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Ken

ace50man

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hi to all as u will see i have a little problem here in New Zealand and i HOPE some bright person out there can advise me how to continue

My question was

"i have 8 guinea's i want to make a home-like compound with plants and pond it is around 6 meters long and 2 meter wide fully enclosed

1 can i keep birds with them flying and walking
2 will they eat the eggs
3 what ornamental plants can i use not worried about them eating them, just if any particular one will harm them egg New Zealand grasses non-spiky cactuses
4 will they breed and care in a community site when a male is introduced temporally to service multi sow's then removed to leave sow's to do their part together
5 what is coming close to over-crowding in space stated with walk-in height, full mesh walls, ample air flow closed in sleeping bay

thanks on behave of my family"
 

Aleks

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1. I'm fairly certain the birds might try to eat the piggies.
2. I don't think they would eat the eggs.
3. Not sure about plants.
4. This is an anti-breeding site for a very good reason. 1 in 5 sows will die from pregnancy or birth complications. If you don't know their genetics and breed a roan with a roan or a roan with a dalmation there is a 1 in 4 chance that a lethal white will be produced. Please read this article about lethal guinea pigs: https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/kitchen/4190-lethal-guinea-pigs.html
5. One guinea pig needs 7.5 sq ft of room. I'm pretty sure the rule is to go up 2.5 sq ft per extra guinea pig. Males tend to need more than females do.

Again please do not breed your guinea pigs, it isn't good for them and you're adding to the problem of overpopulation.

Edit: You would also need to be able to control the temperature. The ideal temperature range is 65-75 degrees Fahrenheit. They are more tolerant to cold temperatures as opposed to hot temperatures.
If it gets to about 80 degrees F or more they could suffer a heat stroke and die.
It's also best to keep them in a non-drafty, non-humid environment.
 

MummyOf5Piggies

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hi to all as u will see i have a little problem here in New Zealand and i HOPE some bright person out there can advise me how to continue

My question was

"i have 8 guinea's i want to make a home-like compound with plants and pond it is around 6 meters long and 2 meter wide fully enclosed

1 can i keep birds with them flying and walking
2 will they eat the eggs
3 what ornamental plants can i use not worried about them eating them, just if any particular one will harm them egg New Zealand grasses non-spiky cactuses
4 will they breed and care in a community site when a male is introduced temporally to service multi sow's then removed to leave sow's to do their part together
5 what is coming close to over-crowding in space stated with walk-in height, full mesh walls, ample air flow closed in sleeping bay

thanks on behave of my family"
A 2x6 is not big enough for 8 pigs! And (don't think im mean) Absolutly no males with females! This is a anti-breeding website. No keeping the birds with the pigs, thats a huge Nono. And they can't eat eggs, their diet consists of , Plain pellets, Hay, And veggies/fruits. And guinea pigs should be kept inside, Outside is to dangerous for them. Once again Keep males away from females, you wouldn't believe how fast they can breed. So That's another veryyy Huge No. If you breed them there's a 1 in 5 chance the sows could die from birth or stress form having them. Please reconsider about keeping them outside. And Keep the males and females apart.
 

bpatters

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Welcome to the forum, Ken. I'm afraid, however, that your proposal won't be well received here.

Most of us are ardent believers in guinea pigs being housed inside rather than outside. Besides the fact that they're pets, and there's not much point in having a pet that you can't interact with very frequently, they're subject to predators large and small if they're outside. I know you have fewer predators in New Zealand than we do in the U.S., but you've still got spiders and stinging insects. Your temperature is more moderate than ours as well, but a sudden heat wave could mean the death of your pigs. They don't do well in hot temperatures, and are much more comfortable when it's cooler rather than hotter.

We're also a pro-rescue, pro-adoption, anti-breeding forum. New Zealand may not have the huge population of unwanted guinea pigs in rescues and shelters that the U.S. does, but pregnancy and birth are hard for guinea pig sows. Because the babies are born mature (ready to run around and eat), they're much larger in relation to their mothers than babies that are born immature. This results in a high rate of maternal and pup death. Almost anywhere in the world, there are enough accidental pregnancies to keep the guinea pig population going without anyone deliberately breeding more.

I also wouldn't keep guinea pigs and birds in the same cage. The pigs won't break the eggs and eat them, but I couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't eat them if they found them broken. But guinea pigs reingest their poop, and I can't think that accidentally eating bird droppings would be good for them. Psittacosis is a zoonotic disease carried by birds, which means that it can infect other species. You'd be putting your guinea pigs at risk by keeping them together. Caged birds can also be aggressive in pecking other birds and or animals caged with them.

Guinea pigs don't do well when a new herd member, sow or boar, is just plopped in with them for service. Guinea pig introductions take time and space, and it can be a tricky business to get them to all get along. Introducing a boar to a herd of sows could well result in a guinea pig free-for-all with resulting serious injuries.

Another thing to consider is that because guinea pigs are prey animals, they mask illness very well. If you're not with them multiple times per day so that you get to know them well enough to tell when one is feeling a little "off," they can get seriously ill very quickly. They're also expensive to treat -- most vets get very little education in caring for guinea pigs, and exotic vets are expensive as well as few and far between.

I'd strongly urge you to reconsider your plan to breed guinea pigs. If you want pets, get a couple of neutered or same-sex pigs and keep them in your home. You'll be rewarded with cute, funny little critters that will provide no end of entertainment for you and your family, and you won't be risking the lives of sows and pups by breeding more of them.
 

CavyMama

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A 2x6 is not big enough for 8 pigs.

He was measuring in meters.

2 meters = 6.5 ft.
6 meters = 19.6 ft.

So in this case, his housing is large enough for 8 guinea pigs.
 
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