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AuntieKLE · #11 (**permalink**) 07-02-2002, 06:45 PM

Hello!

I grew up with several guinea pigs. We got our first one when we moved Australia. My Mom then decided that we needed more as it was hard for three kids to share one. So we each had one. They were all females. My Dad built a cage for them outside. They lived in boxes in the winter time. After 2 years my Dad's time was up and we had to move back to the States. We had to find a new home for our guinea pigs. That was the hardest part of leaving Australia!

So when we moved back to the States, we acquired more guinea pigs. This time 2 females and 1 male. We kept them in cardboard boxes, with each having their own box. (We would replace the box after 2 weeks.) After not having them together, we found that one of the females had given birth! (My Mom thinks that the male was jumping from box to box and then back into his own!) As My Mom and I were putting that mama and babies back into their box I discovered that my guinea pig was giving birth! Wow! What a surprise! Each mama had two babies in their first litters.

We used to take the guinea pigs outside to eat grass and run around the yard. It was even more fun when the babies came along! We would hold up one baby to a mama and she would follow us, then her baby and the other mama and babies too! We could even put that baby down and they would join the train!

Our guinea pigs were well traveled as we moved around the country quite a bit with my Dad being in the Air Force. Our guinea pigs lived to be about seven years old.

I now have two kids of my own. My dd is almost 9. My Mom said that a good first pet is a guinea pig so she bought one as my dd's early b-day present. Her name is Mandy and she was about 5 weeks old when we got her. We've had her about a month now. Hopefully, my dd will learn responsibility! She enjoys holding, feeding, and playing with her new "baby"!

I bought a neat folding playpen. It has eight pieces connected together. We use it outside and inside. When we use it inside, we put it over a mat that is used to soak up water on cribs and toddler beds. This way if Mandy doesn't get a chance to exercise outside she can still do it inside with less mess for me! The mat can then be tossed into the washer to clean.

k2mgkat · #12 (**permalink**) 04-25-2003, 05:24 AM

Hi all,
I have a guinea pig, too. The kids got it from Santa one and a half years ago. I grew up with a gerbil. The kids said that the pig looked like a Furby -- so that's what they named her. (kids are 6 & 8)
Question for those who have had guineas for a long time:
Do they ever get stuff caught in the hairs by their tail end? Ours is a long hair guinea and it always gets these balls of hair -- I usually, carefully cut them out. What is this from and what can be done to stop it?
Thanks,
Kat

nagymom · #13 (**permalink**) 05-04-2003, 04:12 AM

I just had to respond. We don't now but did have 2--boys named Donald and Anthony. (youngest dd named them

) Anthony used to.....climb on Donald who would then become quite irritable.

They were so cute. When we moved from Colorado to Alabama (military) we put them in the family room right next to the kitchen. The fridge was just a few feet away and they got to where they would squeak every time the fridge was opened becasue they knew this was where their veggie treats came from. Guniea pigs are SMART!

Dd had a friend at the time who had about 6 pigs and he kept his outside, even in that oppressive Alabama heat and they lived fine. I always felt bad for them though.

Jayne

**mom2-4** · #14 (**permalink**) 08-02-2004, 06:33 AM

I have Guinea pigs! I love the little guys.

We got our in March of this year. We went to the pet store and picked one out, a baby. We brought her home and put her in the cage she looked lonely, so we went back to the store to get the other Guinea pig, that was the same size as the first one we brought home.

When we got back to the store the owner was there and questionted us as to if we were in earlier and bought the other guinea pig that was the same size as the one in the pen? We told her yes, and explained that it looked lonely, and we wanted the other one. She said that they should not be taken from their mom yet. So, she sold us the mom and gave us the other baby for free, the babies were still nursing from their mom. So, we had three guinea pigs.

In May the momma pig gave birth to four babies

after some careful research the momma pig must have been pregnant when we bought her.

The day she gave birth to the babies, I had put her in a pen by herself. Than to try to avoid more babies I put the first sister in with the momma and the babies. And left the boy by himself.

One of DD's friends wanted two of the piggies, so she took the momma, and one of momma's new babies. I was just informed that Momma once again gave birth to four babies. How is this pig reproducing like this?

But, anyway we now have five piggies here at our home. They are:

Boy: Big boy or big brother
Body: Whitey
Girl: Big Girl or Big sister
Girl: Cracker
Girl: Patchie

I would like another pen to separate the boys, from each other or get them a bigger pen. The girls have a nice pen for them it has three levels.

Yes, guinea pigs are very smart, they know that DD#2 and myself are the ones that feed them, if they see us and are hungry they will squeak, but not if they see anyone else. And when youngest DD goes to their cage they run to the back.