They Are Not an "Easy Starter Pet" for Kids

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Guinea pigs require a bit more care than a lot of other pets. They are small, but they are not a low maintenance pet. They are exotic animals that require consistent daily cleaning, a specialized diet, large habitats, daily attention and enrichment. This can make them a less than ideal pet for busy families, or individuals who are gone the majority of the time.

They are prey animals and that means they are naturally skittish and fearful of bigger animals and humans. It takes time and patience to build up trust. They will always run when you try to pick them up, which frustrates children and many adults that are looking for a "cuddly" pet. You have to work with them slowly on their terms, they are very much a "you get out what you put in" type of pet. Being a prey animal also means they hide illnesses, these illnesses can come on quickly and can require a costly trip to a special exotics vet. Not getting them immediate medical care can be deadly. Because they hide illness, they need an attentive caregiver that will notice small things that are out of character, things like not finishing favorite foods, or being quieter or lower energy than usual. This is another reason why we insist an adult be the primary caregiver. 

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They Need Unlimited Hay

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Hay makes up 80% of their diet and helps keep their GI tract healthy. It also keeps teeth from overgrowing. Make sure guinea pigs have a constant supply of timothy hay, orchard hay, or orchard timothy blended hay. If under 6 months old, pregnant or nursing, feed alfalfa too. 

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They Need a  Same Sex Friend

Guinea Pigs are a herd animals so having a friend is important to their health and well being. They won't bond with every pig though, so go through a rescue to make sure to get a good match! Most rescues will have single adoptable guinea pigs looking for a buddy, they can host a bonding session to make sure that the guinea pigs get along. If they don't want to share a cage, getting a grid mate is a great option! PLEASE do not house opposite sex guinea pigs together, we have more than enough unwanted guinea pigs out there. So many need homes, please adopt, don't shop!

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They Need a Large Indoor Cage

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A guinea pig's physiology is completely different than a rabbit or a rat and their habitat should be designed exclusively for their needs. They spend almost their entire lives in their habitat, please choose one that is best suited to the unique creatures that they are. They need at least 8 to 14 horizontal square feet of space. This gives guinea pigs plenty of room to exercise and helps keep them healthy and happy. C&C cages are ideal, light and bright with great ventilation. Pet store cages are too small. Guinea pigs housed in small cages are at risk of developing health issues like bumble foot, urinary tract infections, upper respiratory infections and arthritis. Rabbit hutches, aquariums and multi level rodent cages are not suitable for guinea pigs. Please read through our cage guide for more information and to see our cage requirements for adoption. 

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They Need A Special Vet

Not every vet can treat exotics, you'll need to find a special small animal exotic vet to treat your piggy. Piggies hide illness so please don't wait until it's too late to choose a suitable veterinarian for them. Veterinary care for a guinea pig is on par with dog or cat care. You can expect to spend around $1,000 for something like treating an upper respiratory infection. This requires a vet visit, x-rays, medication and often multiple follow up visits with more x-rays to monitor treatment. If your guinea pig needs more costly care like a surgery for an abscess removal or urinary stone, these procedures can cost between $3,000 and $5,000 dollars. We do want to be transparent about these costs. Not many people have a bottomless fund for vet expenses, but if the condition is treatable, you'll want to be able to provide that treatment and make sure there is no pain or suffering. You can also get pet insurance for guinea pigs.

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Please No Breeding​​​

Please don’t house guinea pigs with an intact mate! There are so many guinea pigs in need of homes throughout Southern California and intentionally breeding is irresponsible and contributes to the problem.​ Pregnancies are very risky for female guinea pigs. With so many pigs in the shelters who need a great home, we do not want to bring babies into the world. Female pigs can get pregnant as early as 3 weeks of age (and also immediately after giving birth), and male pigs can father litters at 3 weeks old. Separating pups at 3 weeks of age is critical in preventing unwanted pregnancies. A vet (or your local rescue) can help you determine gender.

Do not consider spaying/neutering a guinea pig to pair with a friend of the opposite sex. Spay/neuter surgeries for pigs are high risk, they often result in death and should only be considered under life-threatening circumstances, as diagnosed by a qualified cavy vet.

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​A Deep Dive Into Their Diet

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Visit our  Supply List  page for links to all of the items listed below.

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​Unlimited Hay: Guinea pigs should be free fed and have unlimited access to timothy or orchard hay 24/7. We tell adopters that if they have given hay and the piggies have eaten all of it or nearly all of it, you haven't givenenough. Unlimited hay should look like a small mountain.  Additionally using a large hay bag or a small cat litter box and keeping full at all times will ensure that your piggies never run out.

​Not feeding hay 24/7 will lead to a number of health issues, including overgrown teeth, GI stasis, diarrhea, anorexia and heart disease. Malnutrition can lead to an early death and guinea pigs have a difficult time bouncing back from periods of malnutrition. Hay cubes or blocks are not a substitution for long strand loose hay. We are big fans of buying hay in bulk. You can purchase 25-50 lb boxes online of Oxbow or Small Pet Select hay, or try your local feed store and purchase by the flake or bale. This can save guinea pig owners a lot of money.​

Plain Timothy Based Pellets: In addition to unlimited hay, guinea pigs should have high quality plain timothy based pellets. Nursing mamas and babies can have alfalfa based pellets. You can purchase "Young Adult" guinea pig food which will have the addition of alfalfa in it. 

*We understand the industry standard is 1/8 of pellets per piggy per day, however we recommend offering a full bowl of pellets. Most guinea pigs will not overeat. By feeding an 1/8 cup, which is two tablespoons of pellets, you run the risk of not feeding enough. By weighing your pig once a week, you can make an informed decision on how much pellets to feed based on your individual guinea pigs eating habits. If your piggie devours an entire bowl of pellets then you can limit the amount, but this is very rare as most guinea pigs will stick to hay being their primary source of sustenance. ​

Brands we recommend are Oxbow Essentials Cavy Cuisine Adult Guinea Pig Food, Oxbow Garden Select,

Oxbow Organic Bounty, Sherwood Small Pet Timothy pellet, and Small Pet Select.

*Please take care not to select rabbit or rat food as the bags look similar. Guinea pigs need food formulated for their unique nutritional needs. Pellets containing seeds, nuts or other colored bits are also extremely unhealthy for guinea pigs.  ​

*All of our adoptable guinea pigs are currently eating Oxbow Essentials Adult Guinea Pig Food.​

Fresh Vegetables: Guinea pigs also need about a cup green leafy veggies each day. Check out our Veggie Guide for a more detailed list of recommended veggies. With this list you can learn how to build your piggies daily salads as well as avoid veggies higher in calcium which can cause painful and often deadly bladder stones.​

Vitamin C: We recommend giving a vitamin C supplement to ensure piggies are getting the needed 25-50mg per day. We love the Oxbow vitamin C cookies as well as the Childlife liquid vitamin C. You can give your guinea pig 1 ML of liquid vitamin C per day from a syringe. Most guinea pigs love the liquid vitamin C because it is sweet. Please do not add vitamin C drops to their water bottle. This  contaminates the water and the vitamin C loses it's efficacy immediately. Lack of vitamin C can lead to life threatening scurvy, hair loss, brittle teeth and tooth loss, arthritis and more.​

Treats: Recommended treats include pea flakes, veggies and herbs, Oxbow and Kaytee timothy based fruit & veggie treats, Forage mix is also a nice treat you can sprinkle into the hay pile or feed by hand. 

Never feed yogurt drops, salt and mineral licks, seeds, nuts, or treats and foods containing any of those.