They do come in somewhat different sizes, I think the standard size is 14in (right?) If you have already figured out what size of a cage you want there are average dimentions for the different sizes on
www.guineapigcages.com
I would strongly suggest getting two, guinea pigs are social animals and do much better off in groups of two or more. Please Read-
https://www.cavyspirit.com/sociallife.htm
You should get a pair of the same gender or have a male and a female and neuter/spay one. Please dont consider breeding. There are alot of guinea pigs that are in need of homes, look for guinea pigs you can adopt by reading the classifides in your local paper, and also check out these sites-
www.petfinder.com and (broken link removed) The pigs at petstores ususally come from mass breeders and are sometimes not treated well, even though there are already a ton of guinea pigs that need homes out there.
you can find care information here-
https://guinealynx.com/pamphlet.html
for food check out
https://www.guinealynx.com/nutrition.html
Two guinea pigs will do well in a 2x3 C&C but bigger is deff better, if you get creative you could even make a loft (check out the photo albums)
Make sure you have figured out the costs, guinea pigs arn't cheap, you can learn alot by reading the posts on this forum.
Heres a basic shopping list of what you will need-
feeding supplies-
food bowl
food (oxbow cavy cousine is best)
water bottle
veggies (a variety)
hay rack (optional, I like them, some people don't)
something to chew (perferably not artificially colored)
timothy hay (I like oxbow hay products best)
Everythin Else-
cage (C&Cs work great!)
bedding (carefresh is great, but aspen is cheaper, if you get pine make sure it's kiln dried, other options are fleese or towels)
cozies (you can make your own using a old towel or soem fleese- see the photo album)
vinigar water in a spray bottle (for cleaning the cage out)
hidy houses (upside down plastic bowls can be purchased at a dollerstore, you simply cut out a door and drill in some holes in the top, you can use a icecream bucket, or buy one at a petstore)
toys (lots of them, see the cavy cages site for ideas)
play pen (floor time is needed, you can either allow your pigs free run of a room or several, or you can buy a playpen, zip tie cubes together work well, or you can purchase a playen at walmart- one is too small you will have to buy several and attach them)
Grooming-
brush + sissors (usually for long haired pigs)
shampoo (for occasional baths, ususally more so for long haired pigs, this can be purchased from a petstore or you can get a gentel tearless childrens shampoo from almost any store)
nail clipper (human ones work fine if you have one lying around)
flour (in case of over cutting nails)
tub or bowl for bathing (more so for the longer haired breeds)
towels (for after baths)
mini blow drier (optional but helpful for after baths, keep on its collest lowest setting)
small sponge + q-tips (both optional but handy)
Locate-
A Vet experienced in treating guinea pigs
A reliable pig sitter for when you cannot be home to care for your pig
Optional-
treats (fruit makes nice treats)
litterbox (I find this useful in making cage cleaning easier, these can be used for litter training your pigs during floor time, I also use one to catch the water spilled from the waterbottles)
chubes (cardboard tubes, these are wonderful, my loves them)
storage bin for supplies
I hope this helped some! I think its great that your educating yourself about guinea pigs before getting one, I hope your parents agree that you would be a great pig owner!
Tina
