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My vet charged me less than $30 to euthanize my last rat, and I live in an expensive area. It's worth asking around. I'm willing to give someone the benefit of the doubt if he calls around and finds out there still isn't any way he can afford humane euthanasia, but if he hasn't even made any calls then there's really no excusing it.
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Sep 20, 2010 02:56
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Nereid posted:Please don't judge people for not having mountains on funds on hand at all times for small animal veterinary care, people. It is some of the most expensive out there, and a lot of vets know that they can charge out the rear end because of it. Thank you. Gordong Dongbay fucked around with this message at 03:26 on Sep 20, 2010 |
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Sep 20, 2010 03:12
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Gaj posted:So last month I adopted a dwarf russian hamster, and a miscommunication led me to believe that I was picking up a robo, but whatever its adorable and loves me. Looks quite like a robo in that picture, do you have any more photos? Dwarf hams can look very round because they tend to bunch themselves up a bit when they sit/sleep. You can't make him exercise but don't give him unnecessary treats - no yoghurt drops or things like that which are filled with sugar.
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Sep 20, 2010 03:57
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No hes a Russian just curled up and cupped. I stopped giving him yogurt treats after 2 days, apparently some decided to cement up in his cheek with his feed and well getting it out was not a happy affair. +1 its been 4 years since I last had a hamster, and my little Bakunin has been with me for over a month. In addition to being a lazy fatbutt, he just started to empty his cheek pouches on me, with no change at all in how I treat him. Its a stupid small quick question but basically its small and nothing I should be worried about and just go "awwwww" at? Gaj fucked around with this message at 23:37 on Sep 23, 2010 |
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Sep 20, 2010 05:08
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RazorBunny posted:My vet charged me less than $30 to euthanize my last rat, and I live in an expensive area. It's worth asking around. I'm willing to give someone the benefit of the doubt if he calls around and finds out there still isn't any way he can afford humane euthanasia, but if he hasn't even made any calls then there's really no excusing it. This exactly. While there are a limited number of competent exotic vets, really any vet can euthanize a hamster and it shouldn't cost that much. It's on the owner to ensure they're using gas + injection, but other than that, you don't have to be super competent to gas something down and kill it.
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Sep 22, 2010 12:35
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Has anyone's guinea pigs ever had a heart attack? One of my pigs who was only about three years old just died suddenly this morning. My sister was holding her and thought she was more relaxed than normal but it didn't seem alarming in any way. Next minute she put her in a towel and she sort of flopped over and was just gone. I guess I should be glad that she died quickly and relatively painlessly but I'm still having a hard time believing she's gone. I can't imagine that it was anything other than a heart attack since she was perfectly healthy as far as I knew. Here's one of my favorite pictures of her:  RIP Waldo 
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Oct 2, 2010 18:20
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I'm so sorry for your loss. No, heart attacks aren't common. If you haven't already buried her, I would recommend a necropsy. I find it really helps me to know what it was, even if there was nothing I could have done.
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Oct 2, 2010 22:01
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Is anyone else's pigs irritated in fall and autumn? The boars have been fussy little troublemakers ever since it got colder and the leaves started to drop. Must be something hormonal. 
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Oct 4, 2010 14:03
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After moving in to my new house, and finding out my landlady is totally cool with me having a pet, and also finding my old hamster cage at my parents house (and giving it a drat good clean) I am going to get a hammy again! Hooray. I'm torn though, I've had both dwarf and Syrian hamsters in the past though (not since I was about 16) and I'm not sure what to get. I like dwarves for the fact you can have a bunch together, but I prefer how chilled out syrians can be. I also never had much luck with dwarf hamsters, they always seemed to die after 6 months or so. But I had a Syrian who lived to the grand old age of 3 (he had little Ginger bits on his fur that went grey, it was adorable) My first step is to see what the animal shelter have, but I have a feeling they won't rehome with people in rented accommodation, so I may end up getting something from a pet shop anyway. I need cute pictures of all varieties of hamsters to sway me I think 
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Oct 10, 2010 17:33
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dweebgal posted:My first step is to see what the animal shelter have, but I have a feeling they won't rehome with people in rented accommodation, so I may end up getting something from a pet shop anyway. I've never really talked to a rescue that would refuse to home to people in apartments for small animals. We usually ask for the landlord's name and then call to check and make sure they're sympatico with a new furry tenant!
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Oct 11, 2010 05:47
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I've been looking into getting another tiny fuzzy friend, but I can't narrow down what I might want. I've had guinea pigs, mice and hamsters in the past, and I was interested in trying something new, but pretty much everything besides rats I've ruled out (ferrets, chinchillas, etc.). I live in a three bed three bath apartment, it's very spacious and roomy for an apartment, but I worry about having the room in my own personal space to get a big enough cage for a pair of rats so that they can be comfortable, where I can get something a bit more adequate for mice/hamsters or something of that nature. I was really curious about looking into mice because I had one back in the day that I really loved, but I can't seem to find much information about them on the forums. That being said, any suggestions or tips? It's much appreciated!
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Oct 13, 2010 05:21
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Rodent Mortician posted:I've never really talked to a rescue that would refuse to home to people in apartments for small animals. We usually ask for the landlord's name and then call to check and make sure they're sympatico with a new furry tenant! I talked to the local RSPCA place, and they said they wont give pets to renters as there's too much chance of the animal being sent back to them again. I went and had a look in a pet shop, and kind of fell in love with one. A female Syrian. She passed the test of being the most interested in the tank when I said "organised religion is a sham!" (she was actually a huge attention whore, and was desperate to get picked, so who was I to argue) I decided to give her a ridiculous name: Cherry Vixen von Hamsburg, the Marquess de Cage. She's pretty chatty(makes a very low tutting/clucking type sound, doesn't seem angry when she does it, and if I make it to her, she comes over to say hi)and I've heard her squeak a couple of times (which worried me, but she seems fine, eating, active, clear eyes, coat is fine, solid poops, dry nose and tail) so I guess she's just noisy. She likes snuffling my ears, which is adorable.
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Oct 13, 2010 22:27
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I have a question about a hedgehog, who isn't a rodent, but is similar in size. I've read online that it is safe to use a small amount (.01mL) of Revolution on hedgehogs/animals of that size. I don't think he has mites, but I'd like to start treating him for preventative measures. Anyone have any experience with this?
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Oct 14, 2010 06:21
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Fatty Patty posted:I have a question about a hedgehog, who isn't a rodent, but is similar in size. I've read online that it is safe to use a small amount (.01mL) of Revolution on hedgehogs/animals of that size. I don't think he has mites, but I'd like to start treating him for preventative measures. Anyone have any experience with this? I don't have experience specifically with hedgehogs, but you can use Revolution on exotics (in general) to treat mites. However, you can't just give a flat amount (like .01 -- which is really only a workable dosage for something smaller than a mouse). You do need to weigh them and do some math to figure out what the correct dosage is based on weight. Hopefully a hedgiegoon will come along soon with better information about correct dosing, because it can vary quite a bit between species.
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Oct 14, 2010 12:41
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Does anyone have any suggestions for preventing the hamster wheel from sliding all around the bottom of the gerbil cage? It's one of those 10 gallon glass aquarium/snake things, and the wheel has a basic bent/painted wire base. Obviously I don't want to use anything that will get bit to hell, which excludes every material ever.
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Oct 14, 2010 15:25
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captainOrbital posted:Does anyone have any suggestions for preventing the hamster wheel from sliding all around the bottom of the gerbil cage? It's one of those 10 gallon glass aquarium/snake things, and the wheel has a basic bent/painted wire base. Obviously I don't want to use anything that will get bit to hell, which excludes every material ever. What kind of bedding do you use? I keep my guys on aspen and I just make sure that I've got enough in there to "anchor" the wheel. I've never had problems with it sliding around, but the base can rattle against the glass and make a racket if there isn't enough substrate.
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Oct 14, 2010 18:24
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captainOrbital posted:Does anyone have any suggestions for preventing the hamster wheel from sliding all around the bottom of the gerbil cage? It's one of those 10 gallon glass aquarium/snake things, and the wheel has a basic bent/painted wire base. Obviously I don't want to use anything that will get bit to hell, which excludes every material ever. If it's a wire wheel, you should just get rid of it altogether. Gerbils are dumb enough to maim their tails and feet with those quite effectively. Gerbils generally don't need a wheel but if you really must have one, you should consider a hard plastic one with solid running surface. Hard to say about attaching it anywhere though, aquariums are a bit problematic for that sort of toys. Maybe some sort of magnet contraption but at least my gerbils would either bury it or move the bedding level 20 cm below the wheel in matter of few hours v  v
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Oct 14, 2010 19:15
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Fewd posted:If it's a wire wheel, you should just get rid of it altogether. Gerbils are dumb enough to maim their tails and feet with those quite effectively. Gerbils generally don't need a wheel but if you really must have one, you should consider a hard plastic one with solid running surface. I don't know if I agree that gerbils don't need a wheel. Mine love the hell out of theirs. But it has a mesh floor, not a straight up wire one, so they haven't had a single issue with it. I'll get Cosmic Jester to explain what kind of crazy wire she used to get our wheel mounted to the side of the glass cage. And we'll post pictures.
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Oct 14, 2010 19:32
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RumbleFish posted:What kind of bedding do you use? I keep my guys on aspen and I just make sure that I've got enough in there to "anchor" the wheel. I've never had problems with it sliding around, but the base can rattle against the glass and make a racket if there isn't enough substrate. We use that white carefresh stuff. The wheel is one of those hard plastic "silent" ones, and they do seem to be ignoring it a little lately. I like the idea of putting magnets under the glass, though. I have a couple of insane rare-earth magnets that I am afraid to do anything with for fear that the kids will run around sticking them on the computers or the Xbox.
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Oct 14, 2010 22:21
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BetaTested posted:I don't know if I agree that gerbils don't need a wheel. Mine love the hell out of theirs. But it has a mesh floor, not a straight up wire one, so they haven't had a single issue with it.  Click here for the full 1024x768 image.  Click here for the full 1024x768 image.
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Oct 15, 2010 05:45
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Cosmic_Jester posted:Simply put, you take a length of fairly thick but bendable wire (I used flower arranging wire I got from Michaels)attach it to the base of the wheel with a thinner wire (also can be found at any craft or hardware shop)and suspend the wheel against the side of the cage with the newly attached wire. Thats pretty awesome, probably going to do that for my mice now. Thanks!
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Oct 15, 2010 19:53
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Hey guys, I have a gerbil related question... I've got two male gerbils, and I'm not so very sure how old they are (Got them from the local animal rescue fully grown about a year and a half ago...) but I'll guess about two. Recently my little brown fella (an internet guide told me it's called lilac?) gave me a mild cardiac arrest when we noticed a HUGE BLOODY MESS on his tummy. A frantic visit to the vet later, he has a scent gland tumor, which is normal(ish) for older males to get. The reason it was bloody was because he'd been chewing away at it, and scratching it. The vet strongly advised some serious thought before rushing into surgery, due to the risks associated with anestheia. He's happy as larry and acts like he always did, climbing, digging and being cute as hell, so we said we'd wait and see how he goes. She gave us some steroid gel to put on it to help relieve the itching and hopefully stop him from scratching it, possibly creating some kind of infection. So far he's been doing well, and no infections have shown up, but he still gets at it on some days and really goes to town and it's a bit distressing to see his belly smeared with blood! I'm wondering if anyone else has delt with this at all? How did it work out for you? Is there any way I can realistically stop him from biting at it? Or should I just keep doing what I'm doing so long as he's still happy and active? He and his brother are seriously the best little rodents I've ever owned. I've had russian dwarf hamsters before, and the revelation of gerbils was amazing. Everyone now loves 'gerbil gazing' where you lose HOURS just watching them do their thing.
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Oct 16, 2010 22:52
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redjenova posted:I've been looking into getting another tiny fuzzy friend, but I can't narrow down what I might want. I've had guinea pigs, mice and hamsters in the past, and I was interested in trying something new, but pretty much everything besides rats I've ruled out (ferrets, chinchillas, etc.). I live in a three bed three bath apartment, it's very spacious and roomy for an apartment, but I worry about having the room in my own personal space to get a big enough cage for a pair of rats so that they can be comfortable, where I can get something a bit more adequate for mice/hamsters or something of that nature. I was really curious about looking into mice because I had one back in the day that I really loved, but I can't seem to find much information about them on the forums. That being said, any suggestions or tips? It's much appreciated! I love my 2 mice, and I'm currently seeing about expanding their terrarium and getting a third. What would you like to know? My babies:  Click here for the full 855x570 image. Nox, my shy extreme black girl  Click here for the full 855x570 image. And Grix, the friendly and curious one
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Oct 25, 2010 08:38
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Cross post from the rat thread: ~*Super awesome mouse home*~  Click here for the full 855x570 image. Almost everything in here was found, re-purposed, or made by me. I live near a small beach where I find tons of driftwood which I oven-sanitize and give to my mice (and sometimes I give some to my friend who keeps birds and reptiles). I never bother with non-cardboard nest boxes since the girls seem to enjoy shredding them. Got the hanging bird toy there at Wal-Mart for $1. I have a bunch of thick hemp for making climbing things and a pile of extra drift wood that I need to get rid of if anyone wants any.
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Oct 25, 2010 21:37
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I wanted to get a furry buddy for a while. My living arrangements do not work for a dog or cat. After reading a lot of the rat faq I considered getting a pair of rats but decided against it because their life spans are fairly short. I read this thread and thought about a guinea pig or a gerbil, I think I am leaning towards a pig, I read the OP. I have a few questions: 1. Just how much do you think you spend taking care of your guinea pig in a month? 2. How long do most to guinea pigs live for? 3. Just how social to people are they? I've read a lot of conflicting information in the thread and general googling. Will they really require company or can they be happy alone? 4. How loud can they be? 5. Will they be disturbed by a television in the next room at moderate volume? 6. I work from home a lot. Would being in the same room as them for an extended period of time freak them out? 7. Discourage me. Tell me anything you think that is very important and undesirable about getting a guinea pig as a pet.
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Oct 26, 2010 17:47
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Has anyone every noticed an actual change in the length of life of a rodent that's bedded on softwood versus hardwood or paper-based bedding? I remember having lots of rodents as a child (gerbils and hamsters) and they didn't live very long (maximum a year and a half) That was probably because I was the primary caretaker of them and I was like, ten (stupid parents) but I wonder if the cedar shavings had anything to do with it. We have a mouse now that's over two years old, pet store stock. We had two others who died of a mysterious illness a few months after we got them. Our one remaining mouse has a huge tumor somewhere in her stomach - the vet thought it was her adrenal gland, explaining slight hair loss and increased water consumption - but other than that she's very active and seemingly healthy. She's far, far outlived any of the rodents I've owned previously. I read somewhere that the dangers of softwood bedding was only discovered when people noticed animals kept on paper outlived those on softwoods. It's hard to get pictures of things that are constantly moving.  Click here for the full 1024x768 image. Bagleworm fucked around with this message at 19:57 on Aug 31, 2011 |
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Oct 26, 2010 17:51
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Diogines posted:I wanted to get a furry buddy for a while. My living arrangements do not work for a dog or cat. After reading a lot of the rat faq I considered getting a pair of rats but decided against it because their life spans are fairly short. 1. Just how much do you think you spend taking care of your guinea pig in a month? A half an hour a day, twice a day. That includes daily salad prep, cage cleaning, and a weekly weighing. It doesn't include special trips for organic groceries or the yearly 3 hour drive to the state's only decent vet. Note that they cannot be left alone over a long weekend; the longest my guys can go without running out of water or food is about 24 hours. So even for short weekend trips I have to get a pet sitter. 2. How long do most to guinea pigs live for? 7-9 years, if you do it right. 3-5 years if you don't, and their deaths tend to be terrible. 3. Just how social to people are they? I've read a lot of conflicting information in the thread and general googling. Will they really require company or can they be happy alone? No, they will NOT be happy alone. They are highly gregarious and you should definitely get 2 or more. Their same-species social needs are a whole different issue from how social they are with people. Most pigs are interested in people only as sources of food. They can learn to tolerate and even enjoy cuddles and scritches, but for the most part they could care less about you as long as the food shows up on time. The most cuddlesome pigs I've ever had mostly loved cuddles because I provided a big warm place to snooze. 4. How loud can they be? Not very. They mostly vocalize when they think you have food. The annoying sounds come from them chewing on the bars or their hidy-houses, which is reduced by giving them enough space and a friend to entertain them. 5. Will they be disturbed by a television in the next room at moderate volume? No. 6. I work from home a lot. Would being in the same room as them for an extended period of time freak them out? Not at all. 7. Discourage me. Tell me anything you think that is very important and undesirable about getting a guinea pig as a pet. They need a huge cage; the things the pet store sells are completely unsuitable and lead to obesity, bumblefoot, and anal impaction. Their vet care is very expensive - you have to find an exotics specialist, which can be difficult, and they tend to charge in the ballpark of $250 for a basic yet thorough physical exam, which is needed once a year. They are prone to tooth and bladder problems unless you feed them a perfect diet. If they need tooth trims or bladder stone removal you could be looking at a thousand bucks easy. The hay that they eat is horribly dusty and tracks everywhere in your house. If you can't find the good hay locally, you may have to pay out the rear end to have it shipped to you. While they are entertaining pets to look at, they don't really give a poo poo about you unless you have food. Some pigs are always terrified of being handled and never grow out of it, so you never really get to enjoy them except for as a looking-at pet. So worst case, assuming you do it right even just out of guilt, you're looking at nearly a decade with a pet that doesn't like being petted, causes nothing but mess, inconvenience, and occasional financial trouble, in exchange for basically being a machine to turn your money into poop. I'd really recommend rats instead. The short lifespan is a blessing until you're CERTAIN this is the route you want to go. Alternatively, you can contact a guinea pig rescue and see about fostering for a while until you decide that you really want this.
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Oct 26, 2010 18:21
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Diogines posted:1. Just how much do you think you spend taking care of your guinea pig in a month? In strictly "taking care of" time, I clean their cage 1x a week and use a handvac to sweep up their poops every morning. So maybe 30min a week + 5min a day doing that. Take into account feeding them and really they need minimal time devoted to their care. Of course I hold them a lot, take them outside, etc etc which accounts for many more hours every month. Diogines posted:2. How long do most to guinea pigs live for? I've read figures that say 6-8 years but I've never had one live that long. My oldest ever in 10+ years of having pigs is 5, and she's still with me now. My average is probably 3-4years. Diogines posted:3. Just how social to people are they? I've read a lot of conflicting information in the thread and general googling. Will they really require company or can they be happy alone? If you get a guinea pig, you need to have at least two. They are much happier with other pigs since you aren't going to be able to give them attention 24/7. Don't even consider getting a pig unless you can take care of 2 or more. I've had plenty of pigs that were extremely social, loved being held and petted, would fall asleep in your lap. I've also had some that run away when you try to pet them and are very fidgety if you hold them. The latter have typically been pigs I've rescued who are a little older and haven't had much socialization with people when they were young or they were mistreated. Diogines posted:4. How loud can they be? They will squeak at you if they hear you getting a treat out for them, and at that point they can get pretty loud. Otherwise they are usually fairly quiet. Diogines posted:5. Will they be disturbed by a television in the next room at moderate volume? Not really. Diogines posted:6. I work from home a lot. Would being in the same room as them for an extended period of time freak them out? No, they would probably really enjoy it. Especially if you are coming and going and giving them attention. Diogines posted:7. Discourage me. Tell me anything you think that is very important and undesirable about getting a guinea pig as a pet. You'll get really attached to them and if one of them dies you'll feel terrible for the remaining pig and will have to get them another friend. Then the cycle will continue forever and you can never get rid of pigs. They also don't live that long and losing them can be heartbreaking. Every time I lose a pig my mom tries to talk me out of getting more but I just...can't.
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Oct 26, 2010 18:22
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Bagleworm posted:Has anyone every noticed an actual change in the length of life of a rodent that's bedded on softwood versus hardwood or paper-based bedding? I remember having lots of rodents as a child (gerbils and hamsters) and they didn't live very long (maximum a year and a half) That was probably because I was the primary caretaker of them and I was like, ten (stupid parents) but I wonder if the cedar shavings had anything to do with it. When I was a kid all of my rodents were kept on cedar. Looking back, they all had respiratory problems their entire lives and died early. There were a few exceptions, but most had severely reduced lifespans. Of course I didn't notice this at the time; I thought it was totally normal for hamsters to live a year, mice 6 months, and for rats to wheeze their heads off for months before inevitably dropping dead around 1-1.5 I was probably 12 or 13 before I found out about softwood toxicity, and immediately got my parents to start buying aspen or carefresh. There was an immediate difference in the health of my rodents- suddenly wheezing constantly was something to take a rat to the vet for, and no longer "something they just did!!!" I stopped keeping most rodents besides rats around then so I can't speak too much for those, but as far as my rats went, I noticed a huge affect on overall health and eventually, lifespan.
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Oct 26, 2010 18:32
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alucinor posted:2. How long do most to guinea pigs live for? Can you tell me what % of your pigs live that long? Just curious because I wonder if I just have terrible luck or all the pigs I end up with are just so overbred that their life spans are so much shorter than what I've read. I've always wondered this but don't have much of a way to test this theory.
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Oct 26, 2010 18:33
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Sirotan posted:Can you tell me what % of your pigs live that long? Just curious because I wonder if I just have terrible luck or all the pigs I end up with are just so overbred that their life spans are so much shorter than what I've read. I've always wondered this but don't have much of a way to test this theory. I can't give you an exact percent off the top of my head - in 10 years I've probably had 50+ pigs who died in my care - but it's pretty high. I've had a couple-three 9 year olds, several 8 year olds, and a couple dozen 7 year olds. A death at 5-6 is considered premature, in my house. I'll try to check my database sometime this week and come up with a better answer. But the folks on Guinea Lynx regularly report 7+ years as well, so it's not just me. However, I'll admit that I'm still an outlier. You have to consider that after all these years I can spot and diagnose an illness almost before it develops. About half the time I end up at the vet, it starts with a feeling that a pig is "off", with no further symptoms. Once we do have a treatable disease diagnosed, I provide better recuperative treatment at home than many vet clinics provide in-house, so my recovery rates are astronomical. Plus they all try to live forever just because they know it pisses me off. I do have a strong suspicion that males live longer than females, and also that altering increases lifespan - I've only got one girl who has made it past 7, and she's spayed. My intact girls have mostly died at 6 or so, my intact males tend to die at 7, the older ones have without exception been neutered males. If you've mostly had intact girls, that alone could account for the difference you're seeing. It also depends on what your pigs die of. Mine never die of stones or tooth problems because I catch those before it becomes a problem. But MOST of mine die of cancer, particularly lymphosarcoma, which is the one thing I can't prevent or treat, and that strikes at all ages. That does appear to run in populations so that could certainly be a factor for you as well.
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Oct 26, 2010 18:56
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alucinor posted:I do have a strong suspicion that males live longer than females, and also that altering increases lifespan - I've only got one girl who has made it past 7, and she's spayed. My intact girls have mostly died at 6 or so, my intact males tend to die at 7, the older ones have without exception been neutered males. If you've mostly had intact girls, that alone could account for the difference you're seeing. Hmm. Most of my pigs have been unaltered females so perhaps this could be one reason. I have definitely gotten better at diagnosing and treating pig illnesses over the years as well. Unfortunately my last pig (3yrs) that died pretty much dropped dead with no previous signs of illness (I didn't get a necropsy) and before that, one died in surgery while being spayed (1.5yrs). Fingers are crossed that my two current pigs will have long lives. One is already my oldest ever and the other had a rough upbringing and had been through 2 or 3 owners before I got her. She hates being handled and is completely silent.  She'll probably live forever.Oh hey and while we're chatting pigs, alucinor what do you usually do for enrichment/toys? Since they lost their cage mate my other pigs have just seemed a little bored. I've been giving them more floor time and have been rotating different tubes and tunnels in their cage but thought I'd see what other people do for pig toys.
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Oct 26, 2010 19:31
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Sirotan posted:One is already my oldest ever and the other had a rough upbringing and had been through 2 or 3 owners before I got her. She hates being handled and is completely silent. Quite probably. Back in summer 2005 I took in 30 pigs from a breeder who was threatening to dump them on the interstate. They'd been kept in horrible conditions - outdoors, in tiny boxes with around 10 pigs per 3 square feet of space, fed utter garbage. Surprisingly, several of them are still alive, although I'm down to just one of them myself. Tug was thought to be between 2 and 3 when he came in, which means he's at least 7 now. Total lardass and still in perfect health. Sirotan posted:Oh hey and while we're chatting pigs, alucinor what do you usually do for enrichment/toys? Most of the enrichment I provide is food based: I provide hay in multiple mangers, some easier to access than others; I sprinkle pellets in the bedding for foraging; and I don't chop up veggies. So they pretty much have to work to eat. Sometimes I'll stuff hay in a saltines box or paper bag and let them eat their way in. Additionally, I offer multiple cuddle cups and hidy houses in each cage, which I move around daily in relation to the food, so every day they have to spend some time re-establishing who gets the best place to snooze and eat. The biggest stimulation they have is their social environment. I use divided C&C cages - basically a 3'x7' enclosure divided in half for two pairs of pigs. That means there's always someone on the other side of the bars for a bored pig to rumble at. This seems to make a huge difference. I'm actually down to just four pigs now (lowest number since 2001!) and last month there was a brief period when I had two separate C&C cages, so neither pair could get right up to the other. I definitely noticed a reduction in activity during that time, followed by a marked increase once I got them moved into a single cage.
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Oct 26, 2010 19:54
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I clicker trained mine to keep his wee mind busy I also stuff veggies/hay in toilet paper tubes and fold the ends over to make it harder to get out. He's 8 now and still trucking. His buddy died at 6 though because my vet at the time said his tooth problems weren't treatable and it would be best to put him to sleep.
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Oct 26, 2010 20:03
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Okay I have a couple of REALLY stupid questions about pigs. The first is if it's normal for pigs to nibble at my fingers, even when they've known me for years. The second is if it's normal for the whites of their eyes to sometimes be visible. Every pig but my first has had those traits, so I'm just wondering if it's a matter of temperament + genetics.
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Oct 26, 2010 23:13
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Amorphous Blob posted:Okay I have a couple of REALLY stupid questions about pigs. Pigs nibble at your fingers because you are delicious. Fact.
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Oct 26, 2010 23:26
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Pigs nibble at fingers because they can't afford to ignore the extremely small but non-zero chance that in the ten seconds since they last nibbled at your fingers they may have turned into baby carrots. If you could map out your pig's brain, 95% of it would be labeled "Food" and the other 5% would be labeled "poo poo, run, it's a condor!". Understand that, and you will understand your pigs.
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Oct 27, 2010 02:19
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Bagleworm posted:Has anyone every noticed an actual change in the length of life of a rodent that's bedded on softwood versus hardwood or paper-based bedding?
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Oct 27, 2010 06:54
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kazmeyer posted:If you could map out your pig's brain, 95% of it would be labeled "Food" and the other 5% would be labeled "poo poo, run, it's a condor!". Understand that, and you will understand your pigs. This needs to be turned into a pig image macro like that rabbit one. It's the answer to pretty much all questions about pig behavior. Amorphous Blob: Yes, it's normal for the whites to sometimes be briefly visible, and also for them to get more visible as the pig ages.
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Oct 27, 2010 15:09
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I just have to say I've had a rough week, and reading about and looking at pictures of all your guinea pigs has totally made it better. I am not in a situation to get a couple of pigs right now, but one day I hope to be and I'll know what to do thanks to you guys! More pictures/anecdotes pleeease. Especially ones involving noises. Such adorable little fuzzy potatoes. PS: I had to youtube 'popcorning' and I am so glad I did. 
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Oct 28, 2010 14:00
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