I need some pointers

Welcome! I'm new here as well. I started my boys in a pet store cage also and quickly learned that they simply needed more space to get along. So I made them a 2x3 because it was a ton bigger than what they had and all I could fit into their temporary space in my exercise room during a home improvement situation downstairs. Well, now everything is done and this week they get to move into a 2x5!! You're on the right track! You're here so that shows you are already a great piggy-parent! I prefer fleece but it's really your preference as long as your piggy is clean and dry. There are a LOT of different bedding methods discussed on this forum. For that matter, there is an abundance of great information on this forum, I come here and learn something new daily My boys aren't fully bonded yet, or else adolescence is just paying it's toll on them (and me!) but I know they prefer to be together and bicker than to be apart! I separated them for a little while last week because I thought one had diarrhea and needed to figure out which one. They cried for each other and it was really pitiful. And, luckily, it was just a leaky water bottle on some poo LOL!

I know how you feel when it comes to having one piggy, that's for sure. My advice is if/when you adopt a new guinea pig, plan in advance for it. What gender is your guinea pig? If it's a she, she'll do best with another sow (female guinea pig) or a FIXED boar (male guinea pig. NEVER put an unaltered male with an unaltered female.) and their cage should be at least a 2x4 so they both have ample space. If he's a he, then he'd do best with another boar or you could get him fixed by a "cavy savy" vet and get a sow. For another boar however, they are more territorial and do best with more space, ideally a 2x5 or larger. A 3x4 is also a very good option.

(Personally though, a 2x4 is not much bigger than a 2x3 at all and the space is completely worth it. I wanted to make a 2x4 myself, but my mom and I argued until eventually she let me leave it as a 2x3)

Hmm...also, make sure they get 1 cup of veggies a day, and preferably a variety of them. It's a lot more important than you may think, but it's not too hard to give them a good veggies...I give mine a cherry tomato, 1/8 bell pepper, 1-2 leaves of red lettuce and a few chunks of zucchini daily and that amounts to at most $7 a week. Also make sure they have unlimited grass hay (which I'm sure you already know) but make sure it's really green and fresh and you store it in a container with good air circulation. I didn't know this at first but apparently hay needs to "breathe" and lasts longer in open containers in dry, cool places, which explains why it's exposed to air when in barns and such.

What else...hmm...I can't think of much else off the top of my head but if I do I'll tell you. Do you have any spefic questions or are you just looking for advice?

Thanks for letting me know about the forums concerning types of bedding and it's good it was just the water bottle lol

It was more for advice, but I kinda have questions now. Well, first I guess I should let you know it's a he and I was planning on getting another male. Now that you have mentioned that they are territorial, does that mean that they might fight a lot? And I actually talked to my mom (right about now) about making a C&C cage, but she told me not to because I'm actually going off to college in three weeks and my mom worried that my friend, who is my "roommate", won't like it if the cage starts to smell (We actually have separate rooms though, it's an apartment). Also my mom worried that since C&C cages tend not to have leads that a cat might come inside the apartment and well...you know.

I actually think I heard once that mixing some veggies is not good for them. Is that true? Oh and thanks for the advices!

Oh have I got some answers for you!

Firstly, the smell and cat thing. You CAN cat proof a c and c cage very easilly with a closet shelf cut to size and some zip ties. I have three cats so I had to do this with mine, and it works like a charm! It's long enough and heavy enough a cat can't get in, and they're really cheap. A 6 ft x 16" one is $11 at Lowe's. Also, make sure it's 16" wide...that's the perfect length to go over the connectors

And as for the territorial nature of males...honestly, all guinea pigs can fight, but males are more likely to fight if they a. are going through puberty (6 months - 1 yr old), b. around females with one or more other males present, and c. in a cage too small for them. If you make a 2x5 and they are introduced well and no blood is drawn, they are very likely to live very well together, although occassional kerfuffles are not uncommon. Most of the time it depends on the pair as well...some people say their boars never fight, other's say they have a "brotherly" relationship and one minute their cuddling and the next their rumbling. You never know, but that shouldn't scare you off from getting another guinea pig. I hope others with more experience owning multiple boars chime in though, as I'm no expert.

Oh no, it didn't show my pictures....here's my little cage with it's lid

Oh ok! So you use the shelf as a lead, awesome ok!

By the looks of it you don't use fleece, do you go through the beeding quickly because of the size of the cage?

You are right I don't use fleece. But don't be like me, if ypu use wood pellets, use fleece on top. It's awful because I have to pick out all the poops by hand twice a day, but it does last around 2-3 weeks on its own, which is impressive. I also use 1 bag per cage change which is $6 per bag, and they are sold as wood pellets for horse bedding.

Hiii and welcome to the forum! I own 4 boars and am fostering 1 boar. I am still trying pair off my pigs... Ugh! Right now I have 1 established pair of 1 month as of tomorrow and 2 singles with the foster also being a single (he is living in a 2x5 connected to my 4x4). About an hour ago I had tried to bond my 2 singles (Toro and Gibson) and it failed, miserably. Gibson has never gotten along with any of the pigs I try to introduce. I got him from the PetSmart as a friend for Blake (paired with Snickers) after Blake's 2 buddies died from old age as they were each 9 years old. I think Gibson had been bullied before we got him because he hates my other pigs but likes Toro through the grids. Toro, my poor baby, is so friendly towards Gibson but Gibson just despises him. Well, actually, any contact, whatsoever. I am going to try to find Toro a friend and keep Gibson by himself in his 3x3 connected to Toro's 3x4.

I use fleece in everybody's cages but in Snickers and Blake's cage I have a 1x4 litterbox filled with carefresh.

I have a cat and a dog that have both gotten so harassed by my pigs that they don't bother them anymore. Snickers will hump the daylights out of my pitbull. My big fat weanie pitbull. He look so horrified and terrified after that happened he hid under my bed for 3 1/2 hours! Snickers has also eaten my cat's whiskers. And toes and tail and nose and everything else he could find during floortime. So I have no need for a lid.

Snickers and Blake looove each other. They will mount, hump, lick, sniff, and ejaculate on each other. All day. Everyday. They will cry and cry if seperated smh. (Sorry to paint you a picture).

If you have any questions feel free to ask

Ok. Thanks for your help. I appreciate

Thanks! And does it tend take a lot of time to get them to pair them off?

@DDNero I had just brought home Toro and Snickers and I put them in a 3x6 C&C cage and I left for about 30 minutes and Blake had jumped into their cage by jumping onto a tunnel. I came back and Blake and Snickers and Toro were snuggling inside a pigloo. Snickers and Toro were FAT back then so how they fit was beyond me. I decided to just leave Blake in their because if the newbies had something they would have already passed it to him. After a while it became clear Toro was the 3rd wheel and wasn't happy so I gave him a petstore cage to live in next to Gibson while Gibson was in quarantine.

I have paired a few successful pairings and groupings but it's mostly just been luck.

https://guinea-pigs.livejournal.com/3002707.html I follow this advice

Advice:
1) Pine pellets for cats work just as well as wood stove pellets. I live in NYC so no horse or feed stores.
2) Feed the piggies twice a day so you can see if they have any issues early.
3) Fleece is your friend. Whether you clip it or sew your own cage liners, they are great. (IMHO)
4) Don't forget the pellets, but limit their amount to 1/8 cup per piggie. My newest rehomed pair seemed to have been given only pellets and hay and were quite "round". Since I took them off pellets for a while and increased their fresh veggies, they look "slimmer".
5) Find a 'cavy savy" vet, and give them a check up. I also had mine sexed, just in case the former owner were wrong.

Thank you so much for those advice!

Welcome. Also invest in a decent vacuum. It makes cleaning easier and faster. I can get two cages cleaned and fed in 20 mins.

@megakamattsmom, may ask what vacuum you use? I'm currently using a mini broom and dustpan which is working fine, but curious if anyone has found a little handheld vac that 1) won't terrify the piggies, and 2) won't pull up the fleece?