Information

[Ly&Pigs]

This forum is run by a guinea pig rescue and is a rescue-friendly board. Intentional breeding and/or showing "how-to" discussions are not welcome in this forum. Please:

• Use proper English.
• NO CHAT-SPEAK--Spell out your words! For example, do not use "u" for "you", "i" for "I", "2" for "to", "idk" for "I don't know," etc.
• Use proper punctuation and capitalize the beginning of each sentence.
• Do not post in ALL CAPITALS, all bold, all italics or ALL COLOR. It makes the posts very hard to read. Caps, bold, italics and color are to be used for emphasis only.
• Smilies (emoticons) and "LOL" are not punctuation, they are to be used occasionally--not all the time.
• If you are under the age of 18, please do NOT post your age on the forum for internet security reasons.

Please:

• Quote it! If you are quoting someone else's post, please put it in italics or better yet, use the quote feature to set if off so people can see that you are quoting something and only quote just what you need to. How? Quote the whole post so that the userid and everything is referenced properly, then delete the parts that don't matter to your post or point.
• Avoid slang.
• Break up long posts into paragraphs.
• Spelling should be decent. We all make mistakes and typos, but we do expect you to make an effort to spell properly. If you don't have one already, consider investing in a dictionary to keep next to your computer. If you are bad at spelling, it makes it that much harder for others to try to figure out what you wrote. And there are ample online spelling tools available.
• Post in the appropriate forum. Examples: if your question relates to cozies, put it in accessories, if your post relates to how to make a cage, put it in cage chat.
• Do not repeat your post in multiple forums.
• Signatures are not allowed. We do not allow signatures of any type on our forum. A signature can be anything from signing your username, real name, pigs (or other pets) names or a line of emoticons/smilies or other pictures at the bottom of your post.

Easy-to-read and understand posts get faster and better replies and are easier to translate for non-English speaking readers.

The Obvious:

• Please, don't swear, curse or use vulgar words on the forum. The really bad ones are *** out. We have quite a few young people. We expect you to use language that you would use in front of your kids' teacher's kids.

• Racial slurs against members or referring to others, the moderators, or the forum as Nazi's or Hitler-like may result in immediate sanctions or banning.

• Please use tact when posting. Tact is defined as "consideration in dealing with others and avoiding giving offense" and "Acute sensitivity to what is proper and appropriate in dealing with others, including the ability to speak or act without offending". Those are two good definitions of what we all should be doing whenever possible.

Avatars

What's an avatar? The small photo or graphic that appears next to your name on posts. Only Cavy Stars, Cavy Champions, and Moderators are allowed to have animated avatars. If you fall under a different category and have an animated avatar, it will be removed without notification. You're avatar also must be guinea pig related. The photo on your profile can be anything (G-rated).

Photos

Photos in any gallery must comply with our caging and safety policies. We know many people think cats, dogs, chins, rabbits, etc. are all fine with guinea pigs and have some really cute photos. Your situation may be just fine. HOWEVER, we do NOT promote it. NO photos of a guinea pig with other animals together will be permitted. It sends the wrong message to someone casually surfing the net looking at pictures. NO photos of cages that do not meet our minimum cage size--even if you 'say' it's a before photo. Again, a casual surfer may not read your explanation. NO photos of outdoor cages or hutches. Runs and pens are okay. NO photos with crappy food or any hint of improper care.

YOU are NOT a MODERATOR!

If you see someone NOT using this board's proper posting etiquette, please don't jump on them. The moderators will catch it and let them know privately or publicly as appropriate. If you act like a moderator, you may find yourself on the receiving end of a notice.

Problem Post? Don't Pounce, REPORT IT!

You can report any post to the moderators by clicking the Exclamation Point Icon (!) at the top right of a post. You can enter your reason at that point. We will deal with it appropriately.

Hot Topic? It goes in the Kitchen!

Controversial and heated discussions are moved to the kitchen forum. If you don't like it there, don't read it. It's as simple as that. The rest of the forum stays nice and friendly that way.

Don't like the playground? Don't throw a tantrum! Just find another one, or you'll be burning your bridges.

Flouncing threads and posts are forbidden. A flounce is where a user feels that they have had enough of the forum and, rather than simply leaving quietly, decide to post a long public message detailing their reasons, usually in a new thread so as to get the maximum number of replies. A flounce thread may get deleted and usually earns an official banning. And practically EVERYONE who has flounced out of here continues to post within hours if not days -- only to find out they've been permanently banned! So don't do it!

Think you'll just re-register under a new email address?

You are allowed only ONE account per member on this forum. Sometimes, threads get out of control. A member may feel embarrassed or angry about something. They may even get banned. They almost always think that they'll just start over with a new email and account. We catch you 99% of the time and you will be permanently banned. Alter Ego accounts are absolutely not allowed. Forget about trying a different IP. We have our ways. You will be caught. Don't do it. This is why it's important to be civil and honest up front. If you want to appeal a banning (it's been done), the best way is to email the administrator at teresa@cavyspirit.com.

DANG, they have a lot of rules!!!

It's not really that hard. And yes, quite a few people take issue with having to post with respect and clarity. But, a lot of our members also really like being able to read posts without having to study them to understand them or having to skip over a lot of distracting crap. So, if you just can't stand not being able to use chat speak, well, this may not be the online community for you. We like it here and we hope that you will, too.

The GOAL of this forum? Maybe not what you think!

The forum isn't here to have fun and share stories about guinea pigs. There really are other forums out there that better serve that idea. This site and forum is to promote the betterment of the plight of pet guinea pigs. It's to provide information on bettering their cage environment and care, a place to get ideas and information and a place for those who have already done it to show off, exchange, and get additional ideas. We like to have fun along the way, but first and foremost, it's about the animals.

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The full listing of our rules can be found in the Policies and Guidelines Forum.

For more information about our infraction system (wheeks and poos) please see this thread: http://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/...-new-post.html.