"Boy" is pregnant!

[nsharonew]

Hi There, I am on another forum as well, but found this one, was hoping to share my story and get any advice you may have. I got a boy guinea pig, 8 weeks old, 2 months ago. I have four guinea pigs total, all boys. The boys just don't get along, except for Robot, they all get on with Robot awesome...Robot doesn't like being picked up, so you can imagine when I got Robot yesterday after cleaning my cages, I was pretty excited. I was excited, that is, until I felt the movement in the belly. The lumps. I looked at the private area, and looked at some pictures, and sure enough, Robot is a She-Robot.

She is now in her birthing suite (although she jumped down to spend time with Max, her old cage mate...still don't know how she did...). Extra vitamin C, blankies for nesting, hidey holes for hiding...What else could she need? She has been on a very good diet with everything a piggy needs, plenty of excersize and floor time, unlimited timothy and sweet meadow hay, so we aren't concerned she was lacking anything in her delicate state.

Let me know if she needs anything else, you guys know better! I was supposed to have BOYS so I am not prepared to care for a pregnant pig (after she has her babies, and they are independent, we have already found her a boar free home, and we will keep the baby BOYS, and already found a boar free home for the baby sows!)

Thanks!

 

[Ly&Pigs]

Guinea pigs don't nest so the blankets for nesting are unnecessary. If you have them on timothy based pellets, you may want to get some alfalfa hay to supplement her with. It would be good for the pups too. You could mix 1/2 alfalfa and 1/2 grass hay (timothy/meadow).

I would suggest fixing the cage so she cannot get to the boys and the boys cannot get to her or putting her in a cage away from the boys separately.

 

[vicky2]

And baby-proofing. They could wiggle through regular grids or even get their heads stuck.

 

[akstrohm]

Make sure you have a competent vet lined up and know what to do in case of an emergency. Pregnancy complications including death are unfortunately common in pigs.

And I would put a lid on your girl's cage. A male can get a sow pregnant again right after birth, and you definitely don't want another accidental pregnancy.

As Ly said, add in alfalfa hay or switch to alfalfa pellets until after she is done nursing or until she turns six months (whichever is later).

And in the future, adopt from a reputable rescue or shelter to avoid any mis-sexed pigs.

 

[nsharonew]

Hi And thanks for the responses. The cage she is in is a C&C and the floor goes about 4 inches from the bottom, can the babies get above that? Do they jump right away? We don't have any rescues reasonably close, the closest I know of is in CT, we have an animal shelter in Methuen (about 45 minutes away). From what I have read it seems common to mis-sex the pigs, while unfortunate, I know I am doing the right thing by seeking advice from those who know better.

We have alfalfa for her and she could go anytime, really It's very exciting, I cannot wait to see them, and we already have homes lined up for them, making sure to educate those who are taking them on proper piggie care.

 

[Ly&Pigs]

You will need to baby proof the cage. 4" is too short. You need sides of 10-12". You can use coroplast or heavy duty cardboard to baby proof.