Pet Shop

[jacksmylad]

Theres this poor guinea pig in my local pet shop, they are in a shared cage with rabbits and they dont know what sex they are. This one multi coloured fluffy piggie has been there for weeks and it breaks my heart, the piggie looks worn out and miserable its so sad. I'm off to France for a week but when i come back i want to home it as its sad to see and i think it hasnt been homed because it looks a bit shabby. But i just know it will be full of life once it gets a chance to run outside and not be cooped up in the heat in the pet shop where loads of flies are.

I wont put him/her with my others incase its ill but i want to give it a chance at happiness, I'm gonna worry all holiday now

 

[Loopylou]

I understand why you want to take him home, but just keep in mind that they will then have space and funds to buy another baby from a breeder and the cycle will continue At most I would offer to take him from them for nothing - sometimes pet shops are willing to do this with an older animal as they become less saleable once they are past the baby stage. At least that way you wouldn't be funding the breeding process

 

[jacksmylad]

Would that work? I would be too scared too ha ha. Their animals go really quickly but this Piggie seems to have been there a while and looks like it gets picked on too. It's so hot in there. I always panic though especially with animals such as mice as i worry people buy them to feed their snakes.

 

[MemberX]

It's hard when you see an older one in the shops. I was in the same situation but didn't get him because of the giving profits to pet shops but I regret it. I know it goes against what I believe in but he was a lovely boy. Sometimes your heart rules your head.

Good luck whatever you decide! x

 

[jacksmylad]

If he is still there when i get back from my hols i will get him/her, i dont think its that old, it just looks shabby (but beautiful) looks like its a bit worn out and i think people have chosen others over him because it appears that way. And i want it to blossom happily at my home.

 

[MemberX]

The lad I saw was obviously ex breeding stock he was massive I'd say about 3lb minimum! Probably this little one is around 3 months old I saw one like that in P@H yesterday she was lovely as well but was over looked for some bizarre reason.

 

[jacksmylad]

I dont feel bad leaving them at Pets at home, i cant speak for all of them but the one in cheltenham is really good, they have so much space and so do the bunnies. They all look really happy and clean and lots of air too and hey and water, everything. Its the adoption centre thats sad but even then they seem to be well cared for. They had a black Piggie there for about three months called Pickle who was gorgeous but had a medical condition where you had to help him poo but i couldnt dedicate that amount of time as work full time and it would have been cruel. But he was cared for well there and eventually rehomed.

 

[redd1800]

I had exactly the same dilemma - there is a local pet shop that I have reported before as they are not great with their animals. I don't buy anything from there as I don't want to add to their profits, but I check on them in case things have gone downhill again. They had a small guinea pig in on its own with some rabbits, I checked them every week for a month. The guinea pig didn't seem to grow, was fed on bunny food with rare bits of hay and no fresh stuff. It looked a really dirty grey color. After a month of hoping someone else would buy her, I went in to check on her again, and found her tucked into a corner of the very small run, nose touching the corner, with 4 huge bunnies binkying around her. She looked absolutely terrified, and she came home with me.

She turned out to be a beautiful creamy colour, once her diet and therefore her coat improved, and is a cheeky wee monster (just how I like them ;D) She's always going to be very small, but otherwise is perfectly healthy. It was totally the right decision.

 

[jacksmylad]

Thats a lovely story and the guinea pig has a good life now. Thats what i want to do with this one, its so beautiul but just not cared for enough. I have my babies out in the garden at the mo and i cant wait to have that one join them.