Keeping Guinea Pigs-Part 2

If you'd like your guinea pig to get used to getting picked up and petted, it is better to begin whilst very young. A trustful guinea pig, which has been handled in a caring manner from a young age, hardly ever scratches or bites. As your friend learns to recognize you, it may start to whistle as it hears you coming. Various guinea pig accessories can be found at the online pet supermarket of Home Pet Shop.

Since the guinea pig is a sociable creature, it would rather live in groups. For those who have enough space it is better to get a group of two or more; they'll keep each other company when you’re out. Guinea pigs also like to perform social grooming in addition to grooming themselves but of course this is simply not possible for those who keep a single specimen. It's possible for instance keep two or several females with each other or house one, two or more females with a neutered male. Housing males as a group will require more room, they will need to have bonded with one another from a young age, and there can be no females present. Males are known to create a pecking order within the group by chewing one another's coat, gnawing on one another's ears, pushing their heads, raising their fur, making aggressive noises, and carry out leaping attacks and non-sexual mounting.

Unlike their wild relatives, who are most active during nightfall and daybreak when they are less likely to be spotted by predators, domesticated guinea pigs have developed a different biological rhythm consisting of extended periods of activity spread throughout the 24 hours of the day followed by short periods of sleep in between.

Keeping Guinea Pigs-Part 1

A mature guinea pig is usually 20-25 cm (8-10 in) long and weighs from 700 to 1200 grams (1.5 to 2.5 lbs). They can, in most cases, either be kept in guinea pig cages , tanks made from glass or plastic, or wooden hutches and also appear to enjoy the security offered by a nesting box. Even when given the opportunity, guinea pigs seldom venture away from their habitat except if scared by something. If they feel safe in a home they will delight in exploring more territory but sooner or later they are going to want to retreat to their home (or any other place considered equally safe). Guinea pigs use pee to mark their home and will typically urinate once they're returned to a recently cleansed cage with new bedding material. Males are known to pee to mark their territory once taken out of their cages.
Don’t place the cage or tank where it will be exposed to drafts, excess humidity or temperatures beyond the recommended range. Guinea pigs do best when the heat level is 18-24 °C (65-75 °F) and the moisture 30-70%. People sometimes think that guinea pigs are tropical animals since they originate from South America, however these small furry creatures are native to high altitudes in which the climate is temperate, not tropical.
Wild guinea pigs are always threatened by potential predators and this has made them, as well as their domesticated relations, easily spooked and weary of virtually all other animals. Housing guinea pigs with more energetic animals, including rats, mice, gerbils and hamsters, is not advised. There are many reports of cats and dogs learning to tolerate or even like guinea pigs, but you can’t depend on it. In lots of situations, cats and dogs will view the guinea pig as either prey or some sort of play item. Even a well meaning dog that merely wants to play may well frighten the life out of a guinea pig so don’t allow them to interact whilst not continuing to keep a close eye on them. Home Pet Shop offers a fine selection of Hamster cages and accessories at their online pet supermarket.