# just got 3 guineas today



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

never kept guineas but loved them for a long tome
si i inherited 3 off a friend as she bought two girls 
and then one gave birth 3 weeks ago.
she took them to vets to be checked and they sexed then
i have taken the two girls she originally bought and a baby girl
and she has kept the baby boys.
ive got a box for em to bed down in in a indoor cage and a hutch i already had for summer n a run
we have named em lola amber n baby is annie.
tgey are gorge
i have got food n hay n water
n vitamin drops in water
just wondering about veg plus the little baby is only 4 weeks amber is annies mum...
can anyone give me some advice on general keep n veg etc
thanks


----------



## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

mushymouth said:


> never kept guineas but loved them for a long tome
> si i inherited 3 off a friend as she bought two girls
> and then one gave birth 3 weeks ago.
> she took them to vets to be checked and they sexed then
> ...


Well the baby should be alright at 4 weeks old. Although earlier you said she was born 3 weeks ago...

Veg wise they should have a reasonable amount of veg in their diet and a variety of veg. Carrots are good as they have the Vitamin C that guinea pigs need. Cucumber is a favourite. ROMAINE lettuce can be given but other types of lettuce can be dangerous when given to guinea pigs.

Gassy veg such as cabbage and broccoli can be given in smaller amounts. Fruits can be given in smaller amounts. You can get lists of suitable fruits and veg on the internet or in books. As long as they have a decent quality guinea pig pellet, varied fruit/veg, hay and water they shouldn't need any vitamin supplements in their water, they should be able to get it all from diet. Unless they have scurvy...

What do you mean by box? Like a cardboard box on it's side?

What advice do you want on general keep? I would suggest spending some time on the internet and get yourself some piggy books. Peter Guerney is pretty well up on piggy life, i have some of his books.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

I too have just taken on two guineas and have registered with a great forum
The Guinea Pig Forum - Powered by vBulletin
Piggies need lots of fresh raw veggies and fruit.
There is a section in the food bit where it gives info on safe veggies n fruits.
Dont feed cooked foods.

Make sure they have a good quality hay like Timothy hay.
And I feed science selective guinea pellets.
Don't feed them mixes with coloured bits,seeds or nuts.
Wagg and other cheapo guinea foods lack nutrition.


----------



## fluffybunny2001 (Feb 8, 2008)

I also have 3 guineas,can i ask how big you cage is as for 3 guineas it needs to be very big!!
You don`t need the vitimin drops,so long as they are fed the correct guinea pig food,i use pets at home pellets and they get plenty of fresh hay and vegetables.
Mine are very fussy with veg,ive tried everything but they only seem to eat broccoli,carrots and a bit of kale.
Guineas can`t produce vitamin c so they must have food with it in.
erm they can`t have potatoes.
Mine love grass but they can eat too much and get very chubby,so in the summer i alternate between their run on the grass and on the patio.
Keep an eye on thier nails,mine grow very quickly


----------



## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

blade100 said:


> I too have just taken on two guineas and have registered with a great forum
> The Guinea Pig Forum - Powered by vBulletin
> Piggies need lots of fresh raw veggies and fruit.
> There is a section in the food bit where it gives info on safe veggies n fruits.
> ...


Wagg pellet isn't too bad. The muesli is rubbish but then in my opinion most muesli's are.

Mine are on excell pellet, occassionally i mix it with the excell with blackcurrant and oregano but they seem to prefer the plain 1 anyway.


----------



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

i bought burgess pellets 
n yes a cardboard box on its side whic is only temporary..
i think it was 3 weeks ago which will make annie 3 weeks she seems ok as she is still with her mummy.. whos amber...
my friend had them to the vets and has gone by the vets advice
i got the vit drops till i go to supermarket to get veg as i have none in right now..
its a very large indoor cage then i have a large outdoor n a massive run for summer which just needs shelter adding to it
just wondered if annie is ok to have veg at 3weeks old didnt want to put it in if was gonna make her poorly..
ok so vit c veggies... yeah ive ordered a book today...


----------



## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

A cardboard box would be alright as a temporary measure but they will probably chew through it or soil it pretty quickly. I would suggest the log/stick bridges or a pigloo for an indoor run. You can get plenty of different designs. It just depends what appeals.

Burgess excell is good that's what i've got mine on.

The mini-pig will be fine with veggies. They are born well-developed so most start nibbling at food a few days at the latest after birth.


----------



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

i thought so
the box is only for next couple of days till hubby off so i have the car n can go to pah n get some better stuff for in their cage...
they are cute especially annie
a little nervous at mo which is understandable but seem to be popping in n out for food etc so thats a good sign


----------



## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

Give them a little while to settle and start trying to handle them. The more you handle them the quicker they will calm down and start to bond with you. Skit (named because he was so skittish), before he came to the rescue I adopted him from, the previous owner had bought him and decided that they didn't like him so he was left in a hutch unhandled for 2 years. I fostered him for a while and he was still skatty then but now he's mine (sort of) and he'll quite happily sit on my shoulder and watch TV now.


----------



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

they go a little crazy when we go near cage so havent been pestering them 
they lovely little things like
lola seems a bit more outgoing 
they squeak alot what does this mean
and annie the babby sounds like she is trying to squeak but its not quite a squeak lol


----------



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

fluffybunny2001 what do u keep ur guineas in just out of intrest as im surr this cage wont be permanent lol


----------



## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

I no it sounds like a stupid question but try and describe the squeek? They make lots of different sounds that mean different things. It could be partly fear as they are in a new strange place. If it's that then as they settle they should squeek less. They could be hungry, mine squeek the house down at breakfast time. They could just be getting to know each other.


----------



## fluffybunny2001 (Feb 8, 2008)

mushymouth said:


> fluffybunny2001 what do u keep ur guineas in just out of intrest as im surr this cage wont be permanent lol


Mine are in 5 and a bit foot indoor cage.
I wouldnt put 3 guineas in anything smaller than that.
They get the run of my room in the winter and have a 6 foot run in the summer


----------



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

its not a squeak it like a little ugh ugh ugh sort of sound lol
and they sqeak the normal squeak.
theyve been together for last 8weeks n 3 weeks with baby one
its like a little chatter noise lol
dont think ive described that very well lol


----------



## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

Haha ugh ugh ugh makes them sound well...naughty little piggies.

They should be OK. Girls tend to stay together pretty well so they're probably just settling.


----------



## happysaz133 (Jun 5, 2008)

I would say 5ft as well for 3 piggies


----------



## Louiseandfriends (Aug 21, 2011)

Sounds nice! 

They generally don't like the taste of vitamin drops in their water. They can get vitamins *(particularly vitamin C they need) * from their veggies. 
Hay is good, they need a lot fibre in their diet!
Make sure they have good pellets such as Burgess Excel or Science Selective.


----------



## Louiseandfriends (Aug 21, 2011)

mushymouth said:


> they squeak alot what does this mean
> and annie the babby sounds like she is trying to squeak but its not quite a squeak lol


They love to chat to each other!  It's perfectly normal. When they get to know you, you can sit them on your lap and they may talk to you. However, if they squeak really high and loud when you pick them up that means you might be hurting or bothering them. Mine also make loud high pitched noises when they are hungry. O.O


----------



## Acid (Aug 8, 2011)

they should always have access to hay, they love love love soft things such as large teddies to hide and snuggle against weird as it sounds (the ones safe with no fiddly bits like bows for human infants and toddlers), little fluffy guinea 'armchairs', low hanging fluffy guinea pig hammocks and beds, they should have multiple hides such as igoos and boxes in the cage for them to hide in and take a break from each other

a c&c cage would be ideal for indoors or a large double hutch and run outside with a 'safety rail' added on the side of the ladder so they cant fall off, the ladder shouldnt be slick either so itd need wooden runs to help it climb up and down and be lined with something such as polar fleece so they dont injure their feet

bad noises and actions to look out for:

high pitched loud wheeks/squeeks as mentioned above means panic - calling out for the rest of the herd if they cant see them, pain or bothering them (frightened), you can easily tell them apart from normal wheeks as theyre more like panicked squeals

low chattering of teeth - looks like theyre chewing something in their mouth/grindy noise, means theyre annoyed/angry/upset, happens when guinea is out and being handled too long (if it doesnt like fuss), two boars establishing whos boss, first time meeting for two guineas, sometimes they will open their mouth like theyre yawning and it means back off (like dogs showing their teeth)

short durr/purr sound - body vibrates sometimes, tense pig, means they are afraid or nervous, longer lower pitched purrs along with a relaxed posture (legs stretched out) is contentment

freeze - fear

raising their head when you pet them - annoyance, want you to stop

fidgeting - most likely need the toliet or fed up of being touched


----------



## kat04kt (Sep 11, 2011)

blade100 said:


> I too have just taken on two guineas and have registered with a great forum
> The Guinea Pig Forum - Powered by vBulletin
> Piggies need lots of fresh raw veggies and fruit.
> There is a section in the food bit where it gives info on safe veggies n fruits.
> ...


Hey blade - I have two guinea pigs, and I'm a mega member of theguineapigforum! I'm a volunteer for the piggy bank - if ever you hear reference to a 'piggy train'. Met some of the people there and when I was having issues with ringworm, my boys came to me with it - the rescues and everyone were so lovely! I took them to tillythepig - who helped me out and suzygpr was on the phone giving me sound advice. It's a really nice forum. I'm now squeakysmallpaws on there but used to be kat04kt - hope to see you 

Ok guinea advice:

4 weeks is still a little young so there are going to need monitoring. 
Have you weighed them?

- Burgess excel nuggets are the best dried food.

Alot of their dietary requirements is actually based on what they are used to and what their Mum ate. So for example a guinea pig that has been brought up on a variety of veg, will do better than say a rescue piggie who's a couple of years old and not had them much.

It's a myth about the iceberg lettuce making them very ill - basically it's very watery and so fed in large amounts can give them diarhoea - but also it has little nutritional value, so it doesn't do a lot of good for them. Romaine is high vitamin C, less watery and has nutritional value so it's a much better choice. Mine have had iceberg lettuce and didn't drop down dead or show any ill effects at all, however, I do steer clear of it.

Cucumber is the similar - very little nutritional value - however, guinea pigs don't always drink a lot of water, mine literally never touch their water bottle. But I give them cucumber which is watery and this helps rehydrate them. If your guinea pigs do drink a lot of water it makes sense to cut down on the watery veg. Again mine are very used to cucumber.

With broccoli and cauliflower - the danger is it can make them bloat, which kills guinea pigs, however both mine have it and are absolutely fine, because they've had it since small. I give them it about three times a week, basically just before I clean them out as it gets everywhere! lol.

Mine love sweet peppers, particularly the red ones. Rich in vitamin C they are a great addition to the food bowl.

As they are still so small and young you should only be feeding a small amount of veg while introducing new foods in small quanitities. Better to feed them at regular intervals then to give them a bowl of veg, this is good for taming too, as they grow used to you being this awesome person who comes to the cage with veg. By two months old they should be at the point where you can leave a bowl of veg and they'll be fine.

Guinea pigs should have a cup of veg per day, again mine are used to more then that. They have a small bowl each, twice per day, breakfast and dinner. Sometimes with snacks inbetween.

Another thing to take into account, my piggies have a constant supply of hay and a very good quality hay - this provides the roughage they need. They eat this constantly throughout the day - the balance should always be 80% hay, 10% pellets, 10% veg. So a guinea pig that's not getting enough hay and too much veg could get diarohea - fyi - small animals usually die very quickly when they get a stomach upset, which is why this is so important. 
You can tell the quality of the hay by looking at how green it is. Fresh hay should be given daily with a certain amount kept off the ground, so they aren't eating hay that's dirty from their poop and wee wee!

There are some foods that are poisonous, such as potatoes - so do refer to the link on theguineapigforum.

Really there is so much to post on the keeping of guinea pigs, that theguineapigforum really is the best place as you can have a good old nosy around at different things. They are some good books too, The collins family guide to guinea pigs is cheap and covers the basics and it's written by the piggie gure Peter Gurney, the guinea piglopaedia by margaret elward and training your pet guinea pig by Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville - is great for learning how to bond with your piggies and is very very uptodate with information on how to build a c&c cage.

If reading is a chore - there's a girl on youtube who is so dedicated to her piggies and she makes lovely video's with tonnes of advice from feeding to cleaning to building cages - she is Laura Piggiepigpigs - here's a link to one of her video's. Guinea Pig organisation! Please vote for me and Gus still, we need you!!! - YouTube

With love from my little Floyd - who's a bit damp from his bath


----------



## kat04kt (Sep 11, 2011)

p.s just a quick question, you said one of the girls that was bought was pregnant, have you checked the sex of them all properly? Just to be absolutely sure they are all girls?

P.p.s also just realised that if you kept the baby girl and it has it's Mum then it's absolutely fine that the baby is 4 weeks as it's still got it's Mum and boys would need to be seperated at 4 weeks anyway


----------



## mushymouth (Jan 9, 2011)

yes my friend had them all to the vets and were sexed by the vet.
and ive looked aswell they all look the same lol
she wasnt bought knowingly pregnant by the way
but they r doing well
annie wheeks alot when u pick her up but gues this is cos she is so young
the other two dont really make any noises except when u rustle a wrapper or bag lol


----------



## Guest (Jan 2, 2012)

kat04kt said:


> Hey blade - I have two guinea pigs, and I'm a mega member of theguineapigforum! I'm a volunteer for the piggy bank - if ever you hear reference to a 'piggy train'. Met some of the people there and when I was having issues with ringworm, my boys came to me with it - the rescues and everyone were so lovely! I took them to tillythepig - who helped me out and suzygpr was on the phone giving me sound advice. It's a really nice forum. I'm now squeakysmallpaws on there but used to be kat04kt - hope to see you
> 
> Ok guinea advice:
> 
> ...


I'm sorry but the bit I highlighted is not a myth.

Lactucarium is the milky fluid secreted by several species of lettuce (mostly found in iceburg lettuce), especially Lactuca virosa, usually from the base of the stems. Lactucarium is known as lettuce opium because of its sedative and analgesic properties. It has been reported to promote a mild sensation of euphoria, but Lactuca virosa is poisonous, and at least one fatality has occurred during an attempt to use it for intoxication. Because it is a latex, Lactucarium physically resembles opium, in that it is excreted as a white fluid and can be reduced to a thick smokable solid.
So while it appears to do no real damage when fed occasionally, if it is fed over a prolonged period of time it can and does make some piggies very poorly.


----------

