Guinea Pig Playmate?

Question

I found my guinea pig, she IS ALIVE. Me and my mother were talking about getting her a playmate, she asked me to do some research, but before I do, I wanted to get people's opinion. Should the playmate be male or female!? Should (s)he be the exact same age as Francheska (the guinea pig) - 1yr. 2 months old. Should (s)he be the same breed (dutch)?

Answer 1

same s*x or you will have more piggies, same breed is ok, close to her age or just a liiiitle younger is good. Does not have to be same breed. before you introduce the new piggie, clean out the enclosure really well....spray it down *once empty* with windex to remove all odors, let dry. Wipe down with a damp rag to remove ammonia, then re-set enclosure in a way that may be unfamiliar to to your current piggie, then put both in together.

WHat this does is level the playing field for both and give them neutral ground to build a relationship on. No one pig will have her scent all over everything.

Good luck!

Answer 2

You found her?? That means you lost her... I don't think you should get a second if you can't keep up with the first.

Answer 3

Guinea pigs are social so a companion would be welcome.

Get the same s*x, in your case a female.  DON"T BREED! There are already of ton of unwanted guinea pigs in shelters needing homes- we dont need to add to that mix.

Answer 4

yes!~!~!~

Answer 5

Well done for wanting to get your piggie a playmate!

Guinea pigs aer a social species and NEED the company of their own kind. It is totally unnatural for them to live alone. A single piggie is more likely to be bored and lonely, more fearful, will be less active etc. A pair of piggies will be much happier and probably healthier. It is well known scientific fact that keeping social species in isolation (i.e. without same species companionship) causes a whole host of health and welfare problems.

Firstly - please do not put an "entire" female with an "entire" male as they will breed! You really don't want this for lots of reasons.

Generally breeding is very risky - the sow has a 1 in 5 chance of dying through complications. There are already more guinea pigs than homes - with piggies languishing in shelters and being destroyed because nobody wants them etc.

Secondly, your female is far too old for her first litter. If a female piggie has not been bred by around 7-8 months old she goes through pubic symphisis and she will suffer from dystocia at parturition. This means she will not be able to birth naturally and will need a caesarian section. This is expensive - and the female rarely survives.

You should therefore get your piggie a female companion, or a neutered male.

I would strongly suggest adopting your new piggies from a reputable rescue. Not only will you be safer a life but it is less risky! Many pet stoer piggies are sick, already pregnant, or mise-sexed. So you could buy a "female" which later turns out to be male, and your current piggie would end up dying through the birth.

With a decent rescue you are unlikely to get a mis-sexed animal, and they may well have single neutered males available looking for a girlfriend.

Either a female or a neutered male will make an excellent companion.

Age is not such a problem with females. It can help if you adopt a younger piggie so it seems less of a threat, although most females are quite easy to introduce and get along fine. Generally, whether you get a female or a neutered male I wouldn't worry too much about age.

Breed is totally irrelevant! They are all the same species, breeds are really just different colour or coat varieties so it makes absolutely no difference.

Bear in mind that successful introductions need to be done properly.

Do NOT just put a new guinea pig into your current piggies cage as she will try to defend her territory from the intruder!

Piggies should be introduced on neutral territory.

The easiest way is to get a whole new cage (c+c cages are the best, and really cheap and easy to make).

You can just put both piggies into the brand new cage at the same time.

If you have to use your existing cage, remove your guinea pig and clean it thoroughly - the floor, bars, toys, everything! You want to remove all the smells.

You should then be able to put both piggies into it with too much trouble.

When you introduce new piggies they will squabble a bit at first because they need to establish dominance.

You should expect to see chasing, mounting, nosebutting, squeeking and rumblestrutting (they walk funny and make a purring noise).

This is all completely normal!

When you introduce them, put them together and let them get on with it.

Do NOT put them together for a little while, then separate, then put them back together etc. They will have to re-establish dominance every time so it is completely pointless!

You should ONLY separate them if they actually draw blood - otherwise leave them to sort it out for themselves.

As a rule, females are pretty tolerant and easy to pair so hopefully you won't have any problems.

Good luck!

Answer 6

get a male, itll be fun and intresting to watch, make sure hes the same age and maybe a bit older

Answer 7

If you want to breed her, I would get a male that is the same breed. But if you just want her to have a friend then a get a female and a different breed would be nice that way you can see the differences between the two. The same age is better, if one is older than the other it might cause conflict.

Answer 8

Male guinea pigs will automatically mate, which you don't want. Breed doesn't matter. The same age would be better if one dies earlier, then you'd have to buy another playmate.

Answer 9

guinea pigs dont really need another one there, they dont really "play" you just have to spend some time each day with them, like any other pet

Answer 10

well it's more likely that they'll get alone with a baby guinea pig and a adult guinea pig if u get a male for her then u should newture it which often will cause females to be bossy to newtured males

Answer 11

Usually when you have two females, they don't get along very well.  When you have a male and female, they mate a lot.  When you have two males they tend to get along.

CAUTION:

If your guinea pig has babies, do not let the father near them or he will kill them.

Answer 12

assuming Francheska is a girl you should get her a female playmate. If it was a male they would mate and probably have little baby guinea pigs. I don't know for certain but i don't think they have to be the same age. the breed don't matter.

Answer 13

Did you lose your guinea pig in the first place? If so, why are you considering getting another one?

If you do get another one, please adopt, Do not buy from a pet store! Guinea pigs do better in herds, two or more are fine. While they don't 'play' like dogs & cats do, they do like the company.

Get another female, same age or younger would be the easiest to introduce to Francheska. If you get a male, please get him neutered. Doesn't matter if they are the same breed.

Keep the new one quarantined for two-three weeks so you can spot any illnesses in the new piggie & get him/her treated. You wouldn't want Francheska to get sick.

When your ready to do introductions, introduce them on neutral territory. Make sure you have a big enough cage (minimum cage size requirements for 2 guinea pigs is 7.5 square feet) and clean everything with vinegar as to remove Francheskas smell. Rearrange the whole cage so it is new to both of them.