DD has a guinea pig and she is the cutest little thing. She is probably about 5 months old. We have had her for about 3 months or so. She is still skittish at times but doesn't seem to mind being held, esp. by DD.

Miss Piggy makes kind of like a purring noise when she is petted. We kind of hope that means she likes being petted and getting her back scratched. We have looked for books on guinea pigs but haven't found any with much info.

DD keeps hay in her cage for her. And gives her a piece of romaine lettuce every day (her favorite). She is not much on carrots or other fruits/veggies, even though the books we read said they love them. We also keep chew blocks for her to chew one in her cage. DD also has a playpen type thing she puts in the floor for Miss Piggy to run and exercise in.

If you have any stories or advice, I would love to hear it. We are hoping Miss Piggy will have a happy home with us for many years.

I really miss my guinea pigs, had to give them up when I was pregnant, I was too weak to care for them and play with them. Make sure to handle them alot, and they love fresh fruits and veggies, they are a must. If not played with often they must be kept in pairs as they are social animals and get depressed if alone. Other than that they are quite fun and amusing. My cat used to love watching them as they played.

We used to have guinea pigs. We had them for a few years but had to give them away when we moved from Ca to Ky. I was afraid that the long trip would be too stressful for them.
Mine were picky eaters too. They loved to be put down in the grass and they run around and play. You just have to keep a close eye on them or they disappear. Mine loved to sit on the shoulders while I walked around but if I stopped they would get mad a pee down my back. I still loved them.
You do have to bathe them regularly or they can get mites and skin disease. Keep the cage nice and clean this will help too. When they are happy they will make a purring or a quiet chirping noise. When they are upset or hurt that chirping can get very loud.
And yes they like lots of attention.

We had a guinea pig when the kids were little. I was allergic so hubby had to keep cage clean. "Gizmo" knew when the fridge opened he was getting veggies or fruit. He got to the point whenever anyone walked in the kitchen he would just chatter like crazy sitting up by cage door waiting for his treat. They are fun and very entertaining. Enjoy.

Best site ever for everything you want to know about guinea pigs. You may be surprised at what you will learn - how to make your own cage (the ones at the pet store are always too small), what to feed them, why they should be kept in pairs (they are social), etc.

http://www.guineapigcages.com/

I used to own guinea pigs when I was a kid. Got my first one when I was in the second grade from the second grade teacher at the end of the school year. My mom wasn't thrilled but she let me have them. I loved them so.
As I got older I graduated to rats. I liked them to.

yes purring is a happy noise, we were told at the national western stock show that we shouldn't give our piggies lettuce as it can cause indigestion, all other b]veggies were good though. Ours loved green peppers and apples, plus the vitamin c is good for them, they need vitamin c

My sister had one when she was 40...and then got another one. They made a "weep weep weep" sound when they were being petted and while they dozed in your lap. These 2 would ride around in your shirt and peek out the tops (guess they really were sitting on my boobs, lol, now that I think about it). Everyone was "comforted" when holding one of them.

Awww, they are so cute!! :D

I had guinea pigs as a child, and when my boys were small kept them again. I still miss having them, but with 2 cats and 2 dogs....not the best housemates. Lots of good advice from everyone. Just give her lots of love and attention as they do usually live in groups...also, lettuce is not very good for the majority of small domestic animals, it can upset their digestive system. We used to have an outside run (escape proof and protected from predators), they loved grazing on the lawn (also their droppings are excellent fertilizer for plants and really great for the compost bin). Oh, I forgot, I used to have a salt/mineral lick for mine as well as putting their water in a dripper bottle (it's easier for them to manage).

I get sprouted greens at the grocery store for my indoor cats. They graze on them like small goats, and I'll bet guinea pigs would love them too.
And I won't feed my turtle iceberg lettuce because it is almost totally lacking in nutrition. If you give her any salad mixings at all, make them a little bit of dark, dark colored ones.
And as for the Vitamin C, remember that they are Guinea Pigs which were and probably are used as test subjects with human medicines and they are like humans, they can not make their own Vitamin C like animals do. They have to get it from foods.

Oh my kids and I had a guinea pig once. It was so cute and cuddly. We would get it those alfafa blocks and it loved them. Sometimes we'd give them a little grass from outside or clover..not a lot. He loved lettuce and grapes. Be sure to watch his front teeth. They can grow so long they cannot eat and will starve to death. Ours would not use the chew blocks and the vet had to file his teeth.

No one could open the refrigerator without hearing the little cheep cheep because he knew his food was in there.

Good luck they make great pets.

Make sure you buy guinea pig food-it has vitamin C in it. Don't substitute rabbit pellets-it doesn't. Also they don't do well on wire-floored cages, messes up their feet.

Heya! I'm not a guinea pig owner myself, but I have friends and acquaintances in the rescue community who work with them primarily. They're fun little critters! If you get the opportunity, finding a guinea pig forum can be very beneficial. If get end up in a last-minute situation where you desperately need advice, they're often the best rescources in a pinch due to members' experience. Pro-rescue forums tend to have the most info, though of course not always.

The guineapigcages.com site is a fantastic resource. For the medical side of things, Guinea Lynx is a very good reference.

http://www.guinealynx.info/

For example, their information on diet:
http://www.guinealynx.info/diet.html

Your baby is too cute. We had two pigs - the girls and I still miss them. They both lived until they were about 7 years old. We would buy them veggies at the store and when they heard the bag rattle, they would start squealing. They were way too much fun. Now that the kids are gone and hubby and I travel a little more, pets other than a cat just don't work out. Remember - broccoli will give them gas! LOL

My kids had guinea pigs. They are so cute. We fed them pellets of some kind. I think we got them at the pet store. However we found out not to use plastic bowls as they will eat them (plastics are made from soybeans). Their little ones are born with eyes open and a full coat of hair and start eating the food right away. We used wood shavings for their pens. My youngest was bitten by one and it was quite painful but they are generally not aggressive.

I had one years ago in my preschool classroom and she loved being passed around the circle from kid to kid as we all practiced being gentle and speaking softly while we held her. She knew when I got there in the morning that it was her breakfast time so she would yell---REEEEEK REEEEEK REEEEEK---- and I'd get her some greens and fruit. Oh, and when the kids got snacks, she'd yell for one too...so she got a piece of graham cracker when the kids had theirs. Great pet!!!! Oh---we loaned her to a family for awhile to get pregnant and she had three babies, born completely furry and eyes open. They were soooooo cute!!!!!

We used to have guinea pigs. Don't give them celery as it is too
stringy. We gave our guinea pig pellets that are found in pet shops and farm supply stores.
Give it a water bottle.
My husband made a cage for ours. We put newspaper on the bottom so we could change it often
We had a little house about the size of a shoe box at the end of the cage so they can get some privacy if they want it.
One of ours lived 10 years.

I had guinea pigs but had to give them up because my son was allergic. Funny thing was, she was pregnant when I got her so in 63 days we had 4! The babies are almost as big as Mom! (poor Mom!) I loved my Wilbur. I'd put her in my pocket and take her to school to pick up my kids. She LOVED apples. If anyone in the house ate one,she could smell it and whistle till she got some. i remember she liked to play with toilet paper tubes! She'd throw it in the air & run after it and start all over. She played until she tired of the game and then she'd shred it! The only thing I don't miss was cleaning the cage every other day!Peeeew! Enjoy your baby!

My Girlfriend use to have a GP and it was her only pet... She use to let it run all over her place and she even trained it to potty in a litter box. (unbelievable) I actually watched it do it's thing and I was "amazed" I guess they are pretty smart little creatures and easy to train with treats. The GP's name was Mr. Bojangles. he was a cuddler too!

When my son & his wife married, she had gp's and I had never been around them. They are so cute and I love the noises they make.

I used to raise the long haired (Peruvian) guinea pigs for show. Funny how they originated in Peru as a short haired food (yes I said food!) animal and short haired version is called the English Short Hair! the Peruvian Long Hair was developed in ENGLAND!!! They also can't store vitamin D. The only animals that can't are guinea pigs, wart hogs, and humans! LOL If they don't get enough vitamin D they can lose the use of their hind legs (reversable with liquid D) and then they will die if not given it. With proper diet it isn't a problem but just be aware of it. I loved mine too and they are just great pets!

Our daughter's friends family finally concented to a pet so got a 2 month old female from the humane society. They recently went on vacation came home and when their daughter sid there was another one in the cage they said no must just be fur. Turned out she was pregnant. Now they are seeking a new home for the baby so when he is of age they can rehome him so they do not have another incident

When my sailor was about 3, he had a pet guinea pig, that he named 'Fudge Ripple' It was the color of, you guessed it, fudge ripple ice cream.
It was so darn cute seeing those 2 together. We had some sort of board game that had inch high plastic letters of the alphabet. One day, I went out to the sun room, where
Fudge Ripple lived, saw him on the floor, with Ben down there too. He was using those letters and when asked "What'cha doing?" I was told "I'm teaching Fudge Ripple to read, and first he has to learn the alphabet. We're going to be on 'stupid pet tricks' on David Letterman"

OMG, it was so cute.









Warning, do not read the rest if Fudge Ripple dying will bother you










One day, Fudge Ripple died. It was the middle of winter, the ground was frozen, there was no way to have a proper 'funeral' and he was too big to flush down the toilet, as my oldest son suggested.
So, we put Fudge Ripple where Fudge Ripple belongs, in the freezer! He was wrapped well in plastic, but it was clear plastic, just there until the ground thawed and we could bury him. Trouble is, I didn't keep the freezer as neat and organized as it should be, and sometimes, when the door was opened, out fell Fudge Ripple onto the floor. He made a preety good THUMP

we got what we thought to be 2 of the same sex but found nerlin became a merlet. so we had the whole family and loved them. they are family orientated animals, they can now be nuetered, they get lonely with only one.you can only have one boar in the same pen. they say life expectatsy is 5 years but merlet and dulie lived to be about ten. lettuce is not very good for them apples and carrots are for their dialy treat time otherwise they have guinnea pig pellet food for them for their main diet, it's not expensive. also we made some wood tunnels just make sure it is a natural wood that isn't treated. also ramp are good too. otherwise they just love to be loved, i always wore a apron that was just for them and also for excerise block off a area in the hall for to play with.or a childs swimming pool worked good just NO water they don't swim. enjoy your new baby.

For those who like reading and Guinea Pigs...try getting some copies of "Olga Da Polga" by Michael Bond (of Paddington Bear fame). I remember reading the "Olga" stories when I was a kid....very fun and cute..there are several in the series and the illustrations are gorgeous. Not many books have a girl Guinea Pig as the star.

We keep a small dish of guinea pig food for her. It has pellets and other small crunchy things in it. She is picky for a piggy. We have tried apples, grapes, etc and she is not crazy about them at all. Miss Piggy will nibble a bit on baby carrots only. She will not eat regular carrots. She loves romaine lettuce, so that is what we buy for her daily treat. She does chew on her chewy blocks. She also has salt lick thingy that is attached to her cage by her water bottle.

We are getting her a new and bigger cage. The one we got from the pet store just doesn't seem very big even though we paid a big price for it. One thing we have to watch her carefully around is hair! Older DD has very long hair and she will chew a piece off in a few seconds.

Her toe nails look long and probably should be cut. We need to find out about that also.

Hi Sheri,

We had 2 guineas when my son was small. I love them! They liked to swim in the bath, celery, broccoli stalks, apples and alfalfa. They got to know the sound of the fridge door opening and used to whistle for food when they heard it! They like to gnaw on branches from apple trees too. Make great pets, they love being handled and don't bite, teased our tom cat by jumping on his tail.

Jeanne

Actually, it's vitamin C they don't store, not vitamin D as stated in a previous post.

Not true that you cannot keep males together! It's very possible, I have had 2 boars together many times. Depends on the personality of the pigs.

Sherri B - try giving her cilantro, parsley, red leaf lettuce, cherry tomatoes. The guineapigcages.com site has a whole section on nutrition.

I do I do!! I love my piggies. Originally, we were going to get a pet for my grandkids but I after I bought the Peruvian Silkie (which I had no idea what that entailed), cage, etc, my DIL changed her mind. I kept him and the kids named him Fuzzy. He wasn't fuzzy very long when his silk hair keep growing. He was extremely, social. When anybody held him, he always came back to me full of chatter. I think he was telling on them. 2 yrs later, we got Zorra and had a couple of babies. The babies only lived 2 or 3 years but Fuzzy died when he was 7. Losing her mate, Zorra went into a tailspin...wouldn't eat or anything. Then, I got Beyonce, yes, that's right. She was named after a gorgeous black lady and Zorra snapped out of it. This time of year is cornsilk season. They can't enough! I give them husks and all but they won't eat the corn unless I cook it. Microwave 3 min. There are no 2 alike in personalities or differences but be sure they get quality time every day and you will be rewarded with much love.

I had a guinea with my first graders, and he was well-loved. He would squeel very loudly when we came back from the lunch room because he knew the kids would save their carrots, apples, broccoli, cucumbers, etc. for him. He liked to eat almost anything. As a reward, the kids would sit in a circle and Ginger would run around to each one of them to be held and petted. They make wonderful pets, and much more fun than hamsters because they are not nocturnal and will stay awake during the day.