No guinea pig adoption places around here ( am I ready for another petstore? )

[ZaoSyn]

Basically I've had my current pig for 3 months. I bought him from Petsmart, when I bought him I knew almost nothing about Guinea pigs. Since coming here I've learned all about them, and I went from using a Petsmart starter cage for guinea pigs to a C&C cage. Personally I would love to have another guinea pig for my current one. But the thing is I would prefer to get one that isn't from a pet store. I've searched all around for adoptions around here, not once have I seen anything. I know if I buy another guinea pig from the store I'm gonna have to go through the whole mites problem again ( I hated it ). I'm XX years old, I don't have my drivers license yet so driving to get one is out of the question ( my mother isn't keen on the idea ). I don't know what to do honestly. I suppose at this time my options would be to wait and read the newspaper in search of someone offering to give up their pig or go about and buy a petstore pig again and go through the mites issue ( I'm almost positive it will have mites ) and deal with it, cause in the end it will be great.

What would YOU do in my situation?

[stubblychin]

Whereabouts are you located?

[Piggersrule]

I understand your frustrations. What area do you live in? How far is your mother willing to travel? Maybe we can help you locate a piggy in need.

[clotho]

Hi there

I too bought my very first piggy at a pet store before I knew any better. Knowing what I know now - I would never buy another piggie no matter what. The people on here are very helpful. If you let them know where you are located, and can be patient, I am positive you can find a piggie near enough to you to adopt. Post an ad at the local grocery store, vet, wherever you can - there are many people who give up their guinea pigs. You should also check with local vets, especially ones who deal with exotics, and ask if they know of anyone who is trying to rehome guinea pigs. You may even find someone whose piggie has had babies and be able to get one. Good luck finding your perfect piggie!!!!

[The Wheeker]

Do you have any shelters near you? You can call them and ask them to put you on a waiting list, so if a piggie comes in, they will call you and notify you. My friend did that here with our shelters when she was looking for a rabbit. It didn't take too long, but then, we have quite a few shelters in our area. Also, some guinea pig rescues may be willing to meet you half way....

[suzilovespiggie]

Have you looked in Petfinders.com? They go by zipcode and can show the piggies in your area.

[Percy's Mom]

Originally Posted by ZaoSyn

What would YOU do in my situation?

I would wait. Let vets in your area know that you are looking to adopt. Call shelters and put your name on waiting lists for people they call when a certain type of animal comes in. Read the classified in your local paper. Check online on Petfinder and Craigslist to see if there are any guinea pigs people need to rehome or adopt out. Don't forget that there is a classified section on Petfinder as well as the regular listings, and check the "Free" and "Pet" sections on Craigslist.

What I would definitely NOT do is go back to a petstore. You bought one pig. Fine, a lot of us have done that, but you know better now. Not only are your chances of getting a sick, missexed, or pregnant pig high if you buy one, but you would also be supporting completely unnecessary breeding and pet mills. Give your pig lots of love and attention while you wait, and soon enough, another pig will come along that needs you to give it a loving home.

[Slave to the Wheek]

If they are selling guinea pigs in your area you can certainly bet that there are people dumping them as well as getting pregnant pigs from petstores or missexed pigs etc. ...

You just haven't found the right place to find them yet. Everyone has given you some great resources to try. Craigslist is really easy to check just search "guinea" in all communities and you can find them quite often.

If you want specific help, then let us know your generic region. Are you in west coast? east coast?

[TX_2_Pigs]

Originally Posted by ZaoSyn

I don't know what to do honestly. I suppose at this time my options would be to wait

Exactly. Wait, be patient and keep your eyes and ears open. Don't get in a hurry. And since you are a minor and your mom doesn't seem keen on getting another piggy don't force it. Remember Murphy's Law. Almost guaranteed if you break down and get another pig from a store because you just can't wait anymore, you will run across a bunch of piggers needing a home. And there will probably be one that just makes your heart melt but since you settled for a store pig, now you can't have it.

You got your first pig from a store becuase you didn't know better. Now you do. So wait.

[landhermie]

When there were no guinea pigs around here, and I thought there would never be, I bought Skunky, my second pig, from a pet store. Then, a few weeks later, I went on Petfinder, and saw guinea pigs near me! It is best to wait. Skunky is fine, luckily. How long have you been looking?


There are also many, many animals in need of homes. If you buy a guinea pig from a pet store, you support breeding, pet over-population, etc. Do you seriously want to contribute to deaths of many animals just because you are impatient?

[ZaoSyn]

I looked through the News paper and noticed there was an ad that offered a Free adult Guinea pig and offered a baby guinea pig too.

My mother said yes, but right now I'm curious what I want to do. The ad mentions an adult AND a baby. This could mean that the adult is a mother.. The last thing I want is for my Q-Tipp to be roomed with a girl and I'm curious should I get the adult or the baby? Q-Tipp is roughly 6 months old ( he was 3 months or so when we got him from Petsmart ).

If both the Adult and baby guinea pig turns out to be a male ( bingo! ) which one would you recommend me getting for my Q-Tipp? I can only pick 1.

[ZaoSyn]

I'd hate to double post, however I cannot find the edit button on my above posts.

I have another question. If I do get the adult or baby ( with your guidance on which one ) what problems am I most likely to run into at first?

I've seen posts of other people's guinea pigs biting and over powering a newer guinea pig. I would not want any of my pigs to become aggressive and over power each other. I don't know if this is inevitable or not =[ but can you give me tips on how to introduce my two boars and what I will expect from them at first?

[piggly wiggly]

You should call and ask the sex of both pigs, aswell as their ages. I would think if the adult is a male, he would be best. But if the adult is female, and the baby is male, if the baby is young, like a couple weeks old, he should be okay too.

[landhermie]

You should check the gender yourself to see, just in case they do not know how to tell. If it is not the gender you want, you can just tell them why, and not get it. Either that or you can get it spayed / neutered if you are willing to pay the cost, but then you cannot add anymore males or unspayed females, and there is also a risk of the cavy having some kind of problems during and after surgery. Make sure to research the problems if you choose to do this.

You can also make a separate cage for them in a completely different room ( in case they both escape, which barely ever happens.) You'd probably want to adopt more pigs for them, though. You'll be saving more pigs, though.

[Jenni_Feathers]

You could also look on Petfinder.com: Adopt a pet and help an animal shelter rescue a puppy or kitten. for guinea pigs in shelters where you live.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

This thread is over 2 months old. Please don't bump up old threads.

[seagirl96]

Rabbitsncavy...Not over 2 months old.

05-18-07, 04:44 am

That is the start date which is under one month old.