My rescue experience

[rabbitsncavyluv]

Vet visits are good and all but you can't see mites by just looking at a pig and many diseases incubate, not showing up til weeks later. You could be holding a pig with mites and URI (and pregnant already from the pet mill) and not even know it.

I see tons of pigs on craigs list atlanta craigslist > pets: search for "guinea"

And there are probably more in your local shelters that you could save but you'd rather be petty and stick it to the rescue by flouncing a pet store purchase, right? That's basically what is going on here. Even though their website states they require a 2 by 4 C&C.

[TwoOfaKind]

I sent you a PM :-)

[thalestral]

You say you can't afford care fresh but can you afford vet bills? Pigs from a pet store especially are prone to illnesses that can be costly to fix or medicate. One of my girls, who was from a pet store, has a heart problem that requires two medicines twice daily. On top of that she now needs surgery for ovarian cysts at the tender age of 1. The bad breeding practises of the places that supply pet stores with pigs are responsible for her poor genes, I dread to think what her family history is like, or how her poor mother must have suffered.

Every guinea pig bought from a store results in another pig taking its place. Every guinea pig bought from a store results in more female guinea pigs being back bred, impregnated over and over with no breaks until they die of exhaustion or birth complication (not uncommon given that 20% of pregnancies result in death for the mother).

Every guinea pig bought from a store results in death.

But every guinea pig adopted from a rescue results in another pig taking its place and getting the chance of a new and better life. Every guinea pig adopted from a rescue helps to lessen the demand on the awful breeders that churn out inbred poorly guinea pigs for the stores.

Every guinea pig adopted from a store results in life.


Are you really going to turn your back on those two boys because of a mistake you made?

I really hope you reconsider because at the moment it seems that the welfare of guinea pigs is not nearly high enough up your list of priorities to be considering bringing new family members into your home

[daftscotslass]

Originally Posted by kayleemommy01

You cannot use carefresh type bedding with long haired pigs, it will get tangled in their fur.

Uhh... and you have what experience of this? I have kept a coronet boar on this type of bedding AND fleece for well over a year and have never had a problem like this. If you have experienced this yourself then the chances are you weren't keeping them adequately clean or groomed, or the person who told you this was.

[I<3MyBabies]

Hey there,

Alrighty, well, many things have been said here already. Some perhaps out of frustration or confusion, but I'm sure all out of genuine concern for not only you but for the animals you intend to take into your home.

Let me start by saying that I can totally see why you and your husband would be frustrated. But I also am not sure the rescue is at all to blame for this. Sometimes, out of eagerness, we kind of say to ourselves, "Well, I KNOW this is what the rescue said, or what is best for the piggies, but it will due right?" I know the feeling! But if they said 2x4 that's what they meant, hon.

Now, I'm 20 years old, and a University student. I live at home and my parents say no piggies anywhere but my room. Now, I have 4 piggies. 2 petstores (1 had a URI and the other may possibly have a heart issue), 1 baby that resulted from the 2 petstore piggies which I was told were both female...yeah right. And 1 adoptee! I love them all equally, but I very much wish I could have given 3 other shelter piggies the same chance that Suki got.

A little off-track here, but I'm coming back around :-) So, I have 4 piggies living in my bedroom. In total, their cages are 2x9!! I have half my room, they have the other! My point in saying this is, adding one more cube length is easy to do no matter where you are keeping those piggies. And this rescue is not out to foil your attempts to do the piggie world some good. I promise! They REALLY want new homes for them, but just GOOD homes. So, in my oppinion, if you really really want these piggies, and you really want to do it the RIGHT way...then c'mon girl, just wiggle some silly furniture around and add the other...what 1 foot of space to the cage!! It will be worth it! My cage is HUGE for a bedroom but I made it L-shaped and made it work because I love my piggies that much.

It comes down to this...do you want these piggies so much and want whts best for them so much that you are willing to make a few little sacrifices? Or are you maybe being a little angry and self-centered because you are, granted, totally crazy excited about getting your new piggies, but you want them NOW?

I hope nothing I have said has come across mean, or upset. I honestly understand your frustration. But I think you'll find if you stop and think about this rationally, there is really no hard desicion to make. Move some things around, build the extra foot of space (you have the materials), and GO BRING THOSE NEW PIGGIES HOME!! :-)


Heidi

[rabbitsncavyluv]

Regular wood shavings do get tangled in their fur but I have never had Carefresh do this.

[CavySpirit]

Well, it's clear to me that the rescue's requirements are functioning just fine. For someone who has been on this forum for as long as you have to throw a snit and run to a pet store to purchase living merchandise, I see no excuse for your behavior. The cage requirement issue is just an excuse for you to do what you want to do--buy now. And on top of that to not have enough discretionary income to afford carefresh, well, then I wouldn't adopt to you no matter what. 2 strikes in my book and your attitude is strike 3. And I'm not saying people don't try to economize on bedding, but to not have so little available?

I have a number of nice, understanding people come through my rescue who for whatever reason, don't want to make the proper cage space a priority and want to go with a 2x3. I tell them, 'that's fine, but I can't adopt out to you.' I let them know which shelters to adopt from, as there are plenty of pigs in the shelters who need a home--including long haired pigs. I even offer to help them in every other way, EXCEPT getting the pigs from me.

I'd say 50% of the time, they find a way to make more room. Probably 30% of the others give up and don't adopt, and that's a GOOD thing, as they would have been future surrenders anyway. And others find another source. Probably a few, head to the pet store to indulge themselves and more often their kids.

[Susan9608]

So we are not getting the pigs I worked and essentially begged for. We will be going to petsmart today after my husband gets home from work to get our pigs.

I am very upset about not getting those pigs... My husband is very upset also. He calls you people guinea pig nazis now.

Yes, you've sure shown us and put us and the rescue in our places. Great attitude.

[envisionary333]

If you really want to provide those two piggies with the proper care that they deserve, you will find a way to build a 2x4. Do you have a photo of the room you are putting the cage in? We can help you figure out how. Think creatively. Try to use more vertical space for stacking and storage so you can fit to horizontal space of a cage. I am 100% convinced that you have the ability to give those piggies the space they need if you put your mind to it and are determined to provide proper care.

If you are so quick to cop out and resort to a pet store, it really makes me wonder if you should be getting piggies at all? You know perfectly well the abuse you would be supporting, and you are perfectly aware that there are even more piggies in your area waiting for homes that you could easily find by browsing Craigslist, calling shelters, asking vets, etc. If want something bad enough, TRY HARDER. I don't believe that you can't find a way to add a little bit of additional space to the cage so that you can bring home two piggies that you have obviously wanted for a long time.

[jilovecavies]

Originally Posted by kayleemommy01

A pig is a pig is a pig.

I do not agree with this. If you get a pig from a pet store, you are supporting breeding (which this forum is AGAINST), which just worsens the guinea pig overpopulation. Why didn't you wait for another pair of pigs to rescue? I don't understand why you went to a pet store after being on this site and "reading" all the information. I'm confused. It seems a bit hypocritical to me. I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just puzzled.

As far as the whole cage thing goes, if you read the whole page, as you should have, you would understand WHY the loft space does not count. Please don't attack us (you said you aren't mad at us, just mad in general, but that comment about what your husband said leads me to believe otherwise) for trying to help you and make you see where we are coming from. You seem upset that you didn't get "your pigs" but didn't research enough, apparently. If you really had your heart set on those pigs, I believe you would've found a way to expand the cage. You still can!

If you haven't gotten the pet store piggies, please don't. Please, please, please wait for another pair to rescue. But before you even do that, you need to consider the costs. If you can't afford carefresh, will you be able to afford vet bills if need be? One of our pigs has cost $400 to treat for mites and a cut eye, and this is right after I had to have surgery.

Just, please, think about this. We're not against you, we want to help.

[Calliso]

You know my husband and I originally thought we would have space for only a 2x3 maybe a 2x4 tops. We now have a 2x5 cage and have found we could expand even more if we wanted. A 2x4 is not that much bigger then a 2x3, I bet if you rearranged some furniture or what not you could fit it in and maybe you may find that you have room for something bigger! But that being said you should have checked the requirements first the impression I get from your posts in this thread is that the rescue never guarenteed you the guinea pigs they only said they were available. Running off to the store to buy guinea pigs isn;t the answer and sounds to me like you are doing that purely out of anger. Also no one here had anything to do with why the rescue rejected you so there is no need to take your anger out on the people here either.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

It's too late. They're going to buy their pigs to stick it to all of us even though the rescue's requirements are listed on their website and it's the same guidelines listed here. It's childish and stupid but nothing we can do about it.

[envisionary333]

Originally Posted by rabbitsncavyluv

It's too late. They're going to buy their pigs to stick it to all of us even though the rescue's requirements are listed on their website and it's the same guidelines listed here. It's childish and stupid but nothing we can do about it.

As much as I agree with the sentiment, I don't think this post is going to help. I do have to wonder why she posted on the first place if she knew we would disagree and that she was taking the easy way out? The only reasons I can imagine is that she wanted to somehow find a way to rationalize a decision she knows in her heart is wrong, or that she subconsciously wants to be convinced to do the right thing. Maybe that's wishful thinking, but I hope we can find a way to help her make the right choice if it's possible. Unreasonable as her attitude may be, getting angry won't help us convince her otherwise.

Kayleemommy01, why don't you let us help you out so you can bring home the piggies you fell in love with and give them a good life? We can help you find a way to build a bigger cage if you let us, and I bet you'll be glad you did- and so will the piggies. Please reconsider.

[socal805]

The fact that she hasn't posted again makes me think that they did go out and get the petco pigs, meanwhile the rescue piggies she wanted still have no forever home...all because she was unwilling to give them an extra 14 inches...sad

[envisionary333]

That's true, it does seem likely. I guess some people can't accept anything other than instant gratification. I wonder what will happen to those poor piggies at the shelter...