Guinea Pig Pellets

Piggies&buns said:
That’s too much.
She should only have one tablespoon not a handful.

When I used to feed pellets, I did weigh one tablespoon worth out of curiosity, it came to just 8g.
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I know people who give there guinea pigs a whole bowl of pellets
 
ruthie1982 said:
I know people who give there guinea pigs a whole bowl of pellets
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It’s incredibly unhealthy to do that.
Too many pellets Leads to reduction in hay intake which can lead to dental overgrowth (tongue entrapment, weight loss, surgical interventions), gut problems, poor digestion, obesity.
It will also contribute far too much calcium into the diet which leads to bladder sludge and stones - essentially their bladder fills with crystals which block the flow of urine, scrape and damage the inside of the bladder, cause a lot of pain . Stones often require surgical removal as they can block the urethra and can potentially be fatal
 
ruthie1982 said:
Tango eats lots of hay
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That’s good (provided you are weighing her regularly so you can be sure of that - it’s impossible to know a piggy is eating enough hay by watching them; the weight checks are the only way) but you still shouldn’t overfeed pellets for all the reasons I stated.

They are the part of the diet that they actually do not need at all
 
ruthie1982 said:
Does the Dundee rescue centre have a website as u can’t really see availability on there Facebook page
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They run a Facebook page so you have to contact them on there I’m afraid. I’m a three hour round trip from them and had to get a lift.
 
The Wheakybeans thanks for your help. I got my mum to message cavy capers rescue today to see if they have any piggies available . She said let me know if she hears anything from them
 
Hi I have been in contact with cavy capers rescue in Dundee . They said they have no problem with rehoming a single to make a pair . I’m just following all there steps of sending pics of there indoor and outdoor setups . Fingers crossed a new companion for my tango will come up soon
 
ruthie1982 said:
Hi I have been in contact with cavy capers rescue in Dundee . They said they have no problem with rehoming a single to make a pair . I’m just following all there steps of sending pics of there indoor and outdoor setups . Fingers crossed a new companion for my tango will come up soon
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That’s great news.
Fingers crossed they approve your set up and you can go ahead with the process.
Keep us posted
 
Yeah I got my mum to message them today for me as I don’t have Facebook . She going to send off the pics for me tommorow
 
ruthie1982 said:
Will I have to bond the new piggie and tango when I eventually get one
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It depends what the rescue offers.

If the rescue doesnt offer a bonding service (so you are just getting a piggy from them without them checking compatibility or starting the bonding process), then yes you will have to do it yourself when you get them home on neutral territory. This comes with the possibility that acceptance may or may not occur. If acceptance doesn’t occur and the bonding fails then the rescue would usually take the new piggy back.
If you are just getting a new piggy and not taking tango with you then you just need a carrier to bring the new piggy home with you.

They may have speed dating which is just long enough to check initial acceptance, but you then still have to do the bonding yourself on neutral territory when you get them home.
In this case you need to take two carriers with you - one to bring tango home in and another carrier to put the new piggy in. Tango and the new piggy cannot travel home in the same carrier as they are not bonded

The third option, which a lot of rescues don’t offer due to the resources it takes up, is full bonding. Tango would go and stay at the rescue for a couple of weeks, meet a new piggy and be fully bonded with the new piggy meaning you don’t have to do anything (except make sure the cage is fully cleaned, neutralised and prepared for when you bring them home). You bring them home already bonded and they can come home in the new carrier.
 
It is totally normal to have to send pictures of your set up to a rescue (any reputable rescue centre will carry out these checks) - they have to ensure your set up is appropriate and big enough for their requirements.
 
I’m just not sure if the hutch tango is in will meet the rescue’s requirements
 
Unfortunately I would think that a 4ft hutch would be considered too small for most rescues - they tend to ask for (a minimum of) 5 foot. Some rescues won’t rehome at all to outdoor homes either.
All you can do is wait until they get back to you though
 
Is 4ft the minimum size of hutch for two females as when I had tango and salsa they where both fine in there
 
ruthie1982 said:
Is 4ft the minimum size of hutch for two females as when I had tango and salsa they where both fine in there
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It’s minimum welfare size but 5ft is recommended size, even by the forum.
Just because 4ft is minimum welfare it does not mean that a rescue will agree that that is minimum - they can stipulate larger as a minimum

They would have been fine but bigger is always better
 
Will just see what they say when we send them the measurements of the hutch I have
 
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