DealDash Pets: Guinea Pigs
Guinea Pigs are adorable and can make a great pet for kids and adults. They are fairly easy to take care of, and can be lots of fun.
Guinea pigs are cute, cuddly, easy to care for, soft, expressive, and even make little squeals of delight when they are happy. Guinea pigs are a compact pet, weighing only about 1.5 – 2.5 pounds when full-grown, and measuring between 8 – 10 inches in length. They typically live approximately four to five years, but it’s possible for them to live as long as eight years. Guinea pigs only need a few supplies, and a lot of love and attention from their family members.
Here are the things that you will need to get started with your new Guinea pig friend:
- A house. There are many commercially available cages and condos out there. While Guinea pigs don’t need quite as much space as a larger pet, be sure to get as big a cage as space and budget allows, shoot for approximately 7 square feet. Also, there are two other things to look for in a cage; The tops must be open, as in there is space between the bars to permit easy air flow, and the bottom needs to be solid. It can be made of metal or plastic, but it absolutely cannot be wire, wire can hurt guinea pig feet and lead to infection.
- Water bowl or water bottle. A large heavy bowl works great, and as an added bonus you can just pop it right in the dishwasher when you are doing the dishes. use water bottles. Water bottles are designed to hang on the side of your cage and provide water from a metal spout. The spout contains ball bearings that prevent water from flowing unless they are actively moved out-of-the-way by your pet. These are not as easy to clean, but they are very popular with Guinea pig owners.
- Food bowl or dish. As with the water dish, a large heavy bowl works great.
- Shelter/Hutch. When guinea pigs are startled their natural instinct is to scurry into a dark, enclosed space. It’s therefore important to provide your guinea pig with some sort of covered shelter. You can get a very inexpensive plastic one at the pet store, but be sure that it doesn’t have a bottom on it, this will just get dirty.
- Bedding. Aspen wood shavings are fairly absorbent, easy to find, and safe for use with guinea pigs.
- Hay. Hay is a large part of a guinea pig’s diet and should be available all the time. Timothy hay is the best hay to give your guinea pig.
- Food pellets. Make sure that you get the food pellets specifically for guinea pigs and not other small animals.
DealDash often has animal supplies up for auction. DealDash carries dog, cat, bird, fish, and small animal supplies. Just click right here and it will take you to the area of DealDash where pet items are located. Good luck and happy bidding everyone!
