are guinea pigs good pets?

[famofsix]

DD9 had a beta fish whom she loved and he died this week.RIP Kramer . She really wants a new pet. I would love to get a small dog but Dh thinks a dog requires too much care. We went to petco tonight and looked at ferets, rats, guinea pigs and hamsters. We did not care for the rats and ferets...guinea pigs were very cute and hamsters would be a choice too. Then the Petco worker showed us a one-year old guinea pig that would be available to adopt for free in two weeks. He had a skin rash that was being treated by the vet. He was adorable and calm but I wondered if this rash returned how much vet care would be for him. We want to make a responsible decision here so we are looking for some advice. We have a lot of kids (4-see siggie) and not a huge house. We do have a big yard and big hearts, though. We can't get a cat cuz DH doesn't like cats (he's a pain )
Opinions....

 

[KristineN]

I have 4 kids as well...the oldest in college now. Through the years we have had many different pets, including guinea pigs. It's not that they are bad pets...my biggest dislike of them would be: they are nocturnal, so depending where you house them, the noise can keep you up at night. And I find that their urine is pretty darn stinky.

 

[PixiePop]

We have a guinea pig and she is a lot of fun. She is up during the day...we clean the cage once a week and don't have a problem. She is good with DS 7 too.

I would recommend doing some research on them first, but we really enjoy ours.

Funny thing ...we have a Jack Russell Terrier and they love each other. Our dog will come to the cage and she will give him kisses through the cage..it's kind of funny to watch.

Good luck on your decision.

 

[UrsulasShadow]

Get chickens! They make great backyard pets, and they're useful!

 

[famofsix]

Get chickens! They make great backyard pets, and they're useful!

they may make DH's mouth water

 

[yeartolate]

I second the stinkiness. We kept the cage very clean....but P.U.

It didn't help that the only place for the cage was the living room - and our living room was small - so this accentuated the stinkiness.

 

[SwedishMeatball]

My cousins had some and they were stinky and would bite.

 

[Miss Jessr!ca]

i had a guinea pig when i was younger like...8 or so i think.
i loved him, he ws super friendly and fun to play with.
their kinda just like...really big hampsters
and thier really easy to take care of

 

[ckay87]

I have 4 kids as well...the oldest in college now. Through the years we have had many different pets, including guinea pigs. It's not that they are bad pets...my biggest dislike of them would be: they are nocturnal, so depending where you house them, the noise can keep you up at night. And I find that their urine is pretty darn stinky.

Are you sure you're not thinking of hamsters? Piggies aren't at all nocturnal - or noisey for that matter. We've had both. Hamsters - yes! Running in that da** wheel all night long!

We have a piggie now. They are notoriously very sweet. He would never bite. My only complaint is lots of care if you do it right (including fresh hay, salad, food, and pooper scooper daily) Also, not very active in the cages.

Unlike hamsters they really need a companion. Our piggie's companion died a few weeks ago and it's sad to see how Butchie's mood has gone downhill.

 

[aynt79]

Have you thought about rabbits as well? I had a netherland dwarf that made a good pet. The level of cleaning and care required is probably the same as a guinea pig. They can also be housetrained pretty easily, our's sort of housetrained herself.

Here's my Annabelle. She recently passed away, she was a little over 9 years old.

 

[CourtasanSatine]

*starts singe Linny's song from The Wonder Pets*

Sorry, the kids I sometimes sit for want a guinea pig so I'm watching this thread.

 

[Alex2kMommy]

I recommend doing research as well.

My brother had a sweet guinea pig when he was young (around 7 or 8), but she did bite a lot. Lots of kids had guinea pigs back then, and then they went out of favor. I remember reading years ago that this was because they do tend to bite and are (now) not recommended for young children.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

I grew up in a family with lots of pets, and the guinea pigs were among the favorites. They are very social critters, and thrive on attention and affection (either from people or other animals). Like all animals (and people!), some have different personalities and some guinea pigs are more agressive than others. Ours were all sweeties, but a friend had one who would beat up on their other guinea pig so they had to get separate cages. A lot of it depends on how they were raised and whether they were well socialized when they were babies.

Guinea pigs make me laugh with all their funny noises and they way they waddle around. We always loved watching them eat carrots, parsley and celery - it was just funny to see their little jaws working on it. They do have sharp little claws that can need to be trimmed, and we used to hold our guinea pigs in towels to do that (or sometimes we'd wrap them in a towel when we were holding them in case they peed or pooped on us).

Like any animal that lives in a cage of any kind, they do get stinky if you don't clean the cage regularly. Good bedding material is a must.

I do agree that you should definitely do some research first - the library should have a lot of great books about owning guinea pigs.

I'd love to have one again, but DH is opposed to any pet that isn't a cat or a turtle. Go figure...

Edited to add: Ours never bit us. We had 9 guinea pigs over the years, and I don't recall ever being bitten by one of them. The gerbils now, that's another story. Those critters were MEAN!

 

[1Prince2Princesses]

We've had several guinea pigs over the years. They are great pets, but you really have to clean the cage often. Like a litter box. They are sweet and fun to play with.

I will tell you, though... we don't have one now because we discovered that my husband had an allergy to their dander. He is also allergic to cats, but I don't know if they have similar dander or not. If you have someone in your house prone to pet allergies, the pig might not be a good choice for your family.

 

[KristineN]

nope. maybe this guinea pig was unusual. But it made a lot of rustling around sounds at night. and it did bite at times. not viciously...but unpredictably.

Are you sure you're not thinking of hamsters? Piggies aren't at all nocturnal - or noisey for that matter. We've had both. Hamsters - yes! Running in that da** wheel all night long!

We have a piggie now. They are notoriously very sweet. He would never bite. My only complaint is lots of care if you do it right (including fresh hay, salad, food, and pooper scooper daily) Also, not very active in the cages.

Unlike hamsters they really need a companion. Our piggie's companion died a few weeks ago and it's sad to see how Butchie's mood has gone downhill.

 

[famofsix]

I recommend doing research as well.

My brother had a sweet guinea pig when he was young (around 7 or 8), but she did bite a lot. Lots of kids had guinea pigs back then, and then they went out of favor. I remember reading years ago that this was because they do tend to bite and are (now) not recommended for young children.

We are researching and the DIS is very helpful. Our youngest is almost two so we want to make a good decison pet wise.

 

[newholidayx2]

Have you thought about rabbits as well? I had a netherland dwarf that made a good pet. The level of cleaning and care required is probably the same as a guinea pig. They can also be housetrained pretty easily, our's sort of housetrained herself.

Here's my Annabelle. She recently passed away, she was a little over 9 years old.

sorry to hear Annaabelle passed away. That must have been hard.

DS & I adopted 2 bunnies Tina and Turbo (brother/sister both fixed) from a rescue this past June. When we're home they basically have free reign in the living/dining room. They have a litter box, get grain to eat in the morn and treats & veggies at night. We both love cuddling, petting and playing with them.

 

[famofsix]

Have you thought about rabbits as well? I had a netherland dwarf that made a good pet. The level of cleaning and care required is probably the same as a guinea pig. They can also be housetrained pretty easily, our's sort of housetrained herself.

Here's my Annabelle. She recently passed away, she was a little over 9 years old.

Your Annabelle is sweet. I am sorry for you loss...thanks for the cute picture.
We babysat a rabbit for a week and she was a biter and pretty stinky.

I am worried about the guinea pig stinky factor now.

 

[RrCoAsTeR]

Guinea PIgs are usually pretty smelly, and tend to bite more than some rodents. They also have sharp little nails (like all rodents) but their weight makes them dig in a bit more.

I have a gerbil that I love to death. They are not smelly (about a month in a 5-gallon tank before you can even start to smell them, and then only if you stick your nose in) and usually don't bite, but my cousins have the meanest gerbils around.

Hampsters- annopying at night, and all that I have known are biters and very good eascape artists.

Overall, I would DEFINENTLY reccomed a rabbit, can be house trained, learn to play fetch, and usually have lovely dispositions, or a ferret. OUt of all my friend's pets (hampsters, rats, gerbils, and guinea pigs) I would say the ferrets are my favorite.

 

[famofsix]

I grew up in a family with lots of pets, and the guinea pigs were among the favorites. They are very social critters, and thrive on attention and affection (either from people or other animals). Like all animals (and people!), some have different personalities and some guinea pigs are more agressive than others. Ours were all sweeties, but a friend had one who would beat up on their other guinea pig so they had to get separate cages. A lot of it depends on how they were raised and whether they were well socialized when they were babies.

Guinea pigs make me laugh with all their funny noises and they way they waddle around. We always loved watching them eat carrots, parsley and celery - it was just funny to see their little jaws working on it. They do have sharp little claws that can need to be trimmed, and we used to hold our guinea pigs in towels to do that (or sometimes we'd wrap them in a towel when we were holding them in case they peed or pooped on us).

Like any animal that lives in a cage of any kind, they do get stinky if you don't clean the cage regularly. Good bedding material is a must.

I do agree that you should definitely do some research first - the library should have a lot of great books about owning guinea pigs.

I'd love to have one again, but DH is opposed to any pet that isn't a cat or a turtle. Go figure...

Edited to add: Ours never bit us. We had 9 guinea pigs over the years, and I don't recall ever being bitten by one of them. The gerbils now, that's another story. Those critters were MEAN!

AWWW now I want one...thanks for this advice.
I would love to find a family raised one. "Ron Howard", the 1 year old red-haired guinea pig at petco was a cute and very calm. I just don't know a lot about his history and that makes me nervous in adopting him. They also had 6week old ones to buy. I don't think I could get two pigs though so my kids would have to be diligent in being social with the pig if we chose this route.
We are going to take our time in finding the right pet and match for our family. There are lots of good advice here and I thank everyone for the helpful responses.
DD9 came home with some books after school about guinea pigs and she is reading them tonight.

I wish I could get a dog but unless DH has a change of heart we can't do that right now.
I had pets growing up and I think it is good for kids to nurture and care for a pet. It's so rewarding.

We have a guinea pig and she is a lot of fun. She is up during the day...we clean the cage once a week and don't have a problem. She is good with DS 7 too.

I would recommend doing some research on them first, but we really enjoy ours.

Funny thing ...we have a Jack Russell Terrier and they love each other. Our dog will come to the cage and she will give him kisses through the cage..it's kind of funny to watch.

Good luck on your decision.

OHH...I want a Terrier and a pig!