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Original poster

Please talk to me about guinea pigs

20 replies

shallweshantwe · 20/04/2010 11:16

I am new around here so hello

For the last year or so we've been thinking about getting a guinea pig, has anyone got any advice for us?

We have 2 DC, 2yr and 4yr. Both very keen, gentle with animals and very loving and have both had quite a lot of guinea pig handling experience from friends.

We've got a big garden with a large and spacious lawn. DH is a handy man and is going to build a nice big run.

Some questions, does anyone keep a guinea pig in the house? Does it smell?

What about vet bills? What sort of health issues could we expect from a guinea pig?

What are their temperament generally like?

TIA

OP posts:
Joolyjoolyjoo · 20/04/2010 11:23

Guinea pigs make good pets for children (although obviously you will be doing all the cleaning out etc!), but they really are better in pairs, so I would get two

As far as vet bills go, they don't need vaccines. They can get sick, like any animal, but costs are usually smaller than say a cat or dog. They don't have the same teeth problems etc as rabbits. They are not the most hardy of animals, though, so when they do get sick, you need to act quickly! They can get mites, which cause hair loss and itching, but aren't transmittable to humans. They occasionally have urinary problems.

They are not terribly smelly, as long as you clean them out regularly, and tehy are generally good natured (if sometimes a little nervous/ shy) HTH!

Original poster
shallweshantwe · 20/04/2010 11:29

Thanks for the reply Joolyjoolyjoo. I fully take on responsibility for cleaning it out

How important is it for them to live in pairs? It's our first family pet, and first pet for DH and I since our childhood, so long, long time. I don't want to jump in and get 2 iygwim. It would be handled, cared and loved multiple times a day. Is that not enough?

OP posts:
Goingspare · 20/04/2010 11:37

They are lovely animals, but very small children may find their shyness a bit disappointing. If yours have some prior experience it might be OK though.

You definitely need two, and a good sized hutch (cage if they're indoors). Try and get a recommendation from someone for a good vet - many vets don't have much guinea pig knowledge, in spite of them being quite popular pets.

Take heed from our pet shop experience: very reputable shop, animals well cared for, but we inadvertently brought home two very young pregnant females, and ended up with 5 extra males. This is not uncommon. There are many unwanted guinea pigs in rescue centres, where the staff tend to have a bit more idea about their sex and potential health problems, so you might want to look into that (even if you want young pigs - they may get loads of pregnant sows and unwanted babies passing through).

Of the three we have now, two are (fingers crossed) very healthy, but one has chronic dental problems.

OnlyWantsOne · 20/04/2010 11:39

I have some babies that need homes, if you live in East Anglia - I bought a sow and she was pregnant - these babies are def not!!!!!

VotingBlue · 20/04/2010 11:40

Usually they like to live in pairs or more, but thats not necessarily the case, especially if you get a male one as they can be a bit dominant and aggressive (at least ours was )

He was very happy on his own.The only thing was that he rarely squeaked much and maybe that was because he was a loner ?

We got ours from a rescue lady who had literally 100s in a single garage !!!

We explained our requirements (similar to yours) and she came up with 4 for us to choose from which had the right temperment.

I cant recommend rescue centres highly enough. Please look there first before going down the pet shop route.

Beauregard · 20/04/2010 11:41

We keep our guineas in the house and no they dont smell because we clean them out every other day.

Goingspare · 20/04/2010 11:41

See what I mean?!

Goingspare · 20/04/2010 11:41

(OnlyWantsOne I mean).

bruffin · 20/04/2010 11:53

We have two that live in the garden, out in the run most of the day. We bought two from the local pet shop which we trust. One of them died after a year and we managed to get a baby from a breader for company.
The older one is much friendlier and he calls to us when we go out in the garden and loves a cuddle.
the younger one is a pedigree and knows it but he doesn't mind being handled either.

Original poster
shallweshantwe · 20/04/2010 12:14

Thank you all.

OnlyWantsOne, sadly we are miles and miles from you! Thanks for the offer though

I naturally was heading down the pet store route, however will look into rescue centers. How do I go about finding a local one? Any recommendations?

I once had a rescue rabbit who'd come from a bad home, she was very timid but had a very aggressive side (I still have the scars!) anyway it took me a very long time to tame her. Sadly the local hunt passed past our house and the hounds broke into the garden, ripped her cage apart and well.....you can guess the rest

Can you usually tell if a guinea pig has an aggressive side? In all honesty I don't want to end up the same route as my beloved childhood rabbit, especially now that the DC are involved

OP posts:
OnlyWantsOne · 20/04/2010 12:22

Please do look at rescue, I have a 4 year old Gpig who has been rehomed 3 times - hes free range in the garden and puts himself to bed at night, he sits on my back doorstep and is the nicest Gpig I have ever had

Goingspare · 20/04/2010 12:24

OWO - sounds like a happy life, but what do you do about predators? Cats are always sniffing round our runs.

OnlyWantsOne · 20/04/2010 12:42

I have 2 cats, and they are scared of him for some reason and run away / sit on the roof of his hutch and watch him walk round the garden. He's a big boy and we havent had any bother, I have 4 other Gpigs who live in my converted shed, and they have a run (because they are smaller and the cats would munch them)

kingprawntikka · 20/04/2010 12:44

You definitely need to keep two guinea pigs , they are social animals and however much human attention you give it will never compensate for fellow guinea pig company. We keep two males in the house and they do not smell. They are fully cleaned out every three days and spot cleaned every day. They need the biggest cage you are able to afford, with a minimum of 7.5 square feet for two pigs.
When I have needed to take ours to the vet it has been in the region of £20-£30.
We also have a run they play in for a few hours a day when its a nice day.

Original poster
shallweshantwe · 20/04/2010 12:48

I will look at rescue. Your GP sounds totally adorable OWO!

OP posts:
mablemurple · 20/04/2010 12:50

Don't be put off if they try to bite you at first - they need to get used to being handled, so the more you do it, the better. We keep our gps indoors, as I like our pets to be part of the family, but you do need to clean them out several times a week. If you get a large plastic based cage, this only takes about ten minutes to do.
Even though they are in a separate room to the kitchen, they can hear the fridge door opening and immediately they start squeaking for their veg! They are much more interesting than hamsters or rabbits, imo.

Goingspare · 20/04/2010 13:00

Wow, OWO - an intimidating guinea pig! Or very wet cats.

OnlyWantsOne · 20/04/2010 13:03

A bit of both probably !!!

TinyPawz · 20/04/2010 13:12

I had Gpigs growing up. They are very very social animals..1 died just before Xmas, I swear theat the other died of a broken heart a few months later

bruffin · 20/04/2010 13:19

If you have outdoor gps is twilight their favorite time of day?

Ours come out and sit on the roof of their shelter at that time, then have a really good run around before we put them in their hutch for the night.

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