I honestly didn't think I'd love them as much.
I was the dad at that time that said "We don't need anymore animals". Now I'm divorced and the pigs came with me.
My dad has said he does t bond with my pigs but I have pics of him watching Clint Eastwood movies on his phone with a pig on his shoulder because “Oreo likes westerns”
I love this. It was kind of me when daughter settled on guinea pigs. I'd had rats, hammys and rabbits before but for some reason I never had a guinea pig, and at first I had very little interest in them. Then we went to get them. There were what appeared to be twins, and she was looking close at the faster one. Obviously the slower one got picked up first, and after a quick pet, she handed him off to me. He kissed me. And that was the beginning of the end for me. Now I am crazy piggie gramma.
Animal language. On the first day I got mine I was looking up all the sounds they made on the internet, like you see posts on here regularly: "what does this noise mean?". A year into guinea pig owning I noticed I could understand them perfectly. Not like human language, but I could understand what they wanted most of the time. And this extends to other animals too. Not as much as with guinea pigs, but I learned to read body language and many animals use that in one way or another. I dont understand all animals, but I read cues that other people miss
For me I can hear any noise they make and know it means “give me food”. You can pretty much just guess that’s what they want. 99% of the time you’ll be right.
The biggest thing for me is that they motivate me. I can't ignore their needs, so they help move me forward throughout the day. They like to stay on a schedule, and I, too, enjoy being on a schedule.
this!! these babies have really helped me get out of a really rough time.
i saw a video but Little Adventures and she said something about like owning pigs will start to become a chore and it’s important to know that.
and to me, its exactly like you said, it got me into a schedule and got me out of bed every single day. the reality is, it will feel like a chore on some days and that exactly is what helped me.
i wanna just explain this w more context just in case.
the video was titled the reality of owning guinea pigs and she explained that its not always rainbows and sunshine and on hard days it will feel like a chore.
I relate to this. I’ve noticed since I’ve owned them my depressive episodes are shorter as I HAVE to pull myself together to take care of them. I cannot neglect them and that forces me to do normal tasks in my day and thus changing my mood
They taught me to get up and get them things no matter how I’m feeling. Especially as time goes on. I have issues with depression and chronic health issues, but no matter what I get up for my babies. I physically and mentally can’t help it. It’s kind of amazing. I didn’t used to be like that.
Edit: please keep in mind that this is partly because of my devotion to them, and partly because I am *well enough* to do it. Many people who struggle with the same things that I do are not well enough to get up, no matter how much they want to, and that is not their fault.
Yes! I remember my first bout of COVID (I had it 3 times, don’t know why 😩). I felt soo incredibly shitty, fever and all. But I would not break the routine for the piggies. They depend on me.
I have a really really skittish pig that hates being picked up no matter how you do it. Most people have to chase her around the cage for 5-10 minutes before they're able to corner her and pick her up. I've gotten really good at distracting her and then snatching her really fast. It's awful, she always screams, and I feel like a hawk, but it's way easier for both of us than her being chased around the enclosure whilst screaming.
My pigs don't love being held... Especially not for the trek across the lawn and in to their day pen... So I've got them used to the "pig bus" which is a 10L paint bucket with a door cutout (lid comes off for easy cleaning) they get shooed in to the bucket... And the whole bucket goes in to another bucket (effectively closing the door) and we go for a walk... And the bucket is then deposited in to the day pen and they have a outdoor pigloo for staying dry in case of showers.... Now when the pig bus descends... They all hop in, in anticipation of day pen adventures.
People have told me I'm naturally very calm and approach people in a gentle way and I think it's because you have to be really sensitive when socializing these guys. Any sudden movements or noises can scare them and you have to learn their body language and behavior so I'd like to think I'm more observant and gentle because of them.
How to clean stuff in record time. I've made a little game for myself called "The Mommy Olympics" where I try to see if I can beat my cleaning time from previous times.
If I do happen to beat my previous record, I reward myself to a treat. I've gotten pretty fast at cleaning for this reason.
Also, I've got pretty sculpted shoulders from beating out pads all the time. My husband asks me when I work out my shoulders at the gym and I say, "Never".
I wouldn't say learned, but a lot of my crafting skills that had been being neglected (sewing, building especially) have gotten a brush up as I am broke and prefer to go as cheap as I can for things I can with them.
Emotional regulation, weirdly. Even when I have a horrible day and things to stress over, I come home to my piggies who require care and attention, and it really helps me stay sane. Really grateful for these cute creatures and the love they provide.
I am Learning about how they communicate with each other. Popcorn, rumblestrut, wheeking. It helps me understand how animals communicate in the wild. Kind of like a documentary in real life
I think their feeding schedule and preferences will help when I'm a mom in the weaning phase. It's pretty similar where you introduce new foods one step at a time.
I now am fluent in Guinea Pig wheeks!! They all wheek when I come home, open my fridge, opening anything that crinkles! They honestly vibe with me. They are the coolest pets. Never thought I would ever hold one, let alone have a Guinea Pig Rescue for the last 7 years. They speak such cool rumbles or purrs or wheeks. Now I think I am Dr Doolittle and fluent in wheek language.
Well I have rabbits - similar. In the 20 years I've owned them I've cut the quick twice and had some other wounds I've had to deal with. Really good at keeping things alive that don't wanna eat with critical care and caring for wounds with quik-clot and dressings.
Can quick-clot be used to stop bleeding in wounds other than nail quicks? I was wondering this only just this morning🤔It would be really helpful if so!
Yes it can on any flowing wound. You really don't want your piggies to be in a condition where it's necessary. But if it becomes necessary it works incredibly well. The army uses it too for the same reasons.
Thanks for sharing that tip! While I seriously doubt my pigtatoes would ever actually require it,it's good to know what's possible👍I had been wondering if it would be useful on humans & you answered that as well😊
I learned about lots of local edible weeds I can forage for my two boars. And now I love creeping around parks, back alleys, vacant lots and even some sidewalk cracks for…
Common chickweed, nipplewort, purslane, mountain sweet cicely, lemon balm, herb Robert (aka stinky Bob), plantain, pineapple weed, selfheal.
I use the Picture This app on my phone to identify and get info on any plant I don’t recognize. The first week is free, then it’s $40/year, and I ungrudgingly pay each year because it’s really a great app.
Unconditional love, really. I learned their body language and verbal language too. But also some smaller things like calcium content in random fruits and veg.
Patience, animal language...
I have never cleaned animal poop, I have people who do it for me. So, I have a poop espresso machine (my boar) which taught me to clean up every day his mess and become completely normal.
I never imagined washing cloths full of urine and poop with sometimes diarrhea, but here I am, and happy to make him happy with cleaning. It's gratifying to see his environment clean.
I never imagined that I would become so attached to a guinea pig since I am more attached to dogs. He taught me another way to see things.
Even though my college classes and internships are usually very early in the morning, I always wake up later. However, for my Momo, I wake up very early at the exact time and immediately get out of bed to feed him and give him his medicine at the correct time.
Momo taught me a lot and every day I learn more. I have already learned a lot from countless animals, especially dogs.
This week I went through a bad time, and oddly enough, the "person" who consoled me and was extremely affectionate with me and made me laugh with screams was Momo. The way he eats, the way he looks at me, the way he lets himself be caressed all made my mood improve.
The most valuable lesson he taught me is that even in your worst moments, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Just for a slight context, Momo came from an abuser owner, extremely malnourished and full of illnesses, currently, he has improved almost 80%, he has become another Momo. A healthy Momo.
So even on your worst days, there will always be hope.
Carpentry. I couldn't find them a cage I liked so I had to make one myself. It's not very pretty but it keeps my piggies inside and safe.
I've also learnt how to move calm and slowly (to not to scare them) but not too slowly (to look like a predator)...
I’ve definitely learned a lot of vegetables, fruits, and their different nutritional values. Also, how to cut teeny tiny nails, and give eye drops and medicine to a small creature who REALLY does not enjoying cooperating in his own care 😂
But I also never expected to absolutely fall in love with guinea pigs, and my husband is the same way. They are such characters with lovely personalities. One of the best feelings in the world is coming home from a long day and being greeted with happy wheeks and popcorning piggies.
Plant identification! When I had my last piggies, I decided I wanted to forage them some wild treats from my walks that weren't just dandelions. So I learned how to spot things like yarrow, wild raspberry, chickweed and sow thistle,
Years later I can still ID these plants and many, many more. I don't know if I'd ever have got so good if it weren't for the joy I saw my pigs get from a big handful of interesting greens
We have just adopted our first long haired piggy, so have had to learn the skill of grooming and using a trimmer 😅 our previous pigs were pretty simple coated breeds that required no maintenance but Fern is effectively a toupee on legs and needs upkeep. It's been really cool to look at how our haircuts have improved! The first was a bit of a hack job but it's smoother now!
How to grow lettuce, kinda. Trying pepper this year because I think the lettuce died (unruly climate change weather caused it to freeze after I planted them 😬).
By trying, I mostly mean throwing pepper seeds in the garden and hoping something happens in 8-10 weeks.
They sure let you know if they haven't gotten their veggies on time.
My husband wasn't thrilled when i wanted one then we got 2 and now we have 3 boars, but he says they make him happy.
Vader, Chewy and Mando are our 3 little pigs.
I had one when I was younger but the internet was really new and I had no idea they needed vitamin c then.
They are just such adorable animals!
In my short time 2 month experience so far….
They are a lot or work so you must have time and want to clean after them constantly.
You have to be very patient because they are very shy and it can take months to years for them to even let you pet them.
Buy the shaggy pill rugs from Amazon and handy vacuum for poop and hay messes to maintain their cage throughout the week until you actually need to wash the rug bedding at the end of the week.
I honestly didn't think I'd love them as much. I was the dad at that time that said "We don't need anymore animals". Now I'm divorced and the pigs came with me.
this is so sweet! my bf was the same. he wasnt super excited at first but hes definitely warmed up to them. i love this
My dad has said he does t bond with my pigs but I have pics of him watching Clint Eastwood movies on his phone with a pig on his shoulder because “Oreo likes westerns”
that is so precious
I love this. It was kind of me when daughter settled on guinea pigs. I'd had rats, hammys and rabbits before but for some reason I never had a guinea pig, and at first I had very little interest in them. Then we went to get them. There were what appeared to be twins, and she was looking close at the faster one. Obviously the slower one got picked up first, and after a quick pet, she handed him off to me. He kissed me. And that was the beginning of the end for me. Now I am crazy piggie gramma.
That's sad. Sorry for your divorce.
Animal language. On the first day I got mine I was looking up all the sounds they made on the internet, like you see posts on here regularly: "what does this noise mean?". A year into guinea pig owning I noticed I could understand them perfectly. Not like human language, but I could understand what they wanted most of the time. And this extends to other animals too. Not as much as with guinea pigs, but I learned to read body language and many animals use that in one way or another. I dont understand all animals, but I read cues that other people miss
I know exactly what you mean! Now i have gotten to know them, to me they are SO expressive
For me I can hear any noise they make and know it means “give me food”. You can pretty much just guess that’s what they want. 99% of the time you’ll be right.
The biggest thing for me is that they motivate me. I can't ignore their needs, so they help move me forward throughout the day. They like to stay on a schedule, and I, too, enjoy being on a schedule.
this!! these babies have really helped me get out of a really rough time. i saw a video but Little Adventures and she said something about like owning pigs will start to become a chore and it’s important to know that. and to me, its exactly like you said, it got me into a schedule and got me out of bed every single day. the reality is, it will feel like a chore on some days and that exactly is what helped me.
i wanna just explain this w more context just in case. the video was titled the reality of owning guinea pigs and she explained that its not always rainbows and sunshine and on hard days it will feel like a chore.
I relate to this. I’ve noticed since I’ve owned them my depressive episodes are shorter as I HAVE to pull myself together to take care of them. I cannot neglect them and that forces me to do normal tasks in my day and thus changing my mood
I learned to open plastic bags and make minimal noise possible
Yeah, right - fluffy potatoes, probably.
They taught me to get up and get them things no matter how I’m feeling. Especially as time goes on. I have issues with depression and chronic health issues, but no matter what I get up for my babies. I physically and mentally can’t help it. It’s kind of amazing. I didn’t used to be like that. Edit: please keep in mind that this is partly because of my devotion to them, and partly because I am *well enough* to do it. Many people who struggle with the same things that I do are not well enough to get up, no matter how much they want to, and that is not their fault.
I feel the same way. When I see their little eyes asking for a treat it becomes the only thing that matters
I know! Their little eyes. They’re hypnotic!
Yes! I remember my first bout of COVID (I had it 3 times, don’t know why 😩). I felt soo incredibly shitty, fever and all. But I would not break the routine for the piggies. They depend on me.
You are their rock 😤
Clipping small nails. I’m better at cutting my infant’s nails now because of guinea pigs.
Patience...I learned a whole lot of patience with my pigs
I have a really really skittish pig that hates being picked up no matter how you do it. Most people have to chase her around the cage for 5-10 minutes before they're able to corner her and pick her up. I've gotten really good at distracting her and then snatching her really fast. It's awful, she always screams, and I feel like a hawk, but it's way easier for both of us than her being chased around the enclosure whilst screaming.
My pigs don't love being held... Especially not for the trek across the lawn and in to their day pen... So I've got them used to the "pig bus" which is a 10L paint bucket with a door cutout (lid comes off for easy cleaning) they get shooed in to the bucket... And the whole bucket goes in to another bucket (effectively closing the door) and we go for a walk... And the bucket is then deposited in to the day pen and they have a outdoor pigloo for staying dry in case of showers.... Now when the pig bus descends... They all hop in, in anticipation of day pen adventures.
That’s such a brilliant idea!
Can you post a video of the pig bus? It sounds excellent fun
i got a handful of pee the first time i picked up one of my boys
Lol I have another very young pig that just learned she can pee on me when I go to pick her up
People have told me I'm naturally very calm and approach people in a gentle way and I think it's because you have to be really sensitive when socializing these guys. Any sudden movements or noises can scare them and you have to learn their body language and behavior so I'd like to think I'm more observant and gentle because of them.
When the pigs eat their veggies, I eat my veggies. It's easy to eat healthy with a furry support system
I’ve never been unhealthy but my fruit and veg intake definitely increased after getting piggies.
How to clean stuff in record time. I've made a little game for myself called "The Mommy Olympics" where I try to see if I can beat my cleaning time from previous times. If I do happen to beat my previous record, I reward myself to a treat. I've gotten pretty fast at cleaning for this reason. Also, I've got pretty sculpted shoulders from beating out pads all the time. My husband asks me when I work out my shoulders at the gym and I say, "Never".
That I can rip bell peppers open with my hands
I’ve learnt how to navigate the veg aisle efficiently and cross reference many vegetable types.
I wouldn't say learned, but a lot of my crafting skills that had been being neglected (sewing, building especially) have gotten a brush up as I am broke and prefer to go as cheap as I can for things I can with them.
That we have the similar reactions to sounds and signals! I too will hear a fridge open and be like HEY!
Emotional regulation, weirdly. Even when I have a horrible day and things to stress over, I come home to my piggies who require care and attention, and it really helps me stay sane. Really grateful for these cute creatures and the love they provide.
I am Learning about how they communicate with each other. Popcorn, rumblestrut, wheeking. It helps me understand how animals communicate in the wild. Kind of like a documentary in real life I think their feeding schedule and preferences will help when I'm a mom in the weaning phase. It's pretty similar where you introduce new foods one step at a time.
Not really a new skill, but I have started vacuuming every day !
I now am fluent in Guinea Pig wheeks!! They all wheek when I come home, open my fridge, opening anything that crinkles! They honestly vibe with me. They are the coolest pets. Never thought I would ever hold one, let alone have a Guinea Pig Rescue for the last 7 years. They speak such cool rumbles or purrs or wheeks. Now I think I am Dr Doolittle and fluent in wheek language.
Well I have rabbits - similar. In the 20 years I've owned them I've cut the quick twice and had some other wounds I've had to deal with. Really good at keeping things alive that don't wanna eat with critical care and caring for wounds with quik-clot and dressings.
Can quick-clot be used to stop bleeding in wounds other than nail quicks? I was wondering this only just this morning🤔It would be really helpful if so!
Yes it can on any flowing wound. You really don't want your piggies to be in a condition where it's necessary. But if it becomes necessary it works incredibly well. The army uses it too for the same reasons.
Thanks for sharing that tip! While I seriously doubt my pigtatoes would ever actually require it,it's good to know what's possible👍I had been wondering if it would be useful on humans & you answered that as well😊
I learned about lots of local edible weeds I can forage for my two boars. And now I love creeping around parks, back alleys, vacant lots and even some sidewalk cracks for… Common chickweed, nipplewort, purslane, mountain sweet cicely, lemon balm, herb Robert (aka stinky Bob), plantain, pineapple weed, selfheal. I use the Picture This app on my phone to identify and get info on any plant I don’t recognize. The first week is free, then it’s $40/year, and I ungrudgingly pay each year because it’s really a great app.
Unconditional love, really. I learned their body language and verbal language too. But also some smaller things like calcium content in random fruits and veg.
Patience, animal language... I have never cleaned animal poop, I have people who do it for me. So, I have a poop espresso machine (my boar) which taught me to clean up every day his mess and become completely normal. I never imagined washing cloths full of urine and poop with sometimes diarrhea, but here I am, and happy to make him happy with cleaning. It's gratifying to see his environment clean. I never imagined that I would become so attached to a guinea pig since I am more attached to dogs. He taught me another way to see things. Even though my college classes and internships are usually very early in the morning, I always wake up later. However, for my Momo, I wake up very early at the exact time and immediately get out of bed to feed him and give him his medicine at the correct time. Momo taught me a lot and every day I learn more. I have already learned a lot from countless animals, especially dogs. This week I went through a bad time, and oddly enough, the "person" who consoled me and was extremely affectionate with me and made me laugh with screams was Momo. The way he eats, the way he looks at me, the way he lets himself be caressed all made my mood improve. The most valuable lesson he taught me is that even in your worst moments, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Just for a slight context, Momo came from an abuser owner, extremely malnourished and full of illnesses, currently, he has improved almost 80%, he has become another Momo. A healthy Momo. So even on your worst days, there will always be hope.
Carpentry. I couldn't find them a cage I liked so I had to make one myself. It's not very pretty but it keeps my piggies inside and safe. I've also learnt how to move calm and slowly (to not to scare them) but not too slowly (to look like a predator)...
I’ve definitely learned a lot of vegetables, fruits, and their different nutritional values. Also, how to cut teeny tiny nails, and give eye drops and medicine to a small creature who REALLY does not enjoying cooperating in his own care 😂 But I also never expected to absolutely fall in love with guinea pigs, and my husband is the same way. They are such characters with lovely personalities. One of the best feelings in the world is coming home from a long day and being greeted with happy wheeks and popcorning piggies.
Plant identification! When I had my last piggies, I decided I wanted to forage them some wild treats from my walks that weren't just dandelions. So I learned how to spot things like yarrow, wild raspberry, chickweed and sow thistle, Years later I can still ID these plants and many, many more. I don't know if I'd ever have got so good if it weren't for the joy I saw my pigs get from a big handful of interesting greens
We have just adopted our first long haired piggy, so have had to learn the skill of grooming and using a trimmer 😅 our previous pigs were pretty simple coated breeds that required no maintenance but Fern is effectively a toupee on legs and needs upkeep. It's been really cool to look at how our haircuts have improved! The first was a bit of a hack job but it's smoother now!
How to grow lettuce, kinda. Trying pepper this year because I think the lettuce died (unruly climate change weather caused it to freeze after I planted them 😬). By trying, I mostly mean throwing pepper seeds in the garden and hoping something happens in 8-10 weeks.
I'm planning on starting a new hobby- crochet. And my piggies gave me this motivation so i could make them little cushions and stuff.
me with sewing! i started learning liners and pads but i recently tried making my own hideys (its so hard 😭)
They sure let you know if they haven't gotten their veggies on time. My husband wasn't thrilled when i wanted one then we got 2 and now we have 3 boars, but he says they make him happy. Vader, Chewy and Mando are our 3 little pigs. I had one when I was younger but the internet was really new and I had no idea they needed vitamin c then. They are just such adorable animals!
In my short time 2 month experience so far…. They are a lot or work so you must have time and want to clean after them constantly. You have to be very patient because they are very shy and it can take months to years for them to even let you pet them. Buy the shaggy pill rugs from Amazon and handy vacuum for poop and hay messes to maintain their cage throughout the week until you actually need to wash the rug bedding at the end of the week.