Taking in 3 guinea pigs from a friend - few questions

[Bekki]

They have been fed Tesco guinea pig muesli, hay and eat basically any veg, they let their current owner clip their nails.

What kind of things should I be looking for when I get them? I have baephar spot on already in the house (on the point that its better to have something in for when the piggies look like theyre scratching more than normal so they can be treated instantly) is it worth treating them all preventitively for mites when they arrive? I know the baephar is very dilute and will leave them greasy but I havent got round to ordering 1% solution to keep in the house (I am a lab scientist so accurately measuring small amounts and calculations like that come naturally so I have no issue using stronger stuff and I get syringes free at work :-))

How long should I mix their current food with nuggets for before completely removing their old food?

Is there anything else I should do?

They come wth a rabbit too (yes I know - this is going to be seperated and house trained then kept away from the piggies)

 

[Bekki]

One of the piggies called peanut has a little sob story!

My friend got her from a friend of a friend when she found out that the guinea pig was being kept in an indoor cage outdoors in teh middle of winter and there was ice in the cage! My friend literally marched around the house and took the guinea pig as the owner said shed left it out to die and didnt stop her taking it , its now fully healthy but I thought id let you know that somebody did that to an animal!

 

[Claire1973]

So glad you are taking these animals in. - shocking about that poor piggie - unfortunately I also took one in last night that was in this very situation (kept outdoors in a wet cold dirty indoor cage)- so I'm also wondering what's best to look out for and if I should treat with ivermectin? She is moulting heavily this morning! (I have the 1% topical, she weighs 745g so is that just one small drop behind each ear?) I read the link on guinea lynx but am not good with calculations :{

 

[Wiebke]

Personally, I would have both piggies and the rabbit checked over by a good exotics (i.e. rodent savvy) vet upon arrival. Make sure that your rabbit is vaccinated; but I am sure that you are already on top of that one!

Preventative treatment for mites is only necessary if the piggies are not in good fettle. You will get a better product from the vet (who may use more effective injections) or by using xeno50 (which you can get over the internet). As they are not suffering, it is worth the wait for doing it properly.

As to the pellet changeover, I would start with mixing only a bit of pellets in and then slowly up the percentage a bit more every day over the course of 2-3 weeks. If that doesn't work, you can go "cold turkey", but it can take up to three weeks before piggies will accept a new product - I have had one persistent Gertie addict holding out for so long on me! But with lots of good hay and a bit more vitamin C rich or medium rich veg everyday you can easily cover that gap, if necessary.

Anyway, I serve my own piggies a very small sprinkling of muesli on top of their pellets every evening; that keeps my selective feeders happy but doesn't really impact on the diet. I also mix different pellet brands to keep my piggies from being stuck on one particular brand after I got caught out a few times over the years and once had to deal with the Tribe going collectively off the their Burgess Excel for some reason the year before last. Admittedly, using different bags at once is a bit easier with a bigger number of piggies, but it keeps them from getting bored!