Rescue A (possibly) Pregnant Female Guinea Pig

[Caitlin]

Hi. I've been thinking about getting another guinea pig for quite some time now to keep my current boar company, and I thought it might be best to try to find one online instead of at a pet store.

After doing this, I found a guinea pig that is a female but the owner really doesn't want her anymore and I believe that she isn't receiving adequate care. Now I feel like I have an obligation to "rescue" her. Apparently the owner also thinks she is pregnant, but is not sure. That makes it worse - I don't want a guinea pig to have an owner who isn't taking good care of her and also who would then have babies and they may not be taken care of either.

Should I rescue this guinea pig? If I kept their cages side-by-side, would that make my boar be a little less lonely? Would it bother my boar? I know that sounds a little silly, but I don't want him to constantly feel the need to do the deed and change.

Thanks for any help.

 

[Julesie]

I would personally rescue her but you have to be aware of all the risks and extra care mummy will need if she is indeed pregnant.

I also advice not to put her anywhere near your boar until she has given birth and also passed a quarantine, whatever comes first. I think having the boar near her may stress her more so I personally wouldn't do that plus he'd need to be neutered just in case he manages to get out as I'm sure you wouldn't want her pregnant again after she gives birth.

@Wiebke can give you the best advice on pregnant guinea pigs.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi! I am very sorry for your dilemma. I agree that the girl needs to come into good hands.

Have you got a chance to contact one of these good standard guinea pig rescues? They may be able to take her in, especially as they have got the experience in dealing with neglected and pregnant piggies. The rescues may also be a safe place for you to find a friend that your boy can live with - at the same time doing a good deed by making space for another piggy in need of expert care!

Ontario, Canada

Rabbit Rescue Inc.
1298 Cartmer Way
Milton, ON
L9T 6J8
[email protected]
www.rabbitrescue.ca
www.petfinder.com/shelters/ON79.html
905-877-6745
Haviva

Piggles Guinea Pig
Markham, ON
L3P 7Z2
[email protected]
Caroline Lane

(Rescue list with permission by Guinea Lynx medical forum website; butI have been in contact with Piggles Rescue myself and can recommend them most warmly. They are truly caring people there!)

If you can't get to one of these rescues and still want to take her in, we will support you. Please be aware that you will need to conduct a full 2-3 weeks quarantine; ideally you also have her checked by a vet unless she is very heavily pregnant. You also need to clear with the owner why she thinks that the sow could be pregnant and when/until when she was in direct contact with a boar. You also need to find out how old she is; the more details you can worm out, the better! You are also welcome to open a thread in our pregnancy section for ongoing support, questions and updates.

We have got a pregnancy section with detailed information guides at the top if you want to take on this poor girl, but I have to warn you that with her background she is at a higher risk of losing pups and birthing complications, especially if she hasn't got long to settle down and recover from bad care. It could be a very steep and potentially heart-breaking learning curve for you, as it has been for other forum members. That is the reason why I would encourage you to contact a knowledgeable rescue if you can get there, so she could be where she is in safe and experienced hands with access to vet care. At the same time you could look for a live-in friend for your boy from the rescue.

If you decide to take the girl in, I wouldn't make any plans until the girl has either had babies or you know for sure that she isn't pregnant. Any baby boy could live directly with your boy if he accepts him, but any disposition would depend on whether and what gender babies there are.

I hope that this helps you to help your poor girl!

 

[Caitlin]

Sadly, both of those rescues are 3 hours away and I can't go there, or else I definitely would have.

I brought home the girl today. We are naming her Mary. I asked how old she was, and she said that she had adopted the guinea pig from someone else, so the poor girl is now in her third home! She is a little above a year old I believe, from what she has told me.

The owner had two girls and one male. They were kept in separate cages, but she let them all run outside together in this little area she set up. She did this on purpose because she thought the boar was beautiful and wanted to breed them. She had three kids and since they quickly lost interest, she decided she wanted to get rid of them. Mary was the last one left.

The owner said that Mary's buddy was definitely pregnant. She wasn't too sure if Mary is pregnant though because she thinks the boar was too busy with the other one. HOWEVER if they were all running around together I'm sure she should be pregnant.

I read a bunch of the pregnancy articles and I read that you can feel hard lumps where the babies would be, so I gave her a quick feel along the belly and it just feels like she is chubby, although she is sticking out quite a bit on the sides. Is it possible she is only having like one baby if she is pregnant and I just can't feel it?

I've attached an aerial picture of her (I was cleaning her cage that she came with at the time). The cage she came with is very small, and I'm going to be building a C&C cage for her ASAP.

 

[MycuteBoys]

Hi Caitlin, lovely to hear Mary has been given a nice loving forever home, I hope the other two went to good homes too. All the best and keep us posted I'm guessing if she is expecting then there is 3 babies

 

[Caitlin]

The original owner did say that the other girl went to someone who already owned guinea pigs, so I'm assuming that she went to a good home.

I also forgot to mention that the owner said she was last with a boar in a week, so if she was pregnant she probably isn't that far along. She does have a pear-shaped look. I'll make a thread in the pregnancy section if I notice she is gaining a lot of weight/looks like babies are in her belly.

 

[Julesie]

Oh my. Mary looks identical to my piggie Matthew (avatar). She's gorgeous. I certainly pray for her she isn't pregnant but I'm sure she would be if the owner let the boy run around them.

 

[Caitlin]

Aww. Matthew is very cute! Yes, she does look a lot like him. Here are some more pictures (a little large, sorry):

I'm trying to give her a bit of room so she can settle into her home and if she is pregnant I don't want to stress her out too much. Should I feed her some alfalfa hay just in case she is pregnant? Or stick with timothy?

 

[Julesie]

Aww she's the spitting image of him on one side and almost the same but with a bit more ginger on the other.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/87223118@N02/sets here's my albums with Matthew so you can see their similarity.

I think Alfalfa hay is what you feed pregnant mummies but wiebke is the best to ask as I've never had a pregnant female before.

 

[MycuteBoys]

I've not had a pregnant piggy before but I have seen a few and from your pics she looks like she's got a swollen belly to me. Alfalfa sounds a good idea @Wiebke is online she will best to answer this question

 

[Flutterby]

Definitely looks like this girl has fallen into the right hands. Please keep us updated, she is absolutely gorgeous!