Piggies in Paradise will be going on hiatus while I'm in Peru. You can follow my Peruvian adventures at 38 Days in Peru.

Not Much New

There hasn't been much going on with the piggies. I believe one or both are/were in heat, however, as they've been rather snippy with each other. I did manage to catch them being cuddly together at one point. 

They were both lying with their heads down, but moved when I tried to take the picture. I've managed to find a piggy sitter for my trip to Peru (if she doesn't fall through). I'm much happier having someone come in to take care of them then trying to move the cage and everything. I had to stock up on wood pellets since they are seasonal. Unfortunately, I don't have any place to store all the bags, so two are living in the hatch of my car right now.

I'm considering getting a canopy for the kitchen area. It's not very expensive, and may encourage them to do their business more in that area. I'll have to think about it a little more.

That's it for now. There just hasn't been much excitement now that the pups are gone.

Goodbyes and Pedicures

Oops. I thought I had posted part of this already but I guess I forgot. On March 16, I took the pups to Dr. Lewer so they could be re-homed. It was a little sad, but the cage is much less crowded and much less tense. Here they are being packed up.

Today was piggy spa day for Winnie and Morgause. They both needed brushed desperately and needed nails trimmed. Both were very well behaved.

Winnie has mellowed out quite a bit since the pups have gone. She still fights me when I pick her up, but she'll cuddle for much longer periods now. Not much else in piggy news. I expect things will be status quo here for awhile.

More Moving Piggies and Some Pre-Goodbyes

Sorry it's been awhile. End of term and all has kept me busy. The pups have grown nicely. So nicely that they are leaving me tomorrow. I will be taking them to Dr. Lewer in the morning. They are mighty adorable, but they cage is getting crowded and man, can they eat. I'll try to take some video as I pack them up. In the meantime, I forgot to post this. Here's how we move from cage to pen and back again.

PS. The babies actually will climb in by themselves now!

Piggies on the Move

So, I got a hair up my butt to do some rearranging this weekend. I moved my 2-ton desk from my office to the bedroom.

Which left me with a large open space in the office.

I had intended to make the play pen one large area, but then I got to thinking. I spend a lot of time in my office, temperature control is easier, and there is plenty of space for the cage. So, I moved the cage into the office and set up the pen in the living room. The pen is much easier to stow if needed, the piggies can be near me more often, I can move them into the pen if I spend an evening in the living room, and , when I throw a dinner party, I can shut the office door so the noise doesn't bother them. 

An unintended benefit seems to be that the adults are more comfortable is a more enclosed space. They have been chillaxin outside their hidie houses, which I've never seen them do. This is the best picture I could get. Morgause took off when I walked over with my cell phone. Winnie tensed up but stayed where she was.

I did sex check #3 today, and I'm still pretty sure both the pups are female. Between the squirming and the crying, it's hard to get a really good look at their parts. As we are moving into week 3, I'll have to keep an eye on them to check for mounting behavior. Assuming I am right and all goes well, I'll have them for two more weeks before rehomeing them.

Pups - 1 Week

Everyone is doing well. The pups are quick little squeakers! Bon-Bon is OK with sitting in my hand and letting me pet her. Truffle just cries, but I force affection on her for a few minutes. She obviously takes after her mamma. I checked them out again today, and I'm still fairly certain they are both female. I'll wait another week and check again.

As for the adults, they have both learned to get in the Cuddle Cup to travel from cage to pen and back again. Morgause is very good at this. Winnie is OK going from pen to cage, but not so much going from cage to pen. On the trip back today, they couldn't decide who was going to get in first! Winnie actually nipped me the other day when I was carrying her by hand. I just don't think she's going to be the cuddly type. Morgause, on the other hand, climbed up into the hollow of my shoulder the other night and laid there for about 45 minutes, happily purring away.

As you can see, nobody is shy when it's salad time.

Pup Progress

The pups are doing very well. Very much talkers and explorers I did an initial sexing today, and I *think* they are both female, but I'll check again in a couple of weeks. The older ones have taught the babies to chew on their houses, much to my chagrin. At least they don't do it at night. I have decided to name them Bon-Bon and Truffle for the time they are with me (see video to tell them apart). Although, I keep calling them my little gremlins since they are all legs and ears right now.

I've seen them nursing, which is great, also eating pellets and timothy. I give them a bit of alfalfa, but I'm not sure they're eating it. I've also seen one of them drink from a water bottle, so everything appears to be going well.

I'll leave you with this short video of everyone in their extended play pen.

A Valentine's Day Present

Well, two, actually. Winnie had her pups!

They are such wee little things, and already curious about everything.

Both are fine as far as I can tell, as is mama. I'll try to get some better pictures when I move everyone to clean the cage later today.

Pup-date: The Extended Version

So, to give a little more info. When Dr. Lewer walked into the exam room, the first thing he said was, "Apparently, I need an anatomy lesson." I assured him that I did not think he had mis-sexed Morgause. Winnie was too far along for that. Nevertheless, he reexamined Morgause then had three other vets check, too! He said she was either a very undeveloped male, or definitely female. In any case, he X-rayed Winnie to see if he could tell how far along she was. Ossification begins at about 50 days, so if the pups showed up on X-ray, she is at least seven weeks along. Obviously from my last post, they did. And her pelvis is spread so she could have them at any time. It's cool to feel and see them move. Dr. Lewer said to bring the pups in and he would find homes for them.

On a non-pregnancy note, Morgause climbed into the Cuddle Cup all on her own two days in a row when it was time to go back to the cage. I had not expected that at all! I thought it was a fluke the first time. It took a little coaxing the second time, but not much.

I had an early eye appointment this morning, so Morgause and I had some cuddle time.

Actually, I'm just trying to butter her up to clip he nails soon :)

Pup-date

I promised an update yesterday and forgot. Here it is: Two. 7-8 weeks. And I'll just leave this right here.

Padding, Play, and...Pups?!?

I received my second set of felt flipper covers/liners and put them in place today. Obviously, I am sticking to a secondary color scheme.

It was much easier to get the cage cleaned and turned around with a second set.

When I got the existing cage, I also got two felt strip balls for the girls to play with (you can see one in the picture above). One is in the cage and one is in the playpen. They get moved around, but I'd never seen either of the girls actually playing with one...until the other day. I had them in the pen, and I happened to glance over just in time to see Winnie rolling one around with her nose! She stopped as soon as I tried to take a picture, of course.

You can see Morgause being chill, and Winnie glaring at me for interrupting. You may notice something else about Winnie in that picture. Here, let me show you a couple more...

Looking a bit round, isn't she? Yes, dear friends, I am 99% sure those are puppy pouches. I'm taking her to see Dr. Lewer tomorrow for "confirmation," although I don't think it's necessary at this point. I'm still certain that Morgause is female. If I'm right, Winnie is about six weeks along, which means she was pregnant when I got her. If it turns out she is, the Humane Society will be getting a piece of my mind...and some guinea pig pups if I can't find anyone to adopt them. I'll update tomorrow after the vet visit.

Not Much to Update

There hasn't been much new going on. The girls are getting more relaxed around me, although they still scamper about when I need to pick them up. The neighbor girl is going to watch them (and the fish) while I'm in Peru this summer. I'm trying to figure out what to pay her. I think $10/day M-S and $20 on Sunday since the cage needs to be cleaned once a week. In preparation, I've ordered another set of Fleece Flippers so the cage cleaning will go a little faster. The bedding will still have to be washed, but the girls can go back in the cage immediately after it is cleaned rather than waiting for the bedding to get washed. I'll need to get a another fleece throw for the playpen as well.

Morgause is still the cuddler and Winnie the explorer. I was glad I had her in the Cuddle Cup last night. She was squirming so much I almost dropped her! I was considering ordering some more parts to the playpen to make it bigger, but they really don't do much running around in it so I think I'll wait to see what happens.

As I said, nothing very exciting happening in the piggie world, but here's a pick of salad time for your pleasure.

Finished Cage and a Surprise!

The cage is finally complete, storage bins and all.

They seem to be happy with it, and so am I so far. I'm still assessing the wood pellets in the kitchen area. I'll need to give it a few days to a week to know for sure.

Today in the mail (well, today is when I checked the mail), the girls got a surprise welcome card from the vet. They seemed to be happy about it.

We are still working on not being so skittish around me. They seem to be much less so when I feed them in the morning (go figure). Oh, speaking of, note the white crock with the salad in it. I found it cheap at Petco. Ceramic and heavy enough that they can't tip it over.

Piggy Checkup

I took the girls to the vet yesterday morning, just for a checkup and to confirm that they are indeed girls (they are). Dr. Lewer said they are the healthiest piggies he's ever seen! He couldn't even give me any advice on husbandry other than to keep doing what I'm doing. He did show me how to trim their nails. Both of them behaved very well, although Winnie would not let the vet tech look at her teeth. The office called this morning to let me know there are no internal parasites, so they are 100% healthy!

The Cuddle-E-Cups arrived the other day. They make it so much easier to carry the girls from the cage to the playpen. I thinks it's less stressful for them as well.

The Felt Flippers came in yesterday. I got them all washed and prepped last night, but I probably won't have a chance to install them until Saturday.

I guess I should link to where I've been getting everything. The cage and most of the paraphernalia came from Guinea Pig Cages and Guinea Pig Market. The Cuddle-E-Cups came from Doctors Foster and Smith.

The Felt Flippers are the last thing I have ordered. I do need to stop by Petco to get more bedding (for the kitchen area) and a salad crock, assuming they have something heavy enough. I'll post pics of the completed cage after I get the Felt Flippers in. Ciao for now!

New Digs

The new cage came in and is all setup. It takes up quite a bit of space in the living room, but that's OK.

I also got the playpen set up in my office so they can run around while I'm doing homework.

Of course, they do more sitting in a corner and eating hay than running around, but they are chattering more.

Winnie has figured out refrigerator door/bags opening means VEGGIES! She'll stand in the spot the salad bowl goes and whistle at me until I brink it back. They are now getting spinach, parsley, cilantro, and baby carrots. They are still both pretty skittish, but they are getting better. Winnie really does not like to be picked up. I'm hoping the cuddle cups that a due to be delivered today will help with that somewhat.

I did brush them both and they seemed to enjoy it tremendously, although Winnie will sit still for only so long on my lap. Again, I'm hoping the cuddle cups help. Milady de Winter has also decided that using the door of the hidie houses is beneath her. She will burrow under the side and lift it with her head to get out. I've even seen her go between houses that way. The felt flippers will but a stop to that, however.

More tomorrow after their vet appointment.

A Bit More Progess

They both came out this morning as I was filling their food dish. I'm not sure if it was timing or they are figuring out that the sound of the bag means food.

I made a vet appointment for them for next week. Probably not necessary, but I'd like to get them checked out just the same, as well as have them sexed by a vet. I tried, but they fought me, so I'd rather have them stressed out be a stranger than by me. I also want the vet to show me how to trim their nails since I am dealing with 5 dark feet (I'll let you ponder that one for a bit).

I received some supplies for their new cage today. Pictures after everything is setup, which will probably be Friday evening (cage is scheduled for delivery tomorrow). I'm considering whether or not to try a litter box, but I think I'll wait a bit on that. One thing at a time. I am going to try to brush them for the first time tonight during lap time. If they won't allow it, I'll wait until they become more acclimated to me and try again.

I need to by some veggies for them as well, since I know they are now eating. I'll add more than just carrots to their diet after the new cage is set up and there is more room to put food bowls. 

Winnie is definitely going to be the explorer. I'm going to have to watch her.

Introductions

First, I am a horrible blogger, so don't expect much. However, I want to share my experience with two new additions to my household:


Milady de Winter (Winnie)


Morgause

These two adopted me from the Heartland Humane Society on Saturday, January 2, 2016. I brought them home to an already-prepared cage and all the necessary supplies.



I'll catch you up to date as of yesterday. I quickly discovered the cage I have is too small, so I've ordered one specifically designed for guinea pigs from guineapigcages.com, as well as some other supplies, including a hand-vac (they are a messy pair).













The too small cage.


I have given them individual lap time a couple times a day. Until yesterday, however, they stayed in their hidie houses. For the first time yesterday, they both came out on their own to eat food and hay and to drink. I was very excited.


(Forgive the bad picture, I was trying to take it and not startle them).

Their play pen arrived yesterday. I'm still prepping a fleece blanket for it so they have not been in it yet. 



OK, that's the skinny so far. Updates as things happen.