Pregnancy Thread.

[rattatrattery]

(I don't know if I posted in the right section)

I adopted Kitty from a shelter. I've had her for a little over a month now, and she has developed a large belly. The shelter said she was only there for a week before I adopted her.. so she is atleast 5 weeks along. My guess, a lot more. This is the first litter I've had, or will be caring so I'm kind of new to this. I've done some research, but plan on doing a lot more. She is currently in a multi level C&C cage with other females. Would it be best to separate her into a single level cage?

Here are some pics of her

 

[vicky2]

She certainly looks pregnant. You don't have to separate her as long as the cage meets the minimum requirements for the existing females. The existing pigs will act as aunties. Try not to pick her up too often and if you have to, use the piggy elevator. There's also some more nutritional needs but I'm not positive on them so I'm sure someone else will answer that part. Good luck and keep us updated!!!

 

[rattatrattery]

Here is a pic of the cage she is in. She is housed with the other rescue (her sister) and 2 other young girls.

I have been holding her daily, sometimes quite a few times. But, I def. will let her be now. I feed Oxbow pellets, oxbow hay/grass, fresh veggies and treats here and there. She has grown a lot with in the past week.

 

[momof1kid3piggi]

She most certainty looks pregnant. Make sure she gets alfalfa now, extra calcium as the babies will suck it out of her. I'd baby proof the cage before they come, and since you don't know when I'd do it soon. Like Vicky said try not to pick her up often, use a piggy elevator if have to. You don't have to seperate them at all if the cage meets requirements. If there is any complications make sure you have a vet lined up in case of emergencies. I'm sorry but thats all I can think of for now, I'll come back if I think of more.

 

[momof1kid3piggi]

As since I didn't see the picture since we where probably posting at the same time. If you can I'd make it one more out so it would be a 5x2 instead. But it looks good I like it.

 

[vicky2]

Ditto to expanding to at least a 5x2. Also, do they have bedding?

 

[akstrohm]

She will need either alfalfa hay (in addition to grass hay), alfalfa-based pellets, or veggies containing extra calcium (i.e. parsley).

Your cage is too small and too divided. The recommended cage size for four girls is a 2x6. You have a 2x4 now, but they can't even use all the space because of the way the levels are. You should rearrange it so they have an entire 2x6 area to run around in. Keep in mind that upper levels don't count toward space--in fact, the space of the ramps takes away from running space. And don't forget to baby proof the cage.

Definitely make sure you have a competent vet lined up and that you know what to do after hours. Pregnancy complications, including death, are very common. Do you know roughly how old she is?

Good luck! She is very cute!

 

[rattatrattery]

I have been giving alfalfa and parsley from the beginning. They all love it. I do have an exotics vet lined up, I already use this vet for my rats. I have towels, blankets, aspen and YN as bedding, I switch it out. If I had to guess age she is definitely under a year. Maybe around 6 or 7 months?

 

[Piggly is I]

You might also want to switch to Oxbow performance food, I hear its better for little pigs and prego moms. And definitly alfalfa hay. Make sure your pig proofed too. Hope everything goes well for your piggie. luckily she might be the right age for minimal complications.

 

[rattatrattery]

You might also want to switch to Oxbow performance food, I hear its better for little pigs and prego moms. And definitly alfalfa hay. Make sure your pig proofed too. Hope everything goes well for your piggie. luckily she might be the right age for minimal complications.

Im assuming that is a different form of the oxbow pellets? I buy the oxbow brand now, but I didn't know there were different forms of it.

 

[lissie]

Im assuming that is a different form of the oxbow pellets? I buy the oxbow brand now, but I didn't know there were different forms of it.

Oxbow has 2 types, well, actually 3 types of pellets for guinea pigs.
1) Oxbow Cavy Cuisine - Timothy hay based pellets for guinea pigs older than 6 months.
2) Oxbow Cavy Performance - Alfalfa based pellets for guinea pigs younger than 6 months and pregnant and nursing sows. This type of pellets are not recommended for older pigs because of the calcium. Too much calcium can cause stones.
3) Oxbow organic pellets. I don't know the official name of this one, but it's timothy based. I heard someone mentioned that it has some questionable ingredients. So you might not want to feed this one.

If you other pigs are older than 6 months, you might want to cut down the alfalfa hay and parsley. Parsley is high in calcium and should be feed sparingly.

For the pregnant sow, if you feed timothy based pellets, you can supplement with alfalfa hay (in addition to unlimited grass hay). If she shares the cage with older sows and you don't want them to have access to alfalfa, you can feed her extra parsley during lap time.

By the way, your cage looks awesome. But it's too small for 4 pigs. They should have 2x6 cage. Since one is pregnant, you might want to expand it to an even bigger cage. Who knows, you might end up with 4 pups or more.

Don't forget to baby proof the cage and separate the male pups at 21 days.

 

[rattatrattery]

Ohhh i had no clue about the food! I just buy the 5 pound bags at PetSmart, the Cavy Cruisine. Maybe The others would be available at a feed store? I didnt really know the difference between alfalfa and timothy either, thanks for explaining that! All my piggies are rather young. What age is considered an older pig?

 

[lissie]

Wow.. you're up late. Actually, cavy cuisine is ok to feed. Just supplement with alfalfa hay or give them extra parsley. Alfalfa pellets are for babies up to 6 months.
By older pigs from my last post, I meant pigs older than 6 months should get limited calcium. And 6 months are not considered old since they can live up to 7 - 9 years.

 

[rattatrattery]

HAHA your up late as well! I work at a bar/club, so my sleeping is all kinds of messed up! But, I get what your saying now! I know oxbow is a good brand, a lot of rat people feed that so I figured that would be the best for the piggies that I could buy at the petstore. Is there a better brand that I could buy? I want to feed them the best. I tried a couple of different brands, but i think the oxbow was the most liked, or that could be all in my head haha. How often should parsley be given, like once a week for older than 6 months?

 

[lissie]

Haha I work 9-5 and should force myself to go to sleep soon. lol

Parsley can be fed 2-4 times a week. If you haven't seen the food chart, you should check it out.
https://www.guineapigcages.com/threads/22156/
and https://www.guineapigcages.com/threads/24770/

The best pellets and hay is Kleenmama (only available online).
(broken link removed)
I love the bluegrass.

Oxbow is a good brand, many people here recommend it. There's another brand that's also good. It's called sweet meadow. (broken link removed)

 

[rattatrattery]

Thanks for all the help! I'm still not familiar with this forum and I get kind of lost. haha. I'm also a newbie to the guinea pig world so i appreciate all the help everyone!
Ugh, I cant imagine getting up that early! Thats about the time I fall asleep! You should definitely head to bed ASAP! haha!

 

[rattatrattery]

...still no babies. But, she is doing that beached whale thing when she eats. Poor girl! I cant wait to see the babies, (hoping for a small litter). I have no idea what the daddy looks like, so these babies are going to be a total surprise. If it is a small litter, ill be able to keep everyone. (making a new cage)

 

[rattatrattery]

Just wanted to add some pics I just took. I was feeling on her stomach and I felt a baby move. It was seriously the coolest thing!

Playing on MySpace with me haha

Beached Whale pose.

Her belly.

 

[angiekay]

She is beautiful!! Seriously, very gorgeous girl, I know she's gonna have some cuties!! Can't wait to see the babies either, ugh, I'll never have babies, I guess that's why I chose boars instead! You never know right! Esp. when you are getting them from a rescue. Good Luck, awaiting babies....

 

[rattatrattery]

Thank you! All babies are cute haha but I have a feeling she is going to have some really gorgeous babies! She was surrendered from a hoarder, you should of seen some of the guinea pigs in the shelter, beautiful piggies! I didn't even consider the possibility of her being pregnant, both girls were rather bony. So, I didnt even put two and two together, I thought the weight was due to them being fed the proper diet, but obviously she has babies in there! It sucks not knowing when her due date is. I wake up every morning anxiously waiting!