Wheekly Guinea Pig Help...Getting the Right Cage Size for the Right Amount of Cavies

We guinea pigs are herd animals, meaning that we like to always be with at least one other guinea pig. One thing that many guinea pig owners do not realize is how big their cage needs to be in order for us to lead a happy life. You may notice the cage that Bandit used to live in on our island. That is the size of a store bought cage. Store bought cages are only large enough for one guinea pig to live in. And as we told you at the top of the paragraph, we pigs like to be with friends. So, here's a guide for housing two or more of us cavies.

# of Cavies--Minimum--Preferred

Two---------7.5 sq. ft.--10 sq. ft.

Three--------10.5 sq. ft.-13 sq. ft.

Four---------13 sq. ft.---more is better

With more than five of us, you'll have to get a very large cage. For any number of guinea pigs, we recommend Guinea Pig Cages Store as a good site for buying cages. They also have a number of accessories. I personally know the importance of having a nice, large cage (or island in our case); I used to run around the island, popcorning (jumping) and having fun. Please make sure your guinea pig gets the chance to do that.

~Celery

Wheekly Guinea Pig Help...Giving Your Piggie a Fur Trim

Now, for all you long-furred guinea pigs out there-- let me warn you. Sometime or another, unless you're a show pig, you'll get your fur trimmed.

Me before my fur trim. I just got out of bed, so my fur-do
is messed up.

All the materials and tools you really need are scissors and a towel. Place the towel underneath the pig, so the fur will be caught, and you won't have a mess. Be delicate with your piggie, and don't cut very much. Just so much that yucky stuff won't be caught on their fur. Make sure your guinea gets a treat afterwards!

Unfortunately, this pigture doesn't really show much of the
trim, but hopefully you can tell that I got trimmed.

Hope this helps!

Food Review...DIY Fruit Kebab: Simple Pleasures

Today, we found two strange sticks lying on our island. You might ask why we were interested in them. Normally, we wouldn't have been interested, but these sticks had food on them! Sandy then came running up to me, informing me that she watched the humans make these sticks! They're called "kebabs". In case any of you piggies want to taste them, or you humans would like to make them for your piggies, here's the recipe!

Kebab sticks...2+ sticks

Oranges..........1/2 an orange

Grapes............1/2 cluster

Strawberries....3 whole strawberries

Start with our kebab sticks

Take your orange

Cut it in half, then cut it up into smaller slices

Take your strawberries and cut them up into quarters

Take your grapes

Start sliding the fruit onto the kebabs. The humans did
it in a pattern for us lucky pigs.

Ta-da!

Serve and eat! (sorry, the humans didn't have much light.
We piggies like our privacy.)

Now, what you've all been waiting for...the review! Well, even though you can only see me in the pigture, all of us piggies liked it. So, 5/5 piggies enjoyed the appetizer! For now, "au revior"!

Wheekly Guinea Pig Help...5 Foods Not to Feed Your Guinea Pig

Hello, friends! Sorry we never got to posting the Wheekly Guinea Pig Help for last week...But today, I'm going to tell you what not to eat, even if it may look tasty.

1. Human soda and coffee- this is the kind of stuff humans use as a morning refresher, but not guinea pigs.

en. wikipedia.org

2. Avocado- looks tasty, and humans seem to enjoy it on sandwiches, but don't eat it: too high in fat.

en.wikipedia.org

3. Garlic and Mushrooms- plain poisonous.

en.wikipedia.org

4. Tomato Leaves and Stalk- poisonous.

en.wikipedia.org

5. Iceberg Lettuce- low in nutrients.

en.wikipedia.org

Thanks for reading this. Just making sure that all piggies out there are healthy and safe!

~Fluffy

Wheekly Guinea Pig Help...Taking Good Photos of Your Piggie Friends

Okay, I admit. This post was geared towards human enjoyment, but we added a section to the end of the post for piggie enjoyment. Here's how to take good photos of guinea pigs.

So, first, humans, you'll want to know the parts of your camera and what they do.

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/canon/powershot_sd890-review/

We won't go over all the buttons on this camera, just the main ones. This is a simple Canon point-and-shoot, where you point, and shoot (very self-explanatory). The on/off button is located near the top of the camera, slightly to the right. To the left of that button is the viewfinder. You can look through the viewfinder to take your photos, or you can look at the large screen. Right above the on/off button, there's the shutter button. This is the button that you use to take the photos. On the dial on the upper right corner, there are different modes that you can choose from. On this camera, you can choose from (listed from top to bottom) automatic, manual, scene mode, and video. Those are the main things that you need to know about your camera. If you want to get some really good shots that are high quality, you may want to invest in a higher-skill-level camera.

Here are some pigtures that the humans took of us piggies. Notice the different angles the humans took the pigtures at. Be creative with your pigtures!

Look at me. The humans call me "photogenic".

That's Bandit's begging look.

Fluffy was sort of startled by the camera.

Celery and I could win gold medals in the Olympigs for
synchronized eating formations.

Celery does her best "furball" look for the camera.

Please, don't comment on my weird expression.

Fluffy-- before.

Fluffy-- after. (Notice the green beard on her white fur)

Now for the piggies: Tips for becoming photogenic, like me. Here are the different styles:
Cute: Look at the camera with big eyes, or sniff it. Also, curling up works, too.
Athletic: Jump onto a pigloo, stand on your hind paws, etc.
Funny: Give the camera a weird expression, like mine in one of the pigtures above.
Sleepy: Climb into your comfiest bed and close your eyes...
Beautiful: (note: groom yourself beforehand) Turn to the camera so that your face is the main thing being
               shown is your face
Serious: Basically, don't make any expressions, and just stare at the camera.
More Tips: Just give the camera your best look, and act and look natural.
P.S. By the way, in case you haven't figured it out yet, I, Olympia, and writing this post. Hope to write again to you soon!

Wheekly Guinea Pig Help...Buying a Guinea Pig

Buying a guinea pig is a big commitment, even though sometimes it doesn't seem like a lot. First of all, you have to consider if you can afford to buy two, since guinea pigs are herd animals and tend to find strength in numbers. Second, consider the vet costs. You'll want your guinea pig to be a healthy animal, and older guinea pigs can sometimes get diseases, which can costs lots of money overall. Spaying and neutering can also cost hundreds of dollars, too. Make sure that you also have enough time every day to spend time with your guinea pig.

In the event that you have considered all of these cost factors, you'll want to decide what type of guinea pig you want to buy. In one of our former posts, we listed a few guinea pig breeds. If you plan on showing your guinea pig, this is one of the larger factors in what guinea pig you should get. If you plan on buying a guinea pig for your own enjoyment and for the company, this shouldn't be too big of a factor in your decision-making.

Adoption should be your first choice if you have a shelter near you. Here are a few pigtures of available pigs from different shelters and locations.

http://www.animalhumanesociety.org/adoption/detail/22054035

This is Prince, a handsome guinea pig in St. Paul, Minnesota at the Animal Humane Society.

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/28565422/

This cute little baby pig is London from Green Lane, Pennsylvania at Have-A-Heart Guinea pig rescue.. London must be housed with another female guinea. If you would like to know more about her, visit this link.

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/26089696/

Miles and Scout are a bonded father and son pair. This is pair is currently in Garden Grove, California at the Orange County Cavy Haven.

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/27833209/

Ebert is a senior guinea pig in Boston, Massachusetts at the Animal Rescue League of Boston. Ebert is also friends with another guinea pig named Siskel, but is not bonded with him.

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/28508964/

Benji is a Peruvian guinea pig, a breed of guinea pig extremely rare for adoption. Benji is in Chesapeake, Virginia at the Chesapeake Animal Services.

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/28570920/

Roo is a baby female guinea in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the Dream Power Animal Rescue. From her description, she seems like a very friendly and personable guinea pig.

These are only some of the many guinea pigs out there that would love to be adopted.

Hope you have fun selecting a guinea pig to match your personality!

~Olympia

Wheekly Guinea Pig Help...Training Your Guinea Pig

Hello humans and guinea pigs out there who are in the Olympic spirit! If we had posted this post a few years ago, Olympia (hence the name) would be the one talking about training your guinea pig, since she used to be the fastest guinea pig on the island. Now, I, Sandy, am proclaiming myself the fastest guinea pig. Yes, guinea pigs are able to be trained.

http://www.guineapigagility.com/

As you can see, this talented guinea pig has been trained to jump over a PVC pipe hurdle. Another thing you should keep in mind is older guinea pigs don't tend to be as agile as younger guinea pigs. Often, young piggies will be caught jumping onto a igloo hideaway ("pigloo") or jumping and balancing on a cylinder tube, as Celery used to do.
Some tips for training a guinea pig include:
1. Be patient! Sometimes your guinea pig won't want to cooperate, but that's okay. Just give him/her a day off.
2. The fastest way to a guinea pig's heart is through its belly. Guinea pigs love food and treats. Just make sure the treats are healthy, and don't give guinea pigs yogurt drops (guinea pigs are lactose-intolerant).
3. Keep the training sessions 5-15 minutes long. Guinea pigs don't have the longest attention span, and they'll get bored after a while.
4. Work in stages. What that means, is don't start with a hurdle such as the one shown above. Maybe start with a hurdle that a guinea pig can easily step over, just so that they know that they have to go over the obstacle, not around.
5. Have fun! I know this is at the end of lots of lists, but if you don't have fun, your guinea pig won't. If you are frustrated, give your piggie a treat and say "good job", but don't take your anger out on your guinea pig.

texample.net

One more thing: DON'T get your guinea pig an exercise wheel. If you would like to know why, visit one of our last posts to find out. Until then, have fun training your guinea pig to be in the Olympigs!