Selecting and buying your guinea pig

Selecting and Buying Your Guinea Pig
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Amanda_Toop]Amanda Toop

How Much Should I expect to Spend?

The average guinea pig purchased at a pet store should cost between $5 and $15 per guinea pig. If you purchase a guinea pig from a breeder (or choose a long haired guinea pig) you could end up spending closer to $45 per guinea pig.

An average cage will cost between $30 and $60 if you purchase it in a pet supply store. If you choose to make your own cage this can be done for as little as $35.

Expect to spend up to $15 on grooming tools.

Food (vegetables) and pellets should cost around $10 per bag.

Hay is relatively inexpensive. Expect to pay $5-10 per bag and remember while hay doesn't spoil, if you use it as bedding you will need to switch it out once per week.

How many Guinea Pigs Should I Start With?

If you are just getting started with guinea pigs your natural inclination might be to start with a single guinea pig. In fact this is not that uncommon. Unfortunately many people do not know that guinea pigs are social creatures and much happier in groups of two or more. Like people, guinea pigs are looking for other guinea pigs to play and share their day with. If you try to raise a single guinea pig alone you will have to provide them all the attention and social interaction yourself, which you can never fully replicate. This means you will need to spend more time playing and petting. While enjoyable you need to ask yourself if this will really fit with your lifestyle or work schedule as you cannot keep your guinea pig company while away from home. A single guinea pig will lack the social interaction and attention necessary to stay happy and as a result their health can suffer. For this reason we strongly recommend you select a playmate and partner for your guinea pig.

Male or Female? Single or Mixed Groups?

Female guinea pigs tend to be more agreeable and less active than males. Male guinea pigs are known to have more energy and require more activity. Many people believe that due to their competitive nature, male guinea pigs will cause problems and fight. This is not necessarily the case. If you place two male guinea pigs in a cage that is too small there will be a problem with fighting as the creatures are not able to establish harmonious territories. However if you place two males in a cage with a female, problems are guaranteed.

Each male will fight for the dominant position as this is a danger to both the males and the female trapped in the cage. One dominance is determined, the weaker male will be deprived food and water by the dominant male. If you do not remove the second male from the cage at this point, starvation can occur. Females will also fight for dominance but these fights will seldom reach the level of violence described above. So what works best? Well a single male and female actually get along best with each other as there are no fights for dominance BUT...well then there's the issue of puppies as the guinea pigs are likely to breed. When you consider the fact that females are fertile every 18 days, a litter is carried around two months...in a year you could have dozens of guinea pigs.

Note: Even though the pet store you visit will likely have dozens of cages of guinea pigs and we know its tempting to go from cage to cage selecting - please, if buying more than one - get them all from the same cage. Litter mates are much less likely to fight and much more likely to get along.

Amanda is a lifelong guinea pig lover. For more great tips on buying a guinea pig, visit http://guineapigresource.com/where-to-get-your-new-guinea-pig/

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