Butters and Pepper - newbie introduction
Hi guinea lynxers, I've been lurking around a little bit and i decided to be part of the forum since I'm going to be a guinea pig owner for a long time now. I'm new to guinea pigs, about 2 months now, and I'm from southeast Asia. I'm lucky to have adopted my piggies from an ex-breeder who no longer wanted to take care of these little fellows. I'll start this first post by introducing the 2 little girls I brought home (I tried to pick the ones I find thinner or in more need for a new home).
First, we have Butters. When I was there, I immediately fell in love with her. She looked lanky and thin. She had dry skin around her ears. She had this curly fur that I was curious about. The guy told me she's a skinny gene carrier, which I found to be called Lakeland guinea pig later on. I didn't care much about the breed, but when I carried her she was calm and inquisitive and she licked my fingers and I thought okay she's the one. My girlfriend liked her instantly too.
Anyway, this was the picture the guy sent to me afterwards. Look at her curls. :)
This was her first day at home with me and my girlfriend, already eating out from our hands! I also brought her to the vet to get her dry skin checked.
A month after, she had totally lost her curls, her hair became wiry and and more fluffy but not like a Teddy or Rex, but smoother. She loves tomatoes and red bell peppers. She's quite choosy on her food, she refuses to eat junk food sometimes. :)
This is her melting onto the fleece. She's become quite comfortable outside her hide and always welcome getting pet or handled.
The next little girl is Pepper. She's slightly younger than Butters and has a snubby, kissable nose. 🖤 She's so thin and small among her cage buddies (in the same cage as Butters and 10 others). She was skittish and had the crazy huge eye balls whenever I handled her but my girlfriend seemed to be able to calm her down. I figured she might get bullied being the smallest there. There were a few that looked almost a year old in the same cage.
This was her when I was there (yes, they were kept outdoors in those bunny cages). Look at her flappy ears!
She also went to the vet for a check. The vet gave them some ivermectin for the parasites. When she's home, I figured she's cold and she was really calm covered in her fleece blanket.
Her favorite food are carrots, lettuce and just about anything. She loves some grapes as snacks but I don't feed her too much. I'm so glad that she's a glutton during handfeed session. It's a joy looking at her eat.
After a month, she's now a fatty pig. :)
She's getting calmer when handled as well. Here's a proof.
I would love to hear more about Lakeland guinea pigs if anyone has more info. I couldn't find much about them online. Do they have sensitive skin like a skinny pig? It's always summer here in southeast Asia. Do they lose their hair over time? Do they mature slower than the usual guinea pig? Any special care for Lakelands?
First, we have Butters. When I was there, I immediately fell in love with her. She looked lanky and thin. She had dry skin around her ears. She had this curly fur that I was curious about. The guy told me she's a skinny gene carrier, which I found to be called Lakeland guinea pig later on. I didn't care much about the breed, but when I carried her she was calm and inquisitive and she licked my fingers and I thought okay she's the one. My girlfriend liked her instantly too.
Anyway, this was the picture the guy sent to me afterwards. Look at her curls. :)
This was her first day at home with me and my girlfriend, already eating out from our hands! I also brought her to the vet to get her dry skin checked.
A month after, she had totally lost her curls, her hair became wiry and and more fluffy but not like a Teddy or Rex, but smoother. She loves tomatoes and red bell peppers. She's quite choosy on her food, she refuses to eat junk food sometimes. :)
This is her melting onto the fleece. She's become quite comfortable outside her hide and always welcome getting pet or handled.
The next little girl is Pepper. She's slightly younger than Butters and has a snubby, kissable nose. 🖤 She's so thin and small among her cage buddies (in the same cage as Butters and 10 others). She was skittish and had the crazy huge eye balls whenever I handled her but my girlfriend seemed to be able to calm her down. I figured she might get bullied being the smallest there. There were a few that looked almost a year old in the same cage.
This was her when I was there (yes, they were kept outdoors in those bunny cages). Look at her flappy ears!
She also went to the vet for a check. The vet gave them some ivermectin for the parasites. When she's home, I figured she's cold and she was really calm covered in her fleece blanket.
Her favorite food are carrots, lettuce and just about anything. She loves some grapes as snacks but I don't feed her too much. I'm so glad that she's a glutton during handfeed session. It's a joy looking at her eat.
After a month, she's now a fatty pig. :)
She's getting calmer when handled as well. Here's a proof.
I would love to hear more about Lakeland guinea pigs if anyone has more info. I couldn't find much about them online. Do they have sensitive skin like a skinny pig? It's always summer here in southeast Asia. Do they lose their hair over time? Do they mature slower than the usual guinea pig? Any special care for Lakelands?
- Lynx
- Celebrate!!!
I don't know anything about Lakeland guinea pigs but I must say, your guinea pigs are absolutely adorable! You have caught some wonderful pictures. They are so luck to have such attentive owners!
If you want to evaluate their body condition, you can read over the guidelines on this page and follow the advice of the vet who wrote me:
www.guinealynx.info/weigh.html
If you want to evaluate their body condition, you can read over the guidelines on this page and follow the advice of the vet who wrote me:
www.guinealynx.info/weigh.html
I also want to compliment you on your gorgeous guineas! You should be SO proud of nursing Pepper back to health from her earlier, malnourished upbringing. (In the first picture you posted, I could've sworn she was a bunny.) I am so glad to hear she loves eating! :)
Thank you guys! I'm getting obsessed to these piggies. :)
A question, I am trying so hard to fatten these girls up. Pepper is 3 months old now and weigh 400 grams while Butters is 3.5 months old and weigh 500 grams. Are they underweight? I give them unlimited alfalfa hay and a bit of alfalfa pellets for now until they are older. I give them lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes and capsicum twice in the am and pm, about a handful per serving. My friend's piggies on full pellets and hay diet weigh 550 grams at 2 months old!
A question, I am trying so hard to fatten these girls up. Pepper is 3 months old now and weigh 400 grams while Butters is 3.5 months old and weigh 500 grams. Are they underweight? I give them unlimited alfalfa hay and a bit of alfalfa pellets for now until they are older. I give them lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes and capsicum twice in the am and pm, about a handful per serving. My friend's piggies on full pellets and hay diet weigh 550 grams at 2 months old!
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- And got the T-shirt
Guinea pigs are no more the same size and weight than humans are, and certainly don't have to weigh the same at a particular age. Your pig are fine, except that they don't need both alfalfa hay AND alfalfa pellets. What they need is a calcium source, either the pellets or the hay will work fine for that. They should be getting unlimited pellets until they're six months old, so I'd switch to a grass hay, such as timothy or orchard or meadow.
Don't overdo the veggies -- they're far less important to the diet than the hay and the pellets. And pigs can come to prefer veggies to hay, leading to overgrown teeth and expensive dental problems.
Don't overdo the veggies -- they're far less important to the diet than the hay and the pellets. And pigs can come to prefer veggies to hay, leading to overgrown teeth and expensive dental problems.