weighing

[LilyandNugget]

Hi i just started weighing my guinea pigs just yesterday. Lily was 266.8g and Nugget is 299.4g. Lily and Nugget are abt 5 mths old. Is this a good weight for them? I felt rlly bad having to chase them all around the cage just to weigh them. They really hate being picked and they were squealing and kicking. Is there an easier way to getting them weighed? If so pls do reply. Thx

 

[Piggies&buns]

Are you sure about those weights?
If you mean 266 grams and 299 grams at five months old., then that is very low for that age.

This guide below can help you with picking them up - herd them into a carrier rather than chasing them around and trying to pick them up by hand
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pigs Safely

 

[Wiebke]

Hi

Are you sure of the age or weights? These are more like the average weights of 5 weeks old guinea pigs than 5 months old ones.
More important than the absolute weight is that they are a good weight/size ratio and that you feed a healthy hay/grass based diet with a modicum of mostly green veg and very little pellets (encourages eating more high fibre hay, which the teeth and digestive system are laid out for and which is crucial for a healthier and longer life). Don't be tempted to stuff your piggies with empty calories; they are still young enough with about a year to go until they reach adulthood to realise their own genetically determined optimal size and health weight on a normal but good diet that concentrates on long term quality.

Here is our weighing guide, which answers all questions on how to feel for the heft (i.e. judge whether your piggies are healthy in themselves, whatever the weight or size), what to look for in your weekly-weigh in and when you need to see a vet/step in with support feeding until and during treatment; how weight changes during a life time and all questions about over- and underweight, enrichment, healthy and unhealthy foods and treats: Weight - Monitoring and Management

Here is our comprehensive diet guide, which looks at diet as a whole and at each food group in practical detail: Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
A good diet can in my own experience add 1-2 years to a normal healthy life span and take your piggies from the lower end to the upper half or even beyond.

You may also be interested in learning about prey animal instincts, how to work around them (like during pick up) and how you can use whispering techniques to reassure your piggies but also make them comply better in their own language instead of waiting until they have figured out humans.
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering and Cuddling Tips
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pigs Safely
Arrival in a home from the perspective of pet shop guinea pigs

Here is the link to our comprehensive practical and helpful new owners information resource, which you may want to bookmark, browse, read and re-read at need: Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides
All the links with the practical little tips and details that we cannot repeat in every post in this thread are also included in our how-to guides collection.

 

[WobblyPiggy]

I'm unsure about the weight itself but I used to use a t-shirt to put over them so they feel a bit more secure...or if you have time I trained one of my piggies who didn't like being picked up to hop into a box...we used to cover it with a small towel so it was dark then slowly we uncovered a little bit while picking him up until eventually he didn't need the towel over it...the box acted as a lift and a compromise for him coming out without being chased around...eventually once he was used to that we transfered him over from the box to our hands before he went onto the floor...but it depends on what is comfortable for you...piggies like shelter so a safe area where you can get a good grip until they're used to you would be good...also bribing after the fact of being picked up with treats is good too...positive reinforcement will help them trust you a bit more...ultimately it just takes time for them to fully trust but some piggies never like the act of being picked up but like the after of treats and floor time so the tolerate it...

 

[weepweeps]

Hello. I catch my boys one at a time in one of these to weigh them. And then subtract the weight of the pigloo off of it. Hope that makes sense. Also just for a guide Percy was 790g and Pepper was 1030g at 20 weeks.

 

[LilyandNugget]

Sry I’m not sure abt they’re age but I think they’re younger than 5 mths because I can’t feel their bones and I can’t see them. They r eating the right amount of veggies.

 

[Grand Guinea Pigs]

At 21 weeks my two Abyssinian boys were 663g & 792g.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Sry I’m not sure abt they’re age but I think they’re younger than 5 mths because I can’t feel their bones and I can’t see them. They r eating the right amount of veggies.

I'm not quite sure what you are saying here.
You should check their heft by feeling for their ribs. You should be able to feel their ribs with a small layer of fat over them, no matter what age they are.

I see from your previous posts that you’ve had them for about 8 weeks (you said on 26 November that you had them for about two weeks at that point), so they are obviously older than 8 weeks and possibly more like 12 weeks (?) (if you got them as young babies) and you don’t think they are as old as 5 months but the weights you report are still low for piggies of potentially about 12 weeks old (3 months old).

Its hay/grass they need to be eating most of as that is the most important part of their diet.

 

[LilyandNugget]

I'm not quite sure what you are saying here.
You should check their heft by feeling for their ribs. You should be able to feel their ribs with a small layer of fat over them, no matter what age they are.

I see from your previous posts that you’ve had them for about 8 weeks (you said on 26 November that you had them for about two weeks at that point), so they are obviously older than 8 weeks and possibly more like 12 weeks (?) (if you got them as young babies) and you don’t think they are as old as 5 months but the weights you report are still low for piggies of potentially about 12 weeks old (3 months old).

Its hay/grass they need to be eating most of as that is the most important part of their diet.

Ok thank you so much for the advice... I’m going to check my guinea pigs soon and confirm their age. Hopefully their weight is normal