Hi from WI!

[tyanna]

Hi! I am new to guinea pigs. I had done a lot of research on many forums before I got my guinea pig. I am Tyanna and from Wisconsin, I am 19 years old, live with my husband and two tortoises.

I got Nugget on Saturday. She/he (haven't checked yet, I want to try and let her get used to me first) is kept on fleece right now. I will be making something myself that fits better. I just used what I had on hand which is working fine, I just want it to look pretty and more nice! She has eaten red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, some celery, some tomatoes, a small amount of cut up strawberry, red bell pepper, and a little bit of orange, and a little bit of apple. I plan to mix it up more every day but this is what I have given her so far. She is also eating alfalfa hay as I was told she's still needing it instead of Timothy. If this is wrong, please tell me! I have seen her drink a few times as well. I have only taken her out once, she let me pet her but is still extremely skittish. I will continue to try to pet her in her cage. She is kept in a 2x3 Christmas storage bin, I plan to add a second level, or even a small loft soon. We are loving her so much already!

A second friend in the future is an option, but I want to see how this goes first. I will be giving her lots of love and affection as I struggle from really bad anxiety and depression. She has already been very therapeutic.

 

[Kenna18155]

Beautiful piggy! When you decide to get him/her a friend, try to adopt instead of buying from a pet store. Pet stores often treat their animals badly, and buy from breeding mills that fuel overpopulation. You definitely should get her a friend, though, as guinea pigs can easily get depressed without a buddy.

She looks full-grown, and probably doesn't need alfalfa hay (just timothy). She should have 1/8 cup of high-quality pellets (KMS, Oxbow, Small Pet Select, and Mazuri are good). She should also have a cup of veggies a day, mostly lettuce and bell pepper, with veggie variety and fruit as a treat.

 

[tyanna]

Beautiful piggy! When you decide to get him/her a friend, try to adopt instead of buying from a pet store. Pet stores often treat their animals badly, and buy from breeding mills that fuel overpopulation. You definitely should get her a friend, though, as guinea pigs can easily get depressed without a buddy.

She looks full-grown, and probably doesn't need alfalfa hay (just timothy). She should have 1/8 cup of high-quality pellets (KMS, Oxbow, Small Pet Select, and Mazuri are good). She should also have a cup of veggies a day, mostly lettuce and bell pepper, with veggie variety and fruit as a treat.

I actually adopted from a small rescue in my area, they must have mistaken her age, then. I'll get Timothy Hay ASAP, and return the alfalfa. I don't support my local pet store because of the "puppy mill" type pet trade. I'm a big tortoise lady, so same goes for them too.

So far she has had one cup of veggies a day which have been the lettuce and pepper mostly, with few small cut up pieces of other variety. I have a list of how often a lot of types of veggies and fruits should be offered. She always has her hay available. Mazuri is my pellet of choice, I use that brand for tortoises as well.

 

[Kenna18155]

Sounds like you're doing a great job so far! I'm no expert on piggy age, so she might be younger than I think. However, even if she is under six months, she will still need timothy in addition to alfalfa--timothy is essential in keeping her digestive tract moving. It's a grass hay, which provides fiber, while alfalfa (a legume hay) does not. For piggies over six months, no alfalfa hay is needed.

What type of Mazuri pellets is she getting? Timothy-based ones are the best, but the alfalfa ones are acceptable as well, especially if she is under six months.

 

[tyanna]

Sounds like you're doing a great job so far! I'm no expert on piggy age, so she might be younger than I think. However, even if she is under six months, she will still need timothy in addition to alfalfa--timothy is essential in keeping her digestive tract moving. It's a grass hay, which provides fiber, while alfalfa (a legume hay) does not.

What type of Mazuri pellets is she getting? Timothy-based ones are the best, but the alfalfa ones are acceptable as well, especially if she is under six months.

https://www.petco.com/product/124823/Mazuri-Timothy-Based-Guinea-Pig-Food.aspx?CoreCat=OnSiteSearch

Here it is. It is Timothy based.

 

[bpatters]

Any kind of bagged hay purchased from a pet store is going to be, hands down, the most expensive way to buy it and the cheapest quality. If you figure out the cost per pound of that hay, vs hay from a local farmer, vs online, the pet store hay is WAY more expensive. The cheapest is from a local farmer if you can find good long stemmed grass hay there. A bale (60-80 pounds) shouldn't cost you more than about $10, so even if you wind up throwing a lot of it away because you don't have room to store it, you've still saved a lot of money.

The middle option is ordering online. The more you order, the cheaper it is. And it's still way cheaper than the pet store variety.

The most expensive is the bagged stuff at a pet store. It's also likely to have been sitting around on their shelves, so the quality is not as good. You can occasionally find a bag of green hay, but not often.

 

[tyanna]

Any kind of bagged hay purchased from a pet store is going to be, hands down, the most expensive way to buy it and the cheapest quality. If you figure out the cost per pound of that hay, vs hay from a local farmer, vs online, the pet store hay is WAY more expensive. The cheapest is from a local farmer if you can find good long stemmed grass hay there. A bale (60-80 pounds) shouldn't cost you more than about $10, so even if you wind up throwing a lot of it away because you don't have room to store it, you've still saved a lot of money.

The middle option is ordering online. The more you order, the cheaper it is. And it's still way cheaper than the pet store variety.

The most expensive is the bagged stuff at a pet store. It's also likely to have been sitting around on their shelves, so the quality is not as good. You can occasionally find a bag of green hay, but not often.

Thanks for the advice! I bought my hay from Farm and Fleet, it wasn't too much cheaper since I didn't get a huge amount, but in bigger amounts it is definitely cheaper!

 

[Kenna18155]

Awesome! I feed my girls Timothy Mazuri pellets as well--I calculated the cost, and the 25 pound bag is half the price per pound compared to the stuff you buy in pet stores... And better quality too.

 

[Svenandolaf]

i saw a picture on instagram saying that someone started to feed mazuri pellets and 2 guinea pigs died and one become ill, I don't know if its fake or not.

 

[Kenna18155]

I doubt that. My guineas have been perfectly fine in the month I've fed Mazuri, and there are no extremely harmful ingredients in the formula. I haven't seen any bad reviews of the food either on this website or anywhere else. Sure, they may not be the healthiest pellets ever, but they aren't bad. Could you point me toward the picture?

 

[Svenandolaf]

this is It I don't remember the account name I found it on.

 

[tyanna]

That's interesting. I'll have to look into it. I feed Mazuri pelletes to my tortoises too, and it's a miracle food for them.

I've found some other piggies for adoption in my area, is a 2x3ft cage too small for two?

 

[Kenna18155]

Yes, it is a bit small, even for one pig. 7.5 square feet is the minimum for either one or two. A 2x3 grid C&C cage is actually more than 2x3 feet, as each grid is a little more than a foot across. You could make or buy a C&C, or buy a Midwest cage online.

 

[Kenna18155]

And about the food, it could've just been a misunderstanding. Maybe one of the pigs got sick coincidentally at the time they switched feed, and it spread to the others.

 

[tyanna]

Wow, I didn't realize it was THAT big of a difference, I thought only a few inches. Well my husband and I plan on expanding our Christmas tree storage bin by adding another bin, and connecting them with PVC piping, side by side.

 

[Svenandolaf]

I read more about the food and supposedly in 2012 it was making piggies sick. It was recalled and taken off shelves. It's now been inspected and put back. Not sure if I'm right but it makes sense