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New Guinea Pig Owner

M_Jiang

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It's been nearly a week since I adopted three female (a mother and her two daughters) guinea pigs from the humane society. Apricot is the mom who is potentially 3 years and 2 months old and her two daughters are Cauliflower and Pumpkin who are about 2(?) months old. They weren't socialized really before I adopted them. I am a very new at having a pet let alone guinea pigs. Anxious about doing the wrong things, but I hope to give them much love and long healthy lives!


image2.jpgimage1.jpgimage3.jpgimage4.jpg

(Order as follows: Apricot, Pumpkin, Cauliflower, Attempted Family photo)
 

spy9doc

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What cuties they are! :love: Thank you for taking them in.

You have definitely come to the right place to learn and contribute. Our esteemed moderator, @bpatters, will likely come along soon and provide you with some links to great information for new cavy owners.
 

bpatters

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MerryFriarTuck

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Welcome to the wonderful world of pets and piggies!!!
They are adorable, abyssinian piggies are always so cute...Cauliflower and Pumpkin look like 2 months old is correct to me ❤️. Once they settle in and you win their trust they'll become more and more social. Guinea pigs have so much personality!
bpatters link is fantastic with everything you need to know. One other great site ( besides here!) is www.guineapigmanual.com. It's very readable, with cute pictures and funny asides, and packed with info. It helped me a lot with my first piggy.
Love the family photo, and that's awesome you already gave them toys and fresh lettuce/veggies :) My piggies love those exact wicker/seagrass balls. Their favorite veggie is yellow bell pepper, which will also give them the very important vitamin c they need. Best of luck to all of you!
 

Smileandnod

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Welcome! They are adorable!

You will find a lot of useful information here that comes from experienced owners! Enjoy reading through the forum.

Since you are completely new to guinea pigs and pet ownership, don't become discouraged. Guinea pigs are prey animals, so they tend to startle easily, run and try to hide. Just be patient with them and yourself as you are both learning.

Guinea pigs are food motivated, so a nice piece of green lettuce, bell pepper or other fresh veggies will help them get used to you, your voice and your touch.
 

M_Jiang

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Welcome! And if you haven't already done so, turn them all over and compare their private parts to make sure the two pups look like the mom. If either doesn't, then separate them immediately, because a two-month-old male can impregnate mom again.

Here is the link @spy9doc was referring to: https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/threads/113176-Information-for-new-guinea-pig-owners


Thanks for the link! I've been scouring through them this week and they've been quite helpful. I believe both pups are female like their mom upon examining? Plus it's the whole reason why they were apparently given to the shelter in the first place was the initial family apparently thought a female and male cavy were a bonded pair but didn't want to deal with the babies? Don't know the whole story.
I think I've been doing pretty well with them so far? They don't jump at every noise anymore in the house and have started wheeking whenever I rise up from my bed. XD Honestly not sure if it's a good idea to have the cage next to my bedside? I like having them there but is there an ideal place?
 

LittleSqueakers

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They don't jump at every noise anymore in the house and have started wheeking whenever I rise up from my bed. XD Honestly not sure if it's a good idea to have the cage next to my bedside? I like having them there but is there an ideal place?

You can certainly keep them by your bedside if you want. Personally, I always loved having my piggies in my bedroom. Mine all did the exact same thing you were describing. I would wake up and look across the foot of the bed into the pigpen and the pigs would be playing whack-a-mole, popping their heads up over the lip of the cage tray to watch me. As soon as they saw me start to move, they would start wheeking and running around, playing. It always started off every day on a good note! Impossible to wake up in a bad mood with that. :eek:

Only thing is that I did have to sleep with earplugs in so that they wouldn't wake me with their nighttime activities. But small price to pay, IMO.
 

spy9doc

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Honestly not sure if it's a good idea to have the cage next to my bedside? I like having them there but is there an ideal place?

There really is no ideal place because every home is different. You want to have the cage in a location where there will be frequent human company and where they get lots of attention. But, use caution with other pets, high energy children, temperature extremes, etc.

The only caveat about having them in your bedroom is if you are of an allergic nature. This applies to having ANY pet in your bedroom. People are rarely allergic to the cavies themselves, but may be allergic to the hay and spores that it generates. If you plan to keep them in your bedroom, I suggest that you invest in an air cleaner that will also help with odor. I like the Homedics brand which I originally bought at BBB with a 20% off coupon. Consider it an investment because they are more expensive than several other brands.......but absolutely worth every penny!

I have one that sits at the foot of the cage, and it literally has been running 24/7 for eight years! I brush the filter monthly and replace it as needed, and sometimes that is yearly.
 

spy9doc

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Upon checking, apparently BBB no longer carries the desired air purifier. I saw them on Amazon:

((broken link removed))

as well as several on e-Bay (most used or refurbished) and might consider purchasing a refurbished one. especially in light of my very positive experience with their durability. BTW, I use the small model which was AR10A at the time of purchase.

HOWEVER, the Homedics site has the AP15 on sale for $77.99. I would snap that up in a heartbeat if I needed one.

https://www.homedics.com/air-quality/true-hepa-small-room-air-purifier.html
 
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