Hello there. I've actually been a member of this forum for two years, but I have never posted a single thing...Ever. I hadn't really given it any thought, I usually just lurk and type things into the search bar and I ALWAYS find the answer to my question if I search through the threads, so it's never been a necessity. But I figured I should probably be a little more active with the guinea pig knowledge that I do have!
Anyway, my name is Alora. When I became a member of the forum I had two guinea pigs, Marley and Regina. However, long story short, my boyfriend and I broke up and he got to keep the kids because I moved away. Fast forward a year and a half, I just adopted 2 new guinea pigs (8 month old females; short haired). My husband and I named them Butters and Piggins.
They have had a bit of a rough life so far. Their first owner bought them as pets for their children, and their children lost interest when the novelty wore off, so they had little to no interaction for the first few months of their lives. The next owners kept them in a dresser drawer and only fed them veggies and pellets. No hay at all. Also, when we got them their nails were curled very badly and looks as though they've never been clipped.
They are extremely skiddish, but I feel there is potential to turn it all around. We've only had them for a week now, but we've put them into a 2' by 4' c&c cage that we built, we use towels and fleece as bedding and we have Kleenmama hay and pellets. They went through three pounds of hay in a week! It was literally the first time they'd had hay, it was adorable. One morning I woke up and the minute they heard me they started wheeking...because they were already out of hay!
I spend a good deal of time talking to them outside of their cage and putting my hand in the cage just to let them know that every time the big hand enters the cage is not necessarily to touch them or pick them up. They also eat vegetables out of my hand, so it's good progress. They are still scared to be held, and don't seem to know what the heck to make of floor time...but we're working on it.
Anyway! It's nice to finally introduce myself, and I hope I can be helpful around here.
Anyway, my name is Alora. When I became a member of the forum I had two guinea pigs, Marley and Regina. However, long story short, my boyfriend and I broke up and he got to keep the kids because I moved away. Fast forward a year and a half, I just adopted 2 new guinea pigs (8 month old females; short haired). My husband and I named them Butters and Piggins.
They have had a bit of a rough life so far. Their first owner bought them as pets for their children, and their children lost interest when the novelty wore off, so they had little to no interaction for the first few months of their lives. The next owners kept them in a dresser drawer and only fed them veggies and pellets. No hay at all. Also, when we got them their nails were curled very badly and looks as though they've never been clipped.
They are extremely skiddish, but I feel there is potential to turn it all around. We've only had them for a week now, but we've put them into a 2' by 4' c&c cage that we built, we use towels and fleece as bedding and we have Kleenmama hay and pellets. They went through three pounds of hay in a week! It was literally the first time they'd had hay, it was adorable. One morning I woke up and the minute they heard me they started wheeking...because they were already out of hay!
I spend a good deal of time talking to them outside of their cage and putting my hand in the cage just to let them know that every time the big hand enters the cage is not necessarily to touch them or pick them up. They also eat vegetables out of my hand, so it's good progress. They are still scared to be held, and don't seem to know what the heck to make of floor time...but we're working on it.
Anyway! It's nice to finally introduce myself, and I hope I can be helpful around here.