Pet corner

[PeppaPiggies]

I’m considering getting a couple guinea pigs Ponce this all blows over, but unfortunately, there are no rescues near me. Because of this I would probably have to buy them from a pet store. I was wondering which one is better to get guinea pigs from, Pets at Home, or Pets corner? Also, how much are guinea pigs from Pets Corner? I know Pets at Home do them for £25 each but I wasn’t sure about Pets Corner. Thanks

 

[Piggies&buns]

Which shop you get them from is not entirely relevant in the fact that it is the character compatibility of the piggies which counts. The fact is, you will need to double check the sexes yourself and be prepared for a plan b down the line if they end up not being compatible regardless of where you get them from.
What I will say though is that my personal experience of those two shops is that pets corner tend to be more knowledgeable, or at the least the staff in the one near me are.
Can’t tell you what prices they are though

 

[Siikibam]

I think the ones at pets corner are £40-£50 for a pair. Whereabouts are you located? Piggies are okay to travel by train so don't discount rescues that are far way. One of our members travelled from up north all the way to Wales for some of her piggies.

 

[KHBz]

Our two sows came from PetsCorner in September. I think they were £52 (or thereabouts). They make a point of telling you that they make no profit from the sale of the guinea pigs as they use ‘ethical breeders’, with their higher prices. I don’t know, however, what constitutes an ethical breeder. (Nor did I know I should have gone to a Rescue.) PetsCorner won’t sell you the piggies until they have seen photos of your set-up. I don’t know if that’s the case in any pet shop. They seemed good, responsible and knowledgeable to me.

 

[Wiebke]

I’m considering getting a couple guinea pigs Ponce this all blows over, but unfortunately, there are no rescues near me. Because of this I would probably have to buy them from a pet store. I was wondering which one is better to get guinea pigs from, Pets at Home, or Pets corner? Also, how much are guinea pigs from Pets Corner? I know Pets at Home do them for £25 each but I wasn’t sure about Pets Corner. Thanks

I haven't got any experience with Pets Corner as there is no shop near me, so I can't help you on that score.

What I would recommend is to take the time to observe the piggies and see whether you can find a couple that are hanging out together a lot; this means that your chances for a happy bond are going up a lot. The key for any successful piggy bond is mutual liking and character compatibility long before any other consideration like looks, gender, age etc...

Here is our advice for any pet shop buyers re. the most common pitfalls with pet shop piggies as well as your customer rights.
New guinea pigs: Sexing, vet checks&customer rights, URI, ringworm and parasites

Personally I'd still travel for up to 2 hours each way after I ended up with surprise babies at the most inconvenient of times with my first shop bought lot. I will travel even further on the train to adopt a special piggy once a year. The extra effort is worth the total peace of mind re. sexing, health, character compatibility and no risk of coming home with a pregnant sow.
Here is a list of carefully vetted good welfare standard rescues. Please note that we cannot vouch for any others. Anybody in the English speaking world can call themselves as rescue or a breeder without licensing and supervision, and the results can be accordingly.
Rescue Locator
Travelling with guinea pigs

 

[Merab]

In my experience Pets Corner is better.
The store I know kept the animals away from pestering people and were much stricter about who they were selling to.
The breeder that store used seemed to be very reputable and careful about the care of the piggies.
The staff also knew what they were talking about.
If there is no rescue nearby they are the better option in my personal opinion

 

[KHBz]

Another thing about PetsCorner is that they stay in the shop for at least a week until you are allowed take them home (so that they could check they were healthy etc). We were then given a checklist of the vegetables that our particular piggies did and did not like as there was a member of staff who had hand-fed them the various foods over that week.