Can I bring these girls home?

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FluffyPuppy220

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I am planning on bringing home two baby Abyssinian girls that 4 weeks old. I found them on some random website. How do I know if they are healthy and are getting proper care? Because I don’t want to bring home unhealthy piggies. Also is 31 square foot cage too big?
 
There’s no way of knowing how healthy they are until you get them. Personally I think 4 weeks old is too young to be rehomed and think 5-6 weeks would be a preferable age as by that time, their immune system would be stronger.
 
I also need to mention The person I was talking to said she lives on a farm. There are no health concerns as far as she knows. I asked her what diet are they on and she just said Kalmbach. Which as far as I know is not the best brand of pellets. She also keeps them in a pet store cage since they are babies. She then recommended C&C cages( which is what I’m doing anyway). I asked her if she gives them hay and if she has ever raised a litter of Guinea pigs, and they have not responded.
 
Welcome to the forum

If you bring home piggies from anywhere other then a reputable rescue centre, then there is always a risk of illnesses etc.
We would advise, if you get them, that you have a vet check done.

4 weeks is rather young to be rehomed but they are at weaning age.

Two sows need 10 square feet of cage space.

I’ve just looked up kalmbach and no it isn’t an ideal food at all.
Their diet needs to be primarily hay So if you get these piggies you would need to get them into the correct and suitable diet.
 
The person said they have already weaned them off. But I would not get them for another couple of weeks. If I do decide to get them I will give them different varieties of Oxbow hay. Mainly Timothy hay. I will also be feeding them Oxbow Young Guinea pig pellets. Of course with veggies and fruits.
 
FluffyPuppy220 said:
The person said they have already weaned them off. But I would not get them for another couple of weeks. If I do decide to get them I will give them different varieties of Oxbow hay. Mainly Timothy hay. I will also be feeding them Oxbow Young Guinea pig pellets. Of course with veggies and fruits.
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Yes as I said they are of weaning age.
It also good that you wouldn’t get them for another couple of weeks.

They don’t need young guinea pig pellets. They can have a normal adult pellet. Young piggy pellets contain alfalfa which is not needed or recommended to be in the diet beyond weaning age.
You should put them onto normal oxbow adult pellets but you should ideally do it slowly. I’d you would have to buy the kalmbach they are currently on and the oxbow adult and slowly mix the two types in changing ratios over a couple of weeks.
Ie 95% Kalmbach, 5% oxbow adult for a few says
Then 90% Kalmbach, 10% oxbow for another few days etc etc until you are at 100% oxbow.
This could mean you don’t finish the bag of kalmbach.
Remembering that piggies should only have one tablespoon of pellets per pig per day.

Regarding fruit, fruit should not be in the diet except for anything other than a very occasional treat and given no kore than one small amount and no more than once a week . Fruit is too sugary.
 
FluffyPuppy220 said:
Yes I know about the fruit, would not give it to them every day. But thank you for the help. If you were me would you get these girls?View attachment 252431View attachment 252432
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It’s something only you can decide!
Make sure you sex them yourself before bringing them home.
Also double check that any boys in the litter were separated appropriately (when they were 21 days old).

They are very pretty!
 
The person said that she did separate them not sure how old they were when she did this. Though the person had kinda ghosted me after I asked if this is her first time raising babies and if she gives them hay.
 
FluffyPuppy220 said:
The person said that she did separate them not sure how old they were when she did this. Though the person had kinda ghosted me after I asked if this is her first time raising babies and if she gives them hay.
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Have you seen the piggies in person?
To be honest, if this is a backyard breeder then it can be best avoided but the decision has to be yours. You just have to be prepared to go in with yours eyes open and prepared for health issues.
If they are only 4 weeks old now and the boys have definitely already been separated then with any luck a pregnancy isn’t a risk (sows have their first season at 4-6 weeks of age).
 
Are there any reputable rescues near you? That way you might be able to avoid costly vet issues and unwanted pregnancies, and support a piggy charity in the process.
To be perfectly honest, it sounds like the person you're planning to get your piggies from doesn't have the guinea pigs' best interests at heart.
I'm glad you're doing your research here beforehand though :)
 
ScrufflesRules said:
Are there any reputable rescues near you? That way you might be able to avoid costly vet issues and unwanted pregnancies, and support a piggy charity in the process.
To be perfectly honest, it sounds like the person you're planning to get your piggies from doesn't have the guinea pigs' best interests at heart.
I'm glad you're doing your research here beforehand though :)
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Yes, sounds like a breeder to me 🤑🤑🤑but at the end of the day all piggies deserve a forever home. Ask lots of questions, if they won’t answer, sadly then I would walk away
 
Yeah I’m gonna keep my eyes out for other piggies. If the person replies I will think about it. Just those two girls are so cute, but there are so many other Guinea pigs out there.
 
They are adorable piggies! but I would say if you go for them make sure you have savings for potentially hefty vet bills... I fell in love with my piggies online and I'm pretty sure now that the seller was a backyard breeder. They came with several health issues (not disclosed before sale) which were not cheap to sort out! But they were 100% worth it 🥰 I'm sure whichever piggies you choose you'll love them and give them an amazing home!
 
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