[smartypants]

I agree with you. I do not have any piggies yet because I'm trying to learn all I can about them before I adopt. When I was first thinking about getting a guinea pig, I didn't know anywhere else to get them besides a pet store. Then I found this site, and I learned so much about piggies and pet stores and rescues. I live in a big city, but there are no guinea pig rescues here. There is a pound and a humane society, but from their websites I have gathered that they don't take small animals due to overcrowding issues. The closest shelter to my zip code on petfinder that had guinea pigs was in a whole different state! Also, I checked craigslist for my area, and nothing. But I refused to give up. I finally found the website of a humane society in a nearby city. It's only 45 minutes away from me and they have piggies! There is also a shelter in my state that is about 3 hours away from where I live, but they will drive the piggies that you wish to adopt to you (after your adoption application has been approved, of course). So do not give in and buy piggies from a pet store! They are out there! You might have to drive a short distance or do some extra research to find a rescue, but there are shelters and rescues out there, closer than you think, that have many piggies in need!