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Post by amber89 on Jun 16, 2019 18:21:29 GMT
Hey! Finally decided to do a thread for my own trio. You might know already my 3 piggies: Pufu, the castrated boar, and his two wives, Marshmallow and Cupcake. Pufu came to us on the 19th of January together with our late Muffin and is estimated to be around 2 years old. Cupcake came to us on the 8th of March and she is a bit over 5 months old. Marshmallow is our newest arrival, on the 27th of April and she is estimated to be around 1 year old. They live all indoors, on fleece bedding, on 4.5 sq meters. That's my Pufu(lete) aka Furry Potato, Fat Hamster, Lazy Piggy or Superman   Marshmallow/Margie/Little Monkey/Bad Hair Piggy    And the baby of the group, Cupcake aka Cappy, Toothless, Little Dragon, Little Devil   And this are a few pics of my late Muffin, sometimes called also Old Chicken, Idefix, Fluffy    I will post more pics soon, including with the girl's summer haircuts. |
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Post by bazookagoof on Jun 16, 2019 18:34:14 GMT
Splendid pics! 
(I have a hard time deciding who I like best!)
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Post by amber89 on Jun 16, 2019 19:09:45 GMT
Thanks!
As a piggy-mom i shouldn't have favourites...
Each of them is sweet in their own way
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Post by Bean on Jun 17, 2019 7:36:38 GMT
Such adorable pigs! The photo with Marshmallow's little legs sticking out is a killer!
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Post by amber89 on Jun 17, 2019 13:37:44 GMT
Yeah, Marshmallow is my very special outstreched-back-legs piggy.
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Post by bazookagoof on Jun 17, 2019 17:30:37 GMT
Thanks! As a piggy-mom i shouldn't have favourites... Each of them is sweet in their own way I usually don't play favorites, but my Oscar was around the longest, so I tended to favor him slightly. |
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Post by 3piggles on Jun 17, 2019 20:40:31 GMT
Absolutely gorgeous, all three of them. I love Pufu's markings. He has the coolest face I've seen, and I had one girl with a half-and-half black/white face. Totally cool I will always love the black piggies, though, as my bestest ever piggy was black, and I still miss him with all my heart. You've got a great little herd of gorgeous guineas  |
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Post by amber89 on Jun 18, 2019 13:41:13 GMT
Pufu is really how one would imagine a furry potato, especially since he put on some weight and got a bit more rounder. Don't worry, he's not fat, checked him with a vet . But, since i got him from the shelter he's put around 150g. Now he's finally stable. Since you were saying about his face, the eye on the black side of his face has a red-ish colour in the light. My husband and I really caught the piggy bug. We are thinking to adopt another female  First we want to get rid of this fungal infection that has reappeared here. Now it's Pufu the one bugged by it. This time we have chosen the treatment that requires bathing every 3 days, since we had such a bad experience with the oral medication. We are half-way through the treatment, but once that is finished we will probably actively start looking for getting an additional piggy. |
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Post by 3piggles on Jun 18, 2019 17:04:28 GMT
I had a Teddy girl with a skin fungus, and she had to be bathed every day. Wet her, lather her with the shampoo, wait 10 minutes, then rinse her. I took leaves off the celery, so I could feed her a steady supply of leaves for 10 minutes, while I talked to her and kept her company. She was such a sweet girl, never complained or tried to get out of the sink, and loved being wrapped in a warm towel afterward, and held, petted and talked to until she dried Make the most of the treatment time. It's a great bonding time Yes, I'd say you have the piggy bug |
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Post by amber89 on Jun 18, 2019 18:32:21 GMT
Actually, Pufu hates it and he also hates the towel wrapped around him he runs out of it as soon as he can.
It's a nightmare to catch him...though after two weeks i have developed a different strategy, less stressful for him.
But this constant contact has damaged our relationship quite badly...whenever i step into their cage, for cleaning or catching them, Pufu runs into a house and immediately starts teeth chattering at me. He never actually bit me, but last time during the bathing he tried to bite me. Luckily i saw it coming...but this whole thing is taking a toll on him.
He still takes veggies from my hand, so we are not yet at square one...but it's tense everything.
I am happy that at least it's summer and very warm. I keep him in the transporter for around half an hour to an hour, and even if he is not completely dry, i let him together with the girls...he is calmer with them. I just take care that there is no draft blowing through the room, turn off the ventilator and close the window.
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Post by Bean on Jun 19, 2019 4:44:14 GMT
Sorry that Pufu has a fungal problem which needs treatment that he hates. Hopefully it will soon be over and you can go back to being his friend.
And you're already thinking of expanding too?! You've certainly got the bug!
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Post by 3piggles on Jun 20, 2019 5:19:18 GMT
Try taking Pufu out of the cage just for a snuggle and a bit of a food treat. I don't handle my girls a lot, but I will take them out periodically, just for that. That way they don't always equate being picked up with getting their nails trimmed or something else they don't like.
I know what you mean about the whole process being stressful for them. I have a way of sort of corralling them in my arm, and scooping them up so their hands and feet are secure. It works for me, as I have back problems and can't do a lot of chasing after them.
How much longer does he have to get the baths?
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Post by amber89 on Jun 20, 2019 7:59:34 GMT
Try taking Pufu out of the cage just for a snuggle and a bit of a food treat. I don't handle my girls a lot, but I will take them out periodically, just for that. That way they don't always equate being picked up with getting their nails trimmed or something else they don't like. I know what you mean about the whole process being stressful for them. I have a way of sort of corralling them in my arm, and scooping them up so their hands and feet are secure. It works for me, as I have back problems and can't do a lot of chasing after them. How much longer does he have to get the baths? i will try that. Maybe like that it will be a bit better for them. I see how many differences there are between the English-speaking countries and the German-speaking ones...here it's so much told that one shouldn't pick up the piggies, that they are not toys and that they should be left in peace. He has another 2 weeks of treatment. I really hope that the fungus will be gone by then. |
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Post by 3piggles on Jun 20, 2019 19:29:46 GMT
The English-speaking countries, and some others, like Japan, seem to think pets should be treated as children, dressed in the same clothes, given matching furniture, and fed all sorts of silly things because the humans like the look of pellets with colored bits in them. We can buy salt licks and other things pets shouldn't have. Then we fight any attempts to give animals equal rights, at least in the US, because acknowledging them as sentient beings would mean would couldn't abuse and slaughter them as we choose  I have always petted and picked up my pigs, but I don't make a big deal out of it. They have their habitat, which they love, and are happy being piggies there. I do need to periodically check that no one has any physical problems I can't see without picking them up, so I periodically just give each a snuggle, and good petting, and some treats. Using the way I do to pick them up means they aren't scared. The running away part is a game as much as anything with them. I think, as long as we respect them and their needs, they respect us. Since I always have an open cage, putting them back in the cage is just a matter of letting them walk down my arm to the cage on their own terms. Try to find the method that works best for you and the pigs, and getting them out of the cage won't be such an ordeal. |
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Post by Bean on Jun 21, 2019 7:09:17 GMT
You can see where the hands off advice has come from - a reaction to the people who baby them and do loads of stuff they think is cute but the animals hate. Being left with their own kind in a great habitat would be preferable to that!
But you can have great bonds with guinea pigs, and some of us should be a given a bit of credit to respond to their individual needs.
I have (and have had) pigs who love coming out and interacting - they actively seek it out (and not just for food haha!). I've had others who will tolerate it, but really prefer to be left be, so I just handle them enough to know I can clip their nails and health check them without it being stressful.
I'm quite sure that you're capable of deciding what's best for your pigs, Amber - you're a great piggy parent and your pigs are luck to have you!
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Post by amber89 on Jun 21, 2019 7:44:59 GMT
Thanks! For now, my piggies seem to prefer to be let alone. They are curious and would come towards my hand, smelling it, but the moment i try to pet them slightly they back away. I was trying the more gentle version, with trying to pet them on their own territory, while holding a piece of cucumber, but so far, their fear is bigger than their hunger, which is a sign for me that they prefer their own space. All our piggies, except Cupcake, had previous owners that I believe didn't really take good care of them. Muffin, Marsh and Pufu were found at the waste disposal area in a cardboard box/plastic bag in the middle of winter. Cupcake was born at a rescue, from extremely neglected parents. So i suppose that their history also makes them extremely cautious when it comes to humans. Muffin was the tamest of them...she was at the stage where sometimes we were able to pet her inside of the cage, without her running away. When she was having enough, she would back away slowly. A classic picture with my piggies. Fighting for food is pretty much every day occurring   |
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Post by bazookagoof on Jun 21, 2019 18:14:10 GMT
A classic picture with my piggies. Fighting for food is pretty much every day occurring I always worry about my guys hurting each other, so I keep them in their own separate cages. But this way food gets parceled out in equal amounts, so everybody always gets their share.
If I knew I could get away with it, I'd let them tug it out for cucumber slices as well. |
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Post by amber89 on Jun 21, 2019 18:25:32 GMT
So far, there were no fights, like real fights, between my piggies. An occasional tug-a-war over some veggies happen all the time, but that's the most.
Cupcake though, started recently to challenge Marshmallow...she is ruble strutting, wiggling her butt, not giving up her veggies so easily anymore and so on...It seems that she finally has that mean streak and challenging authority...you know teenagers. Honestly i was expecting it to happen already earlier, at least 1 month earlier.
Anyway, Pufu is always around to separate the girls, though it never got really heated. And the girls still play a lot together. Also, if Marsh is too annoyed by Cup, she simply goes upstairs.
I am simply spreading the veggies across the whole area of the cage, in that everyone has a chance to get what they need and they also get to do some movement. It feels more like foraging for food. They first have to find it. I also like to put it on top of houses or bridges, so that they really work for it a bit.
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Post by bazookagoof on Jun 21, 2019 19:02:20 GMT
I am simply spreading the veggies across the whole area of the cage, in that everyone has a chance to get what they need and they also get to do some movement. It feels more like foraging for food. They first have to find it. I also like to put it on top of houses or bridges, so that they really work for it a bit. My guys are always alert when it's snack time- they wait by the cage doors when treats are coming, so they'd never let me scatter it around! It's funny to see them lean forward, searching for their favorite veggies on the serving plate. |
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Post by amber89 on Jun 21, 2019 19:07:11 GMT
I am simply spreading the veggies across the whole area of the cage, in that everyone has a chance to get what they need and they also get to do some movement. It feels more like foraging for food. They first have to find it. I also like to put it on top of houses or bridges, so that they really work for it a bit. My guys are always alert when it's snack time- they wait by the cage doors when treats are coming, so they'd never let me scatter it around! It's funny to see them lean forward, searching for their favorite veggies on the serving plate. Oh, don't worry, mine are always super alert. Marsh is even waiting on her back legs, waiting to be the first one getting a veggie piece. I am then usually giving each a piece and the rest I scatter while they are busy eating what they got. Hihi |
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