Guinea pigs are cute, there’s no escaping that fact. If you want to get a couple of guinea pigs as pets, then you’ve made a good decision. They make great pets, especially if you’ve got young children in your household. Find out why a guinea pig is the best type of rodent pet you can buy, and a few other very interesting guinea pig facts.
A guinea pig pal is a good animal pal for everyone in the family. Children love them! An animal pet pal of this sort will live a long time, as compared to others in the rodent family. The guinea pig will live on average about eight to ten years, if you take very good care of their dietary needs. Some guinea pigs will live over ten years, and their long life gives children a chance to really bond with their animals. Plus, you don’t have to concern yourself with the sadness of younger children when they die after a few years; broken hearts are hard for even adults to take. Mature guinea pigs will grow to ten inches long, and weight close to four pounds.
The guinea pig family comes in a lot of different colors, from tan to white with brown circles on them. Their cute black noses and silky hair make them feel comfortable to hold, and plain adorable to look at. You’ll love the fact too that guinea pigs won’t bite unless under extreme stress. It’s not hard to train them if you want, but their natural curiosity will lead them to play on most toys that you place into their cage. You can find fun and sturdy guinea pig toys at your local pet shop, and they will use them a lot because guinea pigs will play even at night. Your children will be able to enjoy them after they get home from school, or watch them play at bedtime. They’re adaptable to your schedule when they’re used to it.
One drawback about owning a guinea pig is that you’ll have to buy two of them because they’re very social animals. They’ll become depressed if there’s not another one around to play with, or cuddle up against. If you don’t want any more, make sure to buy two females to live together, males usually don’t work well because they can be aggressive with each other. Cages are another drawback because guinea pigs need a larger than average one because of their size. Usually, two feet per guinea pig is all you’ll need per square foot. Make sure your cage is large enough because you don’t want a depressed guinea on your hands. One nice thing about the animal is that it they love their home, and won’t try to get out as much as other rodents. Also, they don’t have to have as much exercise as others either.
Feeding a guinea pig is a little more difficult than other pets from the rodent family, like rats. You’ll need to buy specialized pellets from a pet or feed store that has lots of vitamin C, and make sure it’s fresh because it can become stale and the necessary vitamin is degraded. The reason you have to supplement their diet is because like humans, the guinea can’t make its own vitamin C, they just aren’t born with the enzyme to do it. You can add a little extra supplement and make the guinea pig very happy, with fresh kitchen scraps of vegetables and small amounts of hay, too. If you don’t feed your little guinea pig their needed foods and supplements they will die, usually within 3 weeks after they symptoms appear of diarrhea and a runny nose. Scurvy will set in too and they will not walk around a lot due to inflamed joints.
Guinea pigs are great pets, and taking care of their nutritional needs is a little more work, but there are so many benefits it’s hard not to dote on them. Spend a little time researching all you can about the wonderful animal, and shop around for a pair. Take the children along and let them pick out a couple; they’ll love it when you say they can get two! Before you do though have their home in place, and all of your foods planned out for them. You want to start out right with a happy and snuggly pair of guinea pigs that are a lot of fun and love.
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