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Getting Zip a Friend

Pearl and Zip

Teenage Guinea Pig
Joined
Nov 4, 2017
Messages
574
Reaction score
343
Points
450
Location
East Bay Area, California
Pearl has passed away and I know I will have to get a new companion for Zip.

I am probably going to adopt from this rescue http://mgpr.org, but I may look at other rescues as well. I need a pig who is about 3 years or older, because I can’t own guinea pigs when I go to college. Should I get a neutered boar or a sow? I’ve only ever owned sows, so what are the differences with boars? Zip is dominant, so I need to adopt a submissive piggy. Is there a way to tell if a guinea pig is submissive or dominant?

Sorry I have so many questions!
 
Just ask the rescue for there most submissive piggy. As far as getting a neutered boar or sow, just go with your gut. After all it’s about matching personalities.
 
Pearl has passed away and I know I will have to get a new companion for Zip.

I am probably going to adopt from this rescue Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue, but I may look at other rescues as well. I need a pig who is about 3 years or older, because I can’t own guinea pigs when I go to college. Should I get a neutered boar or a sow? I’ve only ever owned sows, so what are the differences with boars? Zip is dominant, so I need to adopt a submissive piggy. Is there a way to tell if a guinea pig is submissive or dominant?

Sorry I have so many questions!

Hi! I know the lady who runs Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue; you are in safe hands with her with finding the best possible mate for Zip. Just talk to her and see what she has currently in rescue - that is always the sticking point! Most rescues have guinea pigs of all ages, but mutual liking and character compatilibility are paramount - that is why rescue dating is so important; it allows Zip to choose who she wants to live with.
Also talk about you going to College and any solutions if your piggies are still around by then. You are a considering and caring owner, and that will also come across during your contact.
 
Hi! I know the lady who runs Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue; you are in safe hands with her with finding the best possible mate for Zip. Just talk to her and see what she has currently in rescue - that is always the sticking point! Most rescues have guinea pigs of all ages, but mutual liking and character compatilibility are paramount - that is why rescue dating is so important; it allows Zip to choose who she wants to live with.
Also talk about you going to College and any solutions if your piggies are still around by then. You are a considering and caring owner, and that will also come across during your contact.

🤦‍♀️ I just realized that this rescue is across the USA from where I live. I thought it was the Metropolitan in Oakland, California...

I should have read through the website more carefully! Tomorrow I plan to call a shelter in San Jose. They have four female pigs. Hopefully one of them will work out!
 
🤦‍♀️ I just realized that this rescue is across the USA from where I live. I thought it was the Metropolitan in Oakland, California...

I should have read through the website more carefully! Tomorrow I plan to call a shelter in San Jose. They have four female pigs. Hopefully one of them will work out!

These are the Californian rescues on the Guinea Lynx list; the standards that Guinea Lynx apply in their careful vetting process are very much comparable to those we use for our recommended UK forum locator, so if they have passed the vetting process there, they would pass our forum vetting process, too. Guinea Lynx :: US Guinea Pig Rescue and Shelter Organizations
 
The San Jose shelter did not know the age or gender of their piggies! We also went to a pet store that took in rescue pigs, but their only female pig was dominant. So the 1 hour drive was for nothing.

We are going to go to a family in Livermore who can no longer care for their 2 year old guinea pig. Based on what they told me on how she is with other guinea pigs, I think she is dominant. But we’re taking Zip there today anyways, fingers crossed!
 
I'm so pleased for both you and Zip and of course the new piggy. That's 2 less lonely piggies. They do surprise us!
 
Codey tolerates being pet already, but the problem is she bites if she doesn’t like something you’re doing. She draws blood. I don’t know how we’re going to clip her nails (the previous owners never clipped them and now they’re very long!)
 
I would get your vet to show you how to clip her nails. There is a section on biting in the guides but I can't link it in on this device. It might also be a good idea to take Codey for a general health check at the vets anyway as there may be a health reason for the biting. Good luck let us know how you get on.
 
Codey and zip did not get along, as the link above shows. Zip is senior and I’m worried another bonding would stress her out, because she also recently went to the vet to get her teeth cut and needles stuck in her lumps. Should I just interact with her as much as I can, or does she absolutely need a companion? A companion would also be hard to get, because there isn’t a rescue closer than half and hour, and those rescues don’t know the ages and genders of their pigs and/or have only dominant pigs who are known to bully other pigs.
 
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