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Lumi posted:Two quick questions: You can buy metal holders either separately or packaged with a water bottle. It just hangs over the lip of the aquarium and holds the bottle in place. Most of them also have a guard to protect the bottle itself from being chewed on.
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Jan 18, 2010 05:14
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Man-Rider posted:Well fudge... I just learned that gerbils are illegal in California where I live. I'm pretty sure you can find a legal pet that will make a perfectly adequate substitute. There's really no reason to get all cloak-and-dagger over a rodent. Unless you mean that you already have one. In which case, I guess check the internet for resources to help you out, like Nereid said.
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Jan 18, 2010 06:24
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cat with hands posted:Stands on his hind legs like a Meerkat when begging for a snack Mine do that too. Its incredibly 
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Jan 19, 2010 00:32
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RumbleFish posted:You can buy metal holders either separately or packaged with a water bottle. It just hangs over the lip of the aquarium and holds the bottle in place. Most of them also have a guard to protect the bottle itself from being chewed on.  One massive petrology textbook weight later and so far so good, but I should probably keep working on a better watering solution.Lumi posted:And what are the criteria for a hamster wheel to prevent this from happening?
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Jan 19, 2010 07:03
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Sometimes, animals surrendered at the SPCA come with a cage. Sometimes, they are surrendered when there's no exotics volunteer around. In that case, one of the intake people will just put the cage in the exotics room, make sure there's food and water in it, and go back to dealing with other intake-related duties. This is a guinea pig cage that I saw when I came in today:   Here's a view without the cage top on:  Not pictured: terrified orange guinea pig. Yes, that is in fact a massive layer of ancient, dried out poop on top of some kind of softwood bedding. I had to chip that poo poo out with a paint scraper.
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Jan 22, 2010 01:30
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maplecheese posted:Not pictured: terrified orange guinea pig. Any possibility that he/she will find a good home? If not, can we make you a thread on guinealynx to see if there are any rescues in the area? I occasionally read about fairytale endings for pigs there - might be worth a shot. Jesus... I never thought a photo of old dried poop would haunt me.
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Jan 22, 2010 03:21
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SonicYooth posted:Oh man. That's just awful. So awful I don't really want to look at those pictures ever again. Let me know if I can chip in to buy that little guy a bunch of spinach and hay. The SPCA keeps us well-supplied with hay, but they could always use a few extra bucks - http://www.spcamontreal.com/aidez1a.php?lg=en . Veggies are really limited to what we volunteers buy ourselves and bring in, unfortunately. If you're hell-bent on contributing to our vegetable fund, IM or PM me and we'll talk... but I've decided I'm going in tomorrow just to bring this piggie treats regardless. SonicYooth posted:Any possibility that he/she will find a good home? If not, can we make you a thread on guinealynx to see if there are any rescues in the area? I occasionally read about fairytale endings for pigs there - might be worth a shot. The exotics department hasn't had to euthanize any healthy animals in years (although most vet treatment for exotics comes at volunteer expense... the SPCA is really pretty broke), so as long as s/he stays healthy, s/he'll have as much time as necessary to warm up to people. We only have three guinea pigs right now, counting this one, and the other two are pretty shy, too... but definitely less shy than they were a few weeks ago. They've started to see humans as "those big things that bring treats" rather than as threats. However, we don't have the time or manpower to conduct any sort of intensive behavioral rehabilitation, so it's likely to be a long and slow process. But I put the new guinea pig next to the other two, in hopes that their joyous wheeking whenever I look at them will provide a good example. I can find one rescue in the area, http://jiggleypiggley.com/ , but apparently they are really trying to scale back and reclaim their lives from the voracious guinea pigs and aren't taking in as many anymore.
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Jan 22, 2010 06:32
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maplecheese posted:but I've decided I'm going in tomorrow just to bring this piggie treats regardless. Awesome. Glad this piggy has a human friend, even if its going to take some time for it to come around and trust folks. I'll send a few bucks over to the Montreal SPCA, even though I know sometimes the money doesn't trickle down to the local shelters as much as I'd like. Best wishes for the little guy.
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Jan 22, 2010 14:27
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So my fiance is a vet tech and they had a couple guineas get dropped off on their doorstep over night a few days ago. She's fallen for one of them and now wants to bring it home. They each have their own large pens, and apparently the male we're getting has a little hidey-hole in his pen that he can chill in. Heres my question though- we also have a couple of curious cats who like to play fight with eachother and chase small furry toys around the house. Are they going to attempt to devour this poor creature, or will he be fairly safe since he's not at all tiny? Do you generally let your piggies run around the house, or just pull them out to play with them? Do they have their own larger hamster balls or anything?
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Jan 22, 2010 18:11
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Help! My hamster got a little chill and now he's hibernating! He's currently chilling out on a hot water bottle with a towel in between them with a sock on top of him. He's taking sugar water, but should I be doing anything else?
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Jan 22, 2010 18:41
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TShields posted:Are they going to attempt to devour this poor creature, Yes. If you are gonna bring home a pig you need to be 100% sure the cats cannot get into the pig cage. You can even build you own with a caged lid like this: http://www.guineapigcages.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/12329 or http://www.guineapigcages.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/756 . TShields posted:Do you generally let your piggies run around the house, or just pull them out to play with them? I let them run around on the floor sometimes, but I am always supervising them (mostly so they won't pee on the floor somewhere). I also don't have any other pets, like cats. TShields posted:Do they have their own larger hamster balls or anything? I doubt there is another on the market large enough for a guinea pig, and I wouldn't recommend putting a guinea pig in one either.
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Jan 22, 2010 18:45
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Sirotan posted:
I actually just talked to her and she just picked one up thats advertised for guinea pigs. We'll see how it goes! Thanks for the info. Edit: Aaaand now that I've done my research, we're going to take it back and get a little guinea pig leash or something and take it out into the yard. They don't sound safe at all. Heh just saw your reply down below.. TShields fucked around with this message at 19:04 on Jan 22, 2010 |
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Jan 22, 2010 18:55
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SonicYooth posted:I'll send a few bucks over to the Montreal SPCA, even though I know sometimes the money doesn't trickle down to the local shelters as much as I'd like. Best wishes for the little guy. Actually, donations at the Montreal SPCA's website JUST go to the Montreal SPCA. So your money will go directly to keeping us supplied with heat, light, hot water, hay, and pellets. Or toward dog or cat food, since you can't designate a specific area, but they're cool, too.
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Jan 22, 2010 18:57
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TShields posted:I actually just talked to her and she just picked one up thats advertised for guinea pigs. We'll see how it goes! Thanks for the info. I have to strongly recommend that you do not use an exercise ball for guinea pigs. Their little spines aren't as flexible as a hamster and they can easily injure their feets and toes inside of one. If you want them to run around and get exercise either provide them with a large enough cage that gives them running room or let them run around on the floor and make sure they can't get stuck anywhere or chew on electrical wiring. Read this list here of some alternative and safe toys for guinea pigs: http://www.guineapigcages.com/toys.htm There are a lot of toys and foods out there that are "advertised" as being for guinea pigs that are NOT safe for guinea pigs.
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Jan 22, 2010 19:01
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Nereid posted:Help! My hamster got a little chill and now he's hibernating! He's drinking more regularly now, which is really a good thing.
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Jan 22, 2010 19:06
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TShields posted:Edit: Aaaand now that I've done my research, we're going to take it back and get a little guinea pig leash or something and take it out into the yard. They don't sound safe at all. A leash will never work...trust me on this. They will just stand there and never move. Do yourself a favor and buy two of these: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=6067+10431+17948&pcatid=17948 I use these when I am cleaning my pigs cage, just toss down a plastic sheet, put some towels on top and then the corral, instant floor time. I also use these in the yard. Just set it up in your grass (if you live in an apartment make sure and grass you do this with hasn't been treated with chemicals or fertilizer) and plop in the pigs. As long as it isn't too hot and the sun is not shining on them directly, they will be happy and content to sit and eat grass for quite a while. Edit: Like so-  Click here for the full 1200x1600 image. and  Click here for the full 1200x1600 image. Sirotan fucked around with this message at 19:14 on Jan 22, 2010 |
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Jan 22, 2010 19:09
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Seems easy enough. Yeah, we have a little house so the yard hasn't got anything special in it. Would they be uncomfortable in, say, 60 degree weather, or should I wait until its warmer to take them outside? We might attempt a leash or harness because we have an old post for a clothesline outside and we could tether him to that, but if he doesn't move then we'll get rid of it. I've been tempted to take my cats for walks with them trying to bolt out the door on occasion to visit with the neighbor cat that taunts them in the yard (they're strictly indoor cats), so I could use it on them too.
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Jan 22, 2010 20:13
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I wouldn't stake my money on a harness, either, I've heard way too many stories of pigs slipping out of those. Your best bet is an enclosed playpen, and definitely don't leave them unsupervised. More than one pig has fallen victim to a predator when left outside to play. As for temperature, 60 is just a little bit on the cold side; pigs tend to like mid-60s to mid-70s temperatures. 60 degrees probably won't do any harm, especially if it's sunny, but I'd keep an eye on them.
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Jan 22, 2010 21:17
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I bought some stuff! That's parsley (a mix of curly and flat for some reason), spinach, romaine, a great big green bell pepper, and a little tiny red bell pepper. $4.04. Not too bad for Canada in the winter, I think. Here is Terrified Orange Guinea Pig:  Definitely a little less terrified today, and happily chowing down on delicious peppers. I'll try to bring some more in next week.
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Jan 22, 2010 21:23
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maplecheese posted:I bought some stuff! Oooo, looks like a delicious stir fry. Can I come over?
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Jan 22, 2010 21:24
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Nereid posted:Oooo, looks like a delicious stir fry. Can I come over? I'd say yes, but most of it's already been distributed to the guinea pigs, rabbits, and chinchillas, with a little tiny bit going to the degus and rats. And I'm hoping the rest of it will get distributed this weekend.
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Jan 22, 2010 21:45
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maplecheese posted:I'd say yes, but most of it's already been distributed to the guinea pigs, rabbits, and chinchillas, with a little tiny bit going to the degus and rats. And I'm hoping the rest of it will get distributed this weekend. Be careful with the chins, they're not really supposed to have fresh veggies.
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Jan 22, 2010 22:22
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Rodent Mortician posted:Be careful with the chins, they're not really supposed to have fresh veggies. Yeah, I wasn't sure, so I just gave each of them a little section of a romaine leaf, the greener, less watery part. Which looks like it wasn't too bad.
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Jan 22, 2010 23:26
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We like to take our pigs out in the summer, but like someone else said, never leave them alone. Generally they never go anywhere but just sit and eat until it's time to go back in, so it's quite relaxing to take a cup of tea out and sit with them and just chill. Here's one of our lawnmowers: 
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Jan 23, 2010 00:15
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Christ, guinea pigs are so cute. A friend of mine has three females and they are just packed with personality. I'm not sure I'd ever have any, but they can be awfully tempting sometimes.
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Jan 23, 2010 01:54
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They really are. They get stereotyped a lot as loud, boring pets, but that kind of thing usually stems from them being kept alone and in a tiny pet store cage. Get them a friend or two and spacious accommodations, and their personality really and truly comes out.
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Jan 23, 2010 02:19
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Porky is getting big now, and I have a question about spaying. I've been looking online a lot and the majority of resources say that I shouldn't have her fixed since she in an only pig. I worry about the risks of surgery but I also worry about the risk of ovarian cancer. Can anybody give me more information of the potential dangers of both? She's an only pig and I intend to keep her an only pig. 
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Jan 23, 2010 03:30
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Megalodon posted:Porky is getting big now, and I have a question about spaying. I've been looking online a lot and the majority of resources say that I shouldn't have her fixed since she in an only pig. I worry about the risks of surgery but I also worry about the risk of ovarian cancer. Can anybody give me more information of the potential dangers of both? She's an only pig and I intend to keep her an only pig. You should really think about getting a friend for her. Guinea pigs are heard nerds and they do best in groups larger than 1. No matter how much attention you can give Porky, you can't be there 100% of the time, and a piggy friend can give her constant companionship. She will be happier with a friend, trust me. As far as spaying goes, if you are going to keep her by herself or with other female pigs, you really don't need to do it. Surgery is a big risk, and one you shouldn't take unless its absolutely necessary. I took a pig in for an emergency spay once, and she died just from the anesthesia and didn't even make it to the surgery. I'm not really an expert but I don't think ovarian cancer is as prevalent in guinea pigs as it is in some other rodents. I would advise against it unless its absolutely necessary.
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Jan 23, 2010 03:48
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Sirotan posted:You should really think about getting a friend for her. Guinea pigs are heard nerds and they do best in groups larger than 1. No matter how much attention you can give Porky, you can't be there 100% of the time, and a piggy friend can give her constant companionship. She will be happier with a friend, trust me. Thanks for this. As I've been reading, it looks like I am going to pass on spaying her. As for getting a friend, the boyfriend is very against this as we tried to get a friend for our bunny and we now have two separate bunny enclosures. He also doesn't want anymore animals, period. I, however, am not against it. If we decide to get another in the future I'll make sure to get another girl. Thanks for the advice.
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Jan 23, 2010 04:33
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Seconded, get her a friend. Guinea pigs are generally eager to socialize, and unless you're staggeringly unlucky you'll get a companion she'll take to without much difficulty, and I've only ever heard of a handful of incidents where two given females weren't eventually coaxed into coexisting together. You'll be amazed how much happier it makes her. To encourage you, I'll give you my handy-dandy never-fail technique for getting guinea pigs to get along. I've had a total of eight in my lifetime, and had to go through five different introductions. Most were reasonable, but one (a pig who hadn't been socialized and had been abandoned at the pet store for being "mean") was a nasty customer, and fought every time I put her in the playpen with anyone else. If you get a pig that's a problem like that and won't integrate, or you want to speed things along with as few fights as possible, what you do is you get some cologne or perfume, spray a very light mist on your hands, and then immediately rub most of it off. Then wipe down the back of each guinea pig. What you want to do is very, very subtly change their scent. Then when you put them together, they think, "Well, I don't know who this pig is, but she smells kind of like me, so maybe she's okay." Every time I've done it it's resulted in instant, permanent amity. As for spaying, if you're keeping females only it's not necessary. However, female guinea pigs can develop ovarian cysts, which are typified by sexually aggressive behavior and hair loss on the sides, in which case a spay will be necessary. A good exotics vet will have a passable success rate on spaying surgery, and honestly, don't be afraid to ask for that kind of information. Better you find a vet that does that sort of thing every week than one who's not 100% confident in the procedure.
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Jan 23, 2010 05:39
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Also, if you've got a good rescue in the area, they'll do "dating" with your guinea pigs, much like house rabbit rescues, so that you won't be stuck with two pigs that won't get along. I've done several for the rescue I foster for. Pigs seem more laid back than bunnies and we've only had a few failures.
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Jan 23, 2010 15:16
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Sirotan posted:I'm not really an expert but I don't think ovarian cancer is as prevalent in guinea pigs as it is in some other rodents. There's not much published research yet, but a number of vets are starting to write that they see ovarian cysts (not cancer, but almost as disruptive) in anywhere from 75-90% of older female pigs (over 5 years old). Some of these vets are starting to say that ALL female pet pigs should be spayed, just like in rabbits, and are looking for funding for wide-spread longitudinal studies to determine whether this has any efficacy in reducing the incidence and increasing lifespans, and also whether uterine removal is necessary or just ovarian removal (the latter surgery is much less invasive and less expensive). The issue is that until relatively recently, seeing 5+ year old pigs was fairly uncommon in clinical practice, and this is most commonly a geriatric disease, so there's not enough preliminary evidence to get funding (and not enough funding in general). However, that's in the future. Right now, spaying IS still highly invasive, NOT easy to do unless your vet is experienced, and VERY expensive compared to neutering. So yeah, I wouldn't recommend spaying her unless a) she develops ovarian cysts, b) the possibility of a few extra years with her highly outweighs the immediate surgical risks, and c) your vet is HIGHLY experienced. Personally, I think once I'm done rescuing and have only pet pigs, I will spay all my females. In 10+ years of rescue I have only had a few girls live over 5 years, whereas my neutered boys typically see at least 7 and I have even had a few 9 year olds. I have a girl who was spayed by another rescue at about 1 year old, and is now between 6 and 7. I'll be very interested to see whether she lives longer than my intact females! Edit for Maplecheese: thanks for posting that, and especially for taking such care of that poor piggy. Surrender cages like that are all too common in rescue and it's important to see that side of it. I had this one come in in 2004. That's a 5 gallon aquarium. The cedar shavings, apples, and iceberg lettuce were the best of it - the only other food the pig had was dry catfood. He died a few weeks later of malnutrition. In 2005 we rescued a rabbit from this cage, which was at a school - he was left out during a hurricane, his food was a moldy wet mush and his water bottle had fallen off - and there were two chicken carcasses rotting under the cage. That was BunBun, who lived another four years. In 2006 a mouse came in who was being housed in a cheetos jar - this pic is AFTER it had been cleaned. I don't have a pic of this one, but later that year I pulled a pig from a local shelter who was dropped of in a birdcage, with only dry navy beans, canned garbanzos, and cornflakes to eat. Oh, and the bottom of the cage was a sold mass of maggots. A kid had brought her home from school without telling his parents, and they didn't find out till about 2 weeks later when the kid's room filled up with flies. Amazingly, that pig lived and thrived, but she was terrified of people for several months, as you can imagine. People astonish me. alucinor fucked around with this message at 16:35 on Jan 23, 2010 |
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Jan 23, 2010 16:08
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Question: Do mice prefer lots of open space to run around in their cage, or tons of tubes and boxes, or just a middle ground? I save all my TP and paper towel rolls and egg cartons, and they're starting to back up and I'm considering just throwing them all in there next cage-cleaning for an uber playground. But I have no idea how to tell if she's like "Weeee in and out and under and over and-!" or "Goddamnit I can't get anywhere in here!" :/
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Jan 23, 2010 18:02
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drat Bananas posted:...I have no idea how to tell if she's like "Weeee in and out and under and over and-!" or "Goddamnit I can't get anywhere in here!" :/ This thought cracked me up. Why not go for a middle ground and see where she spends more time?
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Jan 23, 2010 18:15
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drat Bananas posted:Question: Do mice prefer lots of open space to run around in their cage, or tons of tubes and boxes, or just a middle ground? Uhhhh, just put them in now. They love that poo poo.
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Jan 23, 2010 18:49
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There. Of course she goes straight to the food bowl first. I didn't put everything in but hopefully she's entertained this week.  Click here for the full 704x528 image.
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Jan 23, 2010 20:25
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drat Bananas posted:There. Of course she goes straight to the food bowl first. I didn't put everything in but hopefully she's entertained this week. I don't know if she'll start shredding them, but if I put all that in with my gerbils, those tubes would be GONE by the time I get home from work tonight. I love mice though. So darling.
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Jan 23, 2010 20:48
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Conando (my new piggie) is happy now! We got him fresh bedding, got him a pen to run around in on the floor, and he's got fresh food. We've tried carrots and apples, but he won't touch them, but the vet told us to give him 250 mg chewable vitamin C tablets and cut them into quarters, and he gobbles them down. We're going to get a bell pepper next grocery run to see if he'll eat it, but we don't eat them ourselves and we don't want it to be a waste. He apparently eats broccoli happily though, but we haven't tried it at home. We're a little afraid my fiance and I are allergic to the pine bedding- we've both been pretty sneezy since we opened up the fresh bag. I'll try to post pictures sometime soon. Oh, and the cats are just curious of him- they sit by his cage and watch him run around, and if he comes up to the bars they sniff each other. The house is old and some of the doors don't shut well, so when we had him penned up in the kitchen the "hunter" cat forced his way in, but they just sniffed eachother and did their own thing, so I'm not too worried. I'm not going to let them hang out without supervision though.
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Jan 24, 2010 00:39
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Is the pine bedding kiln-dried? If it's the brand that Petco carries with the black label, it should be, otherwise you should check. Raw pine can be harmful, and I'd recommend switching to either aspen shavings or Carefresh if you can. Broccoli is okay in small amounts, but too much can give him gas - and yes, guinea pigs can fart. Try leafy greens, those are usually an easy sell. Romaine, green or red leaf lettuce, parsley, cilantro. Never iceberg lettuce or cabbage, too much water content. Definitely watch the cats. I've seen plenty of cases where household cats and dogs took to a guinea pig just fine and became lifelong friends, but there have been bad outcomes as well.
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Jan 24, 2010 01:29
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alucinor posted:Gonna go and pet my piggies now. Death doesn't bother me. Malice, neglect and indifference breaks my heart. Oh, for that goon earlier who asked about leashes, 2 of our 3 piggies are just fine wearing them, so don't dismiss them completely.
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Jan 24, 2010 01:45
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