Guinea Pig now living alone!

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amd1985

amd1985

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Hi all,

I have been lucky to be the proud owner of 3 beautiful sister guinea pigs - Bon-Bon, Biscuit and Marshmellow.

Sadly we lost Marshmellow a few months back and then very recently Bon-Bon.

Biscuit is now living on her own and I am extremely worried that she is lonely. I don't know what to do for the best.

My issue is that my lady is over six now and I don't want to cause her any stress.

She is eating and drinking fine, we snuggle morning and night together and she will happily sit on my lap and watch tv or listen to some music. She is fine in herself and exactly like she always has been, but I can't help but worry she will get lonely.

Any advice?
 
Generally guinea pigs will always appreciate company of other guinea pigs. They are social creatures and thrive on being in a group and nothing - not even age - will change this part of their nature. Pigs seem to have this sparkle and intensity for life when they have a friend :) Yes, introductions are stressful but I think it's the owners who are more stressed out than their pets often.

What complicates your situation is that you have to decide, when her health doesn't appear to be suffering, whether you want to adopt more guinea pigs. Were you planning on having no more pigs after Biscuit? Do you have a rescue nearby who will let you borrow a guinea pig as a companion for Biscuit?
 
Here is a link to a map showing all Piggy Bank approved rescues in the UK: https://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?m...ll=52.643063,-1.230469&spn=6.775737,19.753418

They all come highly recommended and strive to maintain the highest standards in guinea pig welfare. Many of the rescues offer 'dating' which will allow Biscuit to choose her own friend. Perhaps you could contact one of them to discuss the possibilities of finding Biscuit a new friend, as well as your concerns.
 
Walsall RSPCA have a neutered male who is looking for a home, his name is Maccaroni.
They can be contacted be email www.rspca-walsall.org.uk

Really sorry for your losses and in hope Biscuit finds a chum soon

Edit: just spotted the age of Biscuit, macaroni is about 5 months old, I'm not experienced enough with piggies to know if this could cause any problems.
 
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Thank you very much all,
I've always had guinea pigs and have always chosen rescue ones. I will certainly look into the dating as this sounds like a really good approach.
Just looked on the rspca walsall and Macccaroni is such a handsome chap :-) x
 
Just wanted to say we had a similar situation last year. Rosie was 6 and had been on her own for some time, we only heard about rescues from the forum. We were worried about how she would take to another piggy, we went dating and she met Ruby who was at the time 5 months, and they got on really well. We went back just over a week later and came back with Esme (2) and Tia (9weeks). Rosie loves having younger friends, and she lets them climb all over her- with lots of protesting of course :)
 
I am very sorry for your loss! Dating is certainly worth; it would be a good idea if you contacted all good rescues within your reach whether they had sows or neutered boars that are suitable to live with an older lady. Generally, age is not so much an issue (although you'd rather want to avoid a very hormonal subadult neutered boar with a frailer older lady); the crucial point is character compatibility.
 
We had a similar problem in May this year. We'd taken Minnie (about 4 year old) in to join our other 3 females but after initially bonding with Minky, they fell when Minky fell ill. We then decided to try Minnie with a neutered boar & went dating to our nearest rescue 25 miles away. We came back with Mitch who was probably somewhere between 9 months and a year old. They got on well together & lived together happily for about 2 months. They went out on the lawn with the our other 3 girls & apart from the odd argument between Minnie & mainly Mousey they were fairly compatible. When Minky had to have a third abscess removal we put her in our hospital cage for a fortnight while she recovered. In the meantime I took the divider out of our run so that Minnie & Mitch could be with Mother & Mousey. There were a few little niggles but once Minky had recovered, we put her back in too. All 5 are living in almost harmony as a group. It worked out for us and the age gap of over 3 years didn't seem to matter so maybe taking Biscuit on a dating visit with Maccaroni will work out. From my small experience it seems that older females get on better with boars than other females. Good Luck with finding her a companion.
 
Wishing you and Biscuit good success!
 
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