Guinea Pigs

[Tw1nkle]

Hiya,
Just thinking about getting some Guinea Pigs, and have loads of questions!!

Do they run and hide under things when they are out of their (like Hamsters!)
Do they bite?
Are they good with children?
Good points?
Bad points?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I've had hamsters in the past, but they are far too fast, chew everything, and haven't been too firendly (i.e. not fussed with being held/loved!!!)

Thanks.

They are great pets.

They will disappear if you don't hold onto them - though could probably be tempted out for some parsley.

Ours never bit and I think they would be good for children as they are really gentle. However they are quite delicate - I think they can die from very small drops.

They can be trained to be friendly and ours liked to be held and stroked.

I think that they are best kept in groups and inside.

Peter Gurney's books on guinea pigs are excellent.

The only downside I can think of is that vets are generally not very clued up on guinea pigs as they don't see a lot of them. The Cambridge Cavy Trust is excellent though.

Deffo min of two. They do not like living alone.

we had two guinea pigs [one has just died :( ] they are lovely pets, really easy to handle, very loving, much better for children than rabbits, ours come up to you and love fuss, although dd spends loads of time with hers, :o

but please get at least two, they dont like it on their own.