My dad just randomly showed up with a pair of pigs and a bunch of random shit he found in a charity shop, wtf do I do? He's already tried to feed them gerbil food, nuts and seeds which they apparently aren't supposed to eat and bought them a hamster wheel.They're 2 males, apparently father and son. We have hay, 2 water bottles, pellet food, a small wooden arch and a few wooden blocks and circles and shit I guess for chewing on. We also have bedding made of kapok pods, but only like a couple handfuls. Are we supposed to cover their entire space with this stuff or just where they sleep?The pen in the pic is about 5 square feet, I understand that's about half what we need for a pair of them? I don't think we even have space in the house for a 10 square foot cage. What do I do bros my parents don't give a flying fuck about doing shit properly
>>49272881. If your parents cared about doing things properly you wouldn't exist2. They managed to raise you, they can probably keep a couple guinea pigs alive.
>>4927288idk anything about ginny pigs but their piss is going to soak right through that newspaper and it's going to ruin that rug
>>4927288>dad just randomly showed up with a pair of pigsCongrats! Now RTFM: https://www.guinealynx.info/>gerbil foodBad>nuts and seedsBad>hamster wheelUseless to bad if they try>2 malesGood>father and sonGood>hayGood if Timothy>2 water bottlesGood, change daily>pellet foodGood if for guinea pigs, bad if for other critters, also add half a cup of green peppers each daily>small wooden arch and a few wooden blocks and circles and shit I guess for chewing onAll right>bedding made of kapok podsThe fuck is that>Are we supposed to cover their entire space with this stuffYes>The pen in the pic is about 5 square feet, Bad>>4927290>they can probably keep a couple guinea pigs alive.Very optimistic assumption>>4927321>their piss is going to soak right through that newspaper and it's going to ruin that rug100%
>>4927321the jew fears the indoor cuy farmer
>>4927290fpbp
>>4927288They are very low effort. I’ve raised mine in a diet of grass and carrots and he lived for 6 or 7 years.Grain food might be too energy dense for them, though.
>>4927914can't keep guinea piggers indoors, can't keep chickens indoors and can't even keep underground eelswhat's their fucking problem? I'm starting to like them less and less the more I learn about them...
>>4927907Got them a proper cage. This one was hopping and bouncing around last night, so I guess he approves. I've been feeding them just random vegetables; carrots, corn cobs, bell peppers, cucumbers, lettuce and stuff like that. Along with the hay and pellets.Do they need separate water bottles? There's only one attached to the cage atm. I haven't seen either of them drinking any, actually. Should I be worried about that?Also, I'll clean up the poop where and when I see it, but how often should the bedding itself be changed? Is it fine to leave it until it starts to smell?>>4928016Good to know. We haven't had any pets in years so I'm a bit nervous about it. We used to have a bird, and I don't think we took the best care of it. I want these guys to be happy
>>4928016>They are very low effortwat. they need a lot of attention. lots of parents get them as a kid's first pet without any idea what they're really in for>>4928461if it's two guinea pigs try to get one of those C&C cages, 2x4 at a bare minimum (like pic related, the loft is optional but useful if you want to make it their food zone or something). Note that C&C cage sizes are larger than feet. a 1x1 grid is slightly larger than a foot.they need space to run around. males typically need more in case they fight and need some time away from each other.you can make the cage base out of coroplast or buy them prebuilt/cut if you're not bothered enough for that sort of thing.great bedding with C&C cages is to get 2-3 inches of wood pellets (if buying stuff meant for bbqs, look for ones without accelerant as it's not good for the piggies) then put a fleece sheet/blanket on top. the pee goes right through the fleece to be soaked by the pellets, spot vacuum poo as you see it, and once a week or if the fleece gets too dirty or smelly, roll up the fleece and dump all the poo into a bin or whatever. they might try to dig and hide under the fleece, in which case you may want something to hold it down e.g. binder clips or whateverif you see any localised spots where the wood pellets are soaking up the pee, just spread it around. the pellets will swell and crumble as they absorb pee, this is normal, just spread it around. wood pellets are cheap and you can go months before having to replace all of the wood pellets/sawdust.>hamster wheeluseless. guinea pig spines aren't meant to bend that way. better off making tunnels or hidey holes for them to run betweenas for food, they will need unlimited hay, ideally timothy hay but other hays may work but look that up. they eat it, sleep, piss and shit in it, it keeps their digestive health in check, and also helps to wear their teeth down. chew toys they may or may not completely ignore.
>>4927288you should send some more pics of the 2 cute guinea pigs if you have any time to spare. have u named them yet?
>>4927288those guinea pigs are gonna die
>>4927907>>hay>Good if TimothyNo, this is Patrick.
>>4929605we all do in the end
>>4930036ye but might as well make them as comfy as possible
>>4927288Your pigs are invisible OP, we cannot help them.
Here's my setup. Intentionally keeping some open space so they don't feel crowded. I'd buy more toys for them but they don't seem interested in anything that doesn't involve food.
>>4931267>>4931269hmm...not bad, not bad. vacuum up poo as you see it, if it gets too annoying changing out the towels constantly due to pee, try the wood pellets and fleece blanket on top that i mentioned before >>4929296.lay a 2-3 inch thick layer, you can go months, sometimes even a year, before having to actually replace all the wood pellets and if they pee in just specific spots you just spread the pellets/dust around. it soaks it right up, but doesn't smell
I enjoy this thread, good on you anons for making sure the pigs are happy.
>>4929296>>4931267>>4931269I can't help but feel apprehensive about these types of cages. My pigs (RIP) routinely jumped up on the couch during their daily free-roaming.
>>4931796I want to let them free roam, outside ideally, but I can't at the moment. There's too many nooks and crannies in the house. The urine will get everywhere. I also don't have a backyard.
>>4931796you can always put a roof on it if you're worried about them jumping out. people have been using these types of cages for years now after they learnt that rabbit owners were using them. the main benefit is that the coroplast base together with wood pellets makes cleaning them so easy>>4931809we have a backyard but we used to just put a cage with hideys for them, they definitely do not like feeling exposed, and also will need shade from the sun and water.
>>4927288Do you have a Garden?If you have a Hutch and enclosed animal run, you could keep them outside for around 70% of an average year, and if you move it around onto fresh growth Grass can form a consistent and sustainable part of their diet..
>>4932123dunno if this is a good idea, guinea pigs are usually indoor pets, also they do need a fair bit of interaction so it's best to keep them near high traffic areas and not somewhere away from everyone. This also lets you keep an eye on them in case they get sick or something; being prey animals, they try to hide illnesses as much as they can lest they get left behind by the herd. They won't get left behind here but the point is that they'll instinctively try to hide signs of weakness when something's wrong.
>>4932123There's hawks and eagles where I live
>>4932597yeah definitely don't put them outside then lol. eagles and hawks are pretty smart too, they'd probably figure out a way to get through the cage even if it has a roof
