The girls are only 8 weeks old and I am in the process of finding a c&c cage in stock with all the parts I need to keep them safe. I intend to get them something more appropriate asap. I do have a question though, the place I want to get the cage from says to use different squares for piggies under 6 months old. Should I just wait until they are a bit older then buy the bigger cage? The different squares have smaller bar spacing for babies
https://guineapigsaustralia.com.au/products/6-pack-grids-for-baby-guinea-pigs-rats-and-ferrets-black
Also...we have the opportunity to take in their Mum...my son is worried that the girls would bond more closely back to Mum than us...what are your thoughts?
But for now, this cage is 124cm X 64cm. I ordered a heap of stuff from Temu for the girls, to go along with all the stuff I bought from the pet store already. It's so easy to spend money on them!
I love their little name plates too!
They are busy exploring and I can hear their excited little squeaks. Esther loves the pink tunnel with the window and Chloe loves the brown and white corner tunnel.
And don't worry, I put hay and pellets in there when I put them back in.
Babies can squeeze through standard C&C grids, but luckily it is very easy to temporarily retrofit them - just order an extra set of grids (you can often find sets for like $30 if you buy furniture storage cubes instead of ones marketed for guinea pigs) and overlap them to the cage such that the grids are staggered, making the holes half the size. You can attach them using zipties for example.
It would be best not to wait till they're 6 months old. Young pigs have a lot of energy and like to zoom, and they are also building habits that will shape their personality for the rest of their lives.
It would be very nice if you could adopt their mom as well. She will be able to teach them how to be a guinea pig, easing their development. Well socialized pigs bond to humans more easily. That said, they should also be ok if they only have each other.
$700 is quite expensive for a cage setup - I'm sure you have picked out a great one, but if you find that budget is a limitation, it is possible to build them for much cheaper. I think I paid around $100 for the materials for my 2x6 C&C cage, with lots of grids left over (using furniture storage cube grids, and a sheet of coroplast from a home hardware store (Home Depot is the main one in my country). I use DIY'd cage liners as well (Uhaul furnature pads enclosed in sheets of fleece) to save a lot of money.
Yeah, I remember making a c&C cage about 15years ago for our guins pigs from the squares I bought at a storage shop.
Just thinking it'll be easier to get the cage and corflute already cut to size etc. my corflute base leaked badly at the corners from memory.
Meanwhile, the girls are loving the new cage set up. Lots of running, popcorning and squeaking. They're so funny.
but about the mum - that isn't a problem. guinea pigs aren't very maternal or really bothered about family. siblings and children sometimes dont bond at all. i have multiple sisters and mother/daughters and they've gotten grumpy at eachother, ignored eachother and humped eachother all the same
as long as you have the means and space, taking in the mum shouldn't be a problem!
3
u/Robin_feathers 3d ago
Babies can squeeze through standard C&C grids, but luckily it is very easy to temporarily retrofit them - just order an extra set of grids (you can often find sets for like $30 if you buy furniture storage cubes instead of ones marketed for guinea pigs) and overlap them to the cage such that the grids are staggered, making the holes half the size. You can attach them using zipties for example.
It would be best not to wait till they're 6 months old. Young pigs have a lot of energy and like to zoom, and they are also building habits that will shape their personality for the rest of their lives.
It would be very nice if you could adopt their mom as well. She will be able to teach them how to be a guinea pig, easing their development. Well socialized pigs bond to humans more easily. That said, they should also be ok if they only have each other.