Hi everyone! I've been lurking here for a while, getting info about proper care of my gp, and I figured it was time to set up an account.
Slight back story... When my son was in eighth grade, he really wanted a guinea pig. When I got one for him (at PetCo, yes, but it was more of an adoption...Ralphy had been returned because his owner's allergies were becoming unmanageable), he was one happy kid. Within a week, the two were best friends, and I would often find them cuddling together watching TV or reading a book. (Yes, my son read to his gp!)
When my son headed off to college, I was entrusted with taking care of Ralphy. Unfortunately, he was starting to get up in years (we'd had him for about 4 1/2 years, and he was full-grown when we got him), and he went over the Rainbow Bridge last October. My son was upset over losing his friend, so I kept an eye out for another gp for him. Which brings me to last February...
Our local shelter was having a Valentines Day special - all adoption fees $14 - and they had a cute little 5 month old gp that needed a home. He'd been abandoned at a local pet store, and he was blind in one eye from a cataract. I'm a sucker for a fuzzy in need, so I adopted him for my son. Except when I texted him to introduce him to his new friend, his response was, "Mom...I'm at college. I can't have pets in my dorm room. And it doesn't make sense for me to have a pet that I'm not taking care of." My response... "Okay. So I have a guinea pig." And named him Tannim and turned into a doting piggy mama.
Tannim is an adorable American gp, a self PE gold (I think...I'll try to attach a picture of him). He's a bit quirky, probably because I'm still kind of new to the whole cavy scene. After 6 months, he still hates being picked up. (I was trying to take it easy with him so I didn't scare him too much while he was getting used to me...I might have taken it too easy...) He loves it when I hand feed him though, to the point that he got upset when I hadn't done it for a few days while I had a cold. I'll leave the door of his cage open when I'm sitting on the sofa, and he'll occasionally hang out the door and wheek for me to pay attention to him. Even though his cage is a little small, he still popcorns and does zoomies at random. (I'm working on a larger C&C cage for him, but life keeps sidetracking me.) He loves his evening salads and his bedtime forage, and he's even gotten used to my kitties. (He'll come up to the side of the cage and sniff noses with them. I supervise carefully and make sure they keep their paws out of his cage.)
After I finish up the C&C cage for Tannim, I'm planning on adopting a friend for him. From what I've read, I'm thinking a sow might be a better choice than another boar. Tannim is neutered, so I wouldn't have to worry about unplanned pregnancies, and my local shelter always does spay/neuter before adoption anyhow. But at the same time, I don't know if two neutered boars would be a different dynamic than two intact boars, and boys seem to be more common around here... Any insights/opinions/suggestions that anyone might have would be greatly appreciated!
Longish post, I know, but I'm looking forward to interacting with fellow cavy lovers!
And I don't know why the photo is sideways...it's right side up on my computer...oh well
Slight back story... When my son was in eighth grade, he really wanted a guinea pig. When I got one for him (at PetCo, yes, but it was more of an adoption...Ralphy had been returned because his owner's allergies were becoming unmanageable), he was one happy kid. Within a week, the two were best friends, and I would often find them cuddling together watching TV or reading a book. (Yes, my son read to his gp!)
When my son headed off to college, I was entrusted with taking care of Ralphy. Unfortunately, he was starting to get up in years (we'd had him for about 4 1/2 years, and he was full-grown when we got him), and he went over the Rainbow Bridge last October. My son was upset over losing his friend, so I kept an eye out for another gp for him. Which brings me to last February...
Our local shelter was having a Valentines Day special - all adoption fees $14 - and they had a cute little 5 month old gp that needed a home. He'd been abandoned at a local pet store, and he was blind in one eye from a cataract. I'm a sucker for a fuzzy in need, so I adopted him for my son. Except when I texted him to introduce him to his new friend, his response was, "Mom...I'm at college. I can't have pets in my dorm room. And it doesn't make sense for me to have a pet that I'm not taking care of." My response... "Okay. So I have a guinea pig." And named him Tannim and turned into a doting piggy mama.
Tannim is an adorable American gp, a self PE gold (I think...I'll try to attach a picture of him). He's a bit quirky, probably because I'm still kind of new to the whole cavy scene. After 6 months, he still hates being picked up. (I was trying to take it easy with him so I didn't scare him too much while he was getting used to me...I might have taken it too easy...) He loves it when I hand feed him though, to the point that he got upset when I hadn't done it for a few days while I had a cold. I'll leave the door of his cage open when I'm sitting on the sofa, and he'll occasionally hang out the door and wheek for me to pay attention to him. Even though his cage is a little small, he still popcorns and does zoomies at random. (I'm working on a larger C&C cage for him, but life keeps sidetracking me.) He loves his evening salads and his bedtime forage, and he's even gotten used to my kitties. (He'll come up to the side of the cage and sniff noses with them. I supervise carefully and make sure they keep their paws out of his cage.)
After I finish up the C&C cage for Tannim, I'm planning on adopting a friend for him. From what I've read, I'm thinking a sow might be a better choice than another boar. Tannim is neutered, so I wouldn't have to worry about unplanned pregnancies, and my local shelter always does spay/neuter before adoption anyhow. But at the same time, I don't know if two neutered boars would be a different dynamic than two intact boars, and boys seem to be more common around here... Any insights/opinions/suggestions that anyone might have would be greatly appreciated!
Longish post, I know, but I'm looking forward to interacting with fellow cavy lovers!
And I don't know why the photo is sideways...it's right side up on my computer...oh well