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Georgiacait

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Hi,
I have been looking through the new and wannabe guinea pig owner section and it has been really helpful!
When I do get some guinea pigs, I want to get them from a rescue.
I have seen a group of 4 pigs that are available in a localish rescue, is this too much for a first-time owner?
I am planning to have a 2x6 c&c cage but that will be the maximum I can go to in the spare room the pigs will be in, will this be enough for 4 sows?
When I have been doing my research and costs, I have been going off having 2-3 pigs, is there much of a difference going to 4?

Thank you! Georgia x
 
Whether it is too much is very much a personal thing and not something we can answer.
I personally have a pair of rabbits, a pair of four year old piggies and have just committed to another pair of young boars - six animals is a lot to look after, a lot of cleaning mostly (!) but for me it’s my passion.

Space wise, a 2x6 is the right size for four sows.
The rest is whether you have the financial means and time to cope with four vs 2-3. Obvioualy it is going to mean a little additional hay and veg on top of what you have already calculated but importantly the vet fees - do you have/can you get the extra in your vet fund to cover additional piggies?
 
It's also worth taking into account whether they're all the same age as this means they would all reach their OAP years around the same time and could cost a lot in vet fees all at once. You can always add to a herd if you think you want/ can manage more but it's a lot harder to take away if you find it's too much.
 
I am a first time owner. I got my first two last December and my other two around april/may time. To date only one of my piggys has been to the vet twice costing me about £70 each time. I love them but I am mindful as they age they could get poorly as they are all very similar in age!
 
Just to add I don't find food to be too expensive really. Hay and pellets if say are minimal. Veg depends where you go but we give our four veg twice a day. We use rewashable puppy pads which I wash and change every other day to keep the cage dry. There is also initial outlay for cage, water bottles, toys, fleece bedding, houses that you have to consider. I'd say when I first got them I probably spent about £200 on everything they needed. And weekly now I probably spend about £10 for the four x
 
It's the poop! THE POOOOOOOOP. There's so much! 🤣
That was the biggest difference I noticed when I went from 2 to 3. Four piggies is a lot of poop. Right now we're on 3 but greedy Louise is 'processing' at such a terrific rate that she makes healthy Flora look like something's wrong with her!
I actually don't think too much about vet fees because I tend to have a mix of ages and tbh not everypig has made it into the elderly years...
 
4 is a lot of poop !

I went straight in with 4 girls and the cleaning out is not really any trouble.

My main trouble was politics ! The eldest dominated from the beginning . In a large cage she ran up and down stealing food and terrorising my baby. Also very hard to catch one with all four suspicious and stirring each other up ! My baby is about 5 months now and not putting on weight properly.

got so bad I separated them today out of desperation. 2 and 2. Put a partition up.

They seemed happy this morning but I just got the ODDEST reception ever with their evening broccoli. All used to leap at the bars to get their supper but all 4 just looked at me without moving for at least 10 mins. I have upset their gang but it suits me and the baby to keep them apart. The small baby is with her sister and the eldest with one who can look after herself.

I'm going to preserve but perhaps? beware if you think 4 all together from day one is easy to manage. Perhaps you get a lovely gang ? The other problem is if one is in season it upsets all 4. Strutting etc.

Personally I wonder why I got 4 but i thought I was being kind…

Good luck.
 
I started with a pair and ended up with 5 piggies and honestly the work involved wasn't a huge jump.
A few more hay trays and cages to clean and a few more veggies to chop.
I had C&C cages and made all my own liners, so no real added expense for any of that.

Vets bills are obviously higher but I have had pigs I have sent well over 1000 pounds on (that would be you Miss Ruby) and pigs who never visited the vet at all.

I loved the larger group, however this did eventually break down (they were in a 10x2 C&C so it wasn't a space issue), and had to be separated.
I was lucky that because of the large cage size it was quite easy to reshuffle things and create big enough cages for smaller groups/ a pair.
As you say 6x2 is the maximum cage size toy can offer and this is the minimum for 4 piggies together I would give some thought to how you might manage if the grouping doesn't work in the longer term.
If they are all adults and have been together for a long time then this is probably not an issue, but how old are the piggies in question and how long have they lives as a foursome?
 
Haha there is a lot of poop with 4 😆. I clean it up daily though so it's not so bad!

Mine have been together since they were babies do they are all well bonded!

If you're going to get 3 day to day not much difference to having 4.

Just vet fees if they hot poorly at the same time. But like I say of my 4 only one has been to the vets so far in the slmost year I've had them!
 
Hi,
Thank you all so much for the replies!

My initial plan was for a 2x5 for 2/3 piggies anyway so going to a 2x6 isn't that much of a price or space jump but that is the maximum I can go to in the spare room, unfortunately. If in the future they did need to be separated for any reason, there is space underneath the desk but hopefully, that is as a last resort.
For bedding, I am going to use fleece. I was going to buy some that were already made but then looking to make some of my own in the future, to cut down on that cost a little. My Nan is very good with a sewing machine so hopefully, she will help me 😂
Again, I was already planning to put money aside for vet bills after the initial payout for the supplies so again that shouldn't be an issue either.

Unfortunately, I am not sure about their ages. I have emailed the rescue for a rough estimate but from the pictures, they do look like adults and they say that they have always been together. I will put a picture of them below. Although, I don't want to get my heart set on them too much as I haven't got anything yet! They might be gone by the time I have bought things 😅

C9F7DB37-5D71-4A03-B22E-7D9AB8624FCD_1_101_o.webp
 
I was told mine were well bonded but remember they are only children/young teenagers.

When the hormones hit you will need to be flexible about housing. It all sounded ideal to me to have 4 lovely girls together forever but they do have different personalities. I tend to protect the two calm ones because they don’t understand my plan for 4 together .

I suppose in a wild group there would be conflict but that’s not my responsibility.

i do love them all, but going on about poop and vets bills is not what will ruin the experience.

it’s behaviours And what you do about it .

just trying to be helpful honestly.
 
Georgiacait said:
Hi,
Thank you all so much for the replies!

My initial plan was for a 2x5 for 2/3 piggies anyway so going to a 2x6 isn't that much of a price or space jump but that is the maximum I can go to in the spare room, unfortunately. If in the future they did need to be separated for any reason, there is space underneath the desk but hopefully, that is as a last resort.
For bedding, I am going to use fleece. I was going to buy some that were already made but then looking to make some of my own in the future, to cut down on that cost a little. My Nan is very good with a sewing machine so hopefully, she will help me 😂
Again, I was already planning to put money aside for vet bills after the initial payout for the supplies so again that shouldn't be an issue either.

Unfortunately, I am not sure about their ages. I have emailed the rescue for a rough estimate but from the pictures, they do look like adults and they say that they have always been together. I will put a picture of them below. Although, I don't want to get my heart set on them too much as I haven't got anything yet! They might be gone by the time I have bought things 😅

View attachment 212323
Click to expand...

It sounds as if you’ve got it all sorted out!
If they are adult then you are less likely to have issues but equally even if they are teenagers, then it doesn’t mean they are going to have problems. Most sow groups are fine together even as youngsters - it’s all about compatibility but even then you are going to see dominance. Always a good idea to have a back up plan though.

If you’ve been in touch with the rescue for information and then register your interest, even if you haven’t got everything bought for them yet if the rescue agree to reserving them for you, then they shouldn’t be rehomed to anyone else and you can get everything arranged. Being in touch with the rescue before getting everything is a good idea anyway as it means you will be getting a cage size etc that the rescue approves of.
(my two new boys are reserved for me and I’m now just getting things sorted before bringing them home hopefully in the next 7-10 days or so)
 
They look like a gorgeous group and you sound extremely organised and realistic about everything.
I would say that if the rescue will reserve them for you then go for it!
The advantage of adopting from a reputable rescue is that they will always offer support and guidance if you have any problems further down the line, so you are in good hands.
How exciting and I LOVE their names.
 
i would say go for it.4 piggies seem to do better than 3,as sometimes you can get the outsider syndrome.ive got 4 groups/pairs and i love them all.you sound like you are very prepared.those girls will be lucky to have such a five star home.
 
Again, thank you for all the replies and thoughts!
I rang the rescue this afternoon and unfortunately they have already been adopted but not taken off the website yet. I am kind of gutted but hopefully, this will give me time to get everything and I will keep an open mind about groups in the future.
I will keep checking their website and other rescues x
 
Very Sorry to hear they have gone.

Have you tried pets4homes ? I got mine from a lovely local breeder . Lots of family info also. You can set a distance from your postcode.

Just Waiting for a Moderator or P&B to correct me on this method ....... as usual.
🤓
 
I am keeping my eye on there as well but as much as I would love some piggies now, I do want to have everything set up first.
I have owned hamsters for years and I know it was so much easier when they could go straight in their large cage, rather than waiting for it to arrive and transferring them into it.

I'm sure something will come up soonish ☺️
 
Georgiacait said:
I am keeping my eye on there as well but as much as I would love some piggies now, I do want to have everything set up first.
I have owned hamsters for years and I know it was so much easier when they could go straight in their large cage, rather than waiting for it to arrive and transferring them into it.

I'm sure something will come up soonish ☺️
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The right piggies will be there when you are ready.
I think it's wonderful that you are considering a rescue, and also taking on a group when the time comes.
 
How about a "compromise" - a mini herd of a neutered boar and two sows. That would make a boar somewhere very happy!
I'd have thought that a good rescue would be able to bond a trio prior to adoption. Have you looked at the Potteries Rescue, would they be in range for you?
 
Swissgreys said:
The right piggies will be there when you are ready.
I think it's wonderful that you are considering a rescue, and also taking on a group when the time comes.
Click to expand...
I do prefer to rescue, I have owned hamsters for 10 years and mainly got off pets4homes. However, with Guinea pigs I would prefer from a rescue because you have a little more security with health checks done prior etc.
One worry I have with a pair is losing one of them and the rush to get another so they aren’t alone.
 
Qualcast&Flymo said:
How about a "compromise" - a mini herd of a neutered boar and two sows. That would make a boar somewhere very happy!
I'd have thought that a good rescue would be able to bond a trio prior to adoption. Have you looked at the Potteries Rescue, would they be in range for you?
Click to expand...
I am completely open to a group with a neutered boar just would be finding a group that includes one 😅
It is about an hour which isn’t much more than I would have travelled for the other rescue, so it is doable. I’ll look into it, thank you x
 
I know of a pair of girls + neutered male combo that will be coming up for adoption in rescue. Please can you pm me if you’d like details, I can put you in touch with their foster carer.
 
ScoutingforPigs said:
I know of a pair of girls + neutered male combo that will be coming up for adoption in rescue. Please can you pm me if you’d like details, I can put you in touch with their foster carer.
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Hi!
Thank you for the message. Unfortunately, cannot figure out how to PM you, so I will write it here.

We have been doing some thinking about our space and decided that we are going to redo the room where the guinea pigs will go (nothing drastic, just make the room work better) in order to have a homemade wooden cage over a c&c. Unfortunately, it also means the cage will only be 170x77 which I'm not sure is big enough for 3 :((
As this is also going to take time to build it may be a month-ish before it is ready.
Let me know if any of this is an issue. If the rescue is close by, could I be kept up to date with any that come in, especially if I am not suitable for a trio? xx
 
I own a herd of 4 sows in a 10x2 which is very adequate and they are happy and active. But man…. It costs a lot to feed them. And I must do huge laundry loads weekly.

It’s something to think about and probably has been touched on itt.

4 really is a good amount of work and money
 
Georgiacait said:
Hi!
Thank you for the message. Unfortunately, cannot figure out how to PM you, so I will write it here.
Click to expand...

Just to let you know, neither you nor the person who asked you to PM will be able to do so - neither of yu have a high enough post count to have access to the PM system
 
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It’s not safe to display your personal contact details - the posts on the forum are visible to everybody with internet access (including non-members). This will need to be removed for your own safety.
 
Piggies&buns said:
It’s not safe to display your personal contact details - the posts on the forum are visible to everybody with internet access (including non-members). This will need to be removed for your own safety.
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I understand that and very sorry. But it was the only way I could think to maybe get In contact as I am not able to pm? Is there any way round this you can think of? x
 
Email address removed, you can ask one of the staff to act as a go-between.
 
A very quick turn of events... I am going to see a pair of girls and a neutered boar tomorrow (they aren’t bonded but we are going to see him as well). We will be building their cage over the weekend, was supposed to have everything ready before looking but couldn't help myself! But they are gorgeous.
Just a visit so trying not to get attached (again 🙃) and maybe home next week if everything goes to plan!
 

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