Pd's Piggies

playingdead

playingdead

Junior Guinea Pig
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I hate to make multiple boards, so figured I'd make a fancy all purpose board here for my guinea pigs, since I like to chatter about them and I know I'll be around more than once to just share and such. :D

Here's Dexter. He's my craigslist "rescue" and my first guinea pig ever. Supposedly he's about a year old, he's HUGE though. At least, I feel like he is, I don't have a ton of experience after all. :p

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Dexter came from a home where he was given to a kid who didn't give him the attention he needed. He also didn't have a guinea pig friend to run around with. He was clearly loved, but his care just wasn't the best. When I got him, his claws were so gnarled and twisted he could barely walk. I took him to the vet to the next day to get it sorted out and he's so much better now. I don't think his previous owners ever gave him fresh vegetables or much out time, so he is very spoiled now. He's warmed right up to me too! Comes running when I call his name and everything. It's precious. :love:

I am looking to get Dexter a little brother soon, within the next few weeks, but need to do some research on proper introductions, plus I want to learn more about this fantastic double critter nation setup I saw on another forum where they were side by side for one ultra cage. It looked great!

By the way, if you were curious, he refused to eat the strawberry but ate the leaves off it.:roll:
 
Hi and welcome to out friendly forum! Lots of info on cage sizes in the guinea pig guides section at the top of the page. Also about bonding and new owner guides. Can't link them in as I am on my phone not my laptop. Do have a read of them they are interesting and have been written by experienced members.
 
Welcome to the forum. Dexter does look like a handsome big lad, but he doesn't look overweight. Do you weigh him? If you keep an eye on his weight by weighing him every week, it means you have a good chance of spotting early if he's ever ill. You'll find loads of really helpful information in the Guinea Pig Guides at the top of the page...well worth a read. I had fostered piggies for a while before I got my own, and I thought I was quite knowledgeable, but I've learned tons from the people on this forum and the guides. Welcome again.
 
He is gorgeous. :luv::luv::luv::luv:

If you don’t have the double critter nation already i’d recommend looking at the c&c setups in the Members cages gallery. It will work out much cheaper and you can build a nice large cage whatever shape you want with just some more grids as a divider until hopefully they can occupy the whole thing together and the divider can be removed.

Member Gallery: C&C cages/homemade cages (some old pictures may be broken)

There is also a recent picture of a very nice c&c cage here Finally Some Pics Of Our New Girls.
 
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Just a note as to why I’d go c&c over critter nation. Critter nation is something i’d use for rats and chinchillas..pets who like to climb. As guinea pigs are floor dwelling creatures I find c&c much more efficient in terms of space as they actually need length rather than height.
 
Guinea pigs are full grown at around a year old so I think his age is accurate! I've met a guinea pig as big as a cat once!
 
As a first time piggie owner I am so happy with the c&c cage. It’s easy to clean out, the girls have loads of space and the hay loft has been great at containing wee and poo.

I also got my fleece liners made with Zorb and there is not one bit of smell ever. I put a small litter tray in the loft with a disposable changing mat in piled with hay and pee pads next to it. Just turn the fleece pee pads over every two days and then a full change. Washes quickly and all dry in fifteen mins.

I go in and vacuum the poo out each day. They run up in the loft when I do the bottom and back down when I do the loft. I then do veggies after that as an apology for the vaccum ha ha x
 
Powelly78 said:
As a first time piggie owner I am so happy with the c&c cage. It’s easy to clean out, the girls have loads of space and the hay loft has been great at containing wee and poo.

I also got my fleece liners made with Zorb and there is not one bit of smell ever. I put a small litter tray in the loft with a disposable changing mat in piled with hay and pee pads next to it. Just turn the fleece pee pads over every two days and then a full change. Washes quickly and all dry in fifteen mins.

I go in and vacuum the poo out each day. They run up in the loft when I do the bottom and back down when I do the loft. I then do veggies after that as an apology for the vaccum ha ha x
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Ive never tried fleece. Where did you order yours from? X
 
Reddybex said:
Hello and welcome - Dexter is lovely xx
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Hi @Reddybex. I ordered it from Cotton Tail Patterns on Etsy. It has zorb inners so is quite thick and washes and dries so quickly. She reinforces all the underneath of the main liners so they are very robust. The pee pads have been a godsend that she sent too.

Like I said, all I do is vac the poo every day, turn the pads, change the hay and every other day the changing mat and that’s it. It’s really quick and easy. No smell, hardly any waste and the main liners need washing once a week. The pee pads I have a changeover and they are twice a week with their snuggle beds.

I have my own business which is pretty full on so I needed it to be as practical and easy to clean as possible. It looks clean and tidy nearly all of the time as the hay loft contains all the mess x
 
Powelly78 said:
Hi @Reddybex. I ordered it from Cotton Tail Patterns on Etsy. It has zorb inners so is quite thick and washes and dries so quickly. She reinforces all the underneath of the main liners so they are very robust. The pee pads have been a godsend that she sent too.

Like I said, all I do is vac the poo every day, turn the pads, change the hay and every other day the changing mat and that’s it. It’s really quick and easy. No smell, hardly any waste and the main liners need washing once a week. The pee pads I have a changeover and they are twice a week with their snuggle beds.

I have my own business which is pretty full on so I needed it to be as practical and easy to clean as possible. It looks clean and tidy nearly all of the time as the hay loft contains all the mess x
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The only cotton tail patterns I can find is a dress maker lol :mal: I've had a look on etsy though and there's some lovely patterns. I might give it a go :luv: thank you x
 
Reddybex said:
The only cotton tail patterns I can find is a dress maker lol :mal: I've had a look on etsy though and there's some lovely patterns. I might give it a go :luv: thank you x
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Yes that’s her! She is on holiday at the moment. She does patterns and guinea pig fleeces as she is a guinea pig owner herself. I’ve attached a pic of her shop name x

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Squeakz said:
Just a note as to why I’d go c&c over critter nation. Critter nation is something i’d use for rats and chinchillas..pets who like to climb. As guinea pigs are floor dwelling creatures I find c&c much more efficient in terms of space as they actually need length rather than height.
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Hi! I've actually looked at C&C cages, and the only reason I am opting to stick with the side by side critter nations is because I also have cats. And while I love them dearly, they've been known to bring in a few animals from outside from time to time and simply think it would not be safe to have the guinea pigs in an open-top cage as much as I would love to.

As a final note, the top shelves in my critter nation are removed, so there is a LOT of extra space since they don't need the height, you're right. Didn't want to risk them falling and getting injured. o_o
I've been considering actually building some wood ramps/structures to simulate the c&c ramps to suit a critternation and waterproof them before covering them in fleece. Just haven't decided how to go about it yet. ^^
 
playingdead said:
Hi! I've actually looked at C&C cages, and the only reason I am opting to stick with the side by side critter nations is because I also have cats. And while I love them dearly, they've been known to bring in a few animals from outside from time to time and simply think it would not be safe to have the guinea pigs in an open-top cage as much as I would love to.

As a final note, the top shelves in my critter nation are removed, so there is a LOT of extra space since they don't need the height, you're right. Didn't want to risk them falling and getting injured. o_o
I've been considering actually building some wood ramps/structures to simulate the c&c ramps to suit a critternation and waterproof them before covering them in fleece. Just haven't decided how to go about it yet. ^^
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Ah ha, yeah I totally see your point with the adventurous cats. Some people have build grid lids onto their c&c but the critter nation is obviously much more solid and even the most determined cat won’t get in.

You could use the levels in the CN if you could work out a way to “wall” them so that the piggies can’t accidentally fall off (like the lofts in c&c). The ramps will need to be less steep than the default ladders that come with the cage.
 
Small update! I was using aspen as my bedding until I was able to go out and get some nice fleece. Finally sewed a bottom liner for his critter nation and made a little hay hanger as well.
I acknowledge this cage is on the small side, but I'll be picking up the second critter nation next week to convert into something more appropriate. hurray!

here's a picture of his new setup. (I ran outta lettuce yesterday so he got broccoli and carrots today :lol:)
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