Yup, I fall into the trap again haha!
It all started during the MCO (Movement Control Order) period back in Mac-Apr, the tightest moment when everyone literally stayed at home. Hubby couldn't open shop so he stayed at home, almost died of boredom.
I was okay though coz: 1) I'm one of those excellent stay-at-home people, I have tonnes of things to do at home! 2) My work is home-based so... well, that explains it.
So, to ease hubby's boredom, I started talking about how I used to have guinea pigs as pets yadda yadda, then we both got excited. My excitement died down very fast but not him, in fact, he got more and more excited so I kinda yield to his interest lah.
Then I started seriously lecture him about the responsibility of rearing this piggies, what to expect, what to do on daily basis, what to do on weekly basis, what they eat, what to buy, budget, vet, etc, and he was like, "Okay babe, I'm ready! Just tell me what to do and I'll do it!"
Then, the movement restriction was lifted to a 'soft launch', that's when he could open his shop, and I reconfirm if he still wanted to get those piggies, and he was serious, so ok lah, start shopping for their stuff! For the first shopping spree, I bought the basic stuff: cage, bedding, and food (hay, pellet).
I decided to do things a little different this time than when I first had them back in 2011. Since we have a spare room in the house, we can house a big cage inside the room, which also means that I have to think about the bedding I want to use to make everyone's life easier.
I must say, things are so different now compared to last time: things are so much cheaper now, information is abundant (Facebook groups, Youtube, etc), more resources, etc. Cheaper stuff is the most important part lah haha, like so so much cheaper leh! There are so much more brands to choose from, online shopping has gotten easier and I'm spoiled with choices (unlike last time, I could only buy from either pet stores or online shopping-but only the branded stuff yikes)
Ok, back to the topic. The first change is the bedding. This time, instead of used shirts (because I don't have that much stock), I try the towel+fleece blanket layer bedding. I bought the cheap towels (RM1.90 per piece), and the fleece blanket is RM19.90 per piece. At first, I'm worried that the big cage = more cleaning, but nope, they only pee and poo at several specific locations so cleaning is easy! Plus, the towel and fleece are very absorbable, so there's no foul smell etc, which ease the cleaning and changing too. Fleece or cloth is very good to their little feet too so it's a win-win!
The second change is the dining area. I get the idea from the videos and suggestions that they use the litter tray for the dining area, which is the best idea ever! Guinea pigs love to shit where they eat, so 'surround' the area with a litter tray really ease the cleaning A LOT! I layer the litter tray with newspaper and husk pellet, so far, it doesn't smell, it doesn't get too dusty, superb absorbent, awesome!
Next: the piggies!
I bought them from a seller/breeder in Kedah for RM100. Hubby wanted a pair of females but it was really hard to get (according to the seller, even the litters he get from his sows are mostly male) so we settled for two males. We went to his place to see the piggies and we're lucky to find them. The white/choco was a month old but the beige was a newborn then, so we waited for a month to get them.
The piggies were very skittish (as expected), so the day as piggies parents started! Well, guinea pigs are good pets to start if you ever want to get started with having a pet (better in a pair coz they are social animals) because they are quite easy to take care of.
Hay is their staple food, then you have to refill their pellets and fresh veggies (I feed them twice, morning and night), their water. The cleaning is up to you, really. Back in the days when I was using the used clothes, it wasn't very absorbent so the smell was quite strong, I needed to change them every 2 days. But with the fleece/towel combo, there is no smell at all, so the daily cleaning is just sweeping up the poops then change the fleece once a week. Of course, there are many different cage setups from the other owners, so it's up to you on how to build their cage.
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Sleeping in his bowl! Cute!
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Sleeping together! Cute!
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Well, I have another idea for their 'beds': Bras!
I have quite a lot of used bras that I couldn't wear anymore, but I don't know what to do about them! Then, I came up with an idea - make them into piggie beds lol!
The piggies seem to love it as I saw them laying around, look very cozy and comfortable!
Hubby really lives up to his promise - which is to clean/sweep the poops every night after work and change the bedding every week, kudos to him! Well, he has to do it lah now since I'm pregnant - cannot exhaust myself!
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Look at his little stretchy feet! Cute!
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It's their first month with us, and so far so good! They are still very skittish around us but there are times when they just give up and let me pet them haha!
I hope my baby isn't allergy to them or their food lah please!
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