|
Two gerbil related questions. How far is it safe for them to jump/fall from? When making their play pen space, I want to know what is safe for them. On a similar note, I am going to make them some wood houses for play time and for their cage, does anyone know what kind of glues are not okay to use?
|
#
?
Nov 21, 2015 04:13
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 21, 2024 12:59 |
|
|
Daily Forecast posted:Does anybody have experience with owning both chinchillas and cats? Is it pretty much Always A Bad Idea or can it work with the right cat? I wouldn't do it unless you have a way to keep the chinchilla and the cat separated. I have chinchillas and when I was in college I'd take them home for Christmas break and then my sister decided to take her cat home too. They had a tall cage so they could scamper up and away and the cat couldn't get anywhere close to them but the cat was absolutely fixated on them at any point they were in her range of vision. I let them out to run around with the cat secured on the other side of a locked glass door and you could tell she wanted to destroy them. I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving them alone together even with the cage. I have dogs and chinchillas and they get along okay though. I never let them loose together but the dogs generally leave them alone when they're in their cages and they've been taught that they are not to mess with the chinchillas ever. They're herding dogs though so they don't really have the GET THE THING mindset.
|
|
#
?
Nov 21, 2015 05:08
|
|
|
Cats kill for sport, you shouldn't trust them around anything smaller unless they nursed it themselves.
|
|
#
?
Nov 21, 2015 07:27
|
|
|
Xoidanor posted:Cats kill for sport, you shouldn't trust them around anything smaller unless they nursed it themselves. Eh my cat is scared of pigs I have had, but she's 6 lbs so she is barely bigger than them Speaking of pigs Fatness just bit the HOLY HELL out of my thumb out of nowhere. She was hanging on my lap doing the Light Nibbles on my hand and accepting pets and chomped down on my thumb and now it's bleeding. I put her immediately back and scolded her (for as much as it will do) and she seems honestly confused why I put her back, all poking her head out of her hut staring at me like she wasn't done with pets.
|
|
#
?
Nov 21, 2015 09:04
|
|
|
I became a spur-of-the-moment guinea pig owner yesterday. My sister's in-laws had him and couldn't afford to care for him properly anymore, and I have 6 fish tanks, a Pacman frog, and a baby aquatic turtle so I didn't feel too daunted about taking him on. He's pretty big and fat so losing weight may be a concern. (Weighing him didn't go very well because he wouldn't stay still and is bigger than my small scale, but it looks like he weighs at least 2 pounds). I have no idea how old he is but he seems to be an adult, and he is male but I don't know if he has been neutered. He looks healthy and well-groomed and is surprisingly friendly, not particularly scared of us and showing no aggression. He's been living in a fairly small cage that's 3 1/2 sq ft, with a ton of shredded paper for bedding, and being fed some kind of generic pellet food. He does not have any hay, but there's something clipped to the side of the cage that looks like a hay holder so they may have just run out. The cage also came with a food bowl, water bottle, and clip-on wooden guinea pig toy. I know nothing about guinea pigs and am a total guineadiot newbie but I am prepared to learn. So far I've ascertained that I need to throw all this paper out ASAP and get proper bedding, I'm going to try to go with Carefresh. Also Timothy hay ASAP, fresh veggies, high-end good quality pellet food, vitamin C supplement, and a pigloo. I may not be able to get a larger cage for a bit but he's going to be taken out regularly and allowed to roam around a small area while supervised; I may get a playpen for that purpose. I've seen salt licks for hamsters but guinea pigs don't seem to need those, do they? And is exposure to sunlight important for them at all? I'm used to caring for fish and reptiles, not warm-blooded mammals, so the idea that the cage does not have to be heated and have UVB lighting is foreign to me, but I am learning. Basically I just want to know what all needs to be on my shopping list to get this guy everything he needs. republicant fucked around with this message at 02:02 on Nov 28, 2015 |
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 01:47
|
|
|
So sounds like you got a lot of the basic down Pigs do not need direct sunlight and I've seen it advised against because of their eyes and the chance to maybe overheat them Make sure its a solid bottom cage, they can hurt themselves on wire They need nail trimmings every nearly year, take it to the vet if you have an uncooperative one (like mine) The cage size might be fine for one if its getting floor time or doesn't care. When I lost one of mine so I was down to 1, the remaining doesn't give a crap about having all the space and really only stays in one half.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 02:05
|
|
|
You may want to consider getting your new pig a friend somewhere down the line if you're not able to give him plenty of attention on a daily basis due to having a job or whatever. Guinea pigs are herd animals.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 03:55
|
|
|
I have 3 gerbils, and two of them are now wounded. They have blood on them, one's got a nasty wound on her rear leg, the other one's got a bit of a bite on a shoulder. The 3rd gerbil appears to have no blood on her at all. From what i've read, it sounds like I won't be able to keep all 3 of them. But i'm not sure which one would be the trouble maker. The two that are wounded both looked like they were in heat today, both pushing their butts in the air and they were basically connected at the hip all day today. One was always on the other one, even during play time. Any advice would be wonderful, I feel so out of my depth!
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 07:40
|
|
|
Thank you guys for the advice! Is it normal to have to chase a pig down to take him out of the cage? He runs away from my hands and I'm careful not to hurt him, but I have to block him into a corner to pick him up. Will he get less scared of me as he gets to know me and be easier to pick up, or is that just part of their instincts as a prey animal to try to run away?
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 08:30
|
|
|
republicant posted:Thank you guys for the advice! Is it normal to have to chase a pig down to take him out of the cage? He runs away from my hands and I'm careful not to hurt him, but I have to block him into a corner to pick him up. Will he get less scared of me as he gets to know me and be easier to pick up, or is that just part of their instincts as a prey animal to try to run away? He'll get a bit less scared over time, try bribing him with the occasional bit of fruit, but by-and-large Guinea Pigs always fear THE HANDS as a prey instinct. They'll calm right down once they're on your lap for a cuddle or running around the floor of the room to hang out with you though.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 08:35
|
|
|
When he makes that little typical guinea pig "whoop whoop" noise, does it mean anything in particular or is it maybe dependent on context? Say he's laying on my chest, relaxed and unafraid, and I pet his butt and he starts whooping? Does that mean he's happy and likes it, or that he's unhappy and doesn't like being touched there? I've been told it's a sign of fear but he makes the noise in situations where it doesn't seem like he should be afraid, for example I'm laying down with him right now not touching him and he's walking around on my torso whooping.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 08:53
|
|
|
It can mean a few things, generally I treat it as an "I'm interested / excited!" noise. If he's pissed off you'll hear him make a low rumbly noise.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 09:04
|
|
|
republicant posted:When he makes that little typical guinea pig "whoop whoop" noise, does it mean anything in particular or is it maybe dependent on context? Say he's laying on my chest, relaxed and unafraid, and I pet his butt and he starts whooping? Does that mean he's happy and likes it, or that he's unhappy and doesn't like being touched there? I've been told it's a sign of fear but he makes the noise in situations where it doesn't seem like he should be afraid, for example I'm laying down with him right now not touching him and he's walking around on my torso whooping. I think we'd need to hear but as you can see this is my pig's default noise when Things Exist https://www.facebook.com/battlepope/videos/10101522049313015/ Of course 10 seconds after I stopped filming she bit me hard enough to break the skin so what do I know
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 09:26
|
|
|
Adult Sword Owner posted:I think we'd need to hear but as you can see this is my pig's default noise when Things Exist That is a beautiful pig, she seems really sweet too. I think it makes sense that it would be a general "You have my attention" noise, and as I get to know my pig better I'll probably be able to tell exactly what he's saying. I took this pig on because he needed a home, I didn't choose him specifically, but I'm starting to wish he'd been female instead because I'm reading about boar cleanings and wowww. I'm up for it because I'm not just going to ditch this poor little animal and it'll probably be good practice for changing diapers one day, but WOW. I'm willing to bet the in-laws never ever ever cleaned his anal sac so I have no idea what I'm going to find in there. If anyone has a boar and has any tips on butt cleanings then it would be appreciated. I don't understand how they manage in the wild, do the pigs clean each other's pouches out? I'm going to add lots and lots of gloves, mineral oil, cotton swabs/balls, and Dawn dish detergent to the supply shopping list. edit: I watched a video of a boar cleaning and it's actually not as horrifying as I was imagining it to be. Fingers very crossed that the little guy won't have an impaction but I'm expecting that he will. republicant fucked around with this message at 11:15 on Nov 28, 2015 |
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 11:00
|
|
|
In general pigs' pouches only get really nasty as they get older and can't expel everything themselves as their muscles get weaker. It's not a problem in the wild because in the wild there's no such thing as an old pig.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 12:07
|
|
|
Party Boat posted:In general pigs' pouches only get really nasty as they get older and can't expel everything themselves as their muscles get weaker. It's not a problem in the wild because in the wild there's no such thing as an old pig. You either die a young pig or live long enough to become a meal
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2015 19:41
|
|
|
I usually buy all my pet supplies online from Amazon for vastly cheaper than in pet stores, but I needed to get all the stuff my pig needs ASAP. Petco had a Black Friday sale that extended to Saturday too, and one of the good deals was 50% off all Carefresh bedding, hay, and food, so that worked out extremely well for me. I got two 64 oz bags of Carefresh Timothy hay, and a 60L bag of Carefresh complete small animal bedding. Instead of Carefresh food I went with Supreme Science Selective guinea pig food, it has no bright colors, no nuts or seeds, no added sugar, and is fortified with vitamin C and has a bunch of great reviews online. I got a bunch of vitamin drops, toys, treats, chews, a weighted food bowl, a hideout made of wooden logs, and a vest + leash that he may or may not fit into. Also got supplies to do his boar cleaning tomorrow. The timing of this sale was amazing and it's such a relief to have all the things this little pig needs, thank goodness for Petco!
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 01:38
|
|
|
republicant posted:I usually buy all my pet supplies online from Amazon for vastly cheaper than in pet stores, but I needed to get all the stuff my pig needs ASAP. Petco had a Black Friday sale that extended to Saturday too, and one of the good deals was 50% off all Carefresh bedding, hay, and food, so that worked out extremely well for me. I got two 64 oz bags of Carefresh Timothy hay, and a 60L bag of Carefresh complete small animal bedding. Instead of Carefresh food I went with Supreme Science Selective guinea pig food, it has no bright colors, no nuts or seeds, no added sugar, and is fortified with vitamin C and has a bunch of great reviews online. I got a bunch of vitamin drops, toys, treats, chews, a weighted food bowl, a hideout made of wooden logs, and a vest + leash that he may or may not fit into. Also got supplies to do his boar cleaning tomorrow. The timing of this sale was amazing and it's such a relief to have all the things this little pig needs, thank goodness for Petco! The vest and leash things are not really good for guinea pigs. They sell them in their sizes, but they're bad for their backs and freak them out. Similarly, though you didn't get one, there are hamster balls that are sized for pigs but piggie backs are not flexible enough to be okay in those things and they can hurt them. Other than that it sounds like you've got everything you need, and probably a little more. Hope you enjoy the little guy! I've had two pigs for about four months now, two sows I adopted from a local shelter. My wife and I are completely obsessed now, it's ridiculous how lovable these little tribbles are.
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 02:26
|
|
|
Lager posted:The vest and leash things are not really good for guinea pigs. They sell them in their sizes, but they're bad for their backs and freak them out. Similarly, though you didn't get one, there are hamster balls that are sized for pigs but piggie backs are not flexible enough to be okay in those things and they can hurt them. Fortunately the vest is too small for him anyway so I will just return it. Thank you for the warning about it, and about the hamster balls. I've heard you have to be really careful with their backs because their spines don't bend backwards? Such unusual animals. There was such a vast array of treats that I felt like I should get him some, but at the same time I am very strict about rarely (if ever) giving my pets junk food. I got him some fruit-flavored cookies and vegetable-flavored baked crackers, both meant for guinea pigs, but he wouldn't touch them and is happily eating hay instead. I guess my pig is a healthy eater! Edit: Also, this is kind of an odd question, but when I watched a video of a boar cleaning the woman doing it said that you can use mineral oil or personal lubricant. I was in a hurry at Walmart and couldn't find any mineral oil, so I got a bottle of KY Liquid Personal Lubricant. It's just plain, none of the weird warming things or any of that. Would this be acceptable to use for doing boar cleanings? I do have a bottle of mineral oil around somewhere, but it may take a while for me to find it. republicant fucked around with this message at 04:14 on Nov 29, 2015 |
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 03:38
|
|
|
Please post pictures of FatPig
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 09:55
|
|
|
Lager posted:The vest and leash things are not really good for guinea pigs. They sell them in their sizes, but they're bad for their backs and freak them out. They're available for hamsters too, which is the world's stupidest thing.
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 12:34
|
|
|
Adult Sword Owner posted:Please post pictures of FatPig There's a distressing lack of pig pictures in general in this thread.
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 12:59
|
|
|
Xoidanor posted:There's a distressing lack of pig pictures in general in this thread. My pig Pom, as of 2 minutes ago  And as of now, with appearance by Flora 
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 17:52
|
|
|
Adult Sword Owner posted:Please post pictures of FatPig         No animals were harmed in the making of these photos, BUT I did get pooped on.
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 19:59
|
|
|
republicant posted:BUT I did get pooped on. Welcome to pig ownership! 
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 20:24
|
|
|
Party Boat posted:Welcome to pig ownership! Woo hoo! Strangely enough, guinea pig poops are easier to deal with than the stream of pee my turtle releases wherever he happens to be when he decides he'd like to be returned to his tank. Also I've already learned early on that electrical cables and cords are irresistible guinea pig magnets. I grabbed him before he managed to chew any further through my cell phone charger than the outer rubber coating, and now any time he comes out of the cage to play, every electrical cable in the vicinity will be moved far far away. republicant fucked around with this message at 22:00 on Nov 29, 2015 |
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2015 21:54
|
|
|
I have lost a few headphones to pigs and slow reflexes
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2015 02:54
|
|
|
Here is a picture of one of my wife's pigs on top of a mound of pumpkin that was the results of chopping down a 40+ lb pumpkin to feed to wheeking creatures:
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2015 03:57
|
|
|
For Thanksgiving my wife decided we needed a photoshoot  
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2015 05:00
|
|
|
 I haven't gotten an actual plastic pigloo yet, just this row of wooden logs all linked together that you can bend into shape to make a cave for the pig to hide in, and doubles as a chew toy. He can't quite fit into it with it just sitting on the ground as a cave, so I zip-tied it into place with one end up in the air so he can feel sheltered but not get trapped. He's always underneath it so I think he likes it. He keeps scratching his ears but I don't see any fleas on him, so maybe mites? Are there any kind of flea and mite medicines for guinea pigs like Frontline and Advantage for cats, or do you have to bathe them with medicated shampoo or something? He isn't losing any hair and his skin doesn't look irritated.
|
|
#
?
Dec 2, 2015 00:32
|
|
|
Those bendy bridges are great, I have I think 5 for one hamster? They are pretty versatile. Is that the large 30cm one? You could buy another and attach them so he has a bigger semi circle shelter to sit under if the largest one still isn't large enough. Or he might appreciate just a big cardboard box with one side removed so it's a bit more enclosed? I prefer wood or cardboard over plastic hides any day just because you don't have to worry about them chewing it too much. crazycarl that photoshoot was a great success if you ask me  I moved house and now Cc has her own hamproof room for roaming about while I sit in a chair and relax instead of shivering on a cold hallway floor. She's not too sure she likes me hanging about and disturbing her me-time for too long though, I think I'm too noisy. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 3, 2015 01:02
|
|
|
I finally caved and bought him a Walk Up Barn, basically a big plastic pigloo with stairs and a flat surface on top so theoretically they can go inside it or climb on top of it. In practice he keeps knocking it over, so I probably won't put anything on top of it, but he's always in it and seems to love it. The bad thing is this 3 1/2 sq ft cage is getting EXTREMELY cramped between the barn, the toys, and the food bowl. My mom is going to give me a cage that she used to house an injured cat years ago and should be at least 7 or 8 sq ft, probably more. I might use that as his daytime playpen and use his current cage for him to sleep in at night, since the big cage folds up for storage. I've already had to change his bedding out three days after setting up the cage and Carefresh is NOT cheap, so if I lined the daytime cage with towels and used Carefresh for the sleeping cage that should cut down on bedding usage. I would just move him to the big cage full-time, but we really don't have space for it and I'd rather be able to fold it up when he's not in it. I finally found a somewhat healthy treat that he likes, these really thick orange slice-shaped treats made out of carrot meal and enriched with vitamin C. They take him a long time to eat and look like they'll be good for keeping his teeth in good shape. I guess it's good that he's extremely picky about processed treats. Also that hamster is ridiculously adorable and really making me want to get my own ham right now. Maybe one day.
|
|
#
?
Dec 3, 2015 01:42
|
|
|
Carefresh is definitely not cheap, you're right. I'm not a Piggie person but aren't fleece liners a popular choice? Since I can't use those I do know of alternatives to carefresh! You can look into bulk paper bedding like megazorb or boxo or a shredded hemp like I'm using, I got 100lt of it for £20 but not sure if zooplus ships to america? Aubiose or siccoflor are branded hemp beddings if you see if you can get those. Equine bedding suppliers are usually much cheaper than the pet store if you can find one locally and have somewhere to store a bag, you can save yourself a good bit of cash. I think the larger cage/run sounds like a great idea. I'd imagine a pet store pig cage gets filled up as quickly as a pet store ham cage!
|
|
#
?
Dec 3, 2015 09:06
|
|
|
   The cage ended up being much smaller than I remembered, I think I may have been thinking of something else. But this one is 5.5 sq ft, which is a fair upgrade from 3.5 sq ft. Since the cage isn't as unmanageably huge as I thought it was, we're just going to move the pig into it full-time. I'm going entirely with towels for substrate because trying to fill this whole cage with Carefresh would be a nightmare. I think when spring begins Walmart usually puts those little fleece throw blankets on sale for cheap so I'll stock up on those later. But he is a happy pig, sleeping in his barn with hay and good food and all the toys he could possibly need. I straightened out the wooden log cave and zip-tied it to the side of the cage so it's like a giant version of those little wooden chew toys. And the padlock is because there are children in the house who like to sneak in and look at our animals sometimes. I don't want to risk "looking at" turning into "opened the door and horrible things happened to the guinea pig" so padlock it is. Now I have an empty cage and most of a bag of Carefresh bedding left and it's really making me want to get a hamster... My boyfriend is not keen on the idea at all but maybe he'll fall in love with one when we're out at a pet store one day, who knows. republicant fucked around with this message at 08:23 on Dec 4, 2015 |
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 08:19
|
|
|
I used to not be a huge fan of my wife wanting hamsters, until we got this one djungarian hamster that is possibly the most friendly rodent I've ever seen. She absolutely loves being held, and will hop on your hand at the slightest opportunity. I initially tried putting treats on my hand, but they really weren't necessary, and most of the time the little ham just ignored them because all she wanted to do was run around on me and even be petted. She is also adorable, and her color changes as the temperature of the room she is in changes(our house is old and needs the insulation redone, so the temperatures in a lot of the rooms that aren't near the thermostat change regularly), ranging from solid blue to solid silver, with gradients and patterns between that constantly changing. I really should get some pics of her.
|
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 18:16
|
|
|
Hamsters own and can be a lot smarter than people give them credit for. I've had to weight down my hamster cage tops because they will, somehow, find a way to escape if given the chance. One time I found one had stood its house up on end to reach the top, but couldn't quite pop it off due to the distance. And of course there's that story about my hamster Steve who filled his wheel full of bedding until it couldn't move, stood on top of it, popped the top off, escaped into the storage room, and I found him gnawing on the bones of a mouse that had died in there at some point in the previous year after we'd done our annual cleaning. Only reason I even found him is because he left a path of clean floor at the door entrance due to his fluffy butt-tufts. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 18:24
|
|
|
Captain Invictus posted:Hamsters own and can be a lot smarter than people give them credit for. Our little ham has learned to escape its cage by climbing its water bottle and getting out the top, but she only does it when we are in the room and does it so she can come be picked up.
|
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 18:33
|
|
|
They are smart, but not THAT smart. One day its attention will be diverted elsewhere when you're not around and it'll get lost inside a wall. Best if you secure that top before you lose it forever.
|
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 18:42
|
|
|
Captain Invictus posted:Hamsters own and can be a lot smarter than people give them credit for. Steven owns hard  I don't think Cc is that smart, she's never escaped and I'm pretty sure she could if she pushed hard enough at the lid of her tank, she's scary strong for such a wee thing. Or maybe she's not stupid and just lazy, she knows if she makes enough noise I'll come and let her out anyway.
|
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 18:53
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 21, 2024 12:59 |
|
|
Captain Invictus posted:They are smart, but not THAT smart. One day its attention will be diverted elsewhere when you're not around and it'll get lost inside a wall. Best if you secure that top before you lose it forever. We have, she can't get out anymore. Which really frustrates her, but it is for her own good!
|
|
#
?
Dec 4, 2015 20:54
|
|