Hello from a new owner

[Elthysia]

Hi,

I got my first two piggies on Friday night after 5 weeks of extensive research (both me and my boyfriend had them as kids but never been the adults responsible for them)

They are silk Abby's, one black/grey 9 mnths old female, the other black/red 6 month old female. I adopted them from a rescue. The owner before the recue hadn't even bothered naming them! I'm thinking about naming the red one 'ginger nut' but we don't have a name yet for the other one.

They are still settling in and getting used to fleece bedding (2x4 c&c cage, with 1x2 L-shape food/toilet area attached) and they don't seem to be used to other veggies than greens (salad, cabbage) yet as they keep leaving the peppers etc. I hope they'll get used to other veg soon. Any tips would be welcome and I'm sure I'll be asking questions over the next few weeks

[guineapigs2468]

Hi and welcome to the forum, I'm sure you will find lots of useful information here. With the peppers try grating them into little pieces and sprinkling them over the pellets. They should soon get used to the peppers and other veggies. Pictures of your new piggies are appreciated

[trista81]

congrats, on your 2 new family members!

[Elthysia]

@guineapigs2468 I'll make some pictures once they are a bit less shy, I don't want to loom over them with a big camera just yet, but will do in near future, promise. Thank for the veggie tip, I'll try that.

And I need to name them really, it's so poor that they don't have names yet after all these months on earth!

[CavyMama]

Congrats on your new piggies. You'll find lots of good information on the site and feel free to ask questions.

One suggestion - ditch the cabbage. It can cause gas in pigs. Leafy greens can be green leaf or red leaf lettuce. Occasional romaine, cilantro, mustard or collared greens among others.

Have you checked out the diet/nutrition chart? I find it helpful when I am shopping for produce. http://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/...ants-list.html

Hay should be given in unlimited amounts daily. Since they are both adults (6 mths +), timothy (rather than alfalfa) is the way to go.

Kleenmamas:KMS Hayloft, Grass Hays & Fortified Feeds From the Valleys of the Pacific Northwest

Oxbow: Oxbow Animal Health | Home

[Elthysia]

Thanks, according to the chart savoy cabbage was classed as frequently (but sparingly) rather than not very suitable so I thought it was ok. They've been having various colour lettuces (but not iceberg), cilantro, and a baby carrot each (homegrown) and some very small chopped pieces of celery. And a small sprig of parsley yesterday (I am aware to use parsley very sparingly too). They've left the peppers and tomatoes so far and dont seem big fans of the pellets but they do eat them.

They've eten lots and lots of hay which I give hem a fresh batch of twice a day (without running out). Hopefully I can get them used to peppers as they are healthy as well as the fact that I grow them at home so no pesticides used.

Thanks again for the tips

[NarwhalsRock]

Good for you for adopting from a rescue! Hmmm. When I named my pigs, I looked at them and said to myself, "does she look like a ___? No. What about ____? Nah." It took awhile, but in the end it worked! If you want to name them human names, you could pick a name that's meaning reflects their personality...
With veggies, I have a girl who will run away from the veggies if I come up to her with them! Sometimes I'll pick her up or put her in the pigloo, and very gently put the veggie right up to her nose so she can smell it. I think that she figures that if she tries it, I'll go away! The trick is, once she tries it, immediately put it down and slowly remove your hand. If you quickly jerk your hand away, she might see it as a punishment. It generally works, but you have to be careful to not make the veggie seem like a monster, or a thing to be avoided. I like to do it if she's already in her pigloo or if she's already having laptime. Once she tries something 2-3 times using this method, she'll come running if she smells it! Hope that helped! Good luck with the piggies!

[bpatters]

@Elthysia , you can teach them to eat new veggies by dicing them very finely and putting them on their pellets. Try one vegetable for several days, then offer it in larger pieces. If they'll eat it, move on to a new vegetable. If not, keep on with that one. They get accustomed to the taste by accident, and then will generally eat it when offered. I taught mine to eat about 6-8 different vegetables that way, and now they'll try anything I offer.