Cage General Pig Questions

[Piggynovice]

First I would like to say a huge THANK YOU!!! to all the members and staff of this site. I have never owned a guinea pig before, and decided I would do some research on it before jumping in. This site gave me so much information that is truely cavey focused. I have learned a ton and completely changed almost all the ideas I had about raising piggys. I still have a few questions though.

I am a college student and will be attending medical school next fall, so apartment living for a while. I dont have a ton of space for a cage, especially not some of the extreme piggy palaces I have found on this site. I have configured (drawn up) a cage that adds up to 10.76 sq. ft. However that is between two levels. Is this ok, or do I need at least one whole level at 10.5 sq ft? (I think I attached a pic of the drawing, I'm not really sure. It my be hard to see)

Obviously by trying to get a cage to 10.5sq ft, I am planning on getting two piggys. This is one of the major things I hadn't planned on, but I want to do what is best for them. Is it better to get a pair right away, or get one and then introduce another one later? That is all for now.

 

[Ly&Pigs]

The main level needs to meet required size for amount of pigs. Upper levels do not count towards square footage. So your main level would need to be at least 7.5 sq. ft. or larger for 2 sows and 10.5 sq. ft. or larger for 2 boars.

 

[Milkingit]

Yay math. Why does it seem I answer all the math questions?

Ok, your main level is 980 sq inches which = 6.8 ft sq. So a little small.
Your top level is 588 sq inches = 4.0 sq ft

So your main level is a little small. Instead of having 2 entrances to the top level on the outside, what if you have 1 entrance on the outside, and expand your base by .5 grid, that would give you 1078 sq inch on main level = 7.49 sq ft.

 

[Tdchewy]

Is it better to get a pair right away, or get one and then introduce another one later? That is all for now.

I would say that if you are planning on getting a pair, that you adopt them together at the same time, that way one pig doesn't get too used to having the whole cage to him/herself and become more territorial.

 

[Piggynovice]

Ok thanks. I knew the lower level was a little small if I needed one whole level to be 7.5, which is why I did an exterior tunnel. I figured if the space was small I dont want a ramp taking up part of it. I am aesthetically drawn to the symmetry and angles of this cage, so taking the tunnel off one side and extending it just doesn’t appeal to me. I want something my piggys are going to love, but also something I love looking at, seeing as how it will be such a large feature in my apartment. I’ll keep working on the idea and make sure the lower level is at minimum 7.5 sq ft. I'm guessing I'll have something new soon for suggestions.

Any advice about getting two pigs right away, vs. getting one and introducing another?

 

[lissie]

If you find a bonded pair, it will be easier for you. If you adopt one at a time, you will need to quarantine them in separate room for 3 weeks. Please adopt and don't shop.
Check out Pet adoption: Want a dog or cat? Adopt a pet on Petfinder or your local shelters.

I live in a small apartment too. (about 700 sq.ft for 2 adults, 2 kids and 3 piggies.) My cage is 3x5 grids (20 sq.ft). I'm sure if I can find a space for them, you can too.

 

[Piggynovice]

I have been planning on adopting, and am hoping to find a pair. I have been looking all over both were I live currently at school, and close to home. I'm having trouble finding pigs at all in either of these areas. Part of it is the regular animal shelters around here just dont take in small animals, they only do cats and dogs. The closest guinea pig rescues I have found are in the St. Paul, and all three of them have closed within the last few years. :S It is also a 2 hour drive for me from home and close to 5 hours from school to St. Paul. I think that's a bit of an excessive car ride for piggys. I'll keep looking at different shelters. I probably wont be getting my pigs for a while anyway. I graduate in the spring, so it will probably be after that. I'll just keep my eyes open and keep checking. Maybe I'll get them sooner if I find a good pair to adopt.

Any other suggestions for finding adoptable piggys?

 

[lissie]

Check local classify ads, and craigslist.org
There is a pet section where people rehome their pets they can no longer care for. Beware of breeders though.

 

[akstrohm]

-Some rescues will help with transportation. It's worth calling and asking.
-Some shelters that only have dogs and cats do take small animals as well but don't advertise them. Again, call and ask.
-The shelters that only take dogs and cats might be happy to call you if someone tries to surrender a guinea pig or two. Ask them to do so.
-Have you tried petfinder?
-If you post your general location, we can help you out. To do that, start a thread in the appropriate adoption section, not the cages section, so the appropriate people see it.
-Craigslist and other classifieds are options too. Watch out for breeders and make sure you are comfortable sexing pigs so you don't end up with a male and a female. Also ask questions to make sure that it is likely that the female is not pregnant unless you are prepared to deal with that (Has she been with a male, even just for floor time? How long have you had her? Where did you get her from?).

 

[IluvePiggies]

First I would like to say a huge THANK YOU!!! to all the members and staff of this site. I have never owned a guinea pig before, and decided I would do some research on it before jumping in. This site gave me so much information that is truely cavey focused. I have learned a ton and completely changed almost all the ideas I had about raising piggys. I still have a few questions though.

I am a college student and will be attending medical school next fall, so apartment living for a while. I dont have a ton of space for a cage, especially not some of the extreme piggy palaces I have found on this site. I have configured (drawn up) a cage that adds up to 10.76 sq. ft. However that is between two levels. Is this ok, or do I need at least one whole level at 10.5 sq ft? (I think I attached a pic of the drawing, I'm not really sure. It my be hard to see)

Obviously by trying to get a cage to 10.5sq ft, I am planning on getting two piggys. This is one of the major things I hadn't planned on, but I want to do what is best for them. Is it better to get a pair right away, or get one and then introduce another one later? That is all for now.

From what I see from the plans, PVC pipes lead up to the kitchen area, correct?

Are you SURE the Piggies will climb up and down the pipes? Its great if they do, I mean I'm sure they'll have fun sliding down the pipes then going up.
You may want to have a place where you could put in a ramp in case they don't climb up the ramp. Just as an emergency caution.
But that's OK if you don't. If they're climbing up and down the pipes fine, you probably won't need a ramp.
Just a suggestion.

 

[bpatters]

The ramp will be fairly steep, and PVC is slick. You'll have to put something in it to give them traction.

I have an outside tunnel, and considered PVC. But I opted for plastic drainage pipe instead. It can be cut with a utility knife, is corrugated so they've got something to push against, and is much cheaper than PVC.

It took mine less than an hour to get used to the tunnel, and they love it.

I did put a runner (a strip of mattress pad sewed to a strip of fleece) in it -- less danger of a piggy toe getting injured, plus they sit in the ends of the tunnel and occasionally pee and poop there, so the fleece makes it easier to clean. But when I do a major cage cleaning once a week, I just take the tunnel out and hose it down -- very easy to take care of.

 

[2pigs2kids]

I have been planning on adopting, and am hoping to find a pair. I have been looking all over both were I live currently at school, and close to home. I'm having trouble finding pigs at all in either of these areas. Part of it is the regular animal shelters around here just dont take in small animals, they only do cats and dogs. The closest guinea pig rescues I have found are in the St. Paul, and all three of them have closed within the last few years. :S It is also a 2 hour drive for me from home and close to 5 hours from school to St. Paul. I think that's a bit of an excessive car ride for piggys. I'll keep looking at different shelters. I probably wont be getting my pigs for a while anyway. I graduate in the spring, so it will probably be after that. I'll just keep my eyes open and keep checking. Maybe I'll get them sooner if I find a good pair to adopt.

Any other suggestions for finding adoptable piggys?

Where do you live? I'm in Somerset, WI which is 45 min from St. Paul. I also noticed that several of the piggy shelters in the area have closed recently. I adopted mine off of Craigs List from someone who happens to be a member here, I would for sure check CL out (just watch out for breeders). The humane societies in the cities also frequently have pigs. Good luck!

 

[Piggynovice]

I was planning on glueing denim inside the PVC for better traction. Will this be ok or should I use something else? I looked into the drainage tubing, but it looked way more difficult to clean with all the ridges. I also have a lot of PVC laying around at home. We recently converted a bedroom into a bathroom, so I have access to all the left over supplies. I was wondering, what diameter of PVC should I use? Also is it difficult to train the pigs to use an external ramp/tunnel?

 

[Piggynovice]

Here is my new idea for a cage. I changed the bottom to a full 2x3 and included a built in hay rack on the top. The tunnel ramps will still be made of PVC. What do you think? Sorry if the picture is a little hard to see.

 

[Catayn]

It looks nice, but will they climb throught the tubes?

 

[akstrohm]

Those tubes are pretty steep, and I don't think denim will give you much grip. Could you do a 2x4 cage instead?

 

[Piggynovice]

No, I cant extend the cage any more. My fiancee wants it to stay this size for now, and once we get out of apartment living I can expand it. What would you suggest putting inside the pipes? What diameter pipe should I use?

 

[bpatters]

Since you've got the PVC, I'd think you could use it, but it would be better not to glue the denim inside it -- I've been astounded at the amount of poop that gets left in mine. They also tend to sit in the elbows and nap, which means that pee runs down from the top elbow, and collects in the bottom elbow.

The drainage pipe actually cleans very easily -- I cut a slit about an inch wide almost all the way down the top of it, with the intention of being able to get a stuck pig out if I needed to. But it makes it very easy just to spray the whole thing with the garden hose. Of course, I live in Houston, so that's not often a problem weather-wise.

You'll need to put PVC elbows through the walls of the cage, since the PVC won't bend. If you're careful about measuring the lengths, you can make it so that the straight PVC pipe can be taken in and out for cleaning. I do support my pipe with twine at a couple of places along its length, but that's more because the dog leans on it than because of the GPs. I used to use loose zip ties, but it was a pain to get the pipe in and out.

Because I was worried about the pig's claws getting caught in the joints between the tube and the elbows, I sewed a strip of flannel to a strip of mattress padding. It's about 4 inches wide, and is in the shape of the tube plus the elbows. It goes through the tunnel, and the short ends stick out the front of the elbows. I bend them over and duct-tape them to the underside of the elbows. Otherwise, they get scrunched up in the entrance to the tunnels and impede the piggies' progress through.

Here's an actual picture, and if you go to my gallery you can enlarge it to see more detail:

My PVC drainage pipe is about 5 inches in diameter, and the PVC tunnel I have is probably for 4 inch pipe. My pigs are nearly three months old and are getting pretty chubby, so I definitely wouldn't go any smaller than 4 inch.

My tunnel is pretty steep, and the pigs don't seem to mind at all. I chopped a grape up into bits and strewed it along the tunnel, and in less than an hour, both pigs were zooming up and down. Of course, the first pig through no doubt got all the grape!

 

[Piggynovice]

Thank you bpatters, that was super helpful. I was actually just looking at the pic of your cage while you must have been writing this post. I was planning on getting flat faced PVC drain covers to put on the grids. They have a large flat face and then the tube comes out the back, so I can put the tube through the grid and the face will be flat against the inside of the cage. This way I dont have to worried about scratching the piggies. I can then hook the elbows and straight pieces to those. Since the face plates will be attached to the cage, I will be able to remove the elbows a straight pieces for cleaning. I'll use some sort of absorbant material + fleece for inside the tube. I was planning on cutting an opening most of the length of the straight pieces for ventilation.