Where do we start?

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Betto2

Hi, Ive just joined these forums as we want to buy a guinea pig for my little boy who has delayed speech and when he's around animals he tries to speak so we're hoping perhaps a small animal will help.

However having never own a pet myself I have no idea where to go and what to buy.

Do we just go to a pet shop and buy a cage, bedding and food etc and then look for a guinea pig. Do we need to buy two as I've heard that they are social animals and like to live in pairs? We want to keep it indoors, although we would get a run for outside! Is this ok?

Sorry if I sound a little thick, i've only got experience of goldfish!

Thanks for your help,
Betto2
 
Hello and welcome to the forum

What a lovely idea on having a Guinea Pig for your son and i understand this completely

Guinea Pigs are lovely creatures who thrive in pairs or groups of girls, or pairs of boys

You can buy an indoor cage from a pet shop or check out the local free ad pages for a cheaper cage etc.

This is a Pro Rescue site so you can adopt Guinea Pigs from Rescues or you can get from a pet shop no-one will hinder your decision either its your personal choice

You will need Hay and most folk use shavings but there are plenty of choices out there, having a look through the site in the different catergories and you will find plenty of information there or if you dont just ask away
 
please look on this site at the rescue forum as there are lots of piggies needing good homes. I have only had guineas since march & I wouldn't be without them.I read loads of books first (i work in a library so had plenty to choose from) Any by Peter Gurney are brill.Yes you would need to get two but make sure they are the same sex otherwise you could end up with lots of babies (unfortunately mine were missed sexed & I've ended up with one of each & have had to separate them luckily I'd bought a double hutch so Coco is upstairs & smudge is downstairs so at least they can still wheek to each other.)There are lots of members on this forum who will give you loads of good advice...I'm still only a novice but I've learned soo much in the last few months
 
Hi Betto2
Welcome to the forum
for indoors you can get an indoor cage plastic botom wire top that needs to be at least 120cm long for two guineas and a big a run as you can get
for outsideguineas need hay to chew on like rabbits
but you need to get guinea pig food as they can't make vitamin C so need pleanty in their food pellets are good as it stops them picking out their favs
you can use alsorts of bedding i use towels and vet bed its personal choice but check out all the forum threads as you will find your answers here somewhere if not just ask away!
Ron
 
Hello Betto2,

You have come to the best place, that you could find! There are lots of good people on these boards and you will find them a wealth, of help and support and none more so than Ron :)p

I hope you enjoy the boards and love your pet as much as well all do ours! Whichever pet you go for, and hope I that it helps you and your son in the best way possible.

I myself think Guinea pigs are the best as they are so friendly.

Tara for now :)p :)p :)p and welcome to the boards :)p
 
Hi and welcome. I have had an abundance of pets throughout mylife but have to say guineas are without doubt my favourites (don't tell my rabbits i said that).

I have 2 young children who worship the pigs and find them a great source of comfort and entertainment.

Personally i would recommend a pair rather than a single since you then get the pleasure of watching them play, interact and hearing them speak to each other.

Have a good look through the housing section on here for cage ideas/requirements and don't be afraid to ask ? after ? after ? on any topic.
 
Hi welcome to the forum :)

I would just like to echo the above posts. Rescues are often full to bursting and always appreciate people who do their homework and will be a constant source of help and support, long after you have taken the piggies home. If you do decide to go down the rescue route, I'm sure the other forum members will be able to help you locate a rescue close to you.

Good luck :)
 
Hiya. Welcome to the forum.

I think that getting guinea pigs for your little boy is a brilliant. I would follow everyone's advice above. I got my 2 from a pet shop but would get any future piggies from a rescue centre.

I came on this site for information before getting my 2. Everyone is really nice and so helpful on here and will help you in anyway that they can.

It can cost a little bit of money to begin with getting everything that you need but they are worth every penny. You must ensure that they have a constant supply of fresh hay for eatting (preferably in a rack so that it's off the floor), pellets/muesli and fresh vegetables every day. There is a thread in the food section that has a list of fruit/vegetables that are suitable for guinea pigs - I refer to this list every time I go shopping.

Good luck getting the piggies. Let us know how you get on (with pictures).
 
Just to Echo what the others have said. :) PetCook is my partner and our daughter Emily had some speech delay and the pigs really helped her come on. She is fine now. :)

Rescue is the way to go a nice pairing would be a neutered boar and a sow. :)

Good luck and welcome to the forum,

Louise
x
 
welcome to the forum,

piggies make great pets, i keep mine inside and love the company they give me.

good luck
 
We got them!

Thanks everyone for all your help and advice. We visited Pets At Home Saturday afternoon to have a look and my son just fell in love with one of the Guinea Pigs, so we ended up buying them from there. I know we should have waited and gone to our local rescue centre but we couldn't resist! They were very helpful and we bought a very large indoor cage, bedding, hay, food, treats, toys, vitamins, wooded sticks etc.

Anyway, they are two sows and we have named them Thelma and Louise. They are quite feisty at the moment and don't really like to be held but I understand this will take time, so we are just leaving them to settle in and they come out of their house ever so often for food and water and seem happy. Making loads of sounds, chatting away to each other etc. My son is fasinated and I'm really pleased.

I am sure I will be on here quite often getting more advise and seeing how you all are getting on with your piggies.

Here are a couples of pictures I took earlier.

Thanks again,
Betto2 xx
 

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Aww, two sweeties you have there! I am sure you'll find them very adorable and later on accomodating to your needs -c

Enjoy and love them loads
 
Hiya,

They are lovely. :) My advice is just ensure they are both female. Not meaning to scare but lots of pigs from petshops are missexed. Have a look here http://cavyspirit.com/sexing.htm or you could whizz them to the vet for sexing which is what we did with our boars as I was convinced Sunshine was female at first! :{

Being a Louise myself I love the names. There is no need for vitamin drops though as they will get all the vitamins they need in a good pellet (I use Guinea Pig Excel) and vegetables. 1/8th of a green pepper per day is the daily requirements of vitamin c for a pig because they are like us humans and can't make their own vitamin c up. :)

Good luck with them, if you need to ask anything just bombard us with questions!

Louise
x
 
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