FAO: All Members - Reminder

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squeakypigs

squeakypigs

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I was so pleased to be back on here however I have to say I am pretty disappointed by the actions of some of the members on this forum.

Firstly, I want to make you all aware that this forum is a PRO-RESCUE forum - please refer to the Forum Rules and Guidelines about what this means. If you disagree or have a problem with this then please send me an e-mail to [email protected] or send me a private message. I will not tolerate people posting messages on the forum which are set out to target individual or groups of people. This is NOT a playground - this is a guinea pig forum.

Secondly, I carefully select people to become moderators on this forum. I don't just pick anybody to fill in the "job", I look to see which people I think will do a GOOD job of ensuring that the forum will run smoothly. I perfectly understand that some people may not be "friends" with other people on the forum - this is the same with everyday life. You may find that you do not get on with a moderator on the forum however I will not tolerate people targetting moderators (or members). The moderators do a fantastic job of moderating this forum in their spare time. I would also like to remind you that they do this voluntarily and without their help the forum would not be here.

Lastly, I will most certainly not put up with people posting any inappropriate comments about this forum - whether this be on this forum, Facebook or anywhere else on the internet. I think some people are completely oblivious to the work, time, money and effort that goes in to creating and running a forum. When starting this forum back in January 2006, I did not move away from the laptop for days as I was trying to create a forum where people could meet other piggy lovers as well as helping to promote guinea pig rehome and rescue. In my opinion I believe that I have succeeded (with the help of the moderators and members) in acheiving what I had originally intended for the forum. How do you think it makes me feel to read nasty, uncalled for comments about the forum when I, as well as others have put so much into providing this forum for you all to enjoy.

Please take a minute to think...

Have you made some friends on this forum?
Have you rehomed or witnessed other members rehome guinea pigs through this forum?
Have you received support and advise when you have needed it?

I would like to think that the majority, if not all, could say 'yes' to each of those questions.

So I am asking that from now on that you think before pressing the "submit" button - if you think that your message could cause conflict between people then I recommend you don't post it.
 
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Spot on Ellie. I haven't been around too much of late and I have to say I have been very saddened by the atmosphere that seems to prevail on the forum (or at least on some posts) at the moment.

I hope that people take note of your post (which is spot on) and remember what the forum is - a place to meet like minded guinea pig mad people, to share experiences, research piggy care, request advice and not a place to enter into arguments (discussions are another thing!), cause trouble and just generally stir up trouble.

I for one really appreciate everything the mods do, it cannot ever be an easy job, it is voluntary and no-one can expect you to be glued to the PC 24/7.

Fingers crossed things quickly return to some sort of normality.
 
thank you for this,i understand i have not been the merriest of members lately and i intend to change that,
i have felt particuarly different about the forum recently as there seems to be alot of arguments going on and it has been rather upsetting,
i do hope that people that intend to chat about breeding see this and read it because the topic has popped up alot more recently and i think most of us enjoy coming here because it is pro rescue and do not want to see these sort of bad threads.
I have also noticed that a regular member has decided to leave and i cant help wondering if its because of all these issues that have happened lately but i do hope they come back,
thanks very much for this reminder and i hope we all can take a little bit from it xxxxxxxxxxx
 
i also wanted to add that you and all the mods do a wonderful job and i value this forum so much.
if it wasnt for all of you i would have been in pieces over My Boris,everyone here welcomed me with open arms and showed support whenever i needed it so i truly cannot thankyou enough for creating TGPF,it has taught me about the world of piggies xxxxxx
 
I am really saddened to read this :( I hope whoever has caused the upset lately will be ashamed of themselves.
This forum to me and the people on here have given so much to me and my piggies over the time I have been a member and I know I really appreciate the time and effort put into making this a place where we can get together and most importantly work together to save such precious piggies from harm :)
I think I must be oblivious or a bit naive or maybe I tend to not post on threads where there is "heated debate". I personally know I would never judge or offend anyone. I know once recently I had a grumble about one of my vets and I felt bad afterwards and I was adult enough to apologise about it cos I don't like upsetting anyone.
This forum is for the love we all share of our piggies xxxxxxxxx
 
Thank you for your posts.

What people need to realise is that we now have over 4,600 members so the forum so there will be rifts on the forum from time to time. The moderators rely on the members to support them, flagging up inappropriate posts and warning us of any problems via the PM system. If members are unable to work co-operatively with the moderators then I will have no choice but to close down the forum - which I obviously don't want to do. I am sure that you would agree with me when I say that we all have busy lives outside of the "cyber world". After a long day at school/work the last thing anyone wants is to come on to this forum where there is unneccessary conflict or innappropriate messages. This place is intended to talk about guinea pigs as well as having a laugh and a joke with friends, but when things are taken too far, we, as a forum, will not tolerate it.
 
Of course you are quite right Ellie!
I have to say I haven't really noticed a bad atmosphere at all so I cannot comment on that but I love this forum and have made some nice friends, so thank you to you and the mods who help it run so smoothly!
 
When I first joined this forum was brilliant, but to be honest all I see is fighting, competition in seeing who is right and complaining.

What makes me log out is seeing to hoards and hoards of topics about being ill in the chit chat - topics about being stressed, mentally ill, blaa blaa blaa

Any chance there can just be one that all these people can add to instead of all the new ones every day that pops up.

Its turning more into a human doctors forum rather then a Pro Rescue forum I joined last year.
Dont get me wrong there are some that i dont mind seeing, like the genuinely ill like poor Boureki etc :(

I know its in the chit chat but there are times you look at recent topics and its full of them and no guinea pig topics :(

Sorry if this causes offence but its what I see is wrong
 
I do like the Chit Chat, its how friendships are formed and I have met a lot of people who are lovely on here. But as you say Becky about the 'who is right' I see that too.

I think its nice that people can come here and talk about their troubles. The reason I posted about Caitlin was because my life is changing a little, I can't do as much as I did in the past for the animals as obviously my child comes first so I was just keeping people in the loop and I've had loads of support from people here.

But I do agree the slightest thing gets moaned about and I try to think there are worse people off in this world and tend not to worry about minor things.

I'm trying to stay out of anything that has gone on because I've enough on my plate with Caitlin and as I say said she comes first! :)

x
 
Yes to all three of those questions. I have some amazing friends here. I've rehomed two (soon to be four) pigs from Sophie. I've had more support from my forum friends than from anyone else I know - both for my pigs, and for myself.

Sometimes people here have no-one else to turn to - literally, for one reason or another. They trust their forum friends more than anyone and they can rely on them for their support. It is sadly the case that offloading problems here, to their forum friends, makes people feel better because they don't have anyone to talk to and they just need to vent. Maybe a sub-board - if possible - might help keep the depressing/venting/everybodys ill/mental health problems separate, but how feasible this is and if Ellie would even want to change that section, is down to her.

When I am typing a potentially "risky" message, or a message which may be easily misinterpreted, I can spend up to half an hour making sure that message is appropriately worded. I'd rather spend half an hour making sure I word my posts well and deal with difficult subjects delicately, politely and constructively, than risk offending or upsetting others through misinterpretations, or a poor choice of words that I put together in just a couple of minutes. Opinions are fine, but there is a time and a place, and most importantly a way, in which to share them.
 
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CCC4 said:
When I am typing a potentially "risky" message, or a message which may be easily misinterpreted, I can spend up to half an hour making sure that message is appropriately worded. I'd rather spend half an hour making sure I word my posts well and deal with difficult subjects delicately, politely and constructively, than risk offending or upsetting others through misinterpretations, or a poor choice of words that I put together in just a couple of minutes. Opinions are fine, but there is a time and a place, and most importantly a way, in which to share them.
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Well said Laura!
 
CCC4 said:
Yes to all three of those questions. I have some amazing friends here. I've rehomed two (soon to be four) pigs from Sophie. I've had more support from my forum friends than from anyone else I know - both for my pigs, and for myself.

When I am typing a potentially "risky" message, or a message which may be easily misinterpreted, I can spend up to half an hour making sure that message is appropriately worded. I'd rather spend half an hour making sure I word my posts well and deal with difficult subjects delicately, politely and constructively, than risk offending or upsetting others through misinterpretations, or a poor choice of words that I put together in just a couple of minutes. Opinions are fine, but there is a time and a place, and most importantly a way, in which to share them.
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I do the same with most posts, Laura.....sometimes I wonder if you're not my long lost soul-twin in the UK :{ :p......but yeah I've made great friends and made some strong bonds here, learned an abundance of valuable information, and helped put my mind at ease when one of my piggies were doing something that seemed unusual.
 
Given what they have had to put up with lately I'm surprised there are any Mods still willing to undertake the task! rolleyes

I for one almost left a couple of weeks ago as I've got enough stress and hassle in my daily life without logging on to here - my hobby! - to find more stress and arguments and snitchy comments. It was only because of a mod that I decided to stay. I know that others have chosen to not hang around here for similar reasons.

Of course everyone will always have different opinions, that's what makes us human and individuals, but it does sometimes feel like people set out to cause an argument or raise hackles and I'm bored of it.

So -peace, love and harmony, people, please!

Sophie
x
 
Thank you for this useful thread - good to remind ourselves why we are here and the fact that folks are willing to give up their time and energy to keep the place going for the benefit of ALL of us.

For what it's worth, exactly the same thing happens from time to time with just about every internet forum I've encountered - regardless of the subject matter. However, we do all need to remember that there is a certain responsibility that goes with being part of a forum - particularly to stick to the site "rules" as set out by the owners/moderators. If we aren't happy with those, we can always go elsewhere. But, hopefully, all value what they gain from this forum and will be willing to co-operate.
 
sophiew said:
Given what they have had to put up with lately I'm surprised there are any Mods still willing to undertake the task! rolleyes

I for one almost left a couple of weeks ago as I've got enough stress and hassle in my daily life without logging on to here - my hobby! - to find more stress and arguments and snitchy comments. It was only because of a mod that I decided to stay. I know that others have chosen to not hang around here for similar reasons.

Of course everyone will always have different opinions, that's what makes us human and individuals, but it does sometimes feel like people set out to cause an argument or raise hackles and I'm bored of it.

So -peace, love and harmony, people, please!

Sophie
x
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I would be gutted if you left the forum :( I look forward to your pictures and postings and I sometimes think this forum should be renamed "A very good reason to live in Norfolk" :)) The rescue section is the best bit on this forum and I know that many of us have the utmost respect for the people on here and the work they do and we love hearing about the piggies :) Be strong for the piggies and try to rise above all the horrible things that have gone on lately, those people hopefully won't stay around - it's a shame some people have left who are genuinely nice piggy people because of the upset :( I try not to get involved in anything not nice and only after I posted on here earlier I saw a not very nice thread which I assume it must have been about :( I have learnt so much about myself on here aswell as just how beautiful piggies are. I wouldn't have Mildred if it wasn't for joining here and educting myself about the importance of rescue and of course all my other girls and if just one person a day comes on this forum and learns how valuable it is to rescue then it is definitaley worthwhile staying on the forum xxxxxxxxxxxx
 
If this was not a really useful forum to help us rehome guinea pigs to forever homes, I would have gone long ago, and even the rehoming section is getting bogged down now. Any other information can be found elsewhere, this is no longer the friendly place it used to be. I am finding it very hard not to reply to some of the threads as abusively as they are written, but I will, otherwise I would be just as bad as they are. x
 
Jane I hope you never leave even though everytime I reply to you I call you Jabe! LOL

You see this is the thing people will leave and say oh it wasn't as friendly but I'm honestly not seeing it maybe I just read posts on the surface and don't think deeply about them. I don't know, it's just me.

So if people are leaving and saying it isn't as friendly (and I am still in touch with a lot of people who did used to post but don't anymore) how can the situation be put right?

But you know in the big scheme of things its just a forum, my friend Joanie her daughter Sarah had a stroke, she is only 18. It makes you think of the reality in life. I think that is why I am just laid back about everything now, its not that I don't care, it just that worse things happen at sea! x
 
Thank you Ellie for that reminder for members.

I have to say that I haven't been coming on here as often or hanging around as often as I used to because I think there has been a really bad atmosphere on here - which is so sad. People are starting to be really rude and inconsiderate of other people's views and opinions (I have to say I haven't personally had this done to be directly but have seen it happen to other members).

This is a discussion forum - this means we discuss things. We will not all get on and we will all certainly not agree but there is a way to go about it. People have to remember this. You might not like what someone says, but it is only their opinion, it doesn't make anyone right or wrong.

This is a really nice, friendly, helpful forum - please let us all keep it that way!
 
Oh, and one more thing - meant to say that all the moderators do a fantastic job on this forum. I know that most of you all work full-time, have rescues, have families etc and how you also find the time to come on here and moderate I do not know - I think that is brilliant, I barely find enough time just for me alone to get everything done.

People should remember that without them there would be no forum and we should all appreciate the voluntary hard work that they all put in to keeping this forum alive.
 
Hi

I am one of the new members on here, and I hope I haven't offended anyone. Maybe I find it hard to tell when something is a debate and when something becomes upsetting to people. I have been a bit upset myself over the last day or so with some of the things going on.

Although I've only been on a wee while, I already really value this forum, it helped me to find Merry and Pippin and has given me some good advice. It has become a bit heated in the past few days, I hope things calm down soon.

And I do value the fact that people can talk about things going on in their lives, in addition to their guineas. If you make friends with people on a forum, it is nice to be able to give and get support, as long as its in Chit Chat then I don't see a problem.

Thankyou to the mods, it must be quite stressful refereeing this place at times. :)
x
 
Rosie2009 said:
Hi

I am one of the new members on here, and I hope I haven't offended anyone. Maybe I find it hard to tell when something is a debate and when something becomes upsetting to people. I have been a bit upset myself over the last day or so with some of the things going on.

Although I've only been on a wee while, I already really value this forum, it helped me to find Merry and Pippin and has given me some good advice. It has become a bit heated in the past few days, I hope things calm down soon.

And I do value the fact that people can talk about things going on in their lives, in addition to their guineas. If you make friends with people on a forum, it is nice to be able to give and get support, as long as its in Chit Chat then I don't see a problem.

Thankyou to the mods, it must be quite stressful refereeing this place at times. :)
x
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Thanks for those comments. I, for one, have wondered what on earth new members and guest visitors to the forum must think about us. It has been great no so long ago, hopefully it will get back to normality soon. x
 
I'm sure it will blow over, it's been like this a few times over the last coupla years but it always sorts itself out again. It is really hard when there is over 4000 members.
 
Although I don't post all that often, I love this forum and come on most days. My reason for joining was to find out as much as I possibly could about guinea pigs. During the last nine months or so I have gained a much greater knowledge of these little creatures that we all adore. This is due to people sharing their experiences and expertise.
I found my two piggies thanks to members of this forum and will always be grateful for the support and kindness shown when my previous piggies died.
The vast majority of members seem to be here due to a collective love of guinea pigs, but just recently a small number of people seem to have joined with a view to monopolozing or sabotaging the forum, causing arguements, or simply posting as often as they possibly can in order to become a 'Senior Guinea Pig'.
I hope things will settle down again soon. This forum is too valuable to too many people for us to allow it to become somewhere which is abusive, offensive, petty or intolerant.
I truly appreciate the work undertaken by the moderators and would like to thank them for their dedication to this forum.
Rachel x
 
It is the minority that spoil it for everyone else.
This forum has been my rock for the past 16 months since I joined. I have made some lovely friends and been given some fantastic advise. I was given lots of advise and support during my Connie's illness and passing to Rainbow Bridge and through the forum, have adopted a gorgeous guinea pig (Eleanor) for my existing pig (Eliza) thanks to two people in particular (hels) Helen and (nutmeg) Jane. Also, a massive thank you to the people who were there for me with Connie.
I do hope that the bickering and fighting stops and the forum returns to the friendly place it usually is.
The Mods do a fantastic job and we must remember that they take time out of their everyday lives to allow us to use and enjoy the forum and we should be very grateful for that xx
 
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Would just like to say I love this forum. I'm relatively new to the piggie world, having got my first two in February, since them I've fostered 2 and rehomed them to a family member and I just given a home to a lovely little girl, I couldn't or wouldn't have been able to do this without or the help and advice from members of this forum ....... and Mods ........ you do a great job

Rach x
 
I would like to add my thanks to all the Administrators and Moderators that do such a fantastic job ... mainly behind the scenes. Thank you.

I love coming on this forum. I have to say that I feel that I tick all "three boxes." I have made lots of new friends, who I would love to meet in the flesh, but perhaps I will never have the opportunity to do so. However, whenever I log on I feel that they are there.

Everyone will have different opinions in life, basically that is life and that is what makes the world go around. If everyone was the same, then life would be very difficult. What everyone needs to do is respect that. But having said that, sometimes lately I have logged on and thought why has that person posted that! :{

In my opinion we are all here to encourage good ownership of guinea pigs. We obviously have a bit of chit chat along the way but that is good.

Please keep this forum friendly ... because as has been said above, many of us have lots of stresses and strains in our normal life and this forum provides a nice area to come to. Please let that continue.

Thanks again to all xx
 
Oh dear :( I haven't been on much lately as just been so busy, but I still find the forum a friendly place! It has been so valuable to us since we got Tiger our first piggy, and through the forum we have adopted our lovely Humphrey and nursed quite a few others with the help we've had - it has been an absolute godsend, so thank you, and long may it continue!
It would be a dreadful shame and a real loss if all this wealth of knowledge and support were to finish because of squabbles.
 
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