Pig Notes

Are Guinea Pigs Right For Your Home?

Are you thinking about bringing home a guinea pig this Christmas? Have your kids been pestering you for weeks or months to let them have one?

You're not alone.

At a Creative Memories scrapbooking event this weekend, I sat at a table with several mothers who between them have seven kids under the age of eight. The conversation turned to Christmas wish lists and pets, and two of the moms said their youngsters had been pestering them for guinea pigs.

"I don't know if it's a good idea," said one mom. "We have a golden retriever that always chases rabbits and squirrels."

"I can't take care of one more thing," said the other. "I have four kids and a cat. I know I'll end up taking care of a new pet, and I'm not always sure I'm giving the cat as much as I should."

Mentioning that I work with this rescue, I asked them some of the questions from our questionnaire...and it only took two or three for them to realize that a guinea pig and its unique care needs were not going to fit easily into their household at this time.

If you (or someone you know) are considering a guinea pig for your home, we invite you to check out Are Guinea Pigs Right For Your Home on our main Web site. Below are the critical questions you need to ask yourself:

• Are you willing to adopt a pair of pigs?
• Can you make the lifetime commitment (as many as 8 years)?
• Do you have time for the daily and weekly care routines?
• Do you have space for the proper-sized cage?
• Can you provide a safe environment?
• Can you interact with them daily?
• Can you afford the costs of care?

You can find detailed explanations for each question on our site. You'll undoubtedly think of other questions to ask yourself as you read, but it's better to ask these questions now rather than later when an animal has settled into your family. And, as always, you're welcome to ask us for more information!

Pet-Friendly Hand Sanitizers

Folks who have pets often feel they need to use a quick hand sanitizer, for pet-related reasons and not, but worry if their pets (especially the little ones) will have adverse reactions to the sanitizer when they come in contact with your hands again.

Super Pet has a gentle, effective, clean smelling Hand Sanitizer Gel. This gel features light cucumber-melon scent that neither human nor animals will mind. The product can be easily in online pet supply stores, and in some bricks-and-mortar stores (with a little more difficulty).

Another excellent product is Method's Hand Sanitizer, which comes in eucalyptus mint, green tea, and sweet water scents. It, too, is gentle and effective -- and earth friendly to boot. We especially like them for their "humanifesto," which states: "We see ingredients that come from plants, not chemical plants, and guinea pigs that are never used as guinea pigs.

Method products can be purchased online at their own e-store and are easily found at Target. Some grocery stores are also beginning to carry at least a small portion of Method's product line.

Cold Weather Care For Guinea Pigs

With temperatures dropping here in the Northeast (and elsewhere) -- apparently for good this time -- it's a good time to review the cold weather care needs of our piggie friends.

Cages

• Move cages away from windows and doors. More cold air slips in around the frames than most folks realize. And once the glass in windows gets cold, the immediate area around the windows feels chilly as well.
• Keep cages away from heating vents, fireplaces, and wood stoves, so piggies don't get too warm. And for other obvious (fire hazard) reasons.
• Cover cages at night with a large towel, fleece blanket/throw, or light blanket. For folks with C&C cages, you can use medium-sized binder clips to hold the cover in place and prevent it from dropping into the cage. Keep one side of the cage uncovered to allow for good ventilation.

Home Environment

• Monitor the temperature in your home. Guinea pigs are easily chilled, and you need to be extra vigilant when you have very young piggies or seniors. Guinea pigs' optimum temperature range is 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit; during the winter months, keeping the temperature around 66 or 67 can help keep pigs from catching cold.
• Consider running a humidifier to keep some moisture in the air and keep everyone's skin from feeling dry and itchy.

Diet & Grooming

• Check water bottles frequently. Heating systems dry out a home, making animals and humans feel the need to drink more water.
• Serve a chunk of sweet bell pepper daily, for the boost in essential Vitamin C. Crunchy, juicy vegetables also provide a little extra fluid.
• Brush your guinea pigs weekly to help manage any itchies.

And, finally, watch your pigs carefully for signs of developing colds and respiratory illness, including sneezing and runny nose. If you see them, waste no time getting to a vet.

Wellness Exams For Guinea Pigs -- A Vet's Perspective

Every animal benefits from an annual exam and even more from semi-annual exams. 

I believe that I am an experienced child care provider to my children. I volunteer with the Cub Scouts, have taught classes at the elementary school, have taken numerous classes on First Aid and child welfare and youth protection training. I also have read books on “proper’ parenting and many articles in parenting journals. On top of this, I attended medical school for four years. I take my children to have regular wellness exams.

Based on the argument that people are experienced pet owners or experienced parents/guardians, we would no longer need doctors for preventative medicine. We would be taking a step back and practicing medicine of ages past. It still needs to be acknowledged that wellness exams should not give a false sense of security; no doctor can guarantee health -- this is as true on the human side as on the veterinary side. That said, however, the benefits of wellness exams have been amply demonstrated within our lifetime.

• Most people have regular wellness exams -- the average age of people has increased.
• Most dogs and cats have regular wellness exams -- the average age of cats has increased by about 3 years, dogs up to about 5 years.
• Most people have regular dental exams/cleanings -- most people retain all their teeth throughout life.
• Many avian patients now receive annual wellness exams -- life expectancy is increasing and less severe health problems are being seen.
• More pocket pets are being seen -- requiring more veterinarians to be trained in this area, but the pets are benefiting by seeing a qualified person.
• Reptiles are now starting to be seen more regularly and they too should benefit.

I will say that a veterinarian who is inexperienced with treating guinea pigs, rabbits, birds, reptiles or anything else out of the element can do harm. Just like in human medicine, the code of veterinary medicine is to “do no harm”. I would not treat a horse or a cow because these animals are outside of my realm of experience. I do care for most pocket pets because I have trained in this area and most of my practice is comprised of birds and pocket pets (60%).

While there are things that an observant and experienced pet owner can look for themselves, I still believe that all pets benefit from a wellness exam from a qualified veterinarian. 

Sean Pampreen, DVM
Marlborough Bird & Animal Hospital, LLC
21 South Main Street
Marlborough, CT  06447
(860) 295-1595

Wellness Exams For Guinea Pigs -- An Owner's Perspective

For the nearly ten years that I've owned (err...been owned by) guinea pigs, I've taken them for annual wellness exams. Once each of them hits the age of 4, I take them twice a year for wellness exams.

This is no small expense for me, mind you. At any given time, I have three or four guinea pigs in my charge. I live in Southern Fairfield County, where everything seems to be more expensive just by virtue of stepping across the line out of New Haven County. In years where I've had vet bills for illnesses and/or surgeries, the bill for the wellness exams takes an even bigger bite out of my wallet.

But this is the choice I made, and I stick by it. I budget for it. I grew up watching my mother take the family cats and dogs for their regular exams and shots every year, without fail. It was engrained in me -- if you have a pet, you take it for checkups.

In the two years I've worked with this rescue, my resolve has only grown. I've seen just how fragile these little animals are, and how big of a toll inadequate care, neglect, and illness can take on their bodies. I've also seen how hard they'll fight, right along with Cindy and the vets at Pieper Olson, to get better if given the chance.

I consider myself an experienced, well-read owner. I check weight weekly, and I thoroughly check the pigs over daily for developing problems with their skin, feet, nails, ears, eyes...everything. I feel for lumps and bumps and swelling where there shouldn't be. I know their eating and drinking habits so well that I see the smallest changes in behavior. I monitor things just long enough to know whether we need to head to South Wilton Vet or if what I saw was just a temporary anomaly. I read Guinea Lynx so often in the beginning that I practically have their site memorized, and I routinely visit their forums. I read everything that Peter Gurney ever wrote. I've listened attentively to my vets, and read any journal articles and books they recommended. They've all told me that I have excellent instincts, and that my observation and quick action has allowed us to identify and resolve problems very early.

But I have no delusions that my knowledge is up to par with that of an experienced veterinarian. I can't hear subtle differences in heart rate, feel when arthritis is forming in a pig's leg, see a cataract until after it shows up in front of the eye. I'm a well-informed client who can work collaboratively, intelligently, and rationally with my vet. I went to college to study journalism, my vets studied exotic animal care. I nearly passed out when I had to dissect a frog in high school biology, one of my vets performed an emergency hysterectonomy on one of my pigs and saved her life. I write and edit and teach for a living. They help animals get better and save lives on a daily basis.

I know that wellness exams don't give us a free pass from illness, but for me they provide a needed comfort level, one where I can look back on a guinea pig's life and know that I always did right by him/her and always gave the best of everything. I consider myself fortunate that I can do this, because I know there are owners who struggle to pay vet bills. If I couldn't do it, I'm not sure I would have pets at all.

Whitney Potsus

Guinea Pig Owner

Wellness Exams For Guinea Pigs -- A Rescue's Perspective

A lot of new adopters ask us if guinea pigs need annual wellness exams. To answer this question, we'll give you three perspectives over three days -- rescue, owner, and vet.

At The Critter Connection, our standard reply is that we strongly recommend wellness visits, but each individual owner has to determine what is financially feasible for them. Vet visits are not cheap, and for families juggling substantial financial responsibilities, vet visits will take a bite out of already tight budgets. As we've written here and here, we do tell owners that if their pigs are showing signs of illness, or possible illness, they must get to a vet.

We know there are others who have different views on the topic. Where experienced guinea pig owners are concerned, a reasonable argument could be made for wellness exams not needing to be more frequent than once a year. For new and inexperienced owners, wellness exams at least once a year really are a necessity.

Guinea pigs have delicate physiologies that can turn for the worse seemingly on a dime if they aren't watched carefully. These physiologies can be and are compromised by breeders who don't take steps to avoid overbreeding or inbreeding. They also can be compromised by neglect, abuse, and abandonment. We spend a lot of time and effort rehabilitating the guinea pigs that come out of neglectful or abusive situations, bringing up their weight, and boosting their immune systems. They don't leave the rescue until they have a clean bill of health. But that doesn't mean that we don't worry about them a little as they get older. Certainly, for these pigs, wellness exams are a good idea.

As you think about this topic with respect to your own pets, we hope you'll drop by over the next two days to read the owner and veterinarian perspectives.

Guinea Pigs On National TV

If you missed it last Thursday, "The Early Show" on the CBS network did a four-minute segment on small animals, called "Pocket Pets: The Smaller The Better."

With a hamster, mice, and two talkative guinea pigs helping her, Dr. Debbye Turner talked about how pocket pets are ideal for folks with tight living quarters. While it would have been nice, of course, for the segment to have been longer, we did appreciate that she hit on some important points that prospective owners need to hear:

• "These little guys will require some special attention. Their diets are highly specialized. Their housing needs frequent cleaning. And pocket pets, by virtue of their size, require a gentle touch."
• "...pocket pets are not meant for small children. These animals' health and lives could be endangered by a child squeezing one too tightly."

You can watch the video of the entire segment, and read the accompanying article, on The Early Show site.

The Common Tunnel Toy Gets A Makeover

I learned about this toy, the Super Pet Fuzz-E-Funnel, from a friend who owns ferrets.

This nearly three-foot-long tunnel is great because, instead of just having holes at both ends like most tunnel toys, it also features two cut-outs in the middle. The unique design gives your guinea pigs twice the fun for playing hide-and-seek from each other (and you) and chasing each other during play time.

Guinea pigs who've previously been wary of extra-long tunnels will like these and their extra escape routes. You'll like their durability and that they're hand-washable.

Given its size and absorbent fluffy fleece lining, this would not be a first choice as a cage accessory, unless you want to have to hand wash this every other day. However, it's a great toy to add some variety to the play area and create an environment that's quite different from the cage.

Warm Weather Care (Revisited)

As temperatures here in Connecticut dance on one side or the other of 85 these days, it reminds us that it's time to revisit the topic of warm weather care for guinea pigs.

Many new owners don't realize how sensitive guinea pigs are to heat and how quickly they can get sick with heat exhaustion or heatstroke. It's not until hot days creep up on us that owners realize their piggies aren't nearly as tolerant of the heat as they'd thought.

Guinea pigs need a climate between 65 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. As the temperature climbs above 75, you'll notice your pigs becoming quieter, more lethargic, with decreased appetite for food and increased need for water. Once the thermometer hits 80 or higher, they're miserable.

So to help you prepare for the even warmer days ahead, we'd like to point you to a couple of resources:

• 12 tips for warm weather care
• Comfy Cavies' hot weather tips

And if you have other questions, leave them here or drop us an e-mail. We'll be happy to help!

Why Water Bottles Need Frequent Cleaning

In my first posting on this topic, Tammy asked why our critters' water needs to be changed daily, and why water bottles need to be cleaned so frequently.

They're good questions, and I'll answer both below.

• Every time a guinea pig (or any small animal) drinks from its water bottle, some food debris gets into the drinking spout. If you have a guinea pig who drinks a lot, if you have several guinea pigs sharing a water bottle, or if you have guinea pigs who habitually drink before they finish a mouthful of food, you're bound to find debris in the drinking spout. The more debris that gets in the spout, the more that gets up into the water bottle. The more debris that gets in the spout, the greater the risk that the metal ball inside it will get jammed and prohibit water flow.
• Bacteria builds up in the drinking spout just from normal use, and the bacteria that forms in the food debris just adds to it. The bacteria also gets pushed up inside the water bottle. Eventually, the bacteria gets in your guinea pig when it drinks.
• If you live in an area with hard water, deposits from the water build up in the drinking spout and the water bottle. Those deposits will give even fresh water an unpleasant taste, thereby causing your critter to drink less (or perhaps not at all). Over time, the hard water deposits in the drinking spout will cause the metal ball to get jammed and prohibit water flow. (If you live in area with hard water, we recommend giving your animals bottled water.)

While soaking the components of your water bottle in very hot water will remove some junk, I've found that nothing replaces a good scrubbing-down with brushes and cotton swabs.