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Thanks for starting this thread. I'd like to add some guinea pig info. Feel free to put it in the OP and delete this post. Or just leave it here; I'm flexible. Resources For all the best and latest guinea pig info available, check out guinealynx.com. Some other good sites for guinea pig information: pigloo.net cavyspirit.com guineapigcages.com (this is specifically about building your own guinea pig cage, and I think it's affiliated with cavyspirit) cavymadness.com The first site above, guinealynx.com, is probably the most authoritative, but can be a little weird in terms of the way people there treat each other. I think they've described themselves as a bunch of bitter, middle aged women, and that sums it up pretty well. That said, the info is top notch, and if you aren't a dick, you'll be fine there. Pigloo.net was started by some folks at guinealynx who got tired of the catty bullshit and snitty behavior after some particular incident. It has a subset of the same information and expertise available, but has never caught on or grown the way guinealynx has. If you're too fragile to handle the bluntness of guinealynx, this could be a good place to start. Cavyspirit.com grew out of the web site for a specific rescue, I think. I don't know that much about it, but it's always mentioned as a reputable source of guinea pig information. I'm not sure how active it is these days; it may be fine, I just never got in the habit of hanging out there. Cavymadness is sort of known as a much more newbie-friendly site. I haven't been there in quite some time, but again, at least it used to be considered a decent source of information. I'd use it as a stepping stone to the other sites. Sort of a gateway site for your cavy addiction. These sites have varying degrees of militancy about adopting from shelters and rescues, but I doubt that you'll find many people on any of them who condone breeding pigs or buying them from petsmart. Veggies The right veggies are very good for guinea pigs, but you have to be careful. Some veggies are actually toxic to them, and others are only good as occasional treats. See this for more details and additional links. Hay In my opinion, Oxbow hay hasn't been as good the past couple of years as it used to be. It's still better than Kaytee or Hartz, and occasionally it's still awesome, but it just seems dustier and less fresh than it did a while back. If you can get hay here instead, you won't regret it. Alfafa hay is NOT okay for most pigs most of the time. Good orchard grass hay and bluegrass hay are okay, if you can't find good timothy hay. Some alfalfa can be good for young pigs or nursing mothers. Pellets If you decide to feed pellets, use high quality pellets from Oxbow, KM's Hayloft, or another reputable company. Never feed anything with bright colors or seeds in it. Check the ingredients - it should only have compressed hay. Growing young pigs, elderly pigs, and sick pigs can benefit from pellets, which have a lot of calories, and can help the pig put on or maintain weight. However, pellets do not help keep their teeth worn down, and are NOT SUFFICIENT FOOD BY THEMSELVES. You HAVE to feed high quality hay. I generally only feed pellets as an occasional treat to healthy pigs, and as a weight-maintenance food for sickly or old pigs. Bedding If you can afford it, use carefresh. If you can't afford it, you probably shouldn't have piggies anyway. Don't waste your money on the designer colors - your pigs won't notice or care that they're pissing on a fashionable substrate. Some people swear by using a washable fleece substrate. It's fine if you can keep up with the cleaning and the water bills, but I've never done it, so I'll let someone else comment on that. I've also seen Yesterday's News used, but I didn't really think it was soft enough for pigs. It's probably okay, but it doesn't look very comfortable. You can also use aspen shavings. IN A PINCH, you can use kiln-dried pine shavings. Never use pine that hasn't been kiln dried, and NEVER use cedar. Cage For one or two pigs, your cage needs to have at least 7.5 square feet of usable space on its bottom level. THIS IS BIG, and it will make a real dent in your room. Don't get pigs if you can't make enough room for them. See the guineapigcages site for details, and examples of good cages. The sides of the cage should be fairly high - a few inches isn't enough. I have seen a panicked pig jump over the grids of a C&C cage. It was a very light pig, and an odd situation - I don't want to scare anyone away from using C&C cages, but you shouldn't use anything lower than that for containment. Pigs also like to have places to hide. Pigloos are a popular choice. If you have a pigloo in the cage, I recommend moving it from place to place every day. It helps encourage the pig not to sit in one spot in its own waste for too long. Medical Ugh - where to start? Find a good exotics vet before you get a pig. You WILL need one. Also, make sure you know where your nearest emergency vet is for those weekend and late-night illnesses. And make sure you have some money saved up for vet visits. Exotics vets are expensive as hell, at least for the good ones. If you can't afford vet care for your pig, you can't afford the pig. Your pig needs at least annual checkups, and you can probably plan to spend $250-$500 per year per pig on vet bills. Pigs are prey animals, and hide their illnesses pretty well. By the time they're showing symptoms, it may well be too late. So, you need to get to know your pig very well. You need to notice if it isn't eating as much as usual, if its poops are looking deformed or scant, or if its demeanor changes. More than once, I've taken a pig to the vet for general listlessness or something just not seeming right. One thing you must do is weigh your pig(s) regularly. Significant weight loss is a sure sign of a problem. Some common pig problems to watch for: Mites - many or most pigs will get mites during their lives. Check the web sites above for info on treating it, or take your pig to a cavy-savvy vet for treatment. It's generally pointless to test for mites - if you suspect mites, the treatment is easier, more reliable, and less painful than the test. DO NOT IGNORE MITES OR OTHER SKIN CONDITIONS. THEY ARE SERIOUS ISSUES. Bladder stones - for some reason, pigs are prone to bladder stones and bladder sludge. I've lost a pig to this, and it was a pretty horrible death. If you've had kidney stones yourself, you'll understand. This is where feeding the right foods is important - alfalfa hay and some veggies are thought to be associated with increased bladder stones. It's all about the calcium and phosphorus, I think, in the foods. Bumblefoot - Weird, swollen sores on the pads of their paws. Once they get this, it's awfully hard to get rid of it completely. You may need to treat it for the rest of their lives. Tooth problems - Both the front and rear teeth can get too long. When the back teeth grow too much, they can actually trap the tongue down. The back teeth are also hard to examine, which is why you need a good vet who knows what the hell she or he is doing. It's very sad to see an otherwise healthy pig starve to death because its teeth are preventing it from eating. This is also why you must include copious hay in the diet - hay helps keep the teeth ground down in ways that even pellets don't. cancers - Some can be treated, but many are a death sentence. You have to be able to make the call to euthanize when the time comes. arthritis - Mostly in older pigs. All you can really do is try to manage the pain with medication. If you have a male pig, you'll need to clean out its pouch periodically. This is not fun, and reeks in a way you wouldn't think possible. Older pigs may lose their ability to groom very well. Keep an eye on their rear ends, to see if they start getting dirty, staying wet, or getting poop-dreadlocks. While you won't generally need to bathe pigs much (if at all), an occasional, quick butt bath to get the crud out of the fur of your older critters can be nice. Long haired pigs are prone to crud in their fur - it can be useful to trim their hair, preferably before it gets gross. With good care and regular vet visits, many pigs live 5-7 years, some longer. If yours keep dying by age 3, you're probably doing something wrong. Breeding Just don't. It's very bad for the mother pig, it can produce lethal whites or other deformed animals if you don't know what you're doing, and it's pretty loving reckless, given the number of existing pigs that need homes. Edit: For what it's worth, there is some dispute over whether or not guinea pigs are actually rodents. Peristalsis fucked around with this message at 09:04 on Nov 17, 2009 |
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Nov 17, 2009 08:59
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cyberia posted:My girlfriend really wants to get two guinea pigs. We had a rat who lived for just over three years and was really awesome but I've never owned pigs before and I'm having trouble finding any sort of definitive information on what to do to make sure you're giving your pigs the best life possible. The best place for info is guinealynx.com. I think there's also a cliffs notes version on the first page of this thread. cyberia posted:First question - we have decided to get Rex pigs from a local breeder. Are there any known problems with this breed or anything like that? I don't know if rexes are one of the varieties prone to problems, but please don't patronize a breeder. Find a reputable rescue in your area. Failing that, check the humane society or Craigslist. If there's a breeder in your area, the shelters and craigslist are bound to be flooded with their rejects and abandoned pigs. The folks on guinealynx will fall all over themselves to help you get a pig responsibly. cyberia posted:Second - would a hutch like this be appropriate to keep two pigs indoors? We have a balcony but no garden so they would be indoor pigs with time each day to roam around on the floor. I wouldn't use a hutch like that. As someone said, look at guineapigcages.com, or guinealynx. cyberia posted:Third - while I was looking for somewhere local to buy timothy hay I found one pet store selling Oxbow brand products with a blurb that said: "...To avoid painful gastro-intestinal imbalances & maintain good health 75% of a rabbit or guinea pigs’ diet should be fibrous hay. The other 25% formulated pellets, that leaves 5% for little treats. Seeds, nuts, corn and grain mixes are always a no-no..." Unless your pig is very young, very old, sick, or otherwise having trouble keeping weight on, I wouldn't bother with pellets at all, except maybe as an occasional treat (maybe once per month or something). Oxbow is a pretty good hay, KM's hayloft is better, but it looks like you're not in the US, so things may be different where you are. The right veggies are great, but be careful with what you give them - the wrong ones can cause problems or even be toxic. Check guinealynx for details, but you're safe starting out with cilantro and bell peppers. Just make sure they don't have chemicals on them. I'm not familiar with pet grass. cyberia posted:Any other general hints and tips would be hugely appreciated. I'm kind of terrified of getting new pets and would hate to do something dumb and make them sick or unhappy. Also if anyone is from Melbourne and has recommendations for local breeders or suppliers that would be great. They're great little critters, but you have to enjoy them on their terms. Also, you have to be REALLY observant to see when something is going wrong. By the time it's obvious that they're sick, it's often too late. Weigh them weekly (at least) to watch for weight loss, check their teeth, watch for signs of lethargy, etc. Also, make sure there's a GOOD piggie-vet in your area before getting a pig, and plan to pay them lots of money over the years, starting with a well-piggie checkup as soon as you get your animal(s). Peristalsis fucked around with this message at 15:25 on Feb 29, 2012 |
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Feb 29, 2012 15:20
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cyberia posted:Any other general hints and tips would be hugely appreciated. I'm kind of terrified of getting new pets and would hate to do something dumb and make them sick or unhappy. Also if anyone is from Melbourne and has recommendations for local breeders or suppliers that would be great. Here's a couple of Australian rescues listed on GuineaLynx, who should be able to help you out with more local info than I can: ACS (Australian Cavy Sanctuary) fizzygirl28@hotmail.com 0435 054 378 Contact: Jessica Gold Coast Guinea Pig Rescue Gold Coast, Qld, Australia alex@goldcoastguineapigrescue.org Mobile: 0408 263 455 Contact: Alex
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Mar 1, 2012 02:28
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cyberia posted:Thanks for the info, Peristalsis. As others have said, it's better and (much) cheaper just to build your own. The cages you linked to didn't really look big enough for pigs (though I didn't check for measurements), and they look kind of hard to clean. They're also probably very cheaply made and not very sturdy.
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Mar 2, 2012 23:24
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