Guinea Pigs/s Wanted in Limerick

Topcat1234

Hi there,

I was wondering if anybody had any unwanted Guinea Pig/s and were looking for homes for them. I had one before but couldnt keep him because of our cat. The cat has sadly passed on now so im considering getting some more Guinea Pigs. If anybody is in the situation where they need to find a new home for one or two id really like to hear from you...

Cheers, Jay......

mymo

Have you tried calling a few rescues?
My friend got a pair from a local rescue, they were only a few months old and a bit skittish, but now they're really tame and love being handled.

morganafay

Try Limerick Animal Welfare, I've heard they have guinea pigs sometimes. Or try other shelters and ask if they have them.

If you can't find any ones that need rehoming, then I'd definitely try a breeder before a pet shop. But if you can only find ones in pet shops then try to find a really good pet shop. If you wanted to go all the way to cork then MaxiZoo in Midleton is meant to be good.

loveisdivine

Please do not get any guinea pigs from breeders or from pet shops. There are plenty of piggies out there in rescues and such looking for loving homes, they can just be abit hard to find sometimes.

You could try looking on something like gumtree.ie, I often see pigs there in need of a more caring and loving home, but unfortunately I dont have the room to take on anymore.

Oh and lastly please get 2 piggies if you can, they are much much happier when they have company, a lone pig will need hours of attention for it to come out of its shell and it will never be the same as when kept with piggie friends.

Seeing the two play and live with one another is also more fun for us

Sigma Force

There's L.A.W. as mentioned not sure if they have any piggies atm they do tend to get in more rabbits.
There's also the irish guinea pig forum, and also if you can stick a notice in your local vets, sometimes vets have owners handing them in unwanted guineas to be pts :-(

Sometimes there doesn't seem to be any guineas looking for homes then all of a sudden there's a ton of them.

morganafay

Yeah definitely look on gumtree/donedeal etc. for people giving them away if they can't look after them anymore, or if their ones had babies. You don't see them around too much though . . .

Check out irishguinea pigs forum but it's kinda dead now. You could post a guinea pigs wanted post, and see if someone responds. Or post on gumtree that you're looking for some.

Topcat1234

Hi guys, thanks for the replies. I checked Gumtree but nothing there lately. I was about to give limerick Animal Welfare a call but was able to message them through Facebook so ill see if i get a positive reply. if in the mean time anybody comes across and homeless Guinea Pigs please feel free to write me...cheers..

Topcat1234

Rang L.A.W and they said they rarely get in guinea Pigs. I telephoned Pet mania on the Ballysimon Road and they said they retail at 25euros each. Is that not a bit expensive for a Guinea Pig??? MMmmmmmm..........

morganafay

No, 25-30 is normal for a pet shop. In Sully's they are 30, in MaxiZoo they're 25. Breeders sell them cheaper, about €10-15, maybe more for a rare breed or colour.

morganafay

There's a breeder in tipperary I think, who seems good, if you are interested. I don't know her but she's on a forum I'm on, google "squeaks and beaks" and she has guinea pigs at the moment.

Rabbitandcavy

Going to a decent breeder is much, much better then going to a pet shop where you have no idea what conditions the animals came from. You could end up with sick animals or by buying from a pet shop, supporting an awful breeder that supplies to pet shops. Good breeders are happy to give you lots of information on proper guinea pig care, and you can contact them at any time for more information or if you have a problem/question. Some will also take back the guinea pigs if you can no longer keep them any more.

If you can't find some looking for a home online, or at a shelter/rescue then a decent breeder is where to go next.

Sigma Force

Some free ads will have guineas as said but just make sure the guineas are 100% healthy before you consider taking them.
Don't offer money for them in case there are problems later on, if you are offering a good home and the owners need to 'get rid' of their piggies you are doing them a favour some people would be very relieved to find a good home but it can take a bit of time.

If the housing comes with then obviously if they are looking for a little bit towards the housing then that's different.

morganafay

And some people might not want to give them away for free in case they become snake food or something . . .

I definitely agree with rabbitandcavy about bad pet shops, I bought my two female guinea pigs in pet shops (couldn't find them anywhere else and I had a lonely guinea pig who needed friends!). One was pregnant and one had mange, which she passed on to my 7 year old guinea pig, which was bad. I made the mistake of thinking, if they look healthy and the cages are clean, it's ok. Also the one with mange was housed with an adult male, the shop couldn't tell me which was male or female so I checked!

coco_lola

not sure if you'd be willing to travel that far, but I got mine in The Pet Barn in Newcastlewest, I always got mine from them as the staff really care about the animals, its a very small shop and they dont have a lot of animals in there, but the ones they have are well looked after. I got my two from there at 11 months for €15 each, and the cage I think was €30 or so, all in all the whole lot cost me about €80 for food cage and the two pigs I think. Give them a ring anyway!

I should add that they were in great condition, and the local vet there (Ill have to check his name for you again) if you wanted to get them checked while you're there is fantastic with Guinea pigs, Ill only take my two to him, very gentle and he sexed them to make sure they were both female (even though the staff said they were), and they now dont mind getting their nails done or teeth trimmed, and the littler one is very nervous of people!

Sigma Force

Problem is even if staff are friendly and helpful the thing is to know where exactly the pigs have come from, if they don't know then it's a no no.
Was in a shop one day and they couldn't tell where the hamsters came from, 'holland or somewhere' I mean wtf.

coco_lola

yeah, i spent a long time looking for my two when I got them, went to PetMania and one girl seems to know her stuff on care, but no one seems able to sex them. I like the staff in there, they do their checks,the two I got came from the same home, was bought as family pets as babies and they couldnt keep them, they were 11months when I got them, in great condition, and my fatty was very friendly, the little one is still a bit nervous with people she doesnt know but shes more than able to squeak for her food in the mornings Lola (the bigger one) will actually walk straight up to the edge of their run and challenge my dog when we take her up to meet them!!

asih

Hi,
I am trying to find a good home for my two male 8 month old guinea pigs if you are interested? I need to move house and cannot bring them with me.

sara025

Hi TopCat

I have two 1 year old female guinea pigs free to a good home
They have always been housed together so they have to go together. I have two cages that I join together to make a larger cage so they can live together.
They are the typical American breed guinea pig, Bear is mostly white & Mini is light brown and white.
They come with all the necessary bits (two cages, a bale of hay, a bale of sawdust, a large bag of feed (seeds, Vit. C nuts), two guinea pig treats, two little houses, 2 water bottles & special cavy shampoo.)
I really want them to go to a good loving home and will give them & all their bits and pieces free if i can find that.

Many thanks