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Rehoming Moving Aborad. When to rehome Pigs?

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Colorado Cavies

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Before I get any judgement I want to say, I do not in any way think that moving, within a country, is a reason to give up a pet. However when looking at moving overseas there are a lot of laws AND a LOT of health risks for the animals involved and in this case it is just not possible to bring them with us.

My husband and I are looking into moving to China or Taiwan sometime next February or March. We are not 100% on where we are moving, it depends on where he gets a job, but we are 100% sure that this is our goal and we will be moving out of the country within the next year. We though about this for several years and even decided against it in the past purely because of our situation with having pets but we are both utterly miserable with our current situation, a big reason we are moving is for my studies. Being in China or Taiwan will give me opportunities that just don't exist in the US. So please understand this is not a decision we have made on a whim nor is it easy for us to come to terms with the fact that it means leaving our pets behind.

What I need help with is this. At what point do we give up the guinea pigs? We have 2 pairs, all female. One pair is 3 years old as of a few months ago. The other pair is a bit sketchy on age since we got them both off craigslist but they are both roughly 5 years old. Due to the older pair being as old as they are I am more worried about them finding a home. I feel like a lot of people are not going to understand that with proper care they could very well have a good 3 years left of life. I don't want to give them up too early, we would like to keep them as long as possible, but I also don't have to have to send them to a rescue because we waited too long to start looking and aren't able to find them a home ourselves before we leave the country.

My preference would be to find someone with guinea pig experience and I'll be using the application I used at the rescue when it comes time to find them owners. As excited as I am to go back to school it really does suck that this is something we have to do. I'm not looking for judgement, just advise. I don't even actually care if you judge me, just keep it to yourself. There is no way a guinea pig could survive 24+ hours or travel and a month in quarantine in a country where dogs and cats often come out half starved or with health problems. It's in their best interest not to take them.
 

bpatters

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I'd say start looking for possible new homes, and let them go whenever you find one that's suited for them. As you say, you don't want to have to dump them the day before you get on the plane, and it may take a while to find the right adopters. But when you find them, the kindest thing to do for the animals would be to let them go at that point.

I don't blame you at all for not trying to take them with you, especially to an area where exotic vets are scarcely to be found.

I'd suggest listing them at www.guineapigzone.com, and also on the placement forum over at Guinea Lynx.

Good luck with your move and your studies!
 

pinky

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I'm just curious what kind of opportunities there'd be in China or Taiwan that you wouldn't find in the U.S. My niece and her husband lived in Hong Kong for quite a few years and moved back to the U.S. because she felt that there were a lot more job opportunities here and it was a LOT less expensive. She worked in China and her husband traveled a lot to Australia. They relocated to New Jersey a few years ago.... I agree that it would be better to plan ahead so you can find them a good home ahead of time. Good luck!
 

Colorado Cavies

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I'm just curious what kind of opportunities there'd be in China or Taiwan that you wouldn't find in the U.S. My niece and her husband lived in Hong Kong for quite a few years and moved back to the U.S. because she felt that there were a lot more job opportunities here and it was a LOT less expensive. She worked in China and her husband traveled a lot to Australia. They relocated to New Jersey a few years ago.... I agree that it would be better to plan ahead so you can find them a good home ahead of time. Good luck!
I've been studying Mandarin for several years but there are no Chinese major programs in the us that I would be able to qualify for or afford. The job market in the US is probibly better but as far as actually going back to do my undergrad being in a Chinese speaking country is by far the best option. Hong Kong is CRAZY expensive. We haven't done as much research on Taipei but from having lived in Beijing it would be affordable for us if my husband was able to find a job.
 

pinky

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I've been studying Mandarin for several years but there are no Chinese major programs in the us that I would be able to qualify for or afford. The job market in the US is probibly better but as far as actually going back to do my undergrad being in a Chinese speaking country is by far the best option. Hong Kong is CRAZY expensive. We haven't done as much research on Taipei but from having lived in Beijing it would be affordable for us if my husband was able to find a job.
My niece worked for a Danish shipping company and negotiated contracts in China. The company paid for her housing. She said she could never have afforded it. She lived in a high rise in Hong Kong and accidentally locked herself out on the balcony one time. Her husband was in Australia. Luckily, someone else came out on their balcony and she was able to get help or she'd have been stuck out there. She worked in Costa Rica, Denmark and China. She learned Chinese through her job.
 

amanda_cake

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I don't have any advice for you but I would like to wish you the best of luck in your studies and in finding your babies a new home.
 

ClemmyOddieIndy

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I've been studying Mandarin for several years but there are no Chinese major programs in the us that I would be able to qualify for or afford. The job market in the US is probibly better but as far as actually going back to do my undergrad being in a Chinese speaking country is by far the best option. Hong Kong is CRAZY expensive. We haven't done as much research on Taipei but from having lived in Beijing it would be affordable for us if my husband was able to find a job.

If you are learning Chinese then being there would help. But, have you considered integrating yourself into Chinese student organizations on college campuses in the U.S? Most of my college friends over the past few years have been Chinese students, and if I was trying to learn Mandarin I think I'd have learned it no problem by now. :) I've even been told by several girls they'd love to teach me. Most of our language programs on our campus work with student organizations (or at least they did when I was an undergrad in German) that cater to students from various countries to give students on campus the opportunity to immerse themselves in the language without having to leave town.

You are learning a good language though. When I got my MBA a few years ago one of the profs said we should all learn either German or Chinese because those were the business languages of the future. Just out of curiosity sake (because I do know a couple people in academia who specialize in China) why can't you qualify for programs? I can't think you couldn't get into the program at my school.

ETA: That's not to say it should matter, because if you want to move to China that's your own business. I was just curious if you wanted to share.
 

Colorado Cavies

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If you are learning Chinese then being there would help. But, have you considered integrating yourself into Chinese student organizations on college campuses in the U.S? Most of my college friends over the past few years have been Chinese students, and if I was trying to learn Mandarin I think I'd have learned it no problem by now. :) I've even been told by several girls they'd love to teach me. Most of our language programs on our campus work with student organizations (or at least they did when I was an undergrad in German) that cater to students from various countries to give students on campus the opportunity to immerse themselves in the language without having to leave town.

You are learning a good language though. When I got my MBA a few years ago one of the profs said we should all learn either German or Chinese because those were the business languages of the future. Just out of curiosity sake (because I do know a couple people in academia who specialize in China) why can't you qualify for programs? I can't think you couldn't get into the program at my school.

ETA: That's not to say it should matter, because if you want to move to China that's your own business. I was just curious if you wanted to share.
't mind.

I don't mind. :) The thing is that there are only about 12 schools in the US that offer Chinese Language as a Major and all of those schools are far too exclusive for someone with my grades and academic history to get into. At this point I've already studied the language for about 4 years, so getting a minor isn't really a good representation of my skills and the classes at that level will all be FAR below my current level. I won't be learning anything. I can't go back to my previous school because, honestly, the program there is terrible and again I would only be getting a minor, where as if I go to China I can get a Major in Chinese language rather easily.

I guess that the short answer is that at this point and my current level I've pretty much exhausted the chances for growth that exist within the united states. The only way to really improve at this point is going to be going abroad.
 
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