Guinea Pigs

[tstmard]

So I've thought about getting one before but as I posted in another thread I had heard that they have heart attack easy. But knowing now that that isn't really true I'm open for getting one again and there's a free 18 month old one in the paper with cage and everything. Of course with most free things I'm sure the cage will be the wrong size. But any of you with experience what do you think. Should I call on it? I still have yet to ask my husband I always to my research first before asking him. And are these good pets for young kids like 3? Of course I always supervise him with the small pets and I do all the care. But it's all a learning experience for him even with all my help. He's becoming a responsible pet owner at a very young age.

[SpickyDavies]

guinne pigs are great :)
there little charcators and munch away and squeak all day!

i say go for the one in the paper
you'd be adopting one and you cna allways buy a new cage & run and things

there great for kids as long as not dropped
but they generally dont bite, unless you get a nasty one

also he'll need a friend!

[keet_tweet4]

You can make your own cages. Here are some links.


www.guineapigcages.com
www.guinealynx.info


They are cute. I want some. lol

[Goldielover]

You just need to be prepared to give them enough space. Most of the guinea pig cages sold in the stores are WAY too small for them. Ours is in a cage designed for rabbits (no, not with a wire base), and its still a little under the recommended size, but not by much. They're real pigs when it comes to their veggies - I swear I spend more on veggies for him than I do for us.:)

[tstmard]

Well upon researching more and finding out how much room they'd need and knowing that I'd need a second one I've decided to wait to get one.:( I just don't have the space for one in my house. I can only fit so many pets in a 1000 sq ft house.:rolleyes:

[Goldielover]

Well, unless you are freaked out by them (lots of people are), how about a rat? They make great pets, and a good rat cage doesn't take up nearly so much floor space as a guinea pig cage can.

[tstmard]

Well, unless you are freaked out by them (lots of people are), how about a rat? They make great pets, and a good rat cage doesn't take up nearly so much floor space as a guinea pig cage can.

I'm not a big fan of rats. However I love gerbils, had 2 when I was younger absolutely loved them. I was just going to try and give that guinea pig a good home but of course right now I don't think I'd be able to. Our next planned pet is a green tree frog for my son. He really wants one so we're making him earn it by helping out around the house and earning stars and each star equals a quarter. So he's got a ways to go but he'll probably end up with it by Christmas.

[softie]

Aww, I'm sorry you decided to wait, but I'm sure another opportunity will come by when you are ready :)

I never had a guinea pig but one of my cousins did. :)

I actually went to a private pet store yesterday to pick up supplies and saw these hairless guinea pigs. They looked like gigantic naked mole rats :eek: They only had a few pieces of hair on their forehead... Does anyone know about these naked guys? :S

I will be moving this thread to the Other Pets board :)

[keet_tweet4]

They are specially bred Guinea pigs, they have loads of health problems. Some people call them "Skinny pigs".

[tstmard]

Yuck doesn't sound like a pet I would like to have. I still wish I could get the one from the paper. It's even a long haired it says. Which I love brushing hair. I go and brush my daughters barbie and my little ponies hair all the time.:o But oh well you can't always have everything you want exactly when you want it.

[Goldielover]

I don't think I'd like a skinny pig either. Our Miles is an Abyssinian type - the ones that look like their coats are in a constant state of bed head.:D

[tstmard]

Those ones are so cute.:D Talking about it is making me want to bust out the measure tape.:D

[rachelle83]

Guinea Pigs make wonderful pets. It's true, they do take up quite a bit of space. But if you make a C&C Cage, you can build it any shape you can think of. They can be L shaped also. They do however need more supplies such as hay 24/7. Not only is it absolutely necessary for their digestion, but their teeth are open rooted which means they never stop growing. The hay is the only true way to keep them filed down. They live up to 9 years, with the average being around 5-7. I know many people with pigs 7 & 8 yrs old.

They also, like humans, can not produce their own Vitamin C. You have to supply this with vegetables high in vitamin C every day to prevent them getting scurvy. The Guinea Pig pellets do have some vitamin c, but it looses potency very rapidly!

Another thing about Pigs, is they are very social animals. They must have a cage mate of the same gender. No matter how much time you think you can spend with a pig. You will never be able to bond like another of the same species.

Honestly, I also do not recommend long hair pigs to novices. You must frequently give hair trims and butt baths to long haired pigs. They tend to get much messier in that area. Brushing them is an everyday thing, it can not be skipped or they will develop tangles very fast.

Here are two links to excellent forums that I am a part of. http://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/index.php is a very good forum. It is a very large forum with many members, but they are very knowledgeable and the amount of information you can get there can never be read in any books websites. The other forum I am a member at as well as a Guinea Guide is http://wheekers.proboards32.com/. Here we are a much smaller forum. It has much more of a family feeling. But there is still loads of knowledgeable people that are more then willing to help someone who is new to Guinea Pigs. We can answer any basic care type questions you could possibly have, but we do not have a medical thread as Guinea Pig cages does.

On GPC my user name is Ziggy&Herald and on Wheekers I am 5boars. As my name suggests I had 5 male Guinea Pigs until my Piggles man passed away recently. I do hope you check them both out. Even if you are just trying to get more information before getting into Guinea Pig ownership. In my opinion, they are much more affectionate then hamsters and gerbils, and it is very rare for one to ever bite. In my experience, the only time one will ever bite is if something is medically wrong.

They are excellent pets with very distinctive personalities. Once you are ready, it would be an excellent pet for your children. Even though mine are for me.

[Goldielover]

Miles screams every time he hears the hay bag being opened, or sees his veggie dish coming his way. :) He gets drops in his water as well as the veggies for his vitamin C. I've been bitten by him once, but that was when he was being introduced to carrots, and mistook my finger for one.:) He also bit the paw of one of the feral felines when it came poking through the cage bars. They keep their paws out now. He was scared of them at first, but has now reached the stage where he will sniff noses through the bars. They're not around during his out of cage time.

[tstmard]

Thanks for all the great info. It's a good thing I decided against getting the long haired one though. Since cleaning 2 human poopy butts(my kids) is enough for me.:XD: I'll just have to keep looking into them and researching them and then maybe one day I'll be able to get one. And while I say it's for my kids it's really for me.:D

[Goldielover]

Chances are the long haired one is being rehomed because the original owner discovered how much work they were.

Cleaning animal poopy butts isn't much fun.:( I spent half of Christmas morning four years ago cleaning the extremely poopy butt of my friend's very pregnant Maltese. Wasn't much fun, but had to be done, as my friend was away in New Zealand. She had the puppies two days later, on the 27th. :)

[softie]

Wow! I never knew those long haired ones actually had long, long hair!

Is this natural? Or was this look created by breeders? :S

[Will]

Chances are the long haired one is being rehomed because the original owner discovered how much work they were.

Cleaning animal poopy butts isn't much fun.:( I spent half of Christmas morning four years ago cleaning the extremely poopy butt of my friend's very pregnant Maltese. Wasn't much fun, but had to be done, as my friend was away in New Zealand. She had the puppies two days later, on the 27th. :)

That's for sure :p I can't count how many poopy butts I've had to clean. Fur getting matted is also a problem with long haried animals.

[Sweety&Tweety]

The skinny pigs, naked ones, can have skin problems and other health problems. The long haired one are beautiful but you have to brush them alot and bathe more often than shorter hair guinea pigs. Pigs make great pets, but they are a lot of work. I love my 8 pigs, but I'm always feeding and cleaning up after them. Some of ours love to get in the bed with my daughter and I and snuggle and kiss us. They can be extremely loving and loyal. So much personality in a little chubby body. I love guinea pigs. My daughter was 3 when we got our first pig and as long as supervised they do great with kids. Mine usually nibble if they need to pee and are telling you to put them back in the cage to do so.

[Brown9944]

Guinea pigs make the cutest noises :D! I would really like to have a Guinea Pig...but I would prefer to have a rabbit first :D lol. But I heard Rabbits were really, really hard work...but they are just so adorable lol :D!.
:cool:.

[Sweety&Tweety]

I've heard rabbits are a lot of work too. I love them and would love to have one, but just concerned about the upkeep. When I was a child I was attacked by our house bunny. But I still love rabbits and bunnies.