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Summer 2000 -- Special issue!


Welcome to this special bonus issue of The Guinea Mag, meant entirely to celebrate the occasion of getting a new guinea pig. Spring and summer are the times of new birth and growth, and the idea might be blooming in your head that it's time to get another cavy!
This issue is geared toward new and old owners alike, and will hopefully help make adopting a new friend an easy and fun undertaking, whether you have never owned a guinea pig before, or have owned many.
Please note that this issue is not meant to replace any of your research before getting a guinea pig. Especially if this is your first guinea pig, it's important to read as many guinea pig care books as you can get your hands on. The Internet can also be a valuable resource for prospective cavy owners.
The first guinea pig care book I ever read was Guinea Pigs by Carolyn Ruf. On my ninth Christmas I was given this book along with a cage, and told that once I read the book, a blonde baby guinea pig was waiting for me at the pet store! As you can probably guess, I read the book in one day flat!
Two of my favorite guinea pig care books are The Proper Care of Guinea Pigs by Peter Gurney (t.f.h.), and Guinea Pigs: A Complete Pet Owner's Manual by Katrin Behrend (Barron's). Both are excellent for new and old guinea pig owners to read and refer to. It's important to read guinea pig books before getting a guinea pig, especially if this is your first one. I recommend buying rather than library borrowing, because as your new baby guinea pig grows and changes, so do its needs and wants, and a book cannot be checked out of a library for the five to eight years your cavy will be with you.

Adding On

I have one guinea pig who is a year old or older, and want to add a baby one. Is this possible?
It's possible to add on...but guinea pig experts only recommend this if you are staying with females. Males can fight if not neutered, and some vets won't neuter guinea pigs! So make sure you already have a female, or that your vet does guinea pig neuters.
Secondly, when you purchase the guinea pig, make sure it is a female! You do not want your current guinea pig to get pregnant, because if it is not also a baby, its pelvic bones may have fused, and a pregnancy could cost her her life! To find out if the guinea pig is a male or a female, hold the guinea pig on its back and gently push with your thumb on the lower abdomen. If something "pops out" then the guinea pig is a male. Keep looking until you find one that is a female. Do not trust pet stores that sex animals, because they are often wrong with guinea pigs. One pet store I went to kept telling me males were females, and the other one I went to told me the one they had was a male. Thankfully I checked it out for myself -- she was a female and left the store with a new owner (me).
The next problem, after bringing your guinea pig home, is keeping it away from the other one for a while. I know you'll be tempted to put them together right away, but there are a few reasons it's best to take your time:
(1) Your current guinea pig is (hopefully) used to being your favorite thing in the whole world. She needs time to slowly adjust. Keep holding and playing with her, giving her the same amount of attention as you did before. If you can't do this and also add another guinea pig, then you shouldn't add on. Some people use getting another guinea pig as an excuse to not play with them as much, but this is not fair to the guinea pigs, especially to the first one which has bonded to you individually.
(2) Your new one may (but hopefully does not) have health problems, such as ear-mites, fleas, etc. It's important to keep her away from your other guinea pig in a sort of "quarantine" until you know for sure the new one is healthy. To make this part go more quickly, you can take the new guinea pig to the vet for a check-up.
(3) You and your new little one need time to become friends. A guinea pig that is hand-raised by you will learn to love you. If you put two guinea pigs together in a cage, they are less likely to bond to you individually. This is one reason I trained Chloe (the baby at the time) and kept her away from my guinea pig Lilac. I wanted her to bond to me before she bonded to Lilac. Surprisingly, they each still only like me and just tolerate each other enough to be housed together! This may sound bad for them, but in reality it is good because they are both individually bonded to me, and I never lost the friendship I had with Lilac. Most importantly, each guinea pig kept her own unique personality (Lilac is laid back and sleeps, eats, and cuddles people all the time; Chloe will not cuddle (but she does love to have her fur ruffled like a dog's) and is very active, jumping up a foot in the air and climbing up and down everything she can!).
(4) Little guinea pigs can be obnoxious, especially to a laid-back adult guinea pig. It's good to let the baby get a bit older, bigger, and calmer before putting it in with your current brood.
(5) The cage transition must go slowly, or your new one might be considered an intruder. The best thing to do is completely clean out the new cage (eliminate all the old odor), when the time finally comes to put them together, and let the new guinea pig run around in it alone. Then, after the new guinea pig has completely explored the cage and claimed it as her own, see if the old guinea pig will tolerate her being in the cage. This isn't to say that this is the first time they meet! In order to meet one another, it should be done in a neutral area where neither has ever been, such as a hallway. But don't be scared -- guinea pig meetings generally go very well.
My biggest success story would have to be Violet. She lived alone her entire life (almost nine years). However, when a friend of mine once brought over her female guinea pig (Violet was about five years old) they immediately hit it off and snuggled one another!

Easy-to-Clean Cage/Bedding

I've tried almost everything for my guinea pigs, from cedar shavings (now considered dangerous) to pine shavings (possibly harmful, way too messy) to litter-training to what I use now, which I consider the easiest. It takes me between three to five minutes to clean out the entire guinea pig cage. I know it probably won't work for everyone, but I decided to share my guinea pigs' habitat anyway.

You will need:
Wrapping paper storage plastic container (under-the-bed-box) for the cage
Newspaper
Paper shredder
Timothy hay (optional)

Spread whole newspaper thickly on the bottom of the plastic container. Cover this with shredded newspaper (run through a paper shredder), thickly. Be careful with your paper shredder. I learned the hard way ($80 worth) that it can short out or blow up other appliances if plugged into the same outlet. All of this can be covered with Timothy hay.
Your guinea pigs will tunnel under the shredded newspaper and hay. They will make themselves beds and hide-aways. Chloe waits for Lilac to build a huge, beautiful cave-like nest, lay down, and make it warm -- then Chloe comes along and boots poor Lilac (who is twice as large as she is!) out of the bed, so she can have a warm place to sleep.
If your guinea pigs attempt to climb out of the container (mine don't, even though it is only about 5" high) you can purchase netting or wire to put around it and make it taller. Neat Ideas Cubes (connectable, heavy-duty wire squares available at office supply stores) also work for enclosing or expanding the cage. My guinea pigs' cage is now a two-tier cage through the use of Neat Ideas Cubes and some supplemental hardware. I do not recommend using the connectors that come along with the cubes kit, because they are not sturdy enough.
Drawbacks of this housing method: Newspaper bedding is not suitable for white guinea pigs, unless they will be bathed or you don't mind them looking a little grungy (the newsprint tends to wear off slightly onto their fur). Also, some guinea pigs may chew on the newspaper, so it's a good idea to place Timothy hay on top of it. If you're worried about ink, please contact your newspaper and see whether they use soy-based (safe) or some other method. Alternately, you can purchase blank newsprint to use from stationery stores.
Whenever I have a new baby guinea pig (it will be the fourth time this summer, as I adopt another cavy pup) I like to read to her. Guinea pig babies seem to be active non-stop, as if they have a battery that never winds down. Taming them can be very difficult since they like to run around, may nip until they know not to, and don't really know what a person is yet.
When I was nine I decided that Violet, my first-ever guinea pig, was too wild. I remember telling my mom, "I hate her!" She refused to be handled at all, and would run away from me and hide (later on in life, she followed me around wherever I went!). Just about the only thing she would let me do was read to her. She would sit and listen to my voice (I read in a calm manner). It slowly calmed her and she learned to trust me more and more, until she enjoyed being around me.
Even if your new baby guinea pig isn't that hard to tame, s/he may still benefit from your reading a story. Your voice and body will soon be associated with one another, and your guinea pig may even learn his or her name if you use it instead of the books' main character's name.
Of course, you can choose any reading material to read to your cavy pup. I used to read Turtle (a children's magazine) to Violet. They won't know the difference between Shakespeare and Dr. Seuss. However, there are also a few guinea pig books on the market, written for small children, that can make this type of reading fun for you, too!
* Guinea Pigs Don't Read Book, by Colleen Stanley Bare (Puffin Unicorn) is a book with real photographs of guinea pigs, telling what they don't do and aren't like. For example, on the page that says "guinea pigs don't wear hats," a guinea pig is wearing a cowboy hat.
* I Love Guinea Pigs, by Dick King-Smith, is one of my favorite guinea pig books. The illustrations by Anita Jeram are so cute, you'll wish you could take the little cartoon-like guinea pigs out of the book and hold them! Dick King-Smith is most well-known for his pig character Babe (which appeared in two movies), but guinea pig fans of young and old will enjoy this book.
* One Guinea Pig is Not Enough is probably the theme for most of us cavy owners! The book was written by Kate Duke and published by Penguin Putnam. The illustrations are what make the book worth buying. Reading it to your guinea pig aloud may get repetative (but may teach your guinea pig how to add, since that is the book's intention for children). The book ends by telling readers that twenty guinea pigs are "plenty" -- but I doubt most parents would agree with that...putting the stop at one or two.

The Wonderful World of Chortles
New guinea pig owners are no doubt amazed at the amount of sounds that can come from their little piggy! Some guinea pigs are more vocal than others. Lilac will let me know when she's upset with something, whereas Chloe is more likely to tell me when she's happy.
How can you tell? Well, the first thing you need to do is learn a new language. Some of it is spoken, and some of it is silent, from body-language.
I have tried to assemble some of the most common "words" along with an English translation for those of us who are humans. However, my translations are loose, and your cavy may use these words to signal something different. If these translations don't "fit" with your guinea pig, don't worry. Soon by trial and error you will know what her sounds mean.

"Buererereeer buerererereeer" = "I don't like that sound. Please ask whoever is making that sound to stop it." (This might mean turning off the television or asking someone to stop screaming.) I don't always listen to my guinea pigs' complaints in this area because they need to learn how to put up with some noises that can't be helped, such as the doorbell ringing. This noise can also show annoyance at another guinea pig or person. Basically, it's a negative verbalization.

"Wheeeeeeeek! Wheeeeeek!" = "I think you're going to feed me. Boy, I'd love something special to eat!" For some reason, plastic bags rustling seem to prompt guinea pigs to do this the most often (even if you don't store their food in plastic bags!!!). Or if the person who feeds them comes into the room, this may be a greeting they use that means, "I know you feed me. I want some food!" This is usually coupled with some wild behavior. The guinea pig will run around in the cage and maybe beg for some food as well. Many cavy owners claim this sound is used only for the benefit of guinea pig owners and is not used in the wild. If this is true, it's wonderful to think that our little friends made up a sound exclusively for us.

Teeth chatter = Crying. The guinea pig is worried or scared. If your guinea pig is doing this when you are holding him or her, it might be a good time to put the cavy away. With my guinea pigs this often translates into "I'm ready to leave now." They also will do this after having a little spat with one another.

Purring = This is a soft, sweet sound. It's hard to explain, but when you hear it you'll know. When a guinea pig is very content, perhaps laying down on your lap, this happy sound just naturally comes forth!

"Eeeeee! Eeeeee!" = "Something is scaring me or hurting me." Don't confuse this with the other loud noise. The guinea pig will generally crouch low or not move around and won't look happy when this noise is used.

Head going up in a violent manner while you are petting it = "Do not pet my head!" With rabbits, which I also own, this means "pet me harder" or "pet me more, please." For rabbits, it's an encouragement to continue on with what you are doing, but with a guinea pig, this sign is a negative sign, meaning they do not want to be petted there.

Guinea Pig Baby Name Book

I've always named my guinea pigs and rabbits after flowers and plants. I quickly was running out of ideas, after using up six flower names. After digging through encyclopedias and a batch of plant books, I found that there were many to go around. In the listing I've arranged, the first word(s) is/are the name, and following the dashes are some suggestions for nick-names, should you name your pet after one of the following plants.

Female
Abelia -- Abby, Lia
Aloe Vera -- Aloe, Vera, Ally, Al
Alyssum -- Alyssa, Lyss
Amaranth -- Amy
Amaryllis -- Amy, Mary
Ammi Majus -- Ami, Madge
Anise -- Annie, Ann, Nissi
Arroyo Lupine -- Lupi, Ari, Roro
Aster -- Terri
Azalea -- Zalee, Lea
Baby Doll Bergenia -- Baby, Dolly, Berg, Genie
Baby's-breath -- Babs, Baby
Begonia -- Begi, Nia
Belladonna -- Belle, Donna
Bergenia -- Berg, Genie
Bird of Paradise -- Birdie, Byrt, Perri
Black-eyed Susan -- Susan, Sue, Susie
Bluebonnet -- Blue, Bonnie
Buttercup -- Butter, Cuppy
Bluebell -- Blue, Bell
Calla -- Cally, Cal
Camomile -- Cammy, Milli
Camellia -- Camille, Cammy, Cam, Mel, Lia
Candytuft -- Candy
Caraway -- Carrie
Catawba -- Cat, Catty, Tawba
Chrysanthemum -- Chrys, Mum
Clarkia -- Clark, Kia
Clover -- Chloe, Clove, Clovis, Chlo
Coerulea -- Cori, Lea
Dahlia -- Dolly, Lia
Daisy -- Daise
Diana Carnation -- Diana, Carni
Edelweiss -- Edel, Edi
Endive -- Endy
Fern -- Fur, Furry, Ferni
Forsythia -- Sythia, Forsythe
Freesia -- Sia, Freeshey
Fuchsia -- Shana
Geranium -- Jerri
Gilia Tricolor -- Gil, Lia
Gilliflower -- Jilly, Jill
Gladiolus -- Glad, Iolus
Gloriosa Daisy -- Gloria, Daisy
Heliotrope -- Haylie
Henna -- Henny
Hibiscus -- Biscuit
Holly -- Hol
Honeysuckle -- Honey, Hon
Hyacinth -- Hy, Hy Hy, Cinthy
Iris -- Rissy
Jacaranda -- Randi
Jasmine -- Jessi, Jazz, Jazzy
Jessamine -- Jessi, Jess
Joy Carnation -- Joy, Carni
Lacy Phacelia -- Lacy, Celia
Lady Fern -- Lady, Fern
Larkspur -- Lark
Lavender -- Lovie
Lemon Fluff -- Lem, Fluffy
Liara -- Lara
Lilac -- Lylee, Lolly
Lily -- Lolly, Lil
Linden -- Lin
Little Miss Muffet Daisy -- Daisy, Muffy
Loblolly -- Lolly
Lotus -- Lotie, Lottie
Lupine -- Lupi
Magnolia -- Maggie, Mag
Maple -- Mapes
Marguerite -- Margie, Gerti, Meg
Marigold -- Mari, Goldi
Marjoram -- Marji
Mayflower -- May, Maymay, Flower
Mimosa -- Mimi, Mim
Mollis -- Molli
Mountain Garland -- Garland, Mounti
Myrtle -- Myrt
Nasturtium -- Turtia
Orchid -- Chiddy
Pansy -- Pan Pan
Peony -- Pony
Periwinkle -- Peri, Winki
Petunia -- Tunia, Pet
Prairie Aster -- Prairie, Aster
Primrose -- Rosie, Rose, Prim
Princess Lobelia -- Princess, Belle, Belia
Queen Anne's Lace -- Queenie, Anne, Lacey
Rhubarb -- Ruth, Barb
Rose -- Rosie
Rose Angel -- Rosie, Angel
Rose Mallow -- Rosie, Mal
Rosemary -- Rosie, Rose, Mary
Ruby Viola -- Ruby, Viola, Violet, Vi
Rue -- Ruerue
Salvia -- Sylvia, Sal
Scarlet Flax -- Scarlet
Scarlet Sage -- Scarlet
Shasta Daisy -- Shasta, Daisy
Shirley Poppy -- Shirley, Poppy
Silene Armeria -- Celine, Amy
Snowdrop -- Snow
Sugar beet -- Sugar, Beet
Sumac -- Sue
Sunflower -- Sunny
Sweet Marjoram -- Sweetie, Marjie
Syringa -- Syrie
Tahoka Daisy -- Tahoe, Daisy
Tansy -- Tanny
Tiger-lily -- Tigger, Tyge, Teague, Lily, Lil
Verbena -- Beni (pronounced "Bean-y")
Victoria Waterlily -- Victoria, Vickie, Vic, Lily
Viola -- Vi, Violet
Violet -- Vi, Violetta
Wake-Robin -- Robin
Wallflower -- Wally, Flower
Wisteria -- Terri
Zinnia -- Zinni

Male
Ailanthus -- Ailan
Alexander -- Al, Alex
Alfalfa -- Al, Alf
Algae -- Al
Arbutus -- Arby
Ash -- Ash
Asparagus -- Perry, Gus
Aster -- Terry
Bachelor's Button -- Bach
Barley -- Bar
Basil -- Sil
Bayberry -- Bay
Birch -- Birchy
Black Sampson -- Sammy, Sampson
Bonsai -- Bon, Sigh
Bristlecone -- Bris
Buttercup -- Cuppy
Cactus -- Cac
Canterbury -- Bury
Cauliflower -- Cauli
Cedar -- Ceed
Chervil -- Chur, Churry
Chicory -- Cory
Chive -- Chivey
Cilantro -- Silly
Cinnamon -- Cinny
Clover -- Clovis, Clove
Coreopsis -- Cory
Coriander -- Cory, Andy
Cosmos -- Cosmo, Cos
Crocus -- Cro
Cypress -- Cy
Dandelion -- Dan
Desmond Carnation -- Desmond, Carny
Dill -- Dilly
Dogwood -- Dog, Woody
Douglas Fir -- Doug, Douglas, Fir
Drummond Phlox -- Drummond
Duckweed -- Duck, Ducky
Ficus -- CusCus
Filbert -- Fil, Bert
Flanders Poppy -- Flander, Pop
Fungi -- Fun Guy
Ginkgo -- Gogo
Guava -- Guave
Hawthorn -- Hawth
Heath -- Heathy
Herb -- Herby
Hickory -- Cory
Hop -- Hoppy
Jack-in-the-Pulpit -- Jack
Johnny-Jump-Up -- Johnny
Jujube -- Be
Juniper -- Perry
Kale -- Kal
Kohlrabi -- Kohl, Robby
Kumquat -- Quaty
Licorice -- Richie
Linden -- Denny
Liverwort -- Worty
Loganberry -- Logan, Berry
Mango -- Gogo
Maximillian Sunflower -- Max, Sunny
Moss -- Momo
Mushroom -- Mush
Oat -- Oatie
Parsley -- Pars
Phlox -- Phloxy
Poppy -- Pop
Pumpkin -- Pumperkin, Punkin
Quince -- Quincy
Red Baron -- Red
Reed -- Red
Saffron -- Saff, Ron
Sage -- Sagie
Sweet William -- William, Will, Willy
Thistle -- This
Thyme -- Thy
Timothy Hay -- Timothy, Timmy, Tim
Wallflower -- Wally
Willow -- Will, Willy

25 Reasons a Guinea Pig is the Perfect Pet

1) Young and old alike can enjoy the friendship of a guinea pig.

2) They have a special language which we can learn.

3) Each one has a different disposition.

4) They are inexpensive to feed and care for compared to cats and dogs.

5) They come in all sorts of colors and varieties -- including long-haired!

6) They give back to us through their friendship.

7) Many of them love to cuddle (although not all do...remember each one is an individual!).

8) They're just so cute!

9) If the cage is cleaned regularly, guinea pigs do not have an odor.

10) It's fun to find new vegetables and fruits to let your guinea pigs taste-test (but make sure they're safe, first!).

11) Guinea pigs are only 2-3 pounds, making them easy for children to hold.

12) Cavies are social and often enjoy being introduced to new people and guinea pigs.

13) Unlike some animals, guinea pigs groom themselves and (if not long-haired) require very little grooming from their owners, other than an occasional brushing and nail-trim.

14) It's fun to watch as a baby goes from being scared and timid of humans, to the point when its true personality emerges.

15) With time and patience, some guinea pigs can be taught to use a litter-box (although in my experience it never amounts to 100% accuracy), and some people allow larger guinea pigs to be free-roaming.

16) The price of acquiring a guinea pig is minimal. You can get them in pet stores for around $15, and purebreds through breeders cost as little as $20. Large-sized homemade cages can be made for as little as $8.

17) Guinea pigs do not stay awake all night...they sleep! Most other commonly kept small animals are nocturnal, meaning they will keep you up all night and not want to play with you during the day. Guinea pigs, on the other hand, have your sleep schedule, unless you work the graveyard shift.

18) Guinea pigs love the outdoors and will sit outside with you (always keep an eye on your guinea pigs, and keep them away from chemically-treated lawns).

19) They remember their owners and get excited when they see them.

20) For an animal so small, they are packed with personality.

21) You can invent new games for them to play, and toys are free (they love cardboard boxes made into mazes and playgrounds, as well as old oatmeal containers with the plastic, label, and one end removed).

22) Guinea pigs are very healthy animals.

23) They can live as long as eight years or more (one of mine was almost nine when she died), which is longer than rodents such as gerbils, rats, and mice.

24) Their lower lip is so cute it's hard not to laugh at it.

25) They get along rather well with one another, so you can always add more!

Have a wonderful life with your new friend! ~ Melissa, Lilac, and Chloe