Happy piggies!

[Sleepingbunnies]

I have 2 very happy piggies this evening... I'v bought their outdoor run into our kitchen and they are now running round squeaking like mad things going in and out of tunnels and generally making noises like they are in piggy paradise!

DP thinks I'm mad but i'v just sat for ages watching them go mental... De stresses me after a shit day at work!

How are your piggies this evening?

:)

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

I've got my GP outdoor run set up in our garage (it's upside-down so the roof is the floor.I put loads of cardboard in it to protect their baby feet)
My DD goes in to chat and play with them.
Usually we put them in at the weekend when I give the Pighouse a proper clean.

I once put my boars on the bathroom floor and they sat- nose to tail (if they had tails) watching each others backs.


I think a guinea excerciser is a brilliant idea.
One of the GPs I had as a child (a homebred Abby Himalayan female) used to swim. If she was in the bath, we put a folded up towel in the shallower end if she wanted to rest but she went back and forth for ages.
When we bath the boys we can see the concentration on their little faces to work out how they can jump out. That's about as energetic as they get

[guineapiglet]

Hi - popcorning is when your guinea is trying to tell you s/he is pleased/overexcited/very happy, usually jumping madly around the place and shrieking in a loud voice! This may vary, look at You Tube for some wonderful examples, who says they dont express feelings!?- They often do this when you return them to their cage when it has been cleaned out, when you give them their best food, when they are having lots of fun outside and want to show their pleasure, wonderful to watch. Mrs SHrekdo you have an outdoor run, but these can be put in a garage for an hour or so, stuffed with newspaper and hay so that they can run around, or a safe place with no hidey holes like a kitchen - supervised play in other words. My daughter used to do stair climbing with ours in the winter, or they used to free range around the basement ( Tiled floor, lots of newspaper). IF it warms up, they can go outside for an hour or so a day as long as not too cold - but I keep saying on these threads that between us we need to come up with a guinea exercisor, like a hamster wheel type thing, to put before the dragons on Dragon's Den. Then we can make our millions < goes back to the drawing board - how about a guineapig mill which produces electricity?>

[MrsShrek3]

tell me, please...what's popcorning?
ours are still in the porch. in their outdoor Hutch. I'm concerned they don't get enough exercise.... the dc get them out whenever possible and they get the occasional adventure into a cardboard box, but no good run. any thoughts?

[Sleepingbunnies]

Have bought them the willow tunnels to chew on :)

[Sleepingbunnies]

Have just bought my girls back in after them being out all day because we had an estate agent inspection... They sound like they are bloody purring at me??!

[guineapiglet]

Yes, Id agree with you 70 - gnawing is important as their teeth need constant wearing down, they need to keep their mouths busy! We had a girl who used to chew the plastic igloos, which used to worry me alot, nothing we tried would stop her. We got her some hanging chew things which she studiously ignored and treated with the utmost contempt! I used to give the girls half slices of bread to keep them chewing and other things like tougher veggies ( hard carrots/parsnips) so they could try their teeth on them. Nothing like the taste of wood though, just be a bit careful of splinters, and cover rough bits up if you can..... invest in a large haybale otherwise and they can chomp to their hearts content!

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

Sleeping it might be they like the flavour of the wood. They are rodents after all and it's their instinct to chew to keep their teeth down.

I've never found my GPs are 'toy' people.They like a few boxes and a tube to run through but that is it.

One of mine decided that 11.30 pm was as good a time as any to chew the cardboard box in the cage.
(I suspect GP2 ,he's usually the culprit)

[FernieB]

sleepingbunnies - they are not unhappy, they are just being obtuse like mine. No matter how many other lovely chewable things I stick in their run with them, they want to eat the wood. I end up putting all their tunnels etc against the wood so they can't reach much of it.

[Sleepingbunnies]

Ok, any ideas anyone, my piggies are gnawing at the wood all around the run. They have plenty of tunnels and balls and things to eat but ever since they have been in they have been gnawing at the wood...

I'm worried that they are unhappy? :(

[bluebump]

I got an indoor/outdoor run for £20 max on eBay, it's also a dog pen I think. It comes with a plasticky base sheet that I cover in newspaper etc and they have a bed each to sleep in and various tubes and toys. In the summer you can put the run outside minus the base and it has tent pegs to keep it steady, a net to stop cats getting in and a shaded top sheet thing. It's massive too, I have taken one of the panels out to fit it inside. It's easy to change out and doesn't really smell as I use cage disinfectant on the sheet and change them out at least twice a week (just roll up the base sheet and empty it in the recycling!)

[AfterEightMintyy]

Peggy is beside me in her large indoor cage, running about and wheeking and standing up at the bars for a green bean. She's had about 6 already! She looks lonely though (we lost her sister Cookie last month ) but I have been in touch with a rescue place and we are going to visit and hopefully find her a new companion this week. So excited!!

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

Sleeping have you looked on Ebay/Freecycle for cages?

Or a deep sided paddling pool? Might not be as easy to find as in the summer but I got a small one from Argos for under £4 (I put a towel in so the DC can put the boys in for a pee.They are quite good at letting us know)


Or at a pinch- a really sturdy cardboard box (it would only last a short while.You'd need to line it.Car mats and newspaper maybe. As long as there are no loose bits to get their teeth into.And you provide lots of hay to chew)?

[Sleepingbunnies]

Had to put ours back in the hutch today as had people over and the run is massive but have just bought them back in as apparently it's going to get down to -1 tonight...

I really need to get an indoor cage sorted but funds are low this month :(

Love seeing them run around anyway and they keep shouting everytime we go to the fridge!

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

I'll have to get DD to download the pics onto the computer

My boys will be in at night now (past 2 nights were below zero and I'm sure it'll get worse)
They can still go out in the day to their Pighouse during the day. I can set the heater to come on 20 mins before they go out and put the thermostst on to make sure it doesn't drop below a given temperature. They'll have their fresh hay daily in the haybox.

At night they'll be in the box room (which is IRL my storage/duvets/towels and laundry basket room) so I'll be putting corks in them to stop them from diffusing their boar aroma in there.
Hay cookies (solid discs of hay- ££ but less messy) + veg + two boxes filled with shredded paper to fulfill their hog urge to furtle )

I'm going to lob a duvet over the top (it works for parrots doesn't it ) to keep them quiet.

[Sleepingbunnies]

We need to see these pictures 70!

fern mine love all the packaging that amazon send! They play with th paper for hours!

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

My DD has pictures on her DSi (I must try and upload some) - the GPs in Santa hats, GP1 in a Jubilee hat and one of those photos that you 'doodle' on that we turned him into an Easter Bunny (the shame of it)

[FernieB]

Have 2 very happy pigs today. They are loving online shopping - not only does it mean I can stay at home more to fetch things from the fridge for them, but everything is delivered in lovely boxes. The latest box arrived this morning and is huge - it is now a pig cottage. My boys have spent the morning running in and out and popcorning. They tired themselves out so I've just put them down for an afternoon nap.

[SantaKissedBonkeyMollocks]

I will have a go later! and probably get bitten in the process

[Sleepingbunnies]

Do it!!! Then upload.....

[SantaKissedBonkeyMollocks]

I actually have what would be a guinea sized Santa hat!

[Sleepingbunnies]

guineapiglet I shall have to get them hats now you said that....

[guineapiglet]

Merci buckets Sounds like the GPs are happy and getting you all organised ( we think we are getting THEM organised, we are so wrong!) Enjoy having them inside, hope they stay warm, dry and indulged

[mercibucket]

Lots of happy wheeeeeeeeping noises last night :)

[mercibucket]

Lots of happy wheeeeeeeeping noises last night :)

[guineapiglet]

Oh Kritiq you do make me laugh, especially re the hair cut - Im sure he is MUCH more handsome than Jedward, and can certainly communicate better:) - loved his message to us all, now just need some Bletchley type decoding.
THis will be our first Christmas without guineas for 8 years, - I really will miss my Christmas cuddles and christmas breakfast morning preparing sprout leaves - they never like them, but a special treat was always their present, usually spinach, banana skin (!) or bread, which they loved..... never had peach coloured wee tho' ... Looking forward to seeing all your christmas pics with guineas wearing hats etc !