how much do they cost?

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aimeeleanne

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i’ve found a few breeders, but they’re all over an hour away! we have two pets at home stores just 10-20 minutes away so we’re considering that instead. does anybody know how much the piggies cost from there?
 
Are there any rescues near you? We always recommend adopting over buying. If your not sure there is a rescue locator at the top of the page or if you let us know where you are someone should be able to help.
 
A pair of pigs from pets at home cost about £30 for the pair I think. Don't buy new though. See if there are any in the adoption part. Must get a pair though and don't split a pair up. 👍. ( make dam sure they are the same sex)

Nothing beats going to a proper rescue though. With this you should have minimal risks with health issues and so on
 
I don't mean to scare you but I bought a pair of piggy girlies from P@H over 3 years ago and 35 days later I had 5 piggies as Velvet turned out to be "with guinea piglets" from a mix up at the breeders. I still have 5 piggies in 2 herds Christian, Velvet and Meg in the bottom of the hutch and Betsy and Dennis in the top.
 
It's always worth travelling that extra distance to a rescue, because you know the piggies are going to be well bonded, health-checked, and most definitely not pregnant! If sows, they will have had the 10 week pregnancy watch.

If you can't, then I would be very cautious about getting from P@H. I was told by one of their employees that they only sexed them and split them up when they came in store! No wonder so many people end up finding out their sows pregnant! I've also gone there and seen guinea pigs with bald patches, and one poor fellow had lots of poo stuck to his stomach and had to be taken to the groomers to have it cut out!

If your only choice is to get shop-bought piggies (every piggy needs a home at the end of the day), then I would visit the places multiple times, check out the conditions, see whether they have things like frozen water bottles in this hot weather, plenty of hidies, food, hay, and enrichment, and a large cage, and look for somewhere that will only let guinea pigs go as a pair. P@H only recommends they should be in pairs, but they seem quite happy to let a guinea pig be left on its own after all its cagemates have been sold.
 
Personally I would be a bit concerned if piggies are the right pet for your circumstances if you are already worried about the cost, piggies are relatively cheap to purchase but may cost about £50 to £100 per month in hay, pellets, bedding, entertainment and vegetables, plus an average vet bill for a minor illness and treatment can be £100 to £200. This is just for routine things that might crop up 3 or 4 times a year even in a healthy piggy, such as getting hay in their eye, or a urinary infection, or a bloaty tummy. They might live for 8 or 10 years and cost you £200 or £300 per month if you are unlucky and get one with a recurring health issue. Which does happen, especially with breeder or pet shop piggies.
Just want to make sure you are aware that piggies are not a cheap or easy to keep pet!
 
To second the comment about costs: health problems can come up all the time. One pig cost me about £2000 (possibly more) through his life - he lived until age four, the problems didn’t happen until he was about 2. Once you have a pet, vet care is an absolute must. My pig had ongoing respiratory problems then liver disease, all these things entailed lots of medication, xrays, blood tests, sending off poo samples.
Then another pig of mine is also costing into the hundreds at the moment because of dental treatment.
If cost is an issue, I would 100% advise against getting a guinea pig because, contrary to popular belief, they are an extremely expensive pet and must be taken to the vet at the smallest sign of illness. Pigs go downhill very fast and if there’s a sign that something isn’t quite right, chances are they will need medication of some sort!
Exotic vets are really hard to come by too!
 
Yes, they can be very costly if they get sick, our boys chronic dental problems cost us around £300 plus every other month with vet bills, travel costs and overnight stay, but they are worth it!
 
My Velvet over the last few months has cost me over £400 for the last few months with hay poke, uti, bladder stones, x-ray, bladder sludge, antibiotics, cystease, Pro-C, Syringes...... Guinea pigs are not cheap to keep!
 
My boy Finn was $40 in USD so around 33 pounds from PetSmart in the US. He is currently worth a million pounds because that’s is how much I feel he is worth to me.

My Lara was given to me by a friend who didn’t want her, so I don’t know how old she is or how much they paid for her. Lara is a good neighbor for Finn and a good nose rubber, :xd:. Finn and Lara live in separate cages for obvious reason, but they definitely keep each other company.
 
Guinea pigs can be obtained pretty inexpensively from rescues, breeders, and pet stores. The cost with guinea pigs isn't really the guinea pig themselves, but the ongoing maintenance/supplies for the guinea pigs over time. You can cut costs by making your own C&C cage, using washable fleece bedding rather than disposable bedding, and so forth, but you still need food, hay, fresh produce, and any medical bills that might come up. I have two guinea pigs and two hamsters and I know I pay more in monthly pet maintenance (largely paper bedding, which is admittedly a choice I've made rather than submit my very old washing machine to even more laundry that the five humans in the family already make!) than my friend with two cats.
 
i’m sorry but i’m most certainly not worried about the cost. it was just a general question :/
 
That’s good to know! General questions are fine, but as you’re about to be a new owner, we like to help as much as we can! Guinea pigs are generally seen as cheap, easy pets when that’s far from the case. Hopefully we can see some pigtures once you get them :)
 
I got my guinea pigs from the rehoming bit at pets at home, as no private rescues anywhere near me had any pigs (what are the odds?!) The woman at the store who helped me double checked their sex (and complimented them on their testicle size 😂) so as long as you get the savviest employee in your pets at home store then you should be fine. Also, the ones in the rehoming bit have usually had a medical complaint or are a bit older (mine had had conjunctivitis) so the vets will have had a good look at them too.

The ones from the rehoming bit take a donation (they recommend about £10 each, but I paid more because the money goes to animal charities so I kind of thought, eh, what the hell 🤷🏻‍♀️)
 
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