Need advice

[Sk8ergrl927]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Hi. Im Samantha. Im new to the whole guinea pig thing so i need advice. I've never really liked them(no offense) but I have my heart in for rescue animals. I went to a shelter near me a few days ago, and met an amazing cavy. She wasn't like the others I met. She was very confident of herself. I really want her but there is a problem. I live in a state run home for teenagers and they dont allow furry animals inside. Im willing to go the extra mile for this cavy and get the works for her.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium] Lots of ppl here are against having gp's outside, but I really feel as if I could provide the best life for her.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Would It be easier to make my own hutch and run, so I could add the neccesities it will need to be outside? What info do I need to know that websites don't provide. Thanks for the advice!![/FONT]
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[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Sam[/FONT]

[Percy's Mom]

The only advice I can really give you is that if you're not allowed to have her inside, don't get her. Keeping her outside is not going to be giving her the best life. There are too many factors like weather (heat, cold, rain, wind, etc.), predator animals, bugs, and even people who can be cruel and either steal or "set free" outdoor animals to make life for an outside animal the best unless perhaps you would have a climate controlled outbuilding, like a shed with electricity, AC and heat. If you have such a building and are willing to spend a lot of your time outdoors with your pet, perhaps it would work. Besides the other risks and the animal not really being part of your life if she lives outdoors, it is also much more difficult to quickly catch illnesses or injuries.

You mentioned that you live in a state run home for teenagers. If something should happen to your pet, would you have the funds and transportation to get her to a vet? There are forum members who have spent hundreds to thousands of dollars on medical care. Do you have a way to get her unlimited grass hay, at least a cup of fresh veggies every day, and a high quality pellet for her diet? Were you planning on just adopting the one guinea pig, or is there a friend for her in the shelter? Guinea pigs are herd animals and do much better with another of their own species to live with. Imagine if you could never see another human and your only interaction was with a being 10-50 times your size.

I can certainly understand wanting to rescue an animal, and that is incredibly commendable, but if you can't keep her inside, in a cage at least 7.5-10 square feet, with the proper diet, and eventually adopt her a friend, guinea pigs aren't the animal for you. You already even said that you don't particularly care for them. Obviously, the rules of your housing situation aren't something you can easily change. They are most likely in place because of the high risk of allergies in the other people living there. Your best bet is probably a fish or a bird if either of those is allowed.

[Sk8ergrl927]

Thank you for the help.

I just talked to my friend who runs a rescue and she said pretty much the same thing about keeping it outdoors. Im going to try to get them to say yes to keeping it in the house.

About the vet bills, I have the money for that. I have some saved up in the bank right now, and Im getting a job in a few weeks. My future is pretty much already set up for me. Im going to be there until I graduate from highschool, then I will get my own apartment and go to college to become a veterinarian. (the state pays for it).

The thing that I really didnt care for about gp's was how scared they always got. This one is not like that at all. I also have the fresh veggies and everything so no need to worry about malnutrition.

Im working on a cage situation right now. Im going to build it myself so I can alter it to make it the safest it can be.

[VoodooJoint]

I would be terrified to keep it outside in a circumstance like yours. I know that most of the kids you live with are good people but it would only take one troubled kid (or one mad at you) to purposly go out and harm your pet while no one was watching.

If kept inside you would have to insure that your pets were also safe and always had a responsible person near to insure their safety.

[Sk8ergrl927]

Ok so heres my update:

Ive decided Im going to wait awhile and learn more about guinea pigs before getting them. My house right now is getting redone anyways, so while its getting painted, i will be on the computer learning. Hopefully, I can get my house to approve my proposal.

Have any info i need to know???

[emoxrobot]

Well it sounds like you are trying to do the responsible thing and I am glad. My best advice it read every single thing on guinealynx and read all the stickies on this message board. Diet and housing are two very important things you need to learn about and also signs of illness in your cavy is good to know since cavies hide their illness most of the time until it is too late.

A lot of your questions may be answered already on this forum so you probably could look at some older posts.

[Coopdog]

Perhaps another alternative for now would be to help your friend with her rescues. It would give you a chance to be around lots of guinea pigs and get to know what they're really like. I'm sure your friend would appreciate the help, too.

[pamziaw]

Its fantastic that you're being responsable in learning more about your future pet before you buy her! Not everyone does, it makes it harder on them and their pets. It's good that the pig you want is confident already, so many arn't as naturally they are prey animals. Building a C&C cage will increase her confidence as she will get used to noises and habits around the house and interact more with you. They learn things that don't help you as well like the sound of a fridge door opening! Read through the stickies on here and info about cages. This is the best place to help you and your future cavy!