New piggie owner just looking for advice

[Joe Theodore]

Hello I just adopted 2 female Guineas, they seem to have come from a a good home their very social and cuddly, I just have a few questions
1) grooming and nail clipping how often and how much $
2)they don't seem to ever stop eating, food or hay, do I need to regulate how much they eat so they won't over eat.
3)is my cage too small or cluttered, what improvements could/should I make, there is 2 in there they just aren't being photogenic right now, they seem to run around everything fine

I'd appreciate ANY advice
Thank you!

 

[Fay]

Welcome to the forums! the one pig I can see is adorable!

Please read the following guides thoroughly as well as the stickies on the forums, these are highly recommended, well respected 'must read' guides:

https://www.guinealynx.info/healthycavy.html
https://www.guinealynx.info/medical_guide.html

1. Is answered on the above page.
2. The reason they are probably over eating is because the food looks like it's mixed. These kind of foods are often the equivalent of junk food which is why they can't get enough of it. Mixed foods are not recommended because they contain ingredients and/or small seeds that can be dangerous or really bad for them. Read the guide I linked above regarding pellets and how to determine which are bad or good, we recommend KMS Hayloft or Oxbow on these forums and to only feed 1/8th of a cup of pellets per pig per day. You will also need to provide unlimited timothy hay the hay I see in the cage wouldn't last very long, and a cup of fresh veggies per pig per day. Here is a useful chart for veggies (although similar info is also found on the Guinea Lynx website and in more depth, make sure to scroll down to the second post beneath the chart as it contains important information):

https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...vy-Nutrition-Charts-amp-Poisonous-Plants-List

3. Yes, your cage is too small for one pig, let alone two. It also somewhat looks like they are kept outside, but it's too hard to tell, if so it's not recommended to keep them outside or in a shed. As for getting a bigger cage; you can either make your own C&C style cage yourself, an alternative out of different materials, or buy a complete one from the store. You can read the recommended size guidelines for cages and more info here and you can get ideas for cage designs in the photo gallery, let us know if you need help finding materials:

https://www.guineapigcagesstore.com/about-candccages

https://guinea-pigs.livejournal.com/2983533.html

Another tip I have is to turn them both over and making sure they are both female. Guinea pigs are commonly miss-sexed and you want to avoid pregnancies as they are really hard on the sow. Here are some pages to help you determine their gender:

https://cavyspirit.com/sexing.htm
(broken link removed)

I hope all this helps, please let us know if you have any more questions we're happy to help

 

[pigger123]

Welcome!

They need to have their nails trimmed every few weeks, I just do it when their nails start looking long. Use a small pet nail clipper, you can buy one at the pet store for like $3 , hold the piggy securely, and cut the top of the nail without cutting the quick (vein). They don't really need to be brushed if they have short hair, some people do it but I find just petting them helps remove loose hair better.

They can't overeat hay. They need to have unlimited grass hay, like timothy or orchard grass (just not alfalfa) and they will eat a lot of it throughout the day. Give each pig 1/8 cup of plain timothy pellets and a cup of veggies per day. Most people feed red or green leaf lettuce and a slice of green bell pepper as a staple, which provides the vitamin C they need. Other favorites with my pigs are one baby carrot per day or a cherry tomato. Don't feed things like kale, spinach, and parsley every day since they can lead to calcium problems, and never feed iceberg lettuce.

I highly recommend C&C cages. For 2 girls, a 2x4 C&C, which is 2.5'x5' and over 10 square feet, would be perfect. You can easily make one yourself for $30-$50. Personally I would also ditch the plastic igloos, and use a more open shelter like a fleece forest or a cardboard box with multiple doors cut out.

 

[bpatters]

Here's some good information for new piggy owners:

-- https://www.guinealynx.info/healthycavy.html
-- https://www.guinealynx.info/emergency.html
-- www.cavyspirit.com
-- the stickies at the tops of the main forums here
-- https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum...us-Plants-List for what you can feed and how often
-- https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum...ur-guinea-pigs!

 

[Joe Theodore]

Thank you!
I got them off of crags list 2 days ago and what they came with and how they lived of over 2 years with their previous owner, I love the idea of building an enclosure going to try my hand at it this weekend it can't be too hard.
and I got a bag of "oxbow" food the lady at petco said it was good.

 

[Joe Theodore]

 

[bpatters]

Oxbow's a good brand. You just need to make sure that you're not giving the alfalfa pellets to pigs over six months old.

 

[Fay]

They're so cute, I want to steal them haha As for the enclosure, you can buy grids from places like Walmart, Bed Bath and Beyond, K Mart, CostCo etc. just make sure they are 9 squares across and the correct size. Then for the tray you would use Coroplast (aka corrugated plastic) you can often find these for cheap at sign making shops or presidential campaign signs, if one of the candidates plans to be in town soon or has been recently check with the organizers if you could take a sign home after the fact. Just make sure it's the right size. You can find more info on where to buy them and such here:

https://guineapigcages.com/cubes.htm
https://www.guinealynx.info/housing.html
https://www.guineapigcagesstore.com/coroplast
https://www.guineapigzone.com/supplies

You can also buy them intact from the cages store, it'll be more expensive but you won't have to hunt down materials yourself:

https://www.guineapigcagesstore.com/

As for alternative style cages you can get ideas here:

(broken link removed)

Just make sure the materials used aren't harmful to the pigs (for example wood that has been treated). I will say that if you can build a C&C style cage you should probably go for that rather than an alternative cage because C&C cages are much easier to work with and adjust later on, also easier to disassemble and clean.

Since you have two females you will want to make a 2x4 grid cage which is 27" x 56", just remember the bigger the better!

Hope that helps!

 

[BlackyReddy]

Hi, Everyone seems to have answered the questions if you read the guides above. I'll just add my two cents for an extra.
Nail clipping clip off the nail where it starts to taper down to the point horizontally to the ground, making sure to miss the quick (blood inside) Do it weekly if they are really long and the quick is long also, the quick will shorten that way. If they are not looking uncomfortable to walk on Just trim fortnightly to monthly for when you see they are too long. Don't need to wash them more than every month or two cause they have sensitive skin. weekly/fortnightly grooming for me also is weighing them and write it down in a little book for them and running my hands down their bodies and getting used to what they feel like cause thats the only way to know if they are healthy or if anything starts to change for the worse.
2. guineapigs eat to grind down their teeth so if you have good unlimited hay and oxbow pellets 1/4 cup per piggy you shouldn't have a problem with their teeth. Vegetables need to be in moderation see guide for veggies. I do something like: two leaves of lettuce (not iceberg) slices of red capsicum, 1/4 roma tomatoes each, spinach leaves and cucumber and two thin pieces of fruit like apple or mandarin for a treat sometimes. But I try to change veggies up as much as I can from the guide.
3. they would love a 2x4 (160cmx 80cms, give or take a few cms)Cubes & coloplast cage. They love room and its directly related to how happy they are and their exercise and health levels. Its cheap and easy and it makes it so much fun to have guineapigs.

They are so cute. Hope you have heaps of fun getting to know your new piggies, wishing you the best.

 

[bpatters]

@BlackyReddy, please break your posts into paragraphs. People give up on trying to read long posts that are all run together. It makes it much easier for other people if they can see the individual topics you're addressing.

 

[Joe Theodore]

Thank you all very much!