Choosing Your Guinea Pig
Age
Many people only want a young guinea pig because they think it will be easier to train. However, adult guinea pigs make wonderful pets. My family adopted an older, sick guinea pig from the humane society and the humane society told us that she would die soon anyway. We took her home and she lived for years, recovered from the illnesses, and was one of the best guinea pigs we’ve ever met!
Health
Make sure the guinea pig’s ears and nose are clean and the eyes are bright. The fur should be soft and shiny with no missing patches. Watch out for signs of diarrhea (the poop should be round and hard), lice, fleas and ticks. If the abdomen is really hard, it might have worms. It should be alert and active, and the cage should be spotless. If it has been living in a dirty cage, it might not be as healthy as you would like. Are the other guinea pigs healthy? Most illness are very contagious, so if one of the guinea pigs nearby is sick, all of them will probably get sick, even if they don’t look sick yet. Check the teeth to make sure they line up correctly. The two top teeth should overlap the bottom ones a little bit. If they don’t they will not grow properly and you will have to take the cavy to the vet a lot to have the teeth trimmed.
Personality
Guinea pigs each have their own personality. Look for the piggy that matches your personality. The ones that are very nervous are probably pigs that haven’t been handled much. If you are willing to be patient and teach the guinea pig that you are a friend, they will usually become your best buddy.
Gender
Some people prefer males, but others prefer females. I like both. Males can sometimes be a little more aggressive, and they like to mark their territory. However, I have two guinea pigs from the same litter, one female and one male, and the female is more aggressive than her brother! Their mother, though, is a calm, gentle and loving cavy. (The closest is the male; farthest is female)
Number of Piggies to Adopt
Guinea pigs are sociable animals, and they usually like to have some company. It’s best to have two piggies of the same gender together. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a whole lot of piggies!
Spaying and Neutering
It can be hard to tell males and females apart, but if you want to have more than one guinea pig, especially in one cage, what do you do? You can either learn how to tell the difference, have a breeder or vet examine your piggies, have them spayed or neutered, or adopt piggies that are already “fixed”.
If you are going to show your pig, you cannot have it spayed or neutered. That’s against the rules.
You will avoid a lot of health problems and have better behaved piggies when you spay or neuter your cavy. Males that are not neutered often suffer from impaction (can’t pass its poo), and they also can be aggressive and spray strong-smelling urine. Females that are not spayed are prone to painful ovarian cysts or uterine infections. They also tend to be more moody.
Introductions
If you already have a guinea pig and you want to introduce a new piggy to your piggy, do it slowly and carefully. Find a neutral place to begin the introductions, like a room that neither cavy has ever been in. Keep them both in their cages and put the cages next to each other. Leave them like this as often as possible. Once they seem less hostile toward each other, take them out in the neutral place. Be ready to break up a fight if it gets violent, but let them establish a pecking order.
Age
Many people only want a young guinea pig because they think it will be easier to train. However, adult guinea pigs make wonderful pets. My family adopted an older, sick guinea pig from the humane society and the humane society told us that she would die soon anyway. We took her home and she lived for years, recovered from the illnesses, and was one of the best guinea pigs we’ve ever met!
Health
Make sure the guinea pig’s ears and nose are clean and the eyes are bright. The fur should be soft and shiny with no missing patches. Watch out for signs of diarrhea (the poop should be round and hard), lice, fleas and ticks. If the abdomen is really hard, it might have worms. It should be alert and active, and the cage should be spotless. If it has been living in a dirty cage, it might not be as healthy as you would like. Are the other guinea pigs healthy? Most illness are very contagious, so if one of the guinea pigs nearby is sick, all of them will probably get sick, even if they don’t look sick yet. Check the teeth to make sure they line up correctly. The two top teeth should overlap the bottom ones a little bit. If they don’t they will not grow properly and you will have to take the cavy to the vet a lot to have the teeth trimmed.
Personality
Guinea pigs each have their own personality. Look for the piggy that matches your personality. The ones that are very nervous are probably pigs that haven’t been handled much. If you are willing to be patient and teach the guinea pig that you are a friend, they will usually become your best buddy.
Gender
Some people prefer males, but others prefer females. I like both. Males can sometimes be a little more aggressive, and they like to mark their territory. However, I have two guinea pigs from the same litter, one female and one male, and the female is more aggressive than her brother! Their mother, though, is a calm, gentle and loving cavy. (The closest is the male; farthest is female)
Number of Piggies to Adopt
Guinea pigs are sociable animals, and they usually like to have some company. It’s best to have two piggies of the same gender together. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a whole lot of piggies!
Spaying and Neutering
It can be hard to tell males and females apart, but if you want to have more than one guinea pig, especially in one cage, what do you do? You can either learn how to tell the difference, have a breeder or vet examine your piggies, have them spayed or neutered, or adopt piggies that are already “fixed”.
If you are going to show your pig, you cannot have it spayed or neutered. That’s against the rules.
You will avoid a lot of health problems and have better behaved piggies when you spay or neuter your cavy. Males that are not neutered often suffer from impaction (can’t pass its poo), and they also can be aggressive and spray strong-smelling urine. Females that are not spayed are prone to painful ovarian cysts or uterine infections. They also tend to be more moody.
Introductions
If you already have a guinea pig and you want to introduce a new piggy to your piggy, do it slowly and carefully. Find a neutral place to begin the introductions, like a room that neither cavy has ever been in. Keep them both in their cages and put the cages next to each other. Leave them like this as often as possible. Once they seem less hostile toward each other, take them out in the neutral place. Be ready to break up a fight if it gets violent, but let them establish a pecking order.
