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guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

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fuzzie

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guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

We have a kiddie pool in our back yard , & i put my guini pig in to see if he likes it. He was a born swimmer! Does he really like to swim?? beacause soon he whould starlt to try and jump out. At his 3rd dip, I noticed someint white and gooey looking ozzing out the side of his eyes (he has black eyes) is that beacuse of swimming? should i stop his pool time? I think he gets great exersise, but that eye thing really bugged me! HELP!
 
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DionAW

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

If you've ever had a dog, you know they get some white stuff out of the corner of their eyes. It's caused by moisture that dogs naturally have because they pant. Because the moisture is up around the face, the eyes can get the white stuff. It's just a defensive mechanism to get rid of any bacteria in the moisture. It has to get out of there somehow.

Just to be save though, it's always a good idea to see a vet. It could be something else not so good. I've never heard of a pig swimming though, so I couldn't say rather it's safe or not. Sounds like some fun though! If it's safe, I'm building my pig an inground pool! :p LOL
 
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IMACAVYLOVER

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

I don't see a problem with cavies swimming, but I wouldn't keep the water no higher than 1-3 inches. If they are having to swim, and not walk, then the water is too high. Also, don't leave the pool in the sun while they are playing in the water- yes, the water is cool, but it can heat up very fast under the sun and you don't want your cavies getting burnt.
 
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Deandraspigs

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

Burnt? I think they would have a heat stroke before the sun or water fryed them.
 
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AngelicumCavy

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What?

Cavy Swimming? It's simply not OK. If its lower than two inches it's not called SWIMMING, if you let the cavy swim more than 3 inches it's already dangerous. I know you're just asking, but I think swimming your cavy will just not make him/her happy, its of no use if you can bathe them.
Burnt is not the term.
Swimming is no good.
Posters must have Facts Basis Before leting their Opinions Out.
 

SuperCavyLover

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Re: What?

AngelicumCavy, go talk to someone who CARES. :lol:
 
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cavy crazy

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Swimming

On hot days in the summer, I fill the kiddie pool so my pigs can swim. I float some grass around in there, and make a brick patio for a shallow end. In the deep part, I put cinder blocks for an island. Two of my pigs love it and will jump off the cinder block into the water, and push grass to the shallow part to eat it. They like it and when they are done we dry them off until they are 98% dry and then put them in their covered outdoor play area to popcorn off the rest of the 2%. My pigs like water in the pool, but they hate baths! LOL:rolleyes:
 
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miss g pig

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Re: Swimming

wow so your pigs really like to swim, must try this with my pigs. I will make a shallow end too. how warm or cold is the temperature of the water??
 
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Treen

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Very few guinea pigs genuinely enjoy swimming. I've never had one that enjoyed water and I've seen pictures of guinea pigs who are (according to their owners) apparently enjoying a swim, whereas it's obvious they are in fact swimming round in circles in a blind panic, desperately trying to climb up on one another. To me it's like the whole baths thing - people enjoy bathing their guinea pigs, but very few guinea pigs remotely enjoy being bathed (and if they're groomed properly and their environment is kept clean, they seldom need to be bathed anyway).

I'm sure there are some pigs who do like a little paddle, but on the whole, they much prefer to run about on dry land. It's only a guinea pig who would repeatedly (and by himself) choose to get in the water and swim around that I'd actually believe liked swimming!

If you do try swimming then make sure it's shallow, at the right temperature and that you have lots of escape routes from the water so they can easily climb out themselves at any point. Never leave them unattended in water.

When guinea pigs clean themselves (which the often do after being bathed/ being in water) their eyes produce a milky substance - it's like their own windscreen washing fluid. What's not absorbed back in will be cleaned away by the guinea pig within a couple of minutes.
 

Becky101

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swimming

Hi there,

I think swimming sounds fun and all, but how do you know if your pigs enjoying it or hating it?? I would to try it with mine but I would be scared if somthing happened!

Becky
 
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mncavylover

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I don't think I would try it... There is a risk of some of the water aspirating into the lungs and also (obviously) the risk of drowning. Try filling the bathtub with about two-three inches of warm water and letting the piggies get in by themselves. Put them in the shallower end and see if they go for a swim. It's safer than a pool. Hope this helps! =)
 
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CuteFluffyThing

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Deandraspigs said:
Burnt? I think they would have a heat stroke before the sun or water fryed them.
it remebrs me of one year ago when we put the gp's outside ( we didnt have a free run then) in their large base (dont know how to say it better) and we put them in the shadow under a wall and we went inside . very unhappy fact was that that day was a very special day for the weather : the sun and the wind rolled over extremely fast and temparutes heated to like 330+ in three minutes . I quickly went to go get our piggies because they where already sweating and they dug themselves in their hay to keep them fresh . I put the two piggies in my bath tub and let out a one inch nice cool refreshing water and the next half our i saw how they where playing in the water
 

StasiaJ26

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

cavylover said:
Rodents arent a swimming kind of animal exspecially guinea pigs.short stubby legs kinda chubby.I dont think its a good idea.But if you think they like it they probably dont.
Amazingly though Hamsters LOVE the water.~Stasia
 

John4216

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

Treen said:
To me it's like the whole baths thing - people enjoy bathing their guinea pigs, but very few guinea pigs remotely enjoy being bathed (and if they're groomed properly and their environment is kept clean, they seldom need to be bathed anyway).

It's only a guinea pig who would repeatedly (and by himself) choose to get in the water and swim around that I'd actually believe liked swimming!

GP's are not meant nor equipped for swimming. What you said here is correct. It is people who ejoy it but the GP themselves do not. Putting a GP in water that is to deep for it to walk in and forcing it to swim is cruel and abusive not cute.
 

dagwellismypigy

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

Do you realize the original post was from 2002?
 

John4216

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

LOL no I did not even notice :)
 

enchantingcavy

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Re: guini ok 2 be swimming????!!!!

All I'll say is that in a full sized pool the guinea definitely didn't want to get out I spent 5-10 minutes trying to catch him because he wouldn't come back to the step or to me lol...NOT RECOMMENDED to use a full size pool for this reason but they can definitely swim in deep water no problems...I reckon itd probably depend on the individual pig wiht regards to whether they like it or not...i do know of someone locally that does swim in their pool with the guineas in summer ( all 5 at once eek! )and she reckons they thoroughly enjoy it and do it on a regular basis throughout summer...some probably like it and some probably dont.....we have really hot summers here in australia and the only time I had ever let my pig swim was simply to cure curiosity one time 4 years ago...I wanted to know if they could swim and I very cautiously and carefully went through the process of gently letting hte piggy sit on my hand over the water to find out...he then took off swimming on his own there was no force to make him...I've never done it again as I don't see much point but I don't like the idea of deliberately putting them in water to make them swim....definitely give them the choice of hopping into the water or not hopping in by either sitting them on your hand or sitting with them on something dry over the water and if they want to get in they will....

But yeah as i said i never did it again after this one time as it was simply an experiment...
Longhairs I'd definitely say not a good idea. The weight of their hair does weigh them down and yeah just not recommended...
Here's the info from a page on my webby....I did write this and do this over 4 years ago though so please bare with it its probably not written very well:cool: ...am only putting the link here to show the photos of what they look like when swimming hehe...
WARNING: If you would like to attempt watching your cavy have a swim please make sure you:[size=-1]
- Watch the cavy very closely 100% of the time and do not leave the cavy unattended.
- Make sure there is a towel on hand
- Do this only in nice warm temperatures so the cavy does not catch a chill
- The cavy has a place where he can swim to easily get out of the water if he needs to
- Do not push the cavy or touch him while he is swimming unless it is to lift the pig out of the water as if the cavy gets water up his nose it could get into his lungs and then cause a cold, pneumonia.
- Most cavies are fine swimming, but if the cavy is clearly not enjoying it then please do not force your cavy to do this

It was a horribly hot day one day in the summer of 2003 and I have always wondered if cavies could swim so I did the risky and went and got one of my 4 year old pet shorthair boars " Rodney ". It was quite nerve wrecking as I thought as soon as I'd let go he would get water up his nose or worse SINK! So for 20 minutes I sat with him in my hand hovering over the pool. But finally I let go and boy was he off!!! Cavies are extemely fast little swimmers and they hold their noses high in the air. Alot of the paddling is done by their front paws.

I also tried a longhair to see how they would swim. The longhairs swim just as well as the shorthairs, and look rather like swimming MOPS, although after a few minutes if their coats are long they seem to get heavy with water and the cavy struggles to keep afloat so they must be watched very carefully.

Below are some photos of Rodney and a longhair boar " Minstrel ". It was quite hard to get some photos as they are so fast! They really seemed to enjoy the water though and just came back to the edge of the pool when they were ready to hop out. It is a pity that Shampoo and Conditioner can't go in the pool or bathing would be quite easy! So for anyone that has a pool and that is allowed to use the pool for the piggies, on those hot summer days they'll enjoy a nice cool swim closely monitored by you.
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