new guinea pigs bedding

[Sleephead1]

Hello we have got a gorgeous new baby guinea pig. Just brought him home today I always had them when I was a child but seem to have forgotten some things and feel pretty nervous I've got him inside as thought it was a bit cold for him to be in his cage but I used hay in the bedding area and my friend says I should of used straw. Will he be ok with hay I just don't want to disturb him as they said at the shop to just leave him to settle for 24 hours. He also hasn't eaten or had a drink yet is that ok. Thank you

[QuiteCleanBandit]

Guinea pigs should be kept in pairs
Can you try to get a litter mate ?
Mine have paper bedding and lots of dust extracted hay.

[Sleephead1]

Well I was happy to get two but at pets at home they said don't get two boys as they might fight ? I'm happy to get another one if that's best should I get another cage ? ok il go tomorrow to get bedding is paper best

[QuiteCleanBandit]

What!!!
So shocked at P@H saying that-I have 2 boys and they never fight.
They snuggle up together and live in groups so please get another male .
Paper bedding is better for their lungs as it doesnt irritate .
Lots of fresh water,leafy greens and the odd treat .
Good luck OP !

[52isjustanumber]

Straw shouldn't be used as it's too sharp

[Sleephead1]

Yes they said to just get one boy but he was in with lots of other boys so I thought it was strange but thought maybe it was when they grew up. I don't want him to be lonely and my little boy loves him so much has been checking up on him and telling him he loves him. Il get some paper bedding tomorrow. I can hear him rustling around now he's adorable. Feels like having a new baby

[0h]

Did you buy him on a whim? Because a basic google of caring for guinea pigs tells you they need to be in at least pairs. 1 piggy will be miserable on his own.

I use fleece in my boys cage. Newspaper on the bottom, towels on top and then a layer of fleece. Hay is just in a tray for eating (and scattering everywhere apparently!)

[QuiteCleanBandit]

Mine make tunnels in the hay and sleep in the middle like its a nest

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

The domestic cavy is the only species of guinea pig kept as a pet, living on average for 5 to 6 years. These are sociable animals, so it’s important if you can keep them in pairs.

This is C&P from their own website.
P@H vary so much with their advice (from good to frankly shit)

You might be able to get a littermate or cagemate from the same group he was in.

How big is your cage ?
If you do get a friend , introduce them in neutral territory , don't just put Pig B into Pig As cage, (You can swipe it out with white vinegar to neutralise the smell)

Hay is best for bedding but can vary from place to place. My favourite is Jolleys but I usually get The Range because its nearer.
Straw has no nutrition and can be too sharp for a piglet .
I use newspaper and hay . In Summer I use shredded looroll tubes and less hay (it heats them)

He will eat when he feels it is safe, at the moment he'll be confused and scared.

I've kept 2 boars (brothers) then bonded a piglet with a bereaved boar.
Size of cage is a huge,huge issue when keeping boars happy.

[Sleephead1]

no not on a whim at all it's planned for his birthday present and weve been getting all the things ready for him for weeks and I was very happy to get 2 but I was told not to by the staff at pets at home as he's a boy and they might fight so I went with there advice. I had them as pets as a child and think they are perfect pets so was just waiting till my little boy was old enough They said he wouldnt be lonley as he will be having lots of interaction from us. I am very happy to get another one but I asked about it and was told not to.

[Sleephead1]

Thank you so much for all your advice he was in with 5 other boys so maybe I could get one of them as they where all running around playing together. I've got a wooden cage for outdoors but I've got it in at the moment. Oh so it's ok to use the hay I've used it for now I've got paper in the bottom and chipping on the bottomand lots and lots of hay he's rustling about so that's good.

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

It's illegal to keep one guinea-pig in Switzerland

I've had GP1 alone for 6 days while I waited or GP3 , then GP3 alone for 6 days while I waited for GP4/GP5.
The lone guinea-pig was bereaved and it was the saddest thing to witness. They slept in DD room and went out to the Pighouse by day where they had their familiar smells till we made it all PigNeutral .

Mine are all nearly 4yo. They really do need the company of other piggies. Once we lose two of ours , I'll keep the last one in DD bedroom /the sitting room ( they'll have 2 cages) , I don't think I'll go back along the piggie adopting spiral. But I'm hoping it won't happen for a good few years .


I'm betting my breeches that your local P@H has had customers complaining about boars fighting (because they're cages are too bloody small)

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

chipping- d'you mean shavings?
No sawdust or woodshavings for piggies. Too respiratory sensitive .

[applesandpears56]

We got one of those heat pad things to put in their cage at night. You put in microwave to heat up and it’s warm for 6-10 hours. It’s pet safe. Can’t remember its name sorry

[applesandpears56]

70 what should you use instead of sawdust?

[Sleephead1]

Right well i will definatly go back then i would hate him to be lonley. Yes of course o guess that coukd be whats happened i did think it was strange. Yes sorry shavings I couldn't remember the name of them.

[applesandpears56]

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[applesandpears56]

Snugglesafe

[BetterEatCheese]

Mine have wood based pellets - sold as cat litter and superb for pigs

[BetterEatCheese]

Oh and I have 2 boy pigs and although they used to fight, it was never that bad and they sorted out their issues and live happily now.

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

Woodbased cat litter - it will say on the pack if its rodent safe (I buy big yellow bags from The Range. I've seen some in Jolleys )

Or equine bedding like Megazorb or Auboise (hemp based) . Non dusty and non scented.
I go up to a local Saddlerly to buy Ecobale (chopped fardboard) but as I;m extremely mean , I use my household card and shred it. Takes a while, and its a bit messy............but guinea pigs are messy .(Hay gets everywhere )

Or you can use fleece on newspaper or Vetbed.

My caves don't tend to chew bedding so I use puppypads. They do chew their cardboard though.

Have you looked at C&C cages online? With piglets you'd need to overlap the holes but you can adjust and customise their cage?

[0h]

My boys bicker daily (same as my human boys!) but it's just grumbling at each other though they get proper arsey with each other 3 days after I've cleaned out the cage completely.

So I do a full change every third day and they're happy again. Think they're all teenagery plus combined with Spring madness!

They're actually pretty close and enjoy a wee cuddle together. Sometimes.

[RavenLG]

As others have said they should be in pairs. P@H are shit though. They preach about animal welfare but most of their animals are kept in tiny, cramped cages, mixed sexed unneutered animals and as OP has shown, the staff are untrained.

Firstly, I'd check it was actually male. There are handy instructions online but possibly a vet, I'd get health checked asap anyway.

We have a C&C cage with fleece bedding towels first on the coroplast with a layer of fleece. This is spot cleaned twice a day for poop, and fully changed twice a week.

They should have an unlimited supply of hay (no straw, it's too hard as they can be susceptible to eye pokes) for dietary reasons, and unrestricted (so not in a hay ball or rack which are dangerous anyway). The more hay the better as it's great for sleeping, eating and playing in, it also is key in keeping their teeth ground down.

Get good quality, low calcium pellets (for adult pigs, younger pigs can have higher levels of calcium as they are growing) (no colourful ones). They should have a weighed amount of these a day and about a cup of veggies a day.

A good selection is key but they should be getting lots of vitamin C (bell peppers are great for this, ours will eat greens but don't like red or yellow too much). Leafy greens are a staple, but things like kale, spinach etc are high in calcium so limit to once or twice a week. Don't feed iceberg lettuce as can cause stomach issues. Gassy veg like broccoli, cabbage should be monitored as some are susceptible to bloat. Ours are ok, and eat loads of hay so are ok, but again once a twice a week. Fruit at a minimum for the sugar content, we give them maybe a grape a week lol (but we don't eat a lot of fruit anyway).

Boys will argue, but it's normal. You will need to introduce them sensibly. Lots of food and hay to keep distracted. Rumbling noises are just a sign of dominance, They can square up to each other and chatter teeth too. Chasing is normal, but watch out for them fighting properly. When blood is drawn they can't live together anymore.

We've had our two boys 3 years now and they rumble all the time, but then snuggle up together.

[PearsandCustard]

An alternative to going back to Pets at Home for another is to try a local rescue. I know there's one near us that will match a lonely rescue pig to yours by careful introduction to see how they get on. If you could do it that way you could give a rescue piggie a lovely home whilst not encouraging the ignorance that is Pets at Home.

[TimeIhadaNameChange]

DP got my boys from P@H, on sale at one for £x and two for a discount. Even he knew that they needed to be in pairs, at least, and was surprised that P@H would have let him buy just one, or two and leave one on his own. He was also peeved that he had to pay the full price (as it were) for the third.

They got on fine together. There was quite a lot of humping to start with, but nothing serious, and I'd spend one day feeling very sorry for A, only for him to be doing all the humping the next day and me feeling sorry for B and C instead! They never fought, and, in fact, A and B were really good with C who became seriously ill after a few months and, though he outlived the others, was hyperactive and probably drove his brothers up the wall crashing into them the whole time. But they never reacted badly to him.

[Lowdoorinthewal1]

I have a bereaved boar. My local P@H have a 10 week old boar who is alone as last to be sold. Today they wouldn't sell him to me because 'males can't live together and an adult male will definitely kill a baby'.

4 staff stood there (conversation at empty till) so not just one rogue.