# Guinea pigs and rats



## Frodowisebrandytook (Mar 26, 2011)

I had a question concerning guinea pig heath. Anyone on here own GPs?

After my rats pass on, I am considering getting some GPs. I LOVE my rats. They are my world. However, vet bills are pilling up and my heart has been breaking slow motion for a few months now as I watch my oldies pass away and my little Bean suffer with goodness-knows what. I think I may need to take a little break so I can heal. I definitely want to get rats again someday, but I want to find a decent vet and also replenish my vet fund. Also, I just need some time ya know?

My question is; do GPs get sick as often as rats do (i.e. are they as fragile as rats with a million heath issues)? I don't want to get some if I can't give, or afford, proper heath care for them. I would be right back where I am now with my rats! I was researching it, and it seems like they are not as prone to heath issues as rats, and they have a longer life span. Please understand that I am aware that ALL animals have heath issues. I am simply in the research phase where I am trying to find a good pet for me that I can give proper care to. Does anyone out there own both rats and GPs and can give some good advice?

Thanks


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## distancel (May 14, 2011)

Hello!
I am a big fan of guinea pigs, and I have had a few over the years. The short answer to your question is - yes, guinea pigs are less 'fragile' than rats. That is, as long as they are kept indoors and given proper care. 

The big thing about guinea pigs is they need a lot of space. Check out this website if you aren't familiar with guinea pig housing http://www.guineapigcages.com. Pretty much any 'guinea pig cage' you might find in a pet store is simply WAY too small. Guinea pigs love to run circuits around their cage and they need room to frolic and popcorn. There is also a great forum on that site if you want more information on guinea pigs. Be aware though, they are VERY anti breeding and petstores on that forum, so keep that in mind if you decide to post. But they are very, very helpful.

I never had any major health problems with any of my pigs. They are prone to respiratory problems but in my experience no where near as much as rats. I had one pig who had allergies and needed steam treatment now and then, but in comparison to my rats who have all had this at one time or another, it doesn't seem as common in guinea pigs. That is my own experience however, maybe I have just been lucky. It's important to keep an eye on them, most people recommend weighing them weekly to keep an eye on their weight. If they suddenly start losing weight you know something is wrong. They are very good at covering up illnesses so it's a good idea to monitor their weight and make sure they are eating well.

Guinea pigs are more expensive in the long run however. This is because of their dietary needs. They need 1 cup a day of fresh vegetables (each) and of course you would never keep one alone as they are social animals, like rats. They also need unlimited grass hay. This was a large expense for me, around here kilo bag (about a months worth) would cost me around $70. It may be less expensive elsewhere however, as I believe Oxbow hay is imported to Australia. The best hay for them is oxbow grass hay. In addition to that they need a good quality pellet. Nothing you will find in (most) pet shops is any good because it will have seeds in it which is bad for them. Often you will find things like 'Rabbit and guinea pig food' which is no good at all, due to rabbits and guinea pigs have completely different dietary needs. They need a good grass hay based pellet like oxbow cavy cuisine for adults, or oxbow cavy performance for growing pigs. http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com you can have a look at this site, I swear by oxbow. And it's pretty much agreed on as the best food for piggies.

I actually started keeping guinea pigs after losing my last pair of rats, and not wanting to go through it again. They are wonderful pets and well worth the effort. Unlike a rat, most guinea pigs will be content just to sit on your lap and chill out. They aren't as friendly as rats, though. I have only had one guinea pig who would actually run out to see me when I came with their food, but she still wasn't keen on being picked up a lot. That's because they are prey animals and very nervous by nature. The best thing to do is have them close to where the 'action' in the house is, so that they will become more used to noises and people walking around their cage. It really depends on the guinea pig, some will always be slightly shy and will run for cover when you come to see them. But once they are out of the cage and on your lap, they will generally settle right down and happily snuggle up to you. My pig Buffy was a very shy girl but she loved watching TV with me. 

One more thing - Not true for all pigs, but some of them can be quite vocal. If you are used to the relative quiet of rats, it can be a bit of a shock. Whenever I was fixing their salad, two of my piggies would start getting so excited and would wheek wheek wheek until I got the food into the cage for them. and this is a LOUD noise, not true of all pigs, again, but they were REALLY loud. It got to the point if they heard a bag rustle or crinkle they thought it was dinner time, and they'd start up. Because of this I had to rehome them because I am renting and the landlord wasn't happy when she found out (whoops, still have 5 rats - luckily they are easy to hide). Luckily my friend took them so I am still able to see them regularly and get updates on the little dears.

But yes, I am not trying to put you off at all, I adore guinea pigs and I hope to keep them again when i am able to. They live between 5-7 years although I've heard of an 8 year old pig, and there's probably been older ones too. It means that you can enjoy their company for longer than a rat. I definitely recommend you check out the guinea pig cages site, it can tell you a lot more than I can


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## Frodowisebrandytook (Mar 26, 2011)

WOW! Thanks for all the great info! I am about to go browse the link you sent a little more. I have already looked at it for a few minutes and found lots of great information about general care. Now that I am aware of the differences between rats and GPs from you, and cages etc. from the site I feel like I can make an informed decision. I will let you know how things turn out! either way, it will be a while, I have a 5 month old rat and, assuming she lives a long healthy life, I will not be getting any piggies til after she and her friends have passed on. Until then, they are my priority. It gives me lots of time to know what I am getting into!

Thanks again so much for your help, I might be posting again soon with more questions. I am sure they will come up as I look into things more.


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## Kiko (Sep 18, 2009)

I had many pigs over the years and I can second that they can be LOUD. On the bright side it's not a bad noise like a screeching parrot, it's a cute little "weeep weeeep' noise haha. 

Here is an adorable video of some baby pigs making LOTS of noise.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYxCisQ8kRI

They consume LOTS of hay, and are very hard to litter train. But they are usually very docile and snuggly pets 

Also they have a natural vitamin C deficiency so they need lots of fresh foods to fill that gap or they may become ill.


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## Critter Aficionado (Jan 30, 2011)

I rescue cavies (as well as other animals of course too, but cavies have become one of my favorite animals). In addition to what others have said, A couple of other really good cavy sites I HIGHLY recommend checking out would be Guinealynx ( http://www.guinealynx.info/ ) and Cavy Spirit ( http://cavyspirit.com/ ).

You won't want to get cavies from a pet store, that's just asking to get a sick (URI's which can get deadly fast, and external parasites are most common), pregnant, or mis sexed (mis sexing is SO common in pet stores with cavies) animal. Unfortunately the majority of breeders (especially show breeders and people breeding "for fun") aren't much better; they generally keep their animals in under-sized "breeder cages", and are breeding for appearance and not temperament. Health problems run rampant in cavies because of people breeding for looks (satins are prone to bone loss as they age, teddies, texels, and rexes to moderate to severe skin issues including allergies/infection/poor skin health in general, and any cavy that has the "roan" gene is very likely to produce lethal whites - babies born with at least one to two or more of the following problems, deafness, blindness, digestion problems or underdeveloped digestive tract, deformed or missing teeth, no eyes). Also, breeding cavies, especially those over 8 months of age (when the pelvic bones stiffen making birthing EXTREMELY difficult and complicated for the sow), puts the female cavy at a high risk of death from complications during birth, pregnancy, or after birth (toxemia after birth is pretty common). Cavies older than 8 months are also at a much higher risk of having still births. So to avoid people playing Russian Roulette with their female cavies' lives, and inhumane practices, your absolute best bet is to get a cavy from a reputable, cavy savvy rescue. Shelters and people rehoming are options as well, but there are generally much fewer guarantees in regards to health with these options than going through a knowledgeable rescue.

Guinea pigs can be very high maintenance, especially when they get sick. I learned this one the hard way. I know no animal is truly very low maintenance, but they can be on the higher end of high maintenance due to the costs involved with caring for them, the space they need, and the fact that you need to spot clean a cage of the recommended size at the absolute minimum once a day (I find I have to do mine twice to three times a day, sometimes I spot clean more though just to keep things cleanest).

Another really good pellet brand is Kleenmama's; it's lower in calcium than Oxbow so it's good for cavies that have had or are prone to bladder stones or bladder "sludge". You can have the pellets shipped across the globe. She also sells hay which can be bought anywhere in the United States and possibly some other places (it would depend on customs). My cavies love the pellets, even the ones who didn't like Oxbow liked these ones. https://www.kmshayloft.com/


I've actually found mine to be more friendly and in some cases more affectionate than all but one of the rats my fiance and I have had (including the ones my parents had when I was a kid). Personality and level of affection greatly depends on the individual, and I've rescued ones from shelters that said they were shy and didn't like human attention only to find out they loved to be held and gave us kisses. I've had two that weren't particularly human social (one was just not interested in people except for vegetables, and the other is really skittish and is very conflicted about being held even under a blanket, so we mostly leave him alone), but the others are. Many cavies will enjoy being held and petted but not the picking up process because it probably feels like a predatory swooping down and picking them up (they have relatively poor vision, like rats).


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