Greetings!

Welcome to GPC!

I just use a basic pet carrier that is usually used for my cats. I just pad it down with a towel, a little more comfy than newspaper. For water, just wet some veggies, and put it in there, it's easier than trying to attach a water bottle,or using a bowl (it'll spill).

Good luck with your piggy!

Welcome! When transporting my piggies (A couple of them took at least two hours to bring home), we put them in a large plastic container like something you'd put socks in. Put bedding down with some fleece next to it and lots of hay and veggies. If you're going alone, it was kind of nice for me to have the piggie, while in the carrier, in the passenger seat so I could dangle my hand over the edge just to bond a little bit before they start to settle in. Not sure if it helped the piggies at all, but it sure made me fall in love with 'em!

Thank you both for the information! I'll be sure to keep this in mind when adoption day comes. Both of you are very helpful and friendly. I'm going to take my mom with me, so I'm going to be able to keep the piggy and the carrier in my lap on the entire ride home.

I also would suggest a towel, that way any pee will be absorbed. I would skip out on the water bottle for the ride home, since the pig only will have a 40min drive. My little pig didn't drink anything for like the first day and half. I think that was due to her being stressed out, but just make sure your pig knows where the bottle is. If your parents would allow it, I would make the recommended C&C cage for 2, just in case you want to add another cavy later. It's a lot easier to score and cut the coroplast once. If you only made the 2X3 then you'd probably have to add on with other coro peices. I just think it would be easier to do it the first time around. Now, that's only if your parents will allow you because I know some parents don't.

I used a small dog/cat carrier for transport. It's the easiest thing to get my guinea pig from place to pleace (which is really only the vet when she needs it lol)

Good luck on getting your pig, and good idea to have mom drive so you can meet your new pet! I had my bf do the same thing.

Thank you for the advice. It's very appreciated! I think towels are definitely the way to go from what you guys have said. I also like reading about your experiences. I'll keep that in mind about the water. I am going to go with the C&C cage as well, though I still will likely have to go with the 2x3 because of finances. That's very helpful insight, though! Thank you for the well wishes!

Not an issue now, but in the winter when transporting mine, I heat a tile and tuck it under the towels. You could use a hot water bottle, etc. I heat my car of course, but this makes the carrier comfy and they don't get such a chill. Sometimes it is very, very cold here and I don't like to stress them with temp. extremes.

I didn't end up having time to shop around for a good cat carrier, so I ended up using a box, lined with bedding and towels. Adoption day was today. The people from the rescue organization told me how Linny was shy. She was quite still for the ride home, mostly staying near her hay and in one corner.

When I got home, I placed her box in the 2 x 3 C & C cage. At first, she was terrified since everyone in my family wanted to get a look at her. She would run and hide in the place where the box was covered. Haha, I got everyone to get out. Gradually, I introduced her to my hand, letting her smell. Then I began petting her. Her body seemed to become less stiff and a bit more stretched out. Eventually, I believe I even heard purring. I don't think I heard any chattering. She wasn't keen on getting picked up, but she did become a bit more still as I put her down. She ate a few pellets and hay and then ran off to her pigloo, where she currently has resided for about twenty minutes.

I also noticed she didn't seem to potty at all in the box, but I did notice quite a few droppings once she was in her cage. I'm hoping that's a sign she'll become comfortable in her new home. I'll try to take a picture of Linny later on. Thanks for all the advice, everyone!

Congrats on becoming the proud slave of little Linny!
Did your rescue have bonded pairs? If so, what made you go for a singleton? Did she seem lonely?

Congrats on getting her home finally! Post pictures when you get a chance!

Here she is! It's still a bit tricky to get pictures of her with how shy and skittish she is. I got her to come out of her pigloo fully this morning for breakfast. She stayed out and munched on some leaves in the open, but she mostly took them back to her pigloo and came out again.

I was also happy last night when I was sitting by her cage and reading a book to her. She came out on her own for a while and didn't seem so terribly afraid of me.

And yes, Corgi, they did have bonded pairs, but Linny was either just alone or she didn't bond with any other piggies. I do believe she seemed lonely. I'm not really one hundred percent certain of her situation. I know her original owner gave her up for allergies. But if the rescue group thinks it's okay, then I likely will try to adopt a more outgoing buddy for her in a month or so.

I've also read some conflicting information regarding her pigloo. Most sources say to leave it in, but my rescue oddly suggests taking it away for a while with shy piggies. The notion struck me as cruel. I'm really not sure if that would help her since I want her to feel secure. What do you guys think? If I were to practice this, I would think perhaps the farthest I would go is maybe having her pigloo out for a while when she's getting some treats.

Also, how soon do you guys believe I should try to introduce some floor time and lap time? I don't want to stress her out too much since it's only the second day, but I want her to know she's loved!

Thanks for the tips! I really appreciate everyone's helpful input here.

Oh! And trexgorawrrrrr, when your pig wasn't drinking much on the first few days, did he/she go by the water bottle, inspect it, and perhaps put his/her mouth on it but not really drink? This is what Linny does. I'm worried that she might not be able to somehow, even though the bottle seems fully functional.

I was considering maybe trying to put some water for her in a medium sized ceramic bowl, even though this would be messier and have to be changed frequently. Her romaine is a bit wet when she eats it, so I really hope she isn't feeling dehydrated.(broken link removed)

What a pretty little abby girl!! with those delicate white gloves on her little paws! such delicately colored smoky cheeks, and that white blaze above her tiny dark nose-tip! Is she dark chocolate-colored, or black? It looks like her rosettes are a lighter color inside the whorl, or is that just the light in the photo?

I can answer the pigloo question -- piggies must have a hidey available in their cage. It can be just a fleece/towel tent clipped to the side of the cage, or a pigloo, or a covered box with entry and exit holes cut in it. They feel stressed if there is nowhere to run and take cover. Leaving them exposed when they are frightened is terribly stressful.

I know it is a typical idea--really a piece of folklore-- that giving a pig a hidey before it is used to a new person and home will make it forever unused to being out in the open. That could happen if a person never interacts with the pig, and never tries to get it used to them. You can be quiet and gentle and offer food when she is awake in the pigloo, and she will learn to come out and feel relaxed when you are around--as long as you are relaxed too, and don't try to pick her up all the time and pet her too soon. First she'll come only when you offer food, but you can get her to learn to come when her name is called by calling her name when you offer the food (consistently), and then after a few days omitting the food a few of the times when you call her name, and then omitting it more until she comes when called. One of my pigs learned his name very quickly, but it has taken the other one almost a year, but now he appears to finally recognize it and not come when the other piggie's name is called, only his own.
Good luck with your little beauty!

What a cute pig!!!!!

Piggies take a while to warm up to people. I have had one of my pigs for over two years and she still won't let me pet her when she's in the cage. They all have unique personalities which makes them so interesting. Let her have her hidey so she can feel secure and be patient.

Thank you, Corgi and Peggy! And thanks for the well wishes! I love her characteristics and mannerisms as well. I swear she knows we are talking about her because she came out of her hidey as soon as I began reading this, and then I read the messages to her. Haha! She's a perceptive piggy! But she is mostly black. Her rosettes do in fact have a white whorl inside them. I'm going to try to post more pictures soon. I got some better ones with my sister's digital camera. Linny always makes the scared sort of purr/rumble sound whenever she hears cameras.

I appreciate the advice about the pigloo! I've been keeping it in there at all times. Slowly but surely, she is beginning to come out a little more. Sometimes, I don't even have food and she just comes by to sniff my hand. She still is quite skittish when I try to pet her in the cage, but it could be possible she may be one of those pigs who dislikes petting in the cage.

A proud moment happened last night, however! When I was getting her dinnertime veggies, she wheeked! It was so magical! She also wheeked later on when I got her some fresh hay and even came by when I was doing my spot cleaning, though I believe she thought I had food. But she'll run all the way to the end of her cage and sometimes eat veggies outside her hidey! She also has started to drink more.

I think either later tonight or tomorrow I'm going to try to attempt my first floortime and laptime. Are there any tips for the first time owner? I've read plenty of information, but I think the trouble is that Linny and I can scare each other. I try my best to remain relaxed, but I sometimes get startled when she darts at maximum speed. Do you guys think it might be best to try to get her in a box rather than picking her up while transporting her to the floortime area? I've also considered the idea of wrapping her in a towel, but I'm still not certain of how to exactly do this with the least scaring possible. Any tips on wrapping her up in a towel would be very appreciated!

This also may sound silly, but I am a bit nervous about possibly being bitten. Have any of you ever been bitten? Does it hurt bad? I have a pretty high pain tolerance. The fact that it's rarer in pigs is assuring, but I still feel cautious because of how shy Linny is, though she didn't seem to try at all to bite when I lifted her from her box and to her cage on day one.

I've also noticed that her one middle nail seems longer than the others. I'm obviously a little nervous about trimming her nails as well. I was wondering if there was any good general rule of thumb as far as length regarding nails. Hers curve a bit. I've read to cut them on a monthly basis. Would you guys recommend me going to a competent vet instead of attempting a nail trim on my own for the first time? I could also try to get a picture of her front nails if my description is too vague.

Thanks for reading!

What a cute pig! You sound like a good cavy-mom.

I'll try to answer a few of your questions.

The 'elevator' method (post found in the tips section of this forum) is a really good one for skittish pigs. I trained my boys to load up in their box for transport with some patience and some cut up carrots. They hop right in (most of the time) and off we go! They hate being picked up and carried, and the box is apparently an acceptable alternative. I would maybe stick with lap time until she's a bit calmer with you. I think it's pretty stressful for all parties involved to chase your pig around the living room after floor time is done!

I have one pig that is a little bitey. He has only ever nipped lightly, though, and has never broken skin. Most of the time I can read him and get my hands out of the way while he's thinking about it (he is not subtle). Most pigs are not biters. They can break skin if suitably inspired, though. Most guinea pigs are shy, too -- it's not really an indication that they'll be biters.

Trimming nails is pretty easy to do, but don't hesitate to go to a vet and have them show you how if you're nervous. I just use my own nail clippers, and I do my guys every two weeks or so. I try to keep the nails short (up to the quick) as one of my boys has a tendency to get curly nails.

Linny is such a cutey! I can't offer much advise since we've only had our pair a little over a week. The lady at the rescue also clipped their nails just before we left so I saw how she did it. I haven't put that into practice yet.
We kind-of use the "elevator" method. We have a tube that they like to hide in. When they are in it we just put a hand on each side to lift them. Inca will come out of the tube and does really well with lap time. She LOVES being brushed and will sit in your lap for an hour at a time. Levi is more shy and we have to coax him out with food. Food always wins with him. lol I would say just go slow and keep talking as you normally do. It seems to help ours calm down faster when we talk the whole time.

Welcole to GPC! She is so adorable! Congrats!

Hikuu said:

Oh! And trexgorawrrrrr, when your pig wasn't drinking much on the first few days, did he/she go by the water bottle, inspect it, and perhaps put his/her mouth on it but not really drink? This is what Linny does. I'm worried that she might not be able to somehow, even though the bottle seems fully functional.

I was considering maybe trying to put some water for her in a medium sized ceramic bowl, even though this would be messier and have to be changed frequently. Her romaine is a bit wet when she eats it, so I really hope she isn't feeling dehydrated.

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That's exactly what happened! I also was pretty worried, but like you gave wet romaine lettuce. It has to be washed since it comes dirty, and I would just leave the excess water. I don't think my pig knew exactly where to get water from at first, but I tapped on the ball and would let her lick my finger right next to the ball... That helped her realize what it was, but I also think it was stressful to go to a new home/cage. I think she was just nervous and needed to feel safer to be able to go about freely.

I have been bitten twice by my guinea pig. The first time hurt pretty bad, and started bleeding immediately. I think it was a 'you scared me' bite. It was I think only the first day or second day I had her. The second time I was feeding her lettuce, and I think my fingers just smelled and she was expecting another piece. That time it didn't hurt as bad or bleed, just like a hard pinch. All the other times it was curious nibbleing, which I was used to because of my rats. Mocha would nibble/lick my hands and fingers, even shirt trying to see what things are. I wouldn't be too worried about it at all. You have to trust your GP, and she needs to know that. There is a bond you will develop, and she will be able to tell if you're scared. They can just tell when somethings not right, which is when they would also feel uncomfortable. I wouldn't worry too much! Just enjoy things and be relaxed around her. She will come around eventually, being in a shelter is stressful. Coming home and being put in a big new home is stressful. Things will settle down soon enough.

Thank you, everyone! You have all really been so helpful.

The elevator method definitely seems like it will be the best in the long run. I was teaching Linny to go inside it with my mom, but she seemed like she got a little nervous whenever we were about to pick it up, so we ended up chickening out since we didn't want her to jump before we could cover the hole. I'll definitely just keep trying. Also, thanks WildRye for the information about biting! I appreciate knowing that. I do think I'll opt for taking her to the vet the first time for nail trimming. Her longest nail broke off on its own. Thankfully, I didn't see any blood, so I'm pretty sure she's okay. I'm not quite sure how it happened since there's nothing really in the cage that her nails can get caught on.

Thanks for the kind words about Linny, Cam, and Louie Joey. And that's alright, Cam! I'll have to check out your pair if you have any pictures of them up. I will continue to take it slow. Linny still gets nervous with being pet, but she does tolerate when I pet her nose and occasionally her head. I definitely feel a budding bond! Linny always is more shy for the rest of my family, but since I spend copious amounts of time with her everyday, she's usually pretty quick to come out for me and is much more relaxed. I find it special since it happens even without food!

My heart melted a couple of days ago when she was relaxed enough to fall asleep beside where I was siting outside her cage. Linny seems much more happy, too! She has been popcorning, and she especially does it at night. It's so adorable! I also love when she moves her pigloo on her own.

I tried your water trick, trexgorawrrrrr, and that also helped Linny realize where it was faster! I've really also noticed what you mean about how intuitive Linny is! I certainly will do my best to stay calm around her. I haven't really been bit or nibbled yet, but I did feel her teeth when I was giving her a little slice of carrot. It just sort of happened on its own; I think it made me realize how the idea shouldn't be so scary. I always try my best to rationalize how she would feel way more terrified of humans since we're predators.