Hello piggy lovers!

they look so cute! it takes time for them to get used to you- its different with every piggy some take month some only weeks. When i first got my piggies they always were bitting me - well more nipping and i now take it as they were trying to get to know me get used to me and see who i was. Nibbles my youngest still likes to nip at my fingers but never in a mean way. I think you should wait on getting two more try and get them more comfortable in this new situation and then see. i know i was so happy to adopt right again but i waited like a month - it helped me because i got to know more about piggies so i wasnt overwhelmed bringing a new piggy home

Such cute piggies! Your Amber looks so much like my girl Quinn. It sounds like the normal warming-up process with your girls. As prey animals, they take time to realize that you're not out to hurt them. Veggies go a long way in giving them a good opinion of you, and some are just naturally more shy than others.

Hopefully Charlotte will see Amber getting used to you and it will help her feel more confident. I got my Amy first, and she was used to people and chaos. Quinn was much more flighty and scared, but she gained a lot of confidence from Amy. It takes time and patience, but it's so rewarding when they start to respond.

Quinn does the little nip thing but doesn't actually bite. I think some piggies are just curious or smell veggies on you and check it out with their mouths.

Thanks you guys! I think Charlotte will be the kind of piggy to take a few months to warm up but i'm glad I am doing everything right. I just wanted to make sure because I want the best for my piggies and it seemed like Amber's nips were kind of hard but if its normal then ok, I just get scared I don't want her to nip me to hard and cause any injuries or anything you know. I will wait on getting more piggies and let them get more use to us first, i'm just so excited and absolutely love them I want more haha and I can't wait for them to warm up so I can hold and cuddle them! Also our place isn't to big and there cage is 2x4 but I know free range time is important so I was wondering 1. if I should wait until they are more comfortable to take them out , 2. if I should take them out I don't have anything bigger than what they are in right now, currently it is just the playpen grids with fleece/bedding but on Friday I am going to order an actual c&c cage with the coroplast and everything, should I re-assemble it somewhere else and move them to it so they still are running around somewhere new? Also the only place I could really take them is out front and I don't know if that would scare them because it is so different and if it is to cold out right now because it is winter and raining most of the time (obviously I wouldn't take them out in the rain but just describing the weather here ) ? and another thing (sorry for all the questions) should I try to hold them more or less? I have been trying to hold them every other day to get them use to me but I don't know if that is just scarring them more or helping them and if I should hold them more or if that is enough for now? and any tips on how to catch them it is hard to get them now because there cage is so big (I upgraded to the playpen because I was researching and realized the other was way to small and felt horrible so I got more playpen grids for now that's all I could afford at the time)?
Oh yeah and do I need a hay rack? if so where do I get one?

I also thought of some more questions in addition to the ones above, regarding there food. Currently I feed them a food that I buy from Petco (I know it's bad to support them but we don't really have any other places that I can get supplies and stuff from) it's called healthy select for passionate pet parents guinea pig diet i'm not sure if this food is good enough for them or if it's not so good? I was doing some research and one of the rescue sites I came across had a page about their diet and gave a link to an online place that I guess sells high quality guinea pig food called KMSHayloft and I was wondering if anyone else has heard of it and/or uses it and if so should I buy that instead? If so what exactly should I buy? I have 2 females about 6-8 months old, I tried looking at there website but I got really confused with all the options and whatnot I really don't know what I should buy. I heard that younger guinea pigs need a little bit different diet if that's true what should I buy them now and what should I buy them when they get older? Thanks in advanace for all the help!

Your pig, Charolette (I think) Looks JUST LIKE two of my girls, Princess and Babe.

2198lindsey said:

Your pig, Charolette (I think) Looks JUST LIKE two of my girls, Princess and Babe.

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awwww they are so cute and they do look alike!

You can see in that picture how Princess does, Babe is her daughter and looks exactly the same but the markings are mirrored. I find this quite amusing XD

piglover94 said:

awwww they are so cute and they do look alike!

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piglover94 said:

I also thought of some more questions in addition to the ones above, regarding there food. Currently I feed them a food that I buy from Petco (I know it's bad to support them but we don't really have any other places that I can get supplies and stuff from) it's called healthy select for passionate pet parents guinea pig diet i'm not sure if this food is good enough for them or if it's not so good? I was doing some research and one of the rescue sites I came across had a page about their diet and gave a link to an online place that I guess sells high quality guinea pig food called KMSHayloft and I was wondering if anyone else has heard of it and/or uses it and if so should I buy that instead? If so what exactly should I buy? I have 2 females about 6-8 months old, I tried looking at there website but I got really confused with all the options and whatnot I really don't know what I should buy. I heard that younger guinea pigs need a little bit different diet if that's true what should I buy them now and what should I buy them when they get older? Thanks in advanace for all the help!

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You should buy KMS. Buying larger amounts at a time from her is also often cheaper than pet store brands of food. So don't get turned away by shipping prices before you do the math! Her stuff is also healthy and fresh. Her products are one of the top recommended on this site for food.

MissJean said:

You should buy KMS. Buying larger amounts at a time from her is also often cheaper than pet store brands of food. So don't get turned away by shipping prices before you do the math! Her stuff is also healthy and fresh. Her products are one of the top recommended on this site for food.

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Ok thank you so much any idea of what exactly I should buy?

piglover94 said:

Ok thank you so much any idea of what exactly I should buy?

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Are your piggies over a year old? If so, timothy pellets. If not, alfalfa pellets or just extra calcium rich veggies. My pigs always just got the timothy pellets and then I was more generous with the parsley and kale when they were younger.

If you're not allergic to timothy hay, I'd recommend her 2nd or 3rd cut. 3rd cut is softer with less stems. It works just as well on keeping their teeth down.. Her bluegrass is also divine, but timothy is safer bet when it comes to piggy tastes (from my experience). Some piggies go nuts over bluegrass...

MissJean said:

Are your piggies over a year old? If so, timothy pellets. If not, alfalfa pellets or just extra calcium rich veggies. My pigs always just got the timothy pellets and then I was more generous with the parsley and kale when they were younger.

If you're not allergic to timothy hay, I'd recommend her 2nd or 3rd cut. 3rd cut is softer with less stems. It works just as well on keeping their teeth down.. Her bluegrass is also divine, but timothy is safer bet when it comes to piggy tastes (from my experience). Some piggies go nuts over bluegrass...

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Thanks, they are both 6-8 months old so I will get the alfalfa pellets . I have a few more questions above if you don't mind taking a look (its just above the post about food that you replied to) if you have any answers, sorry it's so much. If not no worries and thanks for all your help so far!

Some questions still unanswered I will try to make short:

I know free range time is improtant but there isn't space for free range time inside and all I have to put them in is the 2x4 playpen grids they are using as a cage until friday when I get the full cage..So..

1. Should I wait until they are more comfortable to take them out?

2. The only place I can take them is out front but it is winter so it's cold and sometimes rainy. I dont want them to get sick or to scared so should I wait until the weather is better or is it ok if it is a sunny day?

3. Should I try holding them more or less? and How do I catch them in such a big cage, any tips? I try to hold them every other day .

4. Should I get a hay rack? If so where do I get one? currently I just put piles of hay in the cage.

Lot's of us give our piggies floor time for mental stimulation. Some argue that if your cage is large enough, floor time isn't essential. It is something fun to do.

1. Should I wait until they are more comfortable to take them out?

The first few days of owning a guinea pig, it's recommended to leave them be to adjust to a new home.Otherwise, handling is important. It's sad to see them squirmy and scared, but you're going to have to eventually groom and weigh them.

2. The only place I can take them is out front but it is winter so it's cold and sometimes rainy. I dont want them to get sick or to scared so should I wait until the weather is better or is it ok if it is a sunny day?

I'd wait for good weather. How cold is it where you are? It's always raining over here and I'm probably going to rig up something to shelter from rain once we move. Make sure they are inside of a sturdy pen with constant supervision while outside. One of my pigs proved quite skilled at finding a weak point in our living room floor-time pen.

3. Should I try holding them more or less? and How do I catch them in such a big cage, any tips? I try to hold them every other day .

I personally hold daily for petting, right before floor-time. This gets off loose hair and I can feel for anything on their body that seems out of place. Lumps and such. To catch my pigs I just corner them and they let me scoop them. Sometimes I have to just quickly snatch one up. You can try using a burrow bag or fleece tunnel. They'll run in them and you can take the whole hidey out. I also recommend giving them food during this time. They live for food!

4. Should I get a hay rack? If so where do I get one? currently I just put piles of hay in the cage.

I actually love having a small tuft of hay in the bottom of the cage. It looks so natural and comfortable for them to eat like this. Unfortunately, if I put more than a tuft it is messy and they pee on it. I have fleece, so it's not a good option for me. I use a hay bag purchased on Etsy for the main hay feeding. Some people exclusively feed hay on the floor. It really depends.

Thanks so much. It's about 45-50 degree's on average during winter here and I think I will stick with the way i have been giving them hay I think it works fine that way . I will try holding them more it's just s hard to catch them they can be pretty fast

My pigs love having their hay in a pile, but they use that as their massive pee/poop area and the hay clings to the fabric. I resolved this by saving boxes and cutting big cardboard squares. Each day I lay a clean square and put the hay on top of it. That absorbs a lot of the pee and keeps most of the hay off the fabric, although they do scatter some. Then I replace the cardboard daily when I clean the cage.

Haha nice and thanks for the ideas