Guinea Pig Help Please!?

Question

i just got her a few days ago.

she's really jittery. like when i come near her and like move a certain way she run back into her little house thing. but she seems like she's getting more comfortable with that.

and another thing, i know that guinea pigs are more active in the day but she's laying down every 30 min. or so, and right now she's laying down and it seems like she's breathing pretty quickly. should i be alarmed.. if so what should i do...

1. yes i got her from a petstore. it was petco.

and 2. she's had fruit and calcium and water and hay and ive given her everything she needs.

Answer 1

first give her time,and maybe she is breathing quickly because she is nervous and yes guinea pigs are active at day but they do rest sometimes and remember they dont only need fruits and calcium but they need vitamin c from vegetables like carrots,broccoli,cucumber,etc,and they may show you that they are not receiving enough vitamin c by being weak and acting depressed,wish you luck

Answer 2

Its normal for Guinea Pigs to be afraid of their owners at first, but she might be sick. You should take her to the vet, to make sure nothing is wrong with her. She might be sick because you got her from PetCo. Lots of rodents at pet stores are diseased due to mistreatment and lack of space.

Do not feed guinea pigs food that is rich in calcium! It does not benefit them, as you might think, but extra calcium  hurts them.

Answer 3

Guinea pigs are prey animals and that instinct has not been bred out of them. They will run even if they trust you. I suggest holding her. She has been with you a few days so she has had time to adjust. The more you hold her, the more she will trust you. She may always run, but if you hold her, she will get used to you being around and be less scared. Give her veggies while holding her if she will eat them.

Next time, skip the petstore. Those come from backyard breeders and mills, which do not care about the animals health.

Look into adopting a friend for her. Most piggies do better with a piggy friend.

If you are giving her vitamin c drops, stop immediately. They do nothing once exposed to light and they change the taste of the water, which can deter a piggy from drinking.

Here are a couple of websites I recommend joining.

www.guinealynx.com

www.guineapigcages.com

If you only want to join one, the second one will probably fit you better as a person new to owning guinea pigs.

Veggies are better than fruit for your piggy, less sugar. Try red leaf lettuce, romaine, green leaf, cilantro, parsley. the sites above have veggie charts to help you with more.

Kale is a good source of vitamin c, and spinach is a good source of calcium, but feed them in low quantities, they can cause sludge(beginning of stones) if fed too much.

Answer 4

If you get her a frind she will be much more relaxed. In the wild guinea pigs lived in herds, and domesticated guines pigs live longer happier and fuller lives with a buddy. It will also take her a few days to settel into her new enviornment.=)

Answer 5

it is normal for your guinea pig to run back into its house ive had guinea pigs and they would always do that . after a while  it wont do that unless it heres like a loud noise and guinea pigs do sleep like that normally they kinda sleep like cats its kinda like  there taking little cat naps

Answer 6

I would call the pet store and ask them what they think. Something does  not sound right here. How old is she? The younger they are the more they will sleep. Is she eating and drinking ok? It will take time and patience to get her used to you and to not be afraid. If she keeps sleeping in excess and does not eat and drink right or gets diarrhea then I would call a vet that sees exotics such as birds, snakes, small mammals and see what they say. Good luck

Answer 7

some guinea pigs are very aware of people just like my two. I'm sure that if you handle her everyday she will warm up to you and will soon come to you. Don't think though that when she warms up to you you will be able to stroke her because they rarely ever like being stroked because they will just run off!  I hoped this helped!!!