Teema
Junior Guinea Pig
Hi everyone,
I have no experience of herds of guinea pigs at all. I have always only kept two guinea pigs together.
Unfortunately our little old lady Penny recently lost her cage mate Thomas, it was a very difficult time for us all. I feel now is the right time to consider getting Penny a friend (I will only rescue/rehome, not looking to shop or from a breeder). We are on our local rescue’s waiting list but so far no match for Penny.
Penny is six years old and someone has very kindly reached out to us to offer one of her older sows from her herd of six - is this a recipe for disaster? I worry it could be too stressful for the newcomer to leave behind her herd and be uprooted? As I said looking for advice as I don’t know anything about herds but I just would not feel comfortable agreeing to this generous offer if I thought the sow would grieve for her herd, become upset or stressed leaving behind her family. I would feel really guilty taking her away from her herd - am I overthinking/worrying too much? Is it a risk that she could become depressed, would we be risking a completely failed bond?
Any advice would be appreciated. We just want to do the best for Penny but in the right way.
I have no experience of herds of guinea pigs at all. I have always only kept two guinea pigs together.
Unfortunately our little old lady Penny recently lost her cage mate Thomas, it was a very difficult time for us all. I feel now is the right time to consider getting Penny a friend (I will only rescue/rehome, not looking to shop or from a breeder). We are on our local rescue’s waiting list but so far no match for Penny.
Penny is six years old and someone has very kindly reached out to us to offer one of her older sows from her herd of six - is this a recipe for disaster? I worry it could be too stressful for the newcomer to leave behind her herd and be uprooted? As I said looking for advice as I don’t know anything about herds but I just would not feel comfortable agreeing to this generous offer if I thought the sow would grieve for her herd, become upset or stressed leaving behind her family. I would feel really guilty taking her away from her herd - am I overthinking/worrying too much? Is it a risk that she could become depressed, would we be risking a completely failed bond?
Any advice would be appreciated. We just want to do the best for Penny but in the right way.