Hello!

[lovie]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Hello all,[/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS]My name is Sherri.I live in PA.I'm a stay at home mom, been married 14 yrs and counting....We lost our dog of 13 yrs and was told not to get another dog by our landlord,so we thought to get a piggie.Me being new to the cavy world I didn't research it as well I thought.We bought my little man Rodney from Petco...He lived only 3 months..The vet said it was a URI and put him on meds.He never recovered though[/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS].I loved him so very much and thought I would give it another try.I never knew where to buy a piggie other then a pet store.So you know how this turns out,yes I bought 2 this time from Petsmart..My girls Rainbow and Coco were fine then Coco died suddenly only 2 weeks after we got her..we took her back and got yet another one!This time I bought a new cage to put P.B. in ..and she died only 1 week after getting her..I'm NEVER going to a pet store again for a piggie,I found a local cavy adoption league and getting 2 if possible, Well that's my sad and long piggie story but my babies will never be forgotten.[/FONT]

[Piggersrule]

Hello and welcome. I am so sorry for your losses. Please don't take this the wrong way but your story is exactly why we discourage purchasing pet shop animals. Most pet shops don't care about the the animals they sell, they are in it for the money and that's it. Unfortunately, you found out the hard way as many others have before you and many will after you. You have come to the right place for learning all you can about Guinea pigs. They are alot of people here that can and will help you every step of the way. Do you know when you will be getting your piggies? Are they going to be both male or female? I have all girls.....7 in total. Feel free to ask questions or you can do a forum search. Again, welcome to the forum.

[lovie]

You know piggers,there should be more awareness about the problem of pet stores.When I took P.B.'s body back I saw a sickly looking piggie in the cage and brought it to the lady's attention,her exact words were "HMM" I left the store crying and got my money back ,resisted buying yet another 1..I have my Rainbow still (girl) and I need a cage mate for her.
Thanks for being so nice.

[sarahnmadison]

Sadly, there isn't much concern about "pocket pets". We all hear about dogs and cats, but never small animals. I did animals rescue for awhile and never once heard about the guinea pig problem. I knew there would be homeless rabbits at the shelter and I would see domesticated rabbits running around my neighborhood after Easter and people get tired of them thus letting them go. They don't last long with coyotes and other predators running around. I did manage to catch one of them once and we give him a good home for 5 years by setting up a "trap" I made. Basically, it was a dog kennel with a string tied to it. First time, he got away through the bars, so I added chicken wire and the second time, Sneaky, as he would be named, was caught. As you will learn here, there is not shortage of guinea pigs, rats, hamsters, gerbils, ferrets, chinchillas, rabbits, reptiles, birds, etc. needing homes.

Before I knew there was this guinea pig overpopulation, I had a guinea pig that I had gotten from a petstore that died within a month of getting him. While researching what could have happened to him, I came upon this site. Of my adoptions, I have only gotten healthy guinea pigs - adoption is the way to go. I had one die within a month of adopting him but he was a rehome and he wasn't getting the best care right before I got him so I feel that is why he did not live as long as I hoped. My other adoptions (from rehomes and adoption groups) have resulted in healthy pigs that have lived long.

[Piggersrule]

lovie, We are trying very hard at getting the message out. Everyone that comes to this forum and says they just bought a pig from the pet store, we encourage them to adopt from shelters and rescues. There are other ways of helping a piggy in need is by checking your local paper, bulletin board, petfinder, vet offices and by word of mouth to name a few. The sooner we can stop people from purchasing at pet shops the faster the breeder mills will be out of business. Every time a person buys from pet shops you are contributing to breeder mills. These mills are breeding for quantity not quality. So often the pigs or any animal are over bred, inbred, on poor diets, unsuitable housing, no medical care, babies are pulled from their mother too young of age which leads to stressed and unhealthy babies. The only time babies are handled is when it it time to ship them, pretty sad ah? I wish I could wave a wand and poof....all breeder mills and back yard breeders would disappear forever!!

[NickM]

God that is sad. Whoever was responsible for selling those dying guinea pigs, I would be tempted to kill them with my bare hands.

I have a pet store piggy. I wouldn't buy again from a petstore, he was my first, and I am very very happy I have him but I can't help but regret giving that pet store my money. He cost me 20 bucks, his vet bills have cost me 150. So let that be another example!

Tell us how the hunt for a rescue pig goes

[Susan9608]

Whoever was responsible for selling those dying guinea pigs, I would be tempted to kill them with my bare hands.

Yikes ... kinda vicious.

Welcome to the forum. When you're ready, we can help you find some pigs for adoption in your area.

[hydrohoki]

Lovie was the name of my very first guinea pig (my families) when I was 4.

[ShannaC]

Hello and Welcome ....I too bought my piggies from a petstore not knowing any better. They both had to be treated for lice (ugh ) but so far I havent had any other problems. But I will say after spending time on this forum and reading and learning I will NEVER buy another piggie from a store. Im so sorry to hear of your bad experiences and hope you find a new friend for your girl soon !!!

[Twitchy]

welcome to the forums! It's so nice of you to want to adopt some piggies that need homes I adopted my piggy Maria and she's as happy as ever If I ever get more room, I'd love to get some more-rescue pigs that is-