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New guineapig

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guineapigglemad

guineapigglemad

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a few days ago one of my guinea pigs sadly died :( when we went to the petshop the next day to get dogfood my mum bought another guineapig for me as a surprise to keep the other one company. at the moment my new guinea pig(gilbert) is in a cage on his own. I'm not sure how long to leave them apart incase my other guinea pig (lenny) has any germs from the one that died?
 
awww thats sad.:(

Its really hard to say if you dont know what he died of, also you might need to bond them for a time, but I'm not sure as I'm no expert.

Was the one you lost eating ok and everything? Do you weigh your piggies? if not it might be an idea just to be on the safe side as they do lose weight quickly.
 
Firstly, I'm sorry you lost your piggy :(

Without knowing what your last piggy died from, it's difficult to know if Lenny has any bacteria which might infect Gilbert. However, after Gilbert's initial settling in period of a few days (up to a week or so), I'd try to get him in with Lenny as quickly as possible to start the bonding process.

I'm assuming they're both males right? In that case, as Gilbert is younger, I read that it might be helpful to rub Gilbert down with some of Lenny's droppings to increase the chances of bonding.
 
My first two piggies died one a year and 7months old, the second 2 years and 2 months old.

Judging by the fact that the three remaining piggies are developing problems I am not expecting them to live past two. They're the 'babies' of the mother who died at a year and 7 months.

My point being, unless you had tests, you won't know what killed the piggy. If it's parents didn't live long, the off spring [*]MIGHT[/*] not live long either, but you woun't know that unless you knew where your piggie came from.

If you disinfect the cage ( vinegar solution or pet wash) it should be enough to kill any germs. Just keep the bowls clean etc (like I am sure you do) and I think the piggy will be fine.

I have been told that washing piggy hutches down with vinegar solution cleans off any smells of 'ownership'. Then rearranging the 'furniture' as though it's new convinces the resident piggy that it's new territory. Personally, I don't think piggies are that daft.

Good luck and let us know how you get on xx
 
Some people would say to keep the new pig seperate for 2 weeks or so anyway, if you can, just in case it picked up anything in the pet shop, like mites, or something. :) And if you can keep them next to each other, so they can see each other, it might help them get to know each other.

But if you don't have a spare cage and can't keep them seperate, then I would just disinfect the cage well (only using a disinfectant from a pet shop that's safe for them or something like milton) and I'm sure it'll probably be fine.

Pigs can die suddenly for lots of reasons but hopefully it wasn't anything contagious.

Sorry you lost your pig and hope it all goes well with the new one.
 
Personally, I would put them together as soon as possible in order for them to bond. If it was simply a sudden death, then I don't think there is any worry about disease or infection. I personally find it easier to leave the existing pig in his own cage exactly as it is rather than disinfecting everything as that way you will only have one unsure new pig and not an existing one wondering where his scents have all gone. Remove everything from the cage and place both pigs inside while watching them carefully. If the reaction is good (with chasing and squeaking to be expected, but minimal teeth chattering), then add a food bowl. It can be an amazing bonding tool. Sometimes bonding can take a few days, sometimes hours - my current record is 15 minutes! Every pig varies so it just often just a judgement you have to make.:)
 
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