sounds like the same group I tried to join, Crayon. You’d have thought I was going to be shot for asking such a dumb question.

when i was a teenager, i didn’t know guinea pigs (and most any animal) could be adopted from shelters, it’s not something that is very widely known (like dogs, cats and to some degree, rabbits.) i hope they didn’t make her feel too bad. i purchased a guinea pig from a store when i was a young teenager and she was pregnant. i had no idea until i came home one day and saw blood and babies in the cage. everything went fine, i didn’t really end up having to do anything except for keeping the cage clean, increasing food, and adding more bedding. i’ll see if i can find some info.

edited:  okay.  i don’t know if there is an official pet guinea pig site, like HRS for rabbits.  i found this site and it seems pretty informative. http://www.guinealynx.info/

thanks for the link. I’ve been thinking of getting a few piggies to keep in my kids’ bedroom. Their bedroom is huge and I think they would enjoy them. I just feel like I can’t get enough good info about them. Not sure if they are the right pet for my kids, I thought of either guinea pigs or an aquarium.

i browsed thru that forum on that site and they seem pretty friendly. maybe post a thread introducing yourself and ask whatever questions you have, i know they’ll respect you for finding out info before getting pigs. we all know that impulse pets usually are not the best idea!

edited:  not sure where you are in NC Ruffles, but i just checked Petfinder… they have some ADORABLE pigs up for adoption, including some pairs, either same sex, or the male pig is neutered.

i also came across this article, Cavies and Kids:  http://www.cavyspirit.com/kidsandguineapigs.htm

Hi Beka, we are in the triangle area. And my rabbit rescue vet lady (not sure what to call her… lol) rescues all exotics so she most likely has guinea pigs at any given time. Yes, I know, nobody ever wants to adopt out to me because of my crazy children, but who’s kidding who? When I say I want to get some pigs for their bedroom, it will be ME that does all the care for them. Honestly, we almost got a dog, but we had to jump through so many hoops to get one from any rescue or pound. One place said puppies aren’t good for kids and wouldn’t let us get a puppy, then one said that adult dogs aren’t good for kids, so that one was out of the question too. I finally decided that we aren’t getting a dog, and got Ruffles instead. And again, he’s my pet, not my kid’s (even though they enjoy him too). I’ll probably opt for the aquarium for them. And I’m not being mean, I totally get that animals are often impulse purchases for kids and that ends up a disaster. But we aren’t like that and it was very frustrating that we weren’t the right people for pets. Ruffles gets better treatment than my husband… lol.

i know! trust me, i have felt the same way. it’s easy sometimes to feel discriminated against because you have kids, but the rescues do it a certain way for a reason. they have seen it all, ya know? all you can really do is try to get across to them that DESPITE THE FACT you have kids, you are a responsible pet owner. i wouldn’t rule out pigs at all, but i think just be prepared that they can be as much work as rabbits.