Eyes Opened To The Suitability Of Piggies For Children

[AbiS]

I have always agreed that piggies are not really suitable pets for children because they are so skittish. I have just waved goodbye to my friend and her 3.5yr old daughter who have been to stay with me for the last 2 nights. Alice is an absolutely gorgeous child. She is so friendly, happy and well behaved. She is also ultra caring and considerate of others - particularly when it comes to animals (even though she has none of her own) - made obvious when she asked me, unprompted, last night if we needed to give the boys some fresh water. She just wanted to spend time with them, talking to them, feeding them, cuddling them.

God love Toby & Barney - they didn't have a clue what was going on. I'm sure they just wanted to eat their breakfast in peace and quiet. When they were out having their free-range time (usual all day but restricted with our visitors) they were followed around all over the place with little hands trying to get strokes if they ever came anywhere near. Eventually Toby managed to hide where she couldn't find him. We were fascinated by Barney though. Although he didn't want her touching him he kept going up to her for a sniff and to see if she had anything for him before then running away, then he would be back again 2minutes later.

We needed eyes in the back of our heads though. I came out of the kitchen at one point to find that she had opened all of the hutch doors (indoors) to make it easier for them if they wanted to come out. This included the top doors as it is a 2 level hutch so we had to have a chat about how little piggies would hurt their legs if they tried to jump out of those doors. She was virtually inside the hutch at one point when they were locked up because she wanted to stroke one of them but could reach so crawled in to get nearer. The poor piggles. Saying that - I don't think they have ever eaten as much carrot as it was a way to keep all parties happy!

I have certainly had my eyes open and am wondering what we are going to do in a year or so's time when we have our own little crawler. God help us all!

 

[Freela]

I have three kids myself- they were 7, 5, and 2 respectively when we got our first set of pigs about 7 years ago. They've now grown considerably and are 13, 11, and almost 9. Before we got the pigs, we had African pygmy hedgehogs from our pre-kid days up until we had three children, so I feel like I've got a decent amount of experience in managing animals and small children. We've never had any major mishaps as far as the kids and the pigs, and I actually think that the guinea pigs have been GREAT pets for the kids- provided the adult is ultimately responsible for the health/safety of the animal, of course.

It has always really bothered me to see children behave cruelly towards animals and the parents just shrug it off, so I've always talked to the kids about treating animals gently and compassionately and that we really don't want any animals to be hurt out of our own curiosity. So from early childhood, they were taught to handle animals very gently, either the hedgehogs (who were pretty capable of defending themselves from the kids!) or with wild animals we would find and examine and then return to their homes. So adopting the pigs was not a really steep learning curve for them in terms of those things. We made it really clear that the guinea pigs are not toys and the safety of the animals is paramount. We had ground rules- the pigs were not to be taken out of the cage by kids, ever. If a child wanted to interact with the pig out of the cage, they had to ask a parent, sit on the couch with a blanket, and have the adult supervise the interaction and put the pig back safely when they were done. That way we made sure the pigs were never in an unsafe situation and that the kids were not being rough with them. Even my youngest, who was 2 at the time, was able to hold pigs on her lap safely supervised in this way. As they've grown, the pigs are just part of the household and the kids participate in daily care, holding the pigs, feeding the pigs, etc. Even my middle child, who is least interested in animals and doesn't spend a lot of one-on-one time holding the pigs, is generally the one who gives them hay and tops up the water bottle every morning, since she's the earliest riser. My 13-year-old and 8-year-old probably interact with the pigs one-on-one on a daily basis, which is quite cute, and it has been very touching to see how deeply that bond runs for them. Both of them actually missed a day of school when Linney passed away last year, since they were too teary/emotional/upset to get through the day in public (including my son, who was pushing 13 at the time and typically tries to appear tough.) My 8-year-old could probably give a lecture on guinea pig care/anatomy/social needs at this point. She is a very passionate advocate on behalf of keeping guinea pigs in pairs or groups to the kids who happen to have only one pig who are in her class! On the whole, growing up with kids and pigs has been great for us. I think the onus is always on the parents to be the responsible ones (because kids may not be responsible enough to clean the cage, etc. on their own regularly and need to be taught to handle small animals safely) and to make sure that there are guidelines for pig safety in place, but on the whole our pigs and kids have always gotten along really well with no mishaps, and I think setting firm ground rules and supervision have been key in that.

 

[7squeakers.]

@AbiS , @Freela , If only more parent were like you two!

 

[AbiS]

I have three kids myself- they were 7, 5, and 2 respectively when we got our first set of pigs about 7 years ago. They've now grown considerably and are 13, 11, and almost 9. Before we got the pigs, we had African pygmy hedgehogs from our pre-kid days up until we had three children, so I feel like I've got a decent amount of experience in managing animals and small children. We've never had any major mishaps as far as the kids and the pigs, and I actually think that the guinea pigs have been GREAT pets for the kids- provided the adult is ultimately responsible for the health/safety of the animal, of course.

It has always really bothered me to see children behave cruelly towards animals and the parents just shrug it off, so I've always talked to the kids about treating animals gently and compassionately and that we really don't want any animals to be hurt out of our own curiosity. So from early childhood, they were taught to handle animals very gently, either the hedgehogs (who were pretty capable of defending themselves from the kids!) or with wild animals we would find and examine and then return to their homes. So adopting the pigs was not a really steep learning curve for them in terms of those things. We made it really clear that the guinea pigs are not toys and the safety of the animals is paramount. We had ground rules- the pigs were not to be taken out of the cage by kids, ever. If a child wanted to interact with the pig out of the cage, they had to ask a parent, sit on the couch with a blanket, and have the adult supervise the interaction and put the pig back safely when they were done. That way we made sure the pigs were never in an unsafe situation and that the kids were not being rough with them. Even my youngest, who was 2 at the time, was able to hold pigs on her lap safely supervised in this way. As they've grown, the pigs are just part of the household and the kids participate in daily care, holding the pigs, feeding the pigs, etc. Even my middle child, who is least interested in animals and doesn't spend a lot of one-on-one time holding the pigs, is generally the one who gives them hay and tops up the water bottle every morning, since she's the earliest riser. My 13-year-old and 8-year-old probably interact with the pigs one-on-one on a daily basis, which is quite cute, and it has been very touching to see how deeply that bond runs for them. Both of them actually missed a day of school when Linney passed away last year, since they were too teary/emotional/upset to get through the day in public (including my son, who was pushing 13 at the time and typically tries to appear tough.) My 8-year-old could probably give a lecture on guinea pig care/anatomy/social needs at this point. She is a very passionate advocate on behalf of keeping guinea pigs in pairs or groups to the kids who happen to have only one pig who are in her class! On the whole, growing up with kids and pigs has been great for us. I think the onus is always on the parents to be the responsible ones (because kids may not be responsible enough to clean the cage, etc. on their own regularly and need to be taught to handle small animals safely) and to make sure that there are guidelines for pig safety in place, but on the whole our pigs and kids have always gotten along really well with no mishaps, and I think setting firm ground rules and supervision have been key in that.

Thank you for that @Freela - I feel less worried now. I just need to make sure I do lots of effective baby training! I would never expect the child (when it gets older) to do the piggy cares, I just want to make sure that they aren't harassed and traumatised.

 

[Chief Guinea Pig]

I'm sure you will do just fine when the little one comes along they'll be none of that 'trying to grab the guinea and climb in the hutch to stroke it' action lol

 

[piggieminder]

My youngest daughter was two when I rescued two guineas and she was brilliant. She was very caring and always wanted to 'help' with feeding and cleaning them out, knew never to open the cage unless an adult was with her. My other two children were five and seven and were fine. I am sure with your guidance your child will be caring and careful too.

 

[madguinealady]

My kids have been brought up to treat animals with respect.They weren't allowed to manhandled them and only held them under strict supervision.They were also brought up to give animals the space they need.This was put to the test when I took on a traumatised ten month old lab rottie cross that hated being cornered and cuddled.She is now eight and we can do a lot more with her but still not as cuddly as the other one.In the seven years we have had her she has never went for any of my kids because she was and is given the space she needs.My grandsons are taught the same respect for my piggies.They do what they want, not what the kids want

 

[Freela]

@AbiS , @Freela , If only more parent were like you two!

Awwww... thanks!

 

[Freela]

Thank you for that @Freela - I feel less worried now. I just need to make sure I do lots of effective baby training! I would never expect the child (when it gets older) to do the piggy cares, I just want to make sure that they aren't harassed and traumatised.

I think you and your baby and your pigs will do just fine! The fact that you're even thinking about it proves that you want it to go well for all parties. It's always a big adjustment when you introduce either a pet or a child to the family, but I honestly think growing up with animals is great for kids (plus the pets get another willing slave to bring them food every time they squeak, which is nice for them too!)

 

[Gimz]

" We had ground rules- the pigs were not to be taken out of the cage by kids, ever. If a child wanted to interact with the pig out of the cage, they had to ask a parent, sit on the couch with a blanket, and have the adult supervise the interaction and put the pig back safely when they were done. That way we made sure the pigs were never in an unsafe situation and that the kids were not being rough with them" - We do the same with our kids, who are 4 and 7. Never had an issue for piggies or the kids.