pair are almost 5 years old, the youngest ones are approaching a year then there's ones in the middle. I used to have a lovely boar trio (yep, I know it's frowned upon but I've had two really well functioning trios in the past) but when my oldest pig's two friends died (the last one in September) I didn't want to get any more guinea pigs but knew I couldn't leave him alone and for the short time he was alone he went downhill really quickly. I wanted to foster a guinea pig for the remainder of his life instead of getting another permanent one, but the rescues I contacted never responded (perhaps due to covid related issues) so I couldn't find him a friend of his own choosing as I normally would and rehomed privately as I didn't want to go to a pet shop. Very long story short due to fall outs and stuff I've got eight now, mainly due to one very tricky little boar who was meant to be friends with my original pig but who hates almost every pig he's met.
I feel like a total idiot and as though people will look at me as an animal hoarder or something, because I never wanted 8, it just ended up that way). I don't really want to rehome any mainly because I'm very distrusting of other people and would worry about who had them/where they would end up/if they would live in large enough enclosures etc etc, and I do love them all individually, and I'd feel so guilty if I did, although I feel like they would be better off with someone who they could be the centre of their world instead of with me, but I feel like I'm drowning in guinea pigs and feel increasingly unable to cope with them. I clean them out regularly, (although it was twice a day poo sweeping but since I've not been doing so well it's probably been once every couple of days instead which is hard to admit and I hate myself for), I do all their basic care, weigh them weekly and stuff but I just feel like it isn't enough and as though I can't keep on top of it. Everything i own seems to have hay and hair on it which shouldn't bother me but at the moment it's just all getting a bit much. The troublesome one is a bar biter too (started when he was alone for a short time when I was trying to find someone he didn't hate), and he's in my bedroom with his buddy and their 2 neighbours, but he's taught the others to bar bite too. I've never had a bar biter before and now I have 4. I'm extremely noise sensitive due to Asperger's and sometimes they make me feel like I'm going mad. My older two pairs don't make much noise and don't bar bite (all 8 are very chatty but that's quite sweet really even when it's overwhelming.)
Six of them have long hair (three of them initially had very short hair and it just sprouted out of nowhere) and those three seem to constantly be getting wee all around their back ends. I trim the hair around their bums and try to keep it clean, but it's like as soon as I've cleaned them and trimmed them they are filthy again within a couple of days which can't be comfortable, two of them (young brothers) also have really active grease glands, and generally greasy feeling hair which i haven't seen before with other guinea pigs, and whenever I need to wash them because they've covered themselves in wee, they end up covering each other in boar glue straight after which is a huge job in itself having to cut that out of their hair! The other three have hair that grows outwards not downwards so it's not a problem for those ones at least.
I just feel overwhelmed with guinea pigs. Every time I sweep up the poo, within five minutes it seems like the enclosures are covered in poo again. I feel overwhelmed with all of it which sounds so stupid as I'm well aware of how much guinea pigs wee and poo, I've had guinea pigs for quite a few years now, since the start of 2016.
We went away last week and my friend looked after them for the week and I feel like she did a much better job than me, despite the fact that she's got loads of her own rabbits and guinea pigs, she's at vet school and doing work experience and all sorts of other things at the same time, yet she still seemed to cope with them so easily and I just can't.
I have got whiteboards and notebooks keeping track of all the hayloft clean outs, fleece changes, weights, baths, health, nail clipping and everything else but I feel like no matter what I do they are drowning me.
I feel like the worst person in the world because I do love them all so much but am starting to almost hate owning guinea pigs. I have an ex working sheepdog who is my whole life, and walk a few other dogs (I don't have a full time job as such as I have ASD and a lot of problems with a stupidly large variety of severe mental illness problems) but basically don't have any responsibilities apart from the animals, I'm 27 but still live with my mum and dad so it's not like I even have a house to take care of as well, but I feel like I can't even cope. I have clinical depression anyway but the guinea pigs are making me feel worse because I feel like I'm not doing right by them no matter how hard I try. The only thing I care about is animals, especially mine, and animal welfare, so they shouldn't be so overwhelming but they are.
I feel suffocated by the pressure of looking after them and I am starting to wonder if I should maybe rehome the two younger pairs for their own good, especially since they are the ones in the 5x4 enclosure split in half so have the least space although i know it meets their requirements, although it would be really hard. I was hoping summer would be easier since they can be out in the garden more, so less poo in the house! But it doesn't feel easier.
Sorry for such a long post. I feel completely alone and trapped and don't really know what to do. I tried talking to my mum and dad about it and they don't sympathise at all, my dad just said "well you choose to keep buying more". I'm not keeping buying more, the last one was in Jan and that was solely because the little troublesome one had ended up by himself again and was extremely unhappy. But my dad doesn't understand they can't live alone and why I didn't just leave my oldest boy alone instead of getting any of the 7. I won't be getting any more, I didn't ever want 8 but they are at least all happy in their pairs, even if I'm not!
I don't know why I'm posting this really, I know no one can do anything about it, I just feel so alone and trapped and thought maybe some guinea pig people might understand feeling overwhelmed by them and their poo although to be honest everyone's enclosures that I see always look so perfect and spotless and like everyone else is perfect!
Sorry for such a long and depressing post. Does anyone else have a lot of guinea pigs and ever feel overwhelmed by them too? Does anyone with a lot of pets have any scheduling tips or ways to stay on top of things without getting overwhelmed?
I really do love them all, it's just 8 is a bit tough.
Thanks for reading if you've got this far!
) and everything you guys have said about non immaculate enclosures makes me think that maybe I'm not doing such a terrible job with them after all- I've honestly been thinking that I'm the only person who has any mess of any sort in their enclosures.
to try and help that so I'm feeling a bit more on top of things (although the clean fleeces are covered in poo already!)
