guinea pig mother & should I seperate from other pigs?

vulture

Hi I got two female guinea pigs about 6 weeks ago, a few days ago I thought one looked quite fat and today I have found a very cute baby pig in the hutch. Should I seperate the mother and baby from the other pig or leave them all together? I rember from when I was little that you seperate them from males but I am sure this guinea pig must have been pregnant before I got it and that the non mother pig is a female any advice please (other than rant at the pet shop)

helen01234

Yes you can very safely leave them together with no problems.

The mum and baby just now need lots of veg and hay and alfalfa is also very good for mums and babies.

Please keep a close eye on mum as she is probably far too young to have babies, and you need to watch her carefully to make sure she doesnt suddenley become ill or exhausted.

The other piggie is hopefully a girl as well, but I would get it checked out, just to make sure. Also please inform the pet shop that this has happened.

If you need any advice you can contact me- I am the founder of bramleycaviesrescue a guinea pig rescue so you can contact me through the website is you need any advice with the mum or baby :0) Good luck.

Paradigm

I may be wrong but aren't male pigs sexually active from around 3-4 weeks old??

If so & the baby is male then best get a bigger hutch

helen01234

Paradigm wrote: »

I may be wrong but aren't male pigs sexually active from around 3-4 weeks old??

If so & the baby is male then best get a bigger hutch

Male pigs are sexually active at 3 weeks old so if the baby is a male, you do need to sperate him from mum at 3 weeks old.

Helen

nikki702

3 weeks?? don't waste no time do they! lol

myshinycar

Hi
Yes boars can be sexually active from around 3 weeks hold. Sows come into season every 15-17 days or so.
Please make sure if it is a boar he is removed from Mum at the right time as back to back pregancies are not nice for the Mum.

It might be worth joining up to The Guinea Pig Forum if you have any more questions.

Sadly this is all too common in pet shop bought piggies

A guinea pig pregancy lasts around 9-10 weeks so if you have only had them 6 weeks then she was most likely pg before you got her. The pet shop may offer to take the baby off of your hands - but then they will just sell on profiting from their "mistake".

If it is that well known pet shop which are every where, then speak to the manager in store, in most cases they have provided additional housing free of charge.

I would double check the sex of them though as quite often pet shops get that wrong too. There is a very good guide on a website called Cavy Spirit - search Cavy Spirit Sexing and it will come up.

vulture

Thanks for everyones replies, I have now found that the pig that I thought was pregnant still is and is huge, the baby is from the other one that I didn't realise was pregnant! the guinea pigs are from an independant pet shop that has been trading in my town for 30 years. I can house another 1 or 2 guinea pigs but I am worried about the one that is pregnant I think there may be alot off babies in there and I am worried for her health.

pug_in_a_bed

Have a post on the guinea pig forum or guinealynx forum they may be able to help locate some local resuces for pigs. Alternatively, perhaps take her into the vets for some advice,
good luck:o

myshinycar

pug_in_a_bed wrote: »

Have a post on the guinea pig forum or guinealynx forum they may be able to help locate some local resuces for pigs. Alternatively, perhaps take her into the vets for some advice,
good luck:o

Great advice, a reputable rescue will properly vet new homes and make sure they get someone suitable. They will also be able to pair up any lone boars should there be one so that they don't end up living on their own.

Plenty of people on TGPF have gone through Pet Shop Piggy Pregnancies I definitely recommend joining up they'll be more than happy to help x

vulture

Another two guinea pigs have arrived this morning - not as bad as I feared if they are all females I think I should be able to accomadate them, I am thinking about getting a male neutured if there is 1 male but cannot really afford to get them all done, I would like to keep them as I know they would be well cared for I would hate to see them go to a place where they would be neglected.
Thanks for everyones help I have looked at your site helen01234 and what you are doing is fantastic I will have a look at TGPF later and I will look for rescue centres in my area just incase I have 3 males

chocdonuty

If there are three boys then you could split them up, having boys in one cage and girls in another, the bigger the better, depending on space of course, try googling c and c cages, several piggy owners swear by them