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Carolina Cavies

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Carolina Cavies

This is an information resource page about guinea pig care. ADOPT. DON'T SHOP.

(Disclaimer: The contents of this page are for informational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional veterinarian advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your veterinarian with any questions you may have regarding the medical condition of your pet. Never disregard professional advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this page!)

09/11/2024

See how I boop da butt. Very demure. Very mindful. 🤣🤣

(GuineaDad crunchy condo and liner featured)

08/26/2024

Questions for the hive mind:
1) Does your vet ask if you want to be present with your pet during euthanasia?
2) If they don't ask, do they allow it if you ask them?
3) If they don't allow it, what is their reason?

08/23/2024

Today confirmed why I'm stepping away permanently from having guinea pigs. The number of competent guinea pig vets is seriously dwindling. My regular vet was out and I was forced to see the stand-in. Typically, we do x-rays and then we discuss. She takes the guinea pig back (not Coco) and she's gone for over 20 minutes. Next I hear my guinea pig screaming! I walk into their back area and the vet and two techs look at me like they've been doing something wrong. I tell them they are done doing WHATEVER and I just need to see the x-rays. I see the x-rays which confirm there is a stone in the bladder. At this point, I'm ready to discuss options. However, the Google AI nonsense that the vet regurgitated from her mouth made me shut her down and end the visit. I will wait to see my regular vet to continue the discussion. Guinea pig owners, please inform yourselves. Heck, ALL pet owners inform yourselves and DO NOT automatically defer to a vet's opinions. Peace out.

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08/17/2024

Thank you Miss Angels Farm for the mini ears of corn! They especially loved the soft, baby cobs inside. ❤️❤️❤️

08/09/2024

06/16/2024

6pm. Everyday. Without fail. They've trained me well. 😜

06/11/2024

Sorry I can't go.
My guinea pigs expect me home by 6pm.

06/02/2024

Happy Pride Month. We support love. ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

05/18/2024

Coco has BIG feet 🤣

05/12/2024

Blessings to Mother Earth and all our mothers.

05/03/2024

This applies to guinea pigs. I see this often when people put guinea pigs with cats or dogs. I even see it when people hold their guinea pigs ( E.g. "She loves being held, but hates being picked up."). People need to learn to observe and understand, NOT impose our thoughts and feelings on other beings.

FROM ORIGINAL POST:
"Prey animals like rabbits don’t usually show fear by screaming or crying or biting, but by simply freezing in place and hoping to be left alone. This is easily mistaken for calmness by well-meaning people.

People who find cottontail rabbit babies often describe them as calm, comfortable, friendly, and sweet. All too often, wildlife rehabilitators receive photos of baby rabbits snuggled in hands, pockets, and bras, with enthusiastic stories about how much they love to be held. These stories almost always end in tragedy, when the babies die of stress.
Animals don’t always communicate that they’re upset in the same way we do. "

People who find cottontail rabbit babies often describe them as calm, comfortable, friendly, and sweet. All too often, wildlife rehabilitators receive photos of baby rabbits snuggled in hands, pockets, and bras, with enthusiastic stories about how much they love to be held. These stories almost always end in tragedy, when the babies die of stress.

Animals don’t always communicate that they’re upset in the same way we do. Prey animals like rabbits don’t usually show fear by screaming or crying or biting, but by simply freezing in place and hoping to be left alone. This is easily mistaken for calmness by well-meaning people.

If you find a baby wild animal that appears to need help, don’t handle it any more than is absolutely necessary to transport the animal to a qualified rehabilitator. Otherwise, you risk causing serious harm through your good intentions.

05/03/2024

Truth

We absolutely owe them a duty of care 🥰
Guinea Days Art Studio by Tracey

04/17/2024

7 years ago, I rescued the Tribble twins - Tribbledee and Tribbledum. They were kept in a small 30"x20" "starter" cage that was crowded with a hide, hay feeder, water bottle, and bedding. They were just babies but could hardly move around the cage. The owner was a sweet, single mom who was about to move. She had posted an ad on Craigslist. Back then, I cared enough to warn people giving away guinea pigs about snake owners in search of fresh food., so i had reached out to her. Long story short, I went and got the twins.
Long-haired (much like no-haired) guinea pigs require much more care and no loose bedding. The long locks get matted easily and soaked with urine. I prefer to trim my twins instead of subjecting them to weekly baths and combing. I keep the undercarriage short all year round. I'll let their locks grow out in the winter, but they get a short do in the summer. Baths are restricted to butt cleaning when needed.

03/31/2024

*SOUND ON* 🤣😍

03/30/2024

Instead of buying a pet for your child, make a donation in your child's name to a pet rescue.

Donate to a rabbit rescue in a child's name. Don't buy a bunny for a child for Easter. http://www.teamfur.org/donate

03/29/2024

Thanks, Coco. 🤣 Happy Easter!

Happy Easter! 🤣🍫

03/24/2024

I got my commemorative tattoo honoring Coco and the other guinea pigs that I've helped in different ways over the years. As some of you know, Coco will be my last guinea pig for a while. I feel like he's the exclamation point at the end of this tale. The rescue journey was an Oscar winning tale with all the feels, the lowest of lows, and the highest of highs. I'm glad that I got to experience it, but I will not do it again. I don't know what the universe has in store for me after Coco, but I'm game.

03/20/2024

Please do not get a pet unless you are willing and able to devote the time, space, and money for their entire life. Animals are not toys or a lesson plan or a hobby. They are sentient beings like us.

With today being the first day of Spring and Easter less than a month away, many people start to think about getting a rabbit as a pet. To be more accurate, they don't actually think about it, they just fall for the "Easter bunny" hype and the entreaties of a child who promises to feed it very day, clean it out regularly and love it forever. Sadly, the reality of a living rabbit rarely matches the stereotype image of a cuddly bunny, and the vast majority of baby rabbits given as gifts at Easter do not live to see their first birthday. This year, please stick to stuffed toys and chocolate animals.

03/10/2024

DON'T IMPRISON YOUR PETS.
Try to put yourselves in their place and imagine living in a prison cell for 7 years. Look at the space that you've allowed for them.
- Can they run freely? If not, a few hours of floor time would be nice.
- If they share a cage, do they have room to get away from the other guinea pig?
- Can they easily move about the cage without knocking furniture and decorations over?
- Can the cage be enlarged over time?
BIGGER IS BETTER. 💖

03/09/2024

RESPONSIBLE FOREVER.
Not just until the kids lose interest.
Not just until the vet bill is too expensive.
Not just until your life circumstances change.
Not just until you get a new hobby or pet.
FOREVER. OR NEVER.

03/06/2024

🤣🤣🤣 These popped up in my memories feed. That time when Coco grew toilet paper rolls cuz of the global shortage. 🤣🤣🤣

03/04/2024

Starting to rebuild our vitamin d reserves from the scattered UVB rays under the cloudy sky on a warm spring day. Typically we'd be on the grass but it's a bit cool still for that and the ground is still wet. So they're enjoying some fresh cut chickweed.

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Videos

See how I boop da butt. Very demure. Very mindful. 🤣🤣 (GuineaDad crunchy condo and liner featured)

6pm. Everyday. Without fail. They've trained me well. 😜

*SOUND ON* 🤣😍

Teamwork makes the dream work! I love seeing these two grow closer and closer. 💖

Coco saves the day! 😜 Tribbledum got the treat ball wedged under the corner of a blanket, but Coco was able to dislodge it. I'm loving the dynamics between these two. 💖

HIGH DESERT TIMOTHY HAY REVIEW. We love it. I recommend ordering their 1st cut, instead of the 2nd cut for daily feed. Their 2nd cut is very leafy and low in fiber which may cause gastro issues for some guinea pigs. High Desert Small Animal Feed

I love how these two have truly bonded. There is no anxiety eating so close to each other. They respect each other's space and trust each other.

GUINEA PIGS HAVE A STRONG SENSE OF SMELL. In working on cohabitation for Dum and Coco, I really got to observe how much they rely on their sense of smell and their whiskers. I swear that they feel through their whiskers the way that we feel through our fingers. 🤔 However, their primary sense is definitely smell. Guinea pigs don't see well in general, and Dum is nearly blind (I think he can tell light from dark). So before I introduced the two boars to each other, I made sure that they knew my smell. With Coco moving at full speed and Dum not being able to see him coming, I would anticipate collision and SLOWLY put my hand protectively in front of Dum to make him pause in his tracks. Once Coco approaches to touch my hand, they can sniff each other through my fingers without fear of being attacked. This got them used to each other's smell (and presence) without negative association with defensive nips or sounds (chattering teeth, hissing).

I happened to catch this nice surprise on the Ring cam today: Tribbledum has learned to use the treat ball! 🥳😍 (Edit: I did not teach him. Coco did. I honestly didn't think Dum could get this, so I didn't bother. Now I'm wondering if it wasn't Coco who was teaching me tricks. 🤔)

Guinness World Records asked Coco and me to do a video presentation for their annual staff awards. I filmed the video and they subtitled Coco's speech. IT'S HILARIOUS!!!! 😆😂🤣

I made a TikTok. 🥳 I'm old - did I say that right?🤔 How'd I do? Better than Dum? 🤣🤣🤣

I just had to share another video of Coco "teaching" Dum how to roll the ball. Anyone want to script up the dialogue? 🤣

LOST IN SPAAAACE. 😁 Seriously, boys need lots of space. Studies of wild guinea pigs in Brazil showed that each male had a territory of around 9-10 THOUSAND square feet! My boys are fortunate to have an entire room, but each boar should get at least 7.5 square feet of open space (without hides, food bowls, hay feeders, etc) for comfortable cohabitation. At the very beginning of this video, you see Dum run into Coco. Dum is sight impaired and relies heavily on his sense of smell and sensory info from his whiskers. I had to teach Coco to not retaliate and that Dum wasn't bumping him maliciously to start a fight. And I had to teach Dum that Coco sniffing his butt wasn't malicious either. It's cute to see them interacting and giving each other space. I think Coco is trying to teach Dum to roll the treat ball. 🤣😍

TRUST. In order for me to teach these two guinea pigs to trust each other, I need them to trust me so I can transfer the trust. The hurdle here was Tribbledum. Dum is a cautious fellow and prefers to follow another guinea pig's lead. Dum lived with Rex, who withdrew his trust from me when I had him neutered. Rex taught Dum to avoid me and always be ready to bolt if I wasn't offering food. After Rex passed, I worked hard to gain Dum's trust by rewarding him if he took any interest in me, even if it was from several feet away. It's taken almost a year, but Dum will search me out for a treat and sometimes let's me approach him without taking flight.