Hello!Please read.

Welcome dinorap! You will find many fanatical GP lovers here. There are many threads that have oodles of info on all aspects of great care. We all love to chat and talk about our pigs. Love pictures. I will have to go look at your picture.
Is it a boy or a girl? What have you named her/him? What kind of cage are you using.? Love to hear from you.
Again, Welcome aboard!

suzilovespiggie said:

Welcome dinorap! You will find many fanatical GP lovers here. There are many threads that have oodles of info on all aspects of great care. We all love to chat and talk about our pigs. Love pictures. I will have to go look at your picture.
Is it a boy or a girl? What have you named her/him? What kind of cage are you using.? Love to hear from you.
Again, Welcome aboard!

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Thanks! She's a girl. I named her Reese's! My First Cage Large. (Sorry I can't think of the name... lol)

Dinorap, Are you building a c&c cage or is she in a cage? With a c&c cage the sides will have to overlap so Reese will not get herself caught in the grids. Same with hayracks. Her pellets must a good pellet with no seeds or bits in it. Alfalfa is you are not feeding alfafa hay. She needs pellets, hay, veggies and water with nothing added to it everyday.
Is she a lone pig? She will need a same sex friend as GP's are social and need to have friend. It is best to adopt her a friend so they can grow and bond together. She will need lots of loving, lap time and some out of cage play time.
Feel free to ask anything you would like. We are here for your and your new little Reese.

suzilovespiggie said:

Dinorap, Are you building a c&c cage or is she in a cage? With a c&c cage the sides will have to overlap so Reese will not get herselft caught in the grids. Same with hayracks. Her pellets must a good pellet with no seeds or bits in it. Alfalfa is you are not feeding alfafa hay. She needs pellets, hay, veggies and water with nothing added to it everyday.
Is she a lone pig? She will need a same sex friend as GP's are social and need to have friend. It is best to adopt her a friend so they can grow and bond together. She will need lots of loving, lap time and some out of cage play time.
Feel free to ask anything you would like. We are here for your and your new little Reese.

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Yes, I know. I've had a guinea pig before. I am not building a C&C cage at the moment. I have a large cage from Petsmart. Well, she's not really a lone pig. My sister also has a guinea pig, but he is a boy, so we have to watch them carefully. She is a female, and my friend's guinea pig is also female. Thank you. Are these good brands; I use timothy hay by Kaytee, and kaytee brand Fortii diet.

Please don't let the male pig play with the female. They can mate in a matter of seconds.

Kaytee is not a good brand.
The best brands are KMs, and Oxbow.
KMs is only available online.
(broken link removed)

lissie said:

Please don't let the male pig play with the female. They can mate in a matter of seconds.

Kaytee is not a good brand.
The best brands are KMs, and Oxbow.
KMs is only available online.
(broken link removed)

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It isn't? Well, if I go to buy Oxbow, will the guinea pigs get sick if I give it to them right away? Do I have to mix it with their old pellets until they get used to it?

dinorap said:

It isn't? Well, if I go to buy Oxbow, will the guinea pigs get sick if I give it to them right away? Do I have to mix it with their old pellets until they get used to it?

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No, switch them over to Oxbow. The Oxbow Cavy Performance is for babies under six months I think. Be sure to read the package. Both KM and Sweetmeadow also have pellets formulated for babies.

Hi there! Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new piggies!

Most pet store cages really are much too small. Even though they are called "large" or "extra large," they are really nothing more than a litter box. I highly encourage you to build a C&C cage for all of your guinea pigs, as a C&C cage is honestly the best thing you could do for your guinea pig, next to proper diet and a same-sex cagemate.

Have you visited Guinea Lynx? It's a great resource for all sorts of care information, including feeding, exercise, and health.

As others have said, there are pretty much two best brands of food and hay for guinea pigs. The best of the best is (broken link removed), which has extremely high quality pellets and hay. All guinea pigs need several heaping handfuls of grass hay and small amounts (about 1/4 cup) pellets daily, as well as about one cup of mixed vegetables per guinea pig daily.

Guinea pigs under six months of age need a little extra calcium in their diet. You will want to feed plenty of grass hay as the main part of the diet (try hays like Timothy or orchard grass). You will also need to supplement with small amounts of alfalfa to provide that extra calcium. You can feed alfalfa-based pellets, but timothy-based pellets won't hurt, either. KMS has a great (broken link removed) that would be perfect for your young guinea pigs since they are under six months of age. Otherwise, you can feed timothy hay or orchard grass hay (same unlimited amount daily) plus a few small handfuls of alfalfa daily. Oxbow, which is the next best thing, has both (broken link removed)and (broken link removed). You can also try looking for a local hay farm to find hay near you. When you buy hay locally, you'll want to look for hay that is soft, pliable (you can bend and twist it easily), fresh, green, and good-smelling. For pellets, KMS's (broken link removed) or (broken link removed)are great choices; or, Oxbow's (broken link removed)or (broken link removed).

Once your guinea pigs get to six months of age, you need to switch to a low-calcium diet - that means grass hay only (timothy or orchard grass) and Timothy-based pellets in addition to the one cup of vegetables.

I know that's kind of a lot to digest, but you'll catch on soon!

Good luck!

Just some FYI, if you have questions, please post them in the appropriate forum sections. Thank you.