I'm an over worrier..can you tell?

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katcaf1985

*sighs*
Hello everyone! This might seem like a completely pointless post to some, but I would really appreciate it if anyone could take the time to have a read and give me some advice/constructive criticism etc. What I would like to do is to tell you how I look after my guineas and a bit about htem, in the hope that you might all comment on anything I can do better. I have read a couple of books on piggies and had advice from my friend, a veterinary nurse...so here goes.

I have four piggies. Herrick (boar) who is 20 weeks, Ash (boar) also 20 weeks and May and Fudge (sows) who are 9 weeks. Herrick lives in a hutch on his own and gets access daily to the girls run ( with the girls safely tucked away from the boar!). Ash lives in a big indoor run but in my nice cosy little brick shed, with the door open during the day. He is getting his nice big new hutch with run next weekend and will be outisde with the others. The girls live together in a hutch with a run underneath. Ash also gets time in the day to use the girls run, again with the girls out of the way. My piggies are bedded on woodshavings and hay. They have small ecramic food bowls and get fresh fruit/veg in the mornings and Burgess Supa Guinea food in the evenings as well as fresh water every night. I spot clean them every night, although almost always their bedding area needs completely clenaing as they seem to love to poo and wee in their sleeping area! They all have hay mangers and herrick and the girls have a pig igloo. The girls pig igloo is in their run as I'm not sure if they can figure out how to get back up the ramp yet, so I make sure there is shelter, a water bottle and some food and hay down there at all times. Ash will have a pig igloo to when his new hutch arrives. I handle my piggies every day, although the girls are still a bit skittish, as they are so young. I have tarpaulin on the top of the hutches and at night I let the tarpaulin drape over the frobnt 1/3 of the hutch to act as a bit of a barrier against the rain. This seems to work and hopefully I will be able to invest in some proper hutch huggers over the coming months. I have bought some ivermectin to trat the little lice on Ash and Herrick and some nice n livce shampoo for the girls as they are too young for the ivermectic. I will be using it when they are old enough as a prventative. I totally clean the hutches out and use a pet safe disinifectant once a week. Is there anything else I can do to make these little piggies lives happier? They are having their nails cut for the first time next week by my friend the veterinary nurse, as Ive never cut piggy nails before, I thought I'd get some sound advice!
 
thank you, I really am trying very hard to make sure they have absolutely everything!
 
If your pigs have lice, I'm afraid Ivermec will not get rid of them, Ivermec is a mite (mange) treatment - I would email Chrissie at Gorgeous Guineas www.gorgeousguineas.com and ask her advice about treating the younger pigs, as she sells a fantastic treatment called Lice and Easy shampoo which is kind to guineas and more effective that store bought ones.
 
sounds good to me....
what about getting the boys neutered then home them each with one of the girls each.......
I know when I got Boris I was on edge 'just in case' he got in with the girls before he was neutered.....just an idea ok..
 
i'd get them neutered and put one with each girl.
they'll get lonely on their own and putting them in the run after the girls have been in it is like teasing them; they'll be able to smell them and it's not very fair if they're living by themselves un-snipped!
 
thanks Gaile and Gracie, thats a really good idea and defintely something I will look into. I was thinking about positioning the two boars hutches next to each other so they could see each other and have a little chat (Is that mad?) I've heard that having boars neutered is dangerous, is that true?
 
It all sounds very good Kat. Better to ask than to worry, no question is silly at all!

The only thing I would pick out there is the woodshavings. Shavings can irritate respiratory tracts and also the skin. A paper-based or "wood-pulp" type bedding such as Aubiose, Megazorb or Finacard is more recommended, and are usually pretty economical in terms of cost.

Neutering boars is not dangerous per se. There can be complications, as with any surgery on any animal, but provided you have a good vet the risks are minimal. In any case, it is far more risky to spay a sow. So much lies in the type of anesthetic the vets use and their neutering procedure. See if you can find a guinea pig experienced vet in your area - ask local rescues or ask on the forum. The more exerienced and knowledgable the vet is on this species, the more comfortable you will feel and the safer your piggies will be.
 
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Can i ask is there a reason why the boys are housed by them selfs and not together, have you had them together and they didnt get along?
 
Thats exactly right piggy lover. They were housed together but whn the girls arrived they seemed to start to fight and one was becoming secluded. So I separated them and now theyare both lovely boys!
 
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