questions questions questions

[Shanj19]

Hiya!
I'm new. I adopted two 12 week guinea pigs last Tuesday and I am smitten! I had rabbits originally which I still adore however after loosing our last bun to a very bad illness I decided to make a change and go for a completely new pet. Thomas and Simba are very happy together which is great, its so lovely to hear them talking to each other. They are slowly now starting to come out of their hidey spot and explore their space. Slowly I have been introducing new vedge so I can see what they like more than other vedg. however I was wondering if I could ask a few questions to experienced owners.
1. How much vedge? I plan on splitting up their vedge throughout the day so morning lunch and evening. But how much is best to give each time?
2. Do your pigs drink a lot? Mine have a waterbottle which at first I was rather panicky about as it just didn't seem to be going down so quick. I am now seeing a difference so I feel they may be sneaking a drink of water when I am not around. I did try and put a water bowl in however they just kept pooping and weeing in there!
3. Litter training, is this possible with guinea pigs?
4. Worming and fleaing; do you all worm and flea your pigs? if so what do you use? I am in the UK and have started exploring the different brands. They have an indoor run currently however I would like to take them outside too!
I do apologise for all the questions but any help would be great!
thank you

 

[sport_billy]

Hello Welcome to the forum!

A cup full of veg ad day per pig split into two is a good guide. Unlimited hay and bowl of pellets.

Different piggies drink different amounts, our girls drink more in the summer when it is hotter, we always serve our veggies very wt so the piggies get a lot of moisture from there

Litter training really isnt possible, piggies do tend to poo more where they eat however so I know there will be more poop to spot clean round in the hay.

You shouldnt need to worm or flea a piggy. If you ever suspect worms or fleas or anything like that you need to see a vet.

Welcome again

 

[Betsy]

Hi and Welcome to our friendly forum!

You don't need to flea or worm piggies like you do cats and dogs. If they get mites (some do and some don't) then a vet trip is required for proper diagnosis and treatment. What you don't want to do is treat them with an off the shelf jobbie as that will only mask the symptoms and not get rid of them.

Some piggies drink a lot some hardly at all. They get their water out of the veg you give them. Some veg hold more water than others eg cucumber.

I give my 5 a mixture of veg just in the evening as that is what suits me best. Others go for mornings only and some for 2 or 3 times a day. Here are the diet guides to help you.

Diet Guides

As to litter training piggies I have never had much success with it as they poop where they are. Piggies are poop machines! I'm sure others will have some ideas about litter training.

 

[Shanj19]

Hello Welcome to the forum!

A cup full of veg ad day per pig split into two is a good guide. Unlimited hay and bowl of pellets.

Different piggies drink different amounts, our girls drink more in the summer when it is hotter, we always serve our veggies very wt so the piggies get a lot of moisture from there

Litter training really isnt possible, piggies do tend to poo more where they eat however so I know there will be more poop to spot clean round in the hay.

You shouldnt need to worm or flea a piggy. If you ever suspect worms or fleas or anything like that you need to see a vet.

Welcome again

Do you put yours on the garden? We get a lot of cats in ours and I just worry if there was any in the grass it could affect the guinea (may be silly but as you will learn I’m a worry wart haha)

 

[sport_billy]

Do you put yours on the garden? We get a lot of cats in ours and I just worry if there was any in the grass it could affect the guinea (may be silly but as you will learn I’m a worry wart haha)

No never to be honest. I wouldnt be around to watch them.

@Wiebke cat wee/poo cause issues?

 

[Shanj19]

Hi and Welcome to our friendly forum!

You don't need to flea or worm piggies like you do cats and dogs. If they get mites (some do and some don't) then a vet trip is required for proper diagnosis and treatment. What you don't want to do is treat them with an off the shelf jobbie as that will only mask the symptoms and not get rid of them.

Some piggies drink a lot some hardly at all. They get their water out of the veg you give them. Some veg hold more water than others eg cucumber.

I give my 5 a mixture of veg just in the evening as that is what suits me best. Others go for mornings only and some for 2 or 3 times a day. Here are the diet guides to help you.

Diet Guides

As to litter training piggies I have never had much success with it as they poop where they are. Piggies are poop machines! I'm sure others will have some ideas about litter training.

Thankyou! Do your piggies go on the grass? We get a lot of cats in our garden and I worry if a cat has them it can be passed on that way?

 

[Betsy]

Yes mine go out on the grass but ALWAYS in a run. At the mo they have eaten all the grass so are on the patio with their hay tray. We only get the neighbour's cat in our garden as she takes no notice of the piggies whatsoever.

 

[Wiebke]

Hiya!
I'm new. I adopted two 12 week guinea pigs last Tuesday and I am smitten! I had rabbits originally which I still adore however after loosing our last bun to a very bad illness I decided to make a change and go for a completely new pet. Thomas and Simba are very happy together which is great, its so lovely to hear them talking to each other. They are slowly now starting to come out of their hidey spot and explore their space. Slowly I have been introducing new vedge so I can see what they like more than other vedg. however I was wondering if I could ask a few questions to experienced owners.
1. How much vedge? I plan on splitting up their vedge throughout the day so morning lunch and evening. But how much is best to give each time?
2. Do your pigs drink a lot? Mine have a waterbottle which at first I was rather panicky about as it just didn't seem to be going down so quick. I am now seeing a difference so I feel they may be sneaking a drink of water when I am not around. I did try and put a water bowl in however they just kept pooping and weeing in there!
3. Litter training, is this possible with guinea pigs?
4. Worming and fleaing; do you all worm and flea your pigs? if so what do you use? I am in the UK and have started exploring the different brands. They have an indoor run currently however I would like to take them outside too!
I do apologise for all the questions but any help would be great!
thank you

Hi!

Please take the time to read these threads on diet and drinking; they are pretty detailed and have been specially written for new owners:
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
All About Drinking And Bottles
Feeding Grass And Preparing Your Piggies For Lawn Time

They are part of our new owners' guide collection, which addresses the most often asked about issues, so you may find them very helpful. Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides

Guinea pigs do not have species specific fleas; in fact, flea powders for cats and dogs can be lethal for them! they have comparatively few species specific parasites. It is much better (and cheaper) to see a vet for a diagnosis and plump for good quality treatment in the case you are faced with them than using cheap low dosed broad spectrum shop products which cannot prevent a bad outbreak and only contribute to resistance.
Generally guinea pigs do not require worming; especially not indoors guinea pigs.

If you are keeping guinea pigs in a hutch, please make sure that the hutch is out of full sun and not in a heat trap in summer and under cover in winter; if at all possible indoors under a firm roof and with insulation.
Guinea pigs are less hardy than rabbits and should be treated like tender plants when it comes to climate - they are not good at dealing with large temperature swings (including between day/night) and the extremes of weather. They can quickly die of heat stroke! Tips for hot and cold weather are part of our New Owners' collection.


Unlike dog/fox pee which can kill when fresh, cat pee on the lawn is not a problem; you want to remov stinky poos promtply, though, as they can attract flesh laying blue bottles (fly strike - also goes for regular hutch cleaning).
But you will want to make sure that cats cannot get at your guinea pigs. Please keep in mind that guinea pigs are prey animals and still have all those instincts and that they can be killed by a hunting cat!

There is no litter training for guinea pigs. They have evolved by using temperature controlled abandoned sets of other
species when roaming their territory but they have not had the need to be extremely tidy. They do have their preferred peeing places (a tray with soft hay and a hay rack above will draw some of that fire for those piggies on spot cleaning), but they will basically poo everywhere. Some piggies are scattier than others. If they are on disposable bedding a regular spot clean in their toiletting areas is recommended.

 

[Merab]

Welcome to the forum
I’m not going to repeat all the excellent advice already given.
With regard to litter training my girls have trained me to go around and clear up after them!
Please post pics so we all enjoy seeing your piggies.
I hope you enjoy the forum.
It’s a great place for advice and support as well as fun.

 

[Shanj19]

Hi!

Please take the time to read these threads on diet and drinking; they are pretty detailed and have been specially written for new owners:
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
All About Drinking And Bottles
Feeding Grass And Preparing Your Piggies For Lawn Time

They are part of our new owners' guide collection, which addresses the most often asked about issues, so you may find them very helpful. Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides

Guinea pigs do not have species specific fleas; in fact, flea powders for cats and dogs can be lethal for them! they have comparatively few species specific parasites. It is much better (and cheaper) to see a vet for a diagnosis and plump for good quality treatment in the case you are faced with them than using cheap low dosed broad spectrum shop products which cannot prevent a bad outbreak and only contribute to resistance.
Generally guinea pigs do not require worming; especially not indoors guinea pigs.

If you are keeping guinea pigs in a hutch, please make sure that the hutch is out of full sun and not in a heat trap in summer and under cover in winter; if at all possible indoors under a firm roof and with insulation.
Guinea pigs are less hardy than rabbits and should be treated like tender plants when it comes to climate - they are not good at dealing with large temperature swings (including between day/night) and the extremes of weather. They can quickly die of heat stroke! Tips for hot and cold weather are part of our New Owners' collection.


Unlike dog/fox pee which can kill when fresh, cat pee on the lawn is not a problem. But you will want to make sure that cats cannot get at your guinea pigs. Please keep in mind that guinea pigs are prey animals and still have all those instincts!

There is no litter training for guinea pigs. They have evolved by using temperature controlled abandoned sets of other
species when roaming their territory but they have not had the need to be extremely tidy. They do have their preferred peeing places (a tray with soft hay and a hay rack above will draw some of that fire for those piggies on spot cleaning), but they will basically poo everywhere. Some piggies are scattier than others. If they are on disposable bedding a regular spot clean in their toiletting areas is recommended.

wow! Thank you very much this is veey helpful

 

[Shanj19]

Welcome to the forum
I’m not going to repeat all the excellent advice already given.
With regard to litter training my girls have trained me to go around and clear up after them!
Please post pics so we all enjoy seeing your piggies.
I hope you enjoy the forum.
It’s a great place for advice and support as well as fun.

Yes! Soon as they are settled I will begin to take some pictures they’re still quiet shy at the moment but I’m seeing progress every day! I’ve attached a photo of them cuddling but you can’t really see much

 

[Merab]

Cute