looking to learn more about our new family members!

The first thing I want to say is PLEASE do not breed your pigs. There are already many, many homeless piggies in shelters. This is an anti-breeding, pro-adoption forum. If you want babies, I would keep an eye out for some at shelters near you. I'm sure more members of this forum are also going to chime in with more information on why you shouldn't breed your pigs.

With that being said, welcome to the forum. What kind cages do you have for your pigs? If you have store bought cages, I recommend getting a C&C cage instead, as store bought cages are too small for guinea pigs.

Again, welcome. I hope you enjoy this forum.

Welcome to the forum.
As already said this forum is anti-breeding.
There is a 20% chance that a sow will die from pregnancy or birth complications.
If you don't know their genetics and one is a roan and one is a dalmation or both are roans then there is a 25% chance that she could give birth to a lethal white.
You can read about lethal piggies here: https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/kitchen/4190-lethal-guinea-pigs.html

If they are kept in separate cages, then it really isn't advised to put them together during floor time.
Being put together and separated a lot can be really stressful for them as they will have to sort out dominance every time.
I would think that why they fight in each others cages is because it isn't neutral territory.
Before putting piggies together you're supposed to do a proper introduction on neutral territory and thoroughly clean the cage then put them in it together.

Welcome to the forum! And I'll just get to the point, I agree with @Fizzlepop40 ​and @Aleks This site is anti-breeding, pro-adoption forum. And there is no reason to breed your pigs at all. Saying you want "Cute, cuddly, wittle' babies" Is not an anwser. I am not trying to be mean to you at all, But breeding your sow is very stressful, and life threatening. There's a 1 in 4 chance the sow could die during the pregnacy / giving birth. So don't have them in a neutrual area together, Only have one out at a time.Until you get your male neutered, Then, And ONLY then they can be together. Shelters will have baby piggies just keep a eye out for them!

Once again I am not being mean at all, And Yes C&C cages are the best cages ever!lol Pet store bought cages are to small for even one guinea pig.

Make sure to post pictures of your pigs! And Hope you enjoy the site, and learn a lot for caring for your piggies! lol

Also since you're new to the world of piggies, what kind of pellets and hay are you feeding?
Piggies also need 1 cup of veggies per pig per day. Here's a great nutritional chart to help you pick which veggies to feed them: https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...y-nutrition-charts-poisonous-plants-list.html

Thanks for all the great info. I had no idea mating my piggies was so dangerous! I'm glad I found this forum! We feed them timothy hay and pellets (i believe they are the same brand from Petco). They get fresh green leaf lettuce and carrots daily. They also occasionally get an apple slice or 2 or pear slices. We just put fleece in their cages tonight after doing some research on bedding. They love it. I made them little tents as well. They cages are from the pet store but we got the largest size they have. This is just temporary as we are making theva large multiple room home in our spare room the only thing I find hard to do is trimming their nails. Neither of the families we adopted them from cut their nails so they are semi curled and terrified I will hurt them. I trim the as much as I can but I'm most likely going to have them done professionally. Will their nails ever straighten out? Also, what do you use to bath them....and is this something you should do and how often?

I would suggest adding some green bell pepper to their diet. This is their main source of vitamin C. I would also say that cage size would take a back door at this point to the fact that you need to find out if the female is already pregnant and go from there!

mortyandtrixie said:

Thanks for all the great info. I had no idea mating my piggies was so dangerous! I'm glad I found this forum! We feed them timothy hay and pellets (i believe they are the same brand from Petco). They get fresh green leaf lettuce and carrots daily. They also occasionally get an apple slice or 2 or pear slices. We just put fleece in their cages tonight after doing some research on bedding. They love it. I made them little tents as well. They cages are from the pet store but we got the largest size they have. This is just temporary as we are making theva large multiple room home in our spare room the only thing I find hard to do is trimming their nails. Neither of the families we adopted them from cut their nails so they are semi curled and terrified I will hurt them. I trim the as much as I can but I'm most likely going to have them done professionally. Will their nails ever straighten out? Also, what do you use to bath them....and is this something you should do and how often?

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Make sure the pellets have no colorful bits or seeds or anything And unlimited timothy hay!(Hay bags/pig-out puches work wonders for that!)As for nail trimmings, Oh the dreadful nail trims! Have you tried wrapping them in a towel like a burrito? It works for me sometimes, And also have someone hold some romaine for them. Then they will be distracted by the food! Some of my girls nails curl and I think they are like that, unless I have to trim them shorter. For baths, They really don't need them, Unless they need it, And if you do bathe them, I'd only do it 2 times a year, Like every 6 months. Unless they are long haired them they need it more occasonally. For boars(I don't have any males.. so someone correct me if I am wrong) They will need butt-baths, Along with grease gland cleaning. I believe someone has a video on here for that. Oh yeah! And for nails, you can put a brick in their cage for the water bottle, It kinda files down their nails, plus keeps the fleece nice and dry.lolAnd will you be posting pictures of your piggies?

Ok I just looked at the c & c cages.....omg I'm buying the deluxe 2x6! I'm so excited! And we are getting a divider until Mr morty gets neutered.

I posted some on my profile. Is there another place to post them? I posted a pic of trixie in photos cuz we are curious what type of piggie she is.

we supervise the time they spend out together and he has never "mounted" her. He is very easily distracted by food lol he's a chubby guy and we always have a few treats out for them when the come out to play. We've had trixie since January and we have been supervising their playtime ever since so I don't think there is any chance she is preggo. I didn't want them to mate until I got all the facts . I've tried to give them bell pepper and our female won't eat it....and she doesn't like apple's much either. Any other things with vit c I can give her? She's a shy and picky little lady.

mortyandtrixie said:

we supervise the time they spend out together and he has never "mounted" her. He is very easily distracted by food lol he's a chubby guy and we always have a few treats out for them when the come out to play. We've had trixie since January and we have been supervising their playtime ever since so I don't think there is any chance she is preggo. I didn't want them to mate until I got all the facts . I've tried to give them bell pepper and our female won't eat it....and she doesn't like apple's much either. Any other things with vit c I can give her? She's a shy and picky little lady.

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https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...y-nutrition-charts-poisonous-plants-list.html Heres a nutrition list! so next time you go shopping for veggies, Tadaa! And Please don't let them be together for floor time, It doesn't take long for him to "Do the deed". You said you are going to get him neutered, So wait them til he is neutered, And wait 3 weeks after that so hes all healed up.

Hi and welcome to the forum! I saw the pigture of your cutiepies! I couldn't tell if Trixie was an abby or not because the pigture is small. Does she have rosettes? If your piggies have light colored nails it's easy to see where the quick(pink blood line) is and you wouldn't trim too close to that. When I first started cutting nails I just took a little off each time because my first piggy had a pitch black nail and it was nerve racking to say the least:eye-poppi!

What are rosette? I thought she was an Abby but I'm not totally sure.

Hmmm...they are swirls in their hair. Here is a pigture of my Roger who is an abby:

You see where his hair fans out on his side that is a rosette

Yep she has those...and the floppy ears just like your roger! Oh he is so cute!!

Welcome! I'm pretty new to the piggy world, too! I highly encourage you to surf around this forum and search for any questions you may have... I did some research before we got our first pig but have learned a million and one things from this site that I didn't know prior to joining. This place is a god-send when it comes to making your piggies happy