Before getting a guinea pig, consider this.
If you come in and anounce to your family you just got a guinea pig, NO one will be pleased.
You probably don't have any supplies!
You know NOTHING about a guinea pig.
Supplies
Cage: Get a cage that dosn't have a wire bottom, has a slide-out part, (So you don't have to take the whole cage to change it) And a big door that is easy to open.
Bedding: You need a bedding that is perferably cheap & odor obsorbing. You should clean the cage about once a week and the corner that the guinea pig goes in every day. (Use a scoop)
Food and water bowls: Use a clay bowl so that they won't knock it over and use a drinking bottle (beacause it won't get messy)
Grooming & nail cutting: You should get a brush that won't be to hard on the guinea pig's sensitive skin and get nail clippers.
Other: You don't need to go to the vet unless the guinea pig gets sick. You also need a salt lick. For treats you can use Carrots, lettuce, parsly, most fruits, and dry bread. Your guinea pig also needs somthing to chew on. A fruit tree branch is good for this.
Setting up home sweet home
To start get the cage in a place away from drafts and other animal places. (Like cat litter box, dog food bowls, or somwhere that other pets will come) Fill the cage with about 1 inch of bedding and put in water bottle, food bowl and small log. (fill the food bowl and water bottle)
getting a guinea pig
You need to look for a healthy guinea pig. Look for: eyes are clear, not watery. Ears are clean, no little black dots. (bugs) Nose is clean, free of discharge. "Behind" clean. Skin is clean, no bugs. Hair is clean, no bare patches. Nails are short, not bleeding Cage is clean. Companins are not sick. If they are, do not buy the guinea pig from that cage. Age is between 6 and 11 weeks. Do not choose a guinea pig that seems to have no energy. Healthy guinea pigs are up and playing with there cagemates.
After getting a guinea pig
first few days
Day 1-2: Start by talking quitly to your new pet. That way it will start getting used to your voice, so later on you can train it to come.
Day 3: Offer it a little bit of vegetable or fruit from your hand. If it is a girl, they are more shy than males are. If he-she dosn't take the food in 2 or 3 minuetes, leave the food for them. Start petting it. If it seems like it is very interested in you, you can gently try picking it up. If they scurry away when you put your hand in, continue this insrtuction for another day.
Day 4-7: Continue picking the guinea pig up and talking to it once or twice a day.
A week +: Pick it up and talk to it. You can do this up to 6 times a day, if you think it's ready for that.
Training
To potty-train them, it's best to start by taking them out of the cage for only a few minutes at a time and letting them run around on the ground. Put them back in there cage, and wait for them to pee. after they do this, bring them back out. If you see your guinea pig get anxious on the floor, back into corners or perform other pre-toilet activities, put them back in their cage, and then reward them with a treat after they pee before letting them back out again. Eventually, they will get the idea that the cage is for peeing and the carpet is for playing. Most guinea pigs learn quickly that the cage is a safe place, and as a general rule, they will litter in familiar teritory. This does make potty training easier, provided you never let them establish a litter spot somewhere on the carpet in the corner of your room. If you opt to let them roam the house, or part of it, at will, it is inevitable that you will have a few accidents. Some well-placed litter pans can reduce, if not eliminate all of these.
Tricks
To train them to stand, come, and wheep, read on!
Standing: Start by getting lettuce or somthing and put it about 3-4 inches up from the guinea pigs nose. Say "stand" firmly. If they don't stand, tap the treat on the guinea pig's nose and raise it again. If the guinea pig stand up,reward it by giving it the treat. Do this for a week or so until the pig learn to stand just when you put you hand up and say "stand".
Coming: to start, sit on the floor with your legs in a v. Put a treat in the triangle that your legs make. Put the guinea pig on the floor about a foot away from the treat. Say "Come" and his name. (Like, Come Puppy!) and gently tap your hands on the ground. Continue this until the guinea pig can come from across the room.
Wheeping: First get a paper bag and crinkle it while coming to the guinea pig to feed it. (Note, some guinea pigs wheep naturally when being fed or talked to) Keep doing this until the guinea pig wheeps when a paper bag is crinkled up.
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