Wannabe Owner With A Few Questions!

[dogmadude]

Hello.
We are looking at getting some guinea pigs to join our family, our 12 year old is very excited! I have tried to read up as much as possible but seem to keep thinking of more things I need to know so I am very glad I found this forum.
Firstly does anyone know of any rehoming centres local to Leicester? I have googled some but none have very informative websites unfortunately. We are looking at getting 2 females, hopefully quite young as we would like them to join our family for the long term. from what I have been told females are less likely to have problems getting along.
Secondly would a hutch like this be ok for outside?
we already have an indoor cage for winter when we will bring them in as we have been told they shoud not be outside in winter.

Thanks in advance for your help, I am sure I will have lots more questions in the lead up to getting our piggies!

 

[Julesie]

Hello.

It's fantastic you are looking into rescuing piggies and after information. Sadly a lot of people just buy them on the spot without thought.

I can't help with regards to rescues near you but there is a rescue locator at the top that may help.

Two females do get on easier than two boars but boars can be extremely close too. I have had boars my whole piggie owning life until recently when I got a single female to go with my neutered boars. Out of all the pairs only one had a large fight and fell out. If you get them older they are guaranteed to be friends for life as they are passed the puberty stage which can cause two to fall out if the submissive then wants to take the dominant role. As you want young piggies and would prefer them not to fall out I would certainly recommend girlies - though boys have to be my favourite

The hutch I'm afraid I can't help with as I've never had a guinea pig outside so hopefully someone else can help you better there.

Guinea pigs can be outside during winter, but they would need a lot more help with getting through the cold climate from what I have heard from other members. Having them inside I find is a lot more fun as they get closer to you and its fun to watch them indoors.

If you have any more questions I'll try to help the best I can.

 

[katie-elizabeth]

Honneybunnies Leicester Rabbit and Guinea Pig Rescue
Narborough
Leicester, Leicestershire LE19
0116 2869887

This is one of the forum's recommended rescues

Like Julesie, I can't be much help with hutches as mine are indoors piggies, but the hutch you've shown looks nice and roomy for them, as the minimum size for two guinea pigs is 120cm x 60cm with additional run time.

Looking forward to hearing more about your new additions!

 

[Wiebke]

Hi! Honeybunnies are by far the best place for you to get guinea pigs from; they don't post pictures on their website. They run to a high standard and are very experienced (mandatory quarantine, pregnancy watch and bonding of character compatible piggies); you will be in very safe hands and won't have to worry about any problems down the line. For this reason, you can look at any combination of piggies (sows or neutered boar/sow pairing) that you and keep an open mind. Honeybunnies will also not pair you up with piggies that are unsuitable for newbie owners and that will take a long time to tame and bring round because they are not used to humans (as shop or breeder piggies often are). Keep in mind that the greatest personalities are often not the prettiest, so meeting piggies in pigson and handling them at the rescue is worth considering. Honeybunnies have a boar neutering policy. Cross gender pairings are the most stable once initial acceptance has happened.
http://honeybunniesleicesterrabbitandguineapigrescue.webs.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/HONEYBUNNIES-RABBIT-GUINEA-PIG-RESCUE/167230579241
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/boars-sows-or-mixed-pairs-babies-or-adults.108944/

With members from all over the world, we find it very helpful if you added your county/general area to your details, so we can always give you the appropriate advice and recommendations straight away. Click on your username on the top bar, then go to personal details and scroll down to location. Thanks!

You can either ask Honeybunnies what vet they are using as they are local to you (their vets are bound to have plenty of experience since the rescue has been going for a good number of years) or look up our piggy savvy locator on the top bar.