Tell me about guinea pigs

[Freyja]

I´ve been toying around with the idea of giving my daughters rabbits for Christmas. We´ve had rabbits before (when we lived in Denmark) and they´ve been asking for a pet for a couple of years now. They´ve always said they wanted rabbits, but I´m starting to think that it´s just because they had them before. In the past few weeks my 7 yr old DD has been saying she would prefer a guinea pig, like her friend has, since they seem to like to be cuddled more than rabbits do. From what info I have been able to gather, it seems like she´s right.

Have any of you had a guinea pig? One or more? Anything you would like to share about your experience?

 

[DisneyKing82]

I´ve been toying around with the idea of giving my daughters rabbits for Christmas. We´ve had rabbits before (when we lived in Denmark) and they´ve been asking for a pet for a couple of years now. They´ve always said they wanted rabbits, but I´m starting to think that it´s just because they had them before. In the past few weeks my 7 yr old DD has been saying she would prefer a guinea pig, like her friend has, since they seem to like to be cuddled more than rabbits do. From what info I have been able to gather, it seems like she´s right.

Have any of you had a guinea pig? One or more? Anything you would like to share about your experience?

I had a guinea pig and he was a great pet. They love to be cuddled and held, love to be pet. My brother had one as well and mine was much more friendly than his. I would recommend going to a pet store and just see the different ones they have, hold them, and see how they react to your daughter holding them. If they're calm in her hands, probably a winner.

They're relatively easy to take care of as well. They love carrots and apples as food.

On average they live about 5-6 years, mine lived for 10, go figure!

 

[jrmasm]

http://www.guineapigcages.com/

This is a great website with tons of information.

 

[disney1990]

I love my Guinea Pig. My DD gave it to me as a birthday present. He loves to be held and hand fed especially by my granddaughters.

 

[dcentity2000]

Guinea Pigs effing rule! We've had loads and they live forever! That and they're cuddly, cute and "talk" to you



Rich::

 

[Freyja]

Thanks everyone. Glad to hear you all enjoy your guinea pigs. Sounds like we might be adding to our family soon

 

[samshane]

We have had a few over the years... one we had was so smart - it was litter box trained. My grandmother had trained it and it would run up to her and scratch on her feet for snacks... it became best friends with the dog. Very cool pet - IMHO!

 

[Freyja]

What did you use as flooring in their cages?

 

[my3sonsagn]

I had one once; she was the cutest, sweetest little thing! I loved to hear her purring little ring, and good grief could she let you know she was hungry! She ate her pellets, carrots, bell pepper, etc. We used cedar chips for her bedding; she liked it better than pine. I'd love to have another one, but with 3 kids, 3 cats, and 3 dogs my husband has told me both the inn and the ark are closed. lol

 

[Freyja]

I had one once; she was the cutest, sweetest little thing! I loved to hear her purring little ring, and good grief could she let you know she was hungry! She ate her pellets, carrots, bell pepper, etc. We used cedar chips for her bedding; she liked it better than pine. I'd love to have another one, but with 3 kids, 3 cats, and 3 dogs my husband has told me both the inn and the ark are closed. lol

Sounds adorable. But I´m curious, I´ve read several places that you shouldn´t use cedar or pine shavings. Do you know if this is true, and why?

 

[DisneyKing82]

What did you use as flooring in their cages?

The flooring has 3 steps. First you want to cover the base with a newspaper. Second, use kiln-dried pine shavings to build a nice base on top of the newspaper. Third, use a comfortable amount of hay to cover the pine shavings. Guinea pigs love hay!!

** Do not use cedar shavings for the 2nd part no matter what any one tells you. They are not safe for guinea pigs. **

 

[DisneyKing82]

Sounds adorable. But I´m curious, I´ve read several places that you shouldn´t use cedar or pine shavings. Do you know if this is true, and why?

Cedar for sure you should not use. They have aromatic oils which are toxic to guinea pigs.

I used the kiln dried pine shavings and never had an issue. Just look at the shavings after you put in the cage and look for any pieces that might hurt the guinea pigs feet or air them out if they smell too strongly.

Eventhough you're going to cover the shavings with hay, g. pigs love to bury their noses deep in their bedding and explore.

 

[chabs]

We have a guinea pig and I would definitely pick that over a rabbit. They are so sociable and bond to whoever takes care of them. My DD has a little leash for hers that we bought at Petsmart and she takes her out for a "walk" in the backyard. They are really cute and really easy to take care of. We leave pellets out all day and give carrots or romaine lettuce at night and sometimes buy the honey stick treats. Ours gets along with our cats and dogs (although I would never leave them alone together) and we have a little playyard that she runs around in. Easy pet for a kid to take care of and very friendly.

 

[Freyja]

http://www.guineapigcages.com/

This is a great website with tons of information.

Wow. Great site. I´m already designing a home for them in my head

We have a guinea pig and I would definitely pick that over a rabbit. They are so sociable and bond to whoever takes care of them. My DD has a little leash for hers that we bought at Petsmart and she takes her out for a "walk" in the backyard. They are really cute and really easy to take care of. We leave pellets out all day and give carrots or romaine lettuce at night and sometimes buy the honey stick treats. Ours gets along with our cats and dogs (although I would never leave them alone together) and we have a little playyard that she runs around in. Easy pet for a kid to take care of and very friendly.

I think you´re right. They seem to be a lot more sociable than rabbits. Sound like lovely pets

 

[pixiedustaholic]

Thanks everyone. Glad to hear you all enjoy your guinea pigs. Sounds like we might be adding to our family soon

Stop! Don't do it! I got my kids a pair of baby guinea pigs two years ago for Christmas! BIG mistake! They constantly chirped and "talked" to each other. It was so loud and annoying. Even the kids got annoyed. Of course it was more annoying during the night when you are trying to sleep. This happened even after they were several months old so it wasn't because they were babies. Plus, I had to clean their cages out at least every other day or else they reeked. Seriously. Reeked. So, it looks like I'm the only negative review you got but I would not recommend them.

We ended up GIVING them to the local pet store just to get rid of them. The kids didn't bat an eye.

I have also had hamsters and gerbils. I would let them get a hamster but never another guinea pig.

 

[Freyja]

Stop! Don't do it! I got my kids a pair of baby guinea pigs two years ago for Christmas! BIG mistake! They constantly chirped and "talked" to each other. It was so loud and annoying. Even the kids got annoyed. Of course it was more annoying during the night when you are trying to sleep. This happened even after they were several months old so it wasn't because they were babies. Plus, I had to clean their cages out at least every other day or else they reeked. Seriously. Reeked. So, it looks like I'm the only negative review you got but I would not recommend them.

We ended up GIVING them to the local pet store just to get rid of them. The kids didn't bat an eye.

I have also had hamsters and gerbils. I would let them get a hamster but never another guinea pig.

 

[natenapril]

Stop! Don't do it! I got my kids a pair of baby guinea pigs two years ago for Christmas! BIG mistake! They constantly chirped and "talked" to each other. It was so loud and annoying. Even the kids got annoyed. Of course it was more annoying during the night when you are trying to sleep. This happened even after they were several months old so it wasn't because they were babies. Plus, I had to clean their cages out at least every other day or else they reeked. Seriously. Reeked. So, it looks like I'm the only negative review you got but I would not recommend them.

We ended up GIVING them to the local pet store just to get rid of them. The kids didn't bat an eye.

I have also had hamsters and gerbils. I would let them get a hamster but never another guinea pig.

I agree! I will never get another guinea pig. We had one and he was sweet but he stunk! And I changed his cage quite often.
And then to top it all off he died 9 months after we got him as a baby from Petco! Never again!
We just bought a Golden retriever and are much happier!

 

[Freyja]

I agree! I will never get another guinea pig. We had one and he was sweet but he stunk! And I changed his cage quite often.
And then to top it all off he died 9 months after we got him as a baby from Petco! Never again!
We just bought a Golden retriever and are much happier!

Did you try any of the odor neutralizing stuff they sell as flooring?

We have a dog too, DS has a toroise and DD will soon have a horse

 

[paintnolish]

My friend had a GP and also got rid of it. It was stinky and made a mess (throwing the bedding all over the place, much of it landing outside the cage). It was just a general annoyance until it bit her dd not once but twice. The second time it was an extremely hard bite, too, and she had to pry the thing off of her finger. They ended up giving it to a family with older kids. Have you thought about a rat? I know, I know, but I have always heard what good pets they make. Also, my sister had one. If you can get over the tail, they are kind of cute.

 

[Freyja]

My friend had a GP and also got rid of it. It was stinky and made a mess (throwing the bedding all over the place, much of it landing outside the cage). It was just a general annoyance until it bit her dd not once but twice. The second time it was an extremely hard bite, too, and she had to pry the thing off of her finger. They ended up giving it to a family with older kids. Have you thought about a rat? I know, I know, but I have always heard what good pets they make. Also, my sister had one. If you can get over the tail, they are kind of cute.

NO!!!!!!!!!!