Finding our guinea pigs

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fluffs

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Having decided on a 5x2 C&C enclosure, we can look at choosing our guinea pigs.
I've read a load of guides on this website, mainly rescues/shops/breeders and boars/sows/babies/adults.

Choosing what we want
Given the area we can accommodate them in, we're thinking either 2 sows, 3 sows, or 2 sows and a neutered boar.
The main thought in my mind towards 3 instead of 2 would be so that we don't have a lone animal if one dies. Do the remaining 2 of a trio usually do ok?

What's the youngest suitable age to take them? I like the idea of younger ones purely so that once we've invested the time and effort in making them feel at home and comfortable with us, we have as much time with them as possible.

Sourcing them

I've seen the rescue locator, but it looks a bit outdated - some of the local ones I checked on there appear to have closed (which makes me wonder if there are other suitable ones that aren't listed). Does anybody know of any in Berks/Bucks/Surrey sort of area?

Looking at some rescue places, I've seen suitable-looking pairs, but they say they aren't suitable for handling by children. Is this common with rescue animals, and possibly the reason they ended up there in the first place?
 
We did also see some in a nearby big-chain pet shop, as it's the only place in easy reach and we wanted to have my wife handle some to check she doesn't have allergies like she does to horses (all clear there).
We got some advice that seemed strange.

Firstly, the one she thought was cute was part of a set of 3 unneutered boars. The lady said they're well bonded, but it seems risky to me as their behaviour could change as they grow?
She also said that all of their guinea pigs are male. And that it's rare to ever meet a female guinea pig. I assume they're born roughly 50% ratios - what's happening to the females? Are the breeders keeping them and just selling the males?
Or do you have to go somewhere else for females? Their ones seemed really cheap for a pet - I don't mind paying more for the right guinea pigs.
 
Definitely don't get three male piggies, boar trios don't generally work. There are females to be had but breeders have more demand for them. I think the leftovers, boys, go on display 🙁 which is how commoditisation of guinea pig often goes sadly. There is a great rescue, I just need to find it. @fluffysal may know if it. Rescue is best as they offer support if things go wrong. I worry that if a piggy goes back to a commercial producer and is no longer in the cute phase, well, I don't know what happens to them if they don't sell 😔
 
Girls generally stay together. The other option that tends to be more stable is to neuter a male piggy and pair him with one or two ladies. I'm not sure if the size requirements. I know boars need more space and a 6 x 2 is preferable for them unless they are a pair of neutered boars.
 
They will usually be around 6-8 weeks old when sold in a shop.

Definitely don’t get three boars. A boar trio is highly unstable and not likely to survive more than a couple of months together.
Even if you were brave enough to try it - your cage is nowhere near big enough for a boar trio. They need a huge amount of space and at least a 9x3 c&c cage would be needed to ensure enough territory per pig. Even with space it is still not likely to work and you would then have to split (potentially all of them) them up.

A 5x2 is absolutely fine:
- for two sows ( the size for two sows is a 4x2 so by having a 5x2 then you have more than necessary for them)
- For three sows
- For two boars
- For two sows and a neutered boar

Cage Size Guide

Sows are wired to live in herds and generally ok - so you can have as many as you have space for. However, any bond comes down to compatibility, and the ability to form a functioning hierarchy, there is therefore no guarantee that all will definitely be well. There is a slight risk with a trio of sows that two remain close and one gets left out - that more likely to occur when adding piggies to an already bonded pair but there is no guarantee.
With two sows and a neutered boar, the boar doesn’t form part of the sow hierarchy but is part of group hierarchy. If there was ever a disagreement between the sows then the boar would be likely to side with one of them

The remaining two of three would be ok (if they have always been ok together) but they would still have to reestablish as a pair. Any change to the hierarchy will cause this

Reacting to group or territorial changes: Dominance and group establishment/re-establishment

We would recommend rescuing rather than buying where possible but there is nothing wrong with buying if you don’t have a rescue near you.
You do need to be aware of the potential issues when buying - piggies not being compatible, possibility pet shops sows are already pregnant (through not being separated from boars at the correct age) being missexed (make sure you check them yourself before bringing them home, don’t take the shops word for it!) or potential illnesses - and have a plan in case these crop up

Rescues (Adoption and Dating), Shops, Breeders or Online? - What to consider when getting guinea pigs

Two sows and a neutered boars are absolutely fine together.
Do keep in mind that a young pet shop boar won’t be neutered so he would have to be in a separate cage until old enough to be neutered (four months of age) and then during the six weeks post op to become infertile.
You would then have to go through the proper bonding procedure (bonding being a specific process on neutral territory - you cannot just add him into the cage with the girls).

Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths, Facts and Post-op Care
A Closer Look At Pairs (Boars - Sows - Mixed)
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated Bonding Dynamics and Behaviours

The reason they say not suitable for handling by children is that guinea pigs are not suitable children’s pets.
They need to be yours/family pets but you may be able to set care tasks for the children to do based on their age. As prey animals, piggies are very complex and generally don’t like being held or handled. They can learn to but it can take weeks, months even years. It depends on the age of your children and how well they are going to understand the need for patience with gaining piggy trust - this is part of the reason children get bored with them, maybe they’ve seen videos of them sat having cuddles or doing tricks and then find that the things you see on YouTube are not the reality of piggy ownership.
Sitting on the floor and letting the piggies come to you if they choose to could be the extent of interaction.

Children And Guinea Pigs - A Guide For Parents

I’ve had a range from loving full cuddles, hating being touched at all, like being stroked but not held, being so scared one took 18 months before he stopped running away from me.
I could handle all of them for weekly weight and health checks, medicating if needed but they just preferred to be off doing their thing, not sat on my lap.

I am a boar owner - I am now down to two boys and they will be 4 years old at the end of summer . I love their nature and the fact they tend to get friendlier as they age!
 
I would 100% recommend Hazelcroft rescue in St Albans. We have adopted piggies from them in the past. It’s worth the travel time.
You will need to email rather than rely on the website. They have very good, knowledge & will share plenty of information with you.

They are also happy to help throughout your guinea pig journey, with any piggies that you adopt from them.

Also worth looking at the RSPCA website. They have various local branches.

Our boarding place fosters for the Northampton branch, and I believe the boarding place we have used in Dunstable in the past also has links to RSPCA.
 
Piggies are going to be a bit shy when you first get them, but before long they will start coming out to demand food. With a bit of manoeuvring, you can usually get them to accept one finger head strokes and then eventually more stroking. Many pigs don't enjoy being picked up, but it is quite easy to get them to go into a plastic concertina tunnel or a fleece tunnel to convey them. This is safer than holding them to carry them as long as you close the ends with an arm and your hand so they can't jump out. Falls of any height can do alot of damage as their bones are fragile and light, which may be part of why many piggies resist being picked up. It is good to do weekly health checks. They can also gradually do lap time in a cuddle sack and this may help them to bond with you 🥰 Don't leave plastic bags or soft plastic items in the cage as they will literally eat them 🙁 Cage cleaning is best done half a cage at a time to keep their scent in the cage as this helps the dominant piggy to hold on to his or her territory and helps to maintain the hierarchy and prevent bickering ❤️
 
You'd be much better off with a pair of sows.

I have a pair of sows in a 2x5 at the moment, and couldn't imagine adding in a third. They have just enough space for alone time after a spat, and it also means less cleaning for me. Truly, you'd be blown away by the amount of pee and poo three sows can produce in a single day, and how stinky it can get.
 
A group of three, like 2 sows and a neutered boar, is more fun and interesting to watch than just two piggies. In my latter guinea years I almost always had three.

Just once there was a sort-of fall-out when my neutered boar Snowy died. Emily went a little crazy and attacked every neutered boar I tried to bond her with. She didn't attack her old cage mate Suzie, but she ignored her completely. Other than that, I found it helpful to be always left with two when one died, so no stress while still heavily grieving about finding an additional compatible guinea. Otoh I learnt on this forum that you can usually leave a bereft guinea on its own for up to 4 weeks I think it is, so a mad scramble isn't necessary anyway.
 
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