Sanity Check - Are We Ready Enough?

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Tangle

Junior Guinea Pig
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So having been in a holding pattern waiting for some suitable pigs to become available, suddenly everything is happening very fast and we're picking 2 girls up on Sunday. We're very excited :D

However, I'm also now convinced we've forgotten something crucial! We have:

- a carrier
- a C&C cage all put together and lined with Corex.
- some old towels and lots of fleece (shortly to be replaced with properly made liners with Zorb in)
- a bag of meadow hay (pigs are coming with some as well)
- a bag of grain-free pellets (pigs are coming with some food they're used to as well)
- a water bottle
- a bowl
- places to hide
- a fridge full of regular fresh fruit & veg

In the near future we'll also get nail clippers and no doubt some more refined houses and fleece bits (and IKEA beds) will appear, but is there anything that is essential that we don't already have?
 
Tangle said:
So having been in a holding pattern waiting for some suitable pigs to become available, suddenly everything is happening very fast and we're picking 2 girls up on Sunday. We're very excited :D

However, I'm also now convinced we've forgotten something crucial! We have:

- a carrier
- a C&C cage all put together and lined with Corex.
- some old towels and lots of fleece (shortly to be replaced with properly made liners with Zorb in)
- a bag of meadow hay (pigs are coming with some as well)
- a bag of grain-free pellets (pigs are coming with some food they're used to as well)
- a water bottle
- a bowl
- places to hide
- a fridge full of regular fresh fruit & veg

In the near future we'll also get nail clippers and no doubt some more refined houses and fleece bits (and IKEA beds) will appear, but is there anything that is essential that we don't already have?
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No, it sounds fine! All the best!

Here is our new owners' guide collection with tips from settling in and making friends with, understanding behaviour, learning what is normal and what not and some basic care.
New Owners' Problem Solver And Information Collection
 
Wiebke said:
No, it sounds fine! All the best!

Here is our new owners' guide collection with tips from settling in and making friends with, understanding behaviour, learning what is normal and what not and some basic care.
New Owners' Problem Solver And Information Collection
Click to expand...

Phew! Thank you :D. I've looked through lots of the guides over the last week but I was going to print off a couple of and make the kids read them over the weekend. (I'd love to say I'll spam the board with photos on Sunday, but I'm expecting to not see much of them for a while - maybe the odd nose or whisker ;))
 
Wow, somebody has done their homework. All that’s missing is the piggies. Look forward to seeing photos.
 
Fantastic homework done there, brilliant! Although there is one small thing missing, dustpan and brush for all the poop scooping :D All the best for Sunday, exciting times! :yahoo:
 
Tim said:
Fantastic homework done there, brilliant! Although there is one small thing missing, dustpan and brush for all the poop scooping :D All the best for Sunday, exciting times! :yahoo:
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Good thinking! Should be fairly easy to find, at least :).

Thank you all for the well wishes. I'm awful for overthinking (hence lots of homework done), so its quite a relief to actually DO!
 
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Reactions: Tim
How exciting! Congrats! Looking forward for photos when they come home!
 
Good luck with your new piggies! You sound like a prepared parent!
 
Not long now.
So glad it’s worked out for you.
Have you chosen names yet?
And of course - we need lots of pictures
 
They're here :yahoo:!

But still utterly terrified of this strange new world, so I've left them in the carrier in the cage with the door wide open. (Actually, I did have a quick check to make sure they were still alive in there, but now I've reassured myself about that they're being left alone till they're feeling a bit more confident).

So no pictures yet. Hopefully soon...
 
Tangle said:
(Actually, I did have a quick check to make sure they were still alive in there, but now I've reassured myself about that they're being left alone till they're feeling a bit more confident).
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Yippee and yes we have all done that, at the moment Willow - my new baby- must be sick to death of me poking and at the other end of the spectrum my 2 oldies must be fed up with me checking them to see if they are still alive :lol:
 
Tangle said:
They're here :yahoo:!

But still utterly terrified of this strange new world, so I've left them in the carrier in the cage with the door wide open. (Actually, I did have a quick check to make sure they were still alive in there, but now I've reassured myself about that they're being left alone till they're feeling a bit more confident).

So no pictures yet. Hopefully soon...
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Well done. You’re doing the right thing. If you make sure they have hay, food and veggies near their carrier they can feel secure and still feed themselves. My first piggies I swear used to hold their breath when I walked into the room. It was like they were trying to pretend they weren’t there. It’s normal behaviour. Don’t worry about them too much. Photos can wait.
 
Tigermoth said:
Oh my! Tangle! I just made the connection! I posted on the pigglies thread over on NM thread!
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Lol - hello Tipsy! Have to confess I guessed you'd be the same you with the same username, especially as you'd said you were on here!
 
Rubber or latex gloves for picking the odd errant poop up. Also animal safe disinfectant for cage cleaning whether that's a chemical cleaner or a natural one like white vinegar
 
Merab's Slave said:
How are the new girls settling @Tangle
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They're doing good :D. Played dead for the first 12 hours, but came out overnight and left poos all around ;). They're getting braver and we're seeing a bit more of them now. I've taken the "ad-lib hay" seriously, but may have to try and strike a better balance between how much they need and how much is excess to be thrown around their home!

We managed to pick them up last night (the downside of a 3x3 cage is that its a LONG way to the back and they have a big space to run around in), have a cuddle and give them a weigh. They're a mum and daughter. Mum, Jemima, was bought pregnant and had babies last August. The boys were separate before 3 weeks and the two girls have been living together ever since. We don't know how old Jemima is, but she weighs in at 888g and her daughter (now called Fudge) is 722g.

We've registered with a piggy savvy vet that's within range and have an appointment next Wednesday so we may get some more information then.

Now to see if I can get some pictures to load...
 
Yay! It worked! In both of them Jemima's on the left an Fudge is on the right :)
 
They are beautiful- so glad they’re settling.
My Jemimah say hello to your Jemima.
She thinks it’s a good name for a guinea pig.
 
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