Pet shops + their TINY cages for guinea pigs.?

Question

When i Baught my guinea pig, The cage that it was in was about 60cmX60cm.. i thought it was rediculously tiny... due to the fact that there where 5 guinea pigs in the same cage! and the sign said that they were all MALES and when i got mine she sed it was a male and next thing i know its pregnant. GOsh... i hate people at the petshops sometimes... yeh.. what do u think

Answer 1

It's even more ridiculous to go to a pet shop and ask him for a guinea pig food and he asks you "what is a guinea pig?" or that some pet shops don't tell new owners that guinea pigs need Vitamin C.

About pregnant guinea pigs I've received a hundred emails on my site http://www.guineapigsclub.com/ from people who had your same problem.

I think to buy a guinea pig you should go or from a professional breeder or rescue one from an animal shelter.

Answer 2

The place you went to sounds like they were in it for the money and not for the love of animals, and that is sad. Regardless of what these other people posted, no it is NOT all pet stores that are like that, and NOT ALL pet store employees are ignorant when it comes to "selling pets". I worked at a Pet store for a little over 4 years, and even though I no longer work there, I still go there all the time to play with the animals and "help out" when I hear a current employee just spouting stuff off when they really do not know what they are talking about, and those employees do not last very long, I see to that because I am really close with the owners and know the owners do not want employees like that. Any how, no one has been in every pet store, so I don't see why any one would open their mouth and say that they are all like that. Yes, I agree that there are stores that see animals as money makers, but they are not all like that. Please refrain from spouting off on things you only "assume" you know so much about. How long has any one ever been in a pet store at one visit? You may visit them while they happen to be busy with other customers adn it appears that they do not care, but have you been there when it is dead slow in the store and the animals are taken out and played with, or sold to a good home? Sorry if I sound mean in this, but it is frustrating to hear that some people think so low of pet stores and saying employees are in it for the profit. Anyhow, just know that not all stores and employees are money hungry, because they are not, there are some good hearted people who take pride in what we do at a pet store. I only made $6 an hour at the store I worked at, but it wasn't the pay check I was after, it was taking care of animals/fish, and helping people make the right decision on the type of per they should get, or helping them if their pet got sick. It was great.

Answer 3

Not all pet shops are like this. My local pet shop is a family run business, and the owner will only sell animals that she herself has experience of owning, these are rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and birds. The rabbits and guinea pigs are kept in big cages, and have hay and cabbage along with their food and water, whilst the birds are kept in an aviary at the back of the shop, as opposed to those tiny bird cages. This pet shop also keeps only two animals to a cage, and the owner will only buy from breeders that she knows. This is good for anyone buying an animal, as she can explain the basic care needs of any animal that is sold from her shop, and trace the background of most of the animals who come into the shop.
Obviously accidents do happen-I bought a guinea pig from this shop, and found out she was pregnant-this was after a change in breeder I later found out, and the owner has now refused to sell animals from this breeder, however thanks to the help and support I received from the owner of the shop I now have 3 happy healthy babies, and a very proud mother guinea pig. Overall this pet shop is one of the very few good ones, and thanks to big chains, which do not see their animals as anything more than a money making machine, these types of decent pet shops are now dying out.

Answer 4

Regardless of what some other people answered...it is almost ALL of them. These animals generally come from farms and mills, and are not cared for properly. Dollar signs are in their eyes when they see the animals. They are often kept in pet stores for a LONG TIME, it's not always a short turn around. Some acquaintances in fort wayne actually took it to the next level when they saw the conditions the rats lived in at a local pet store. This is sick and no animal should be made to live in these conditions. There are rescues for all types of animals! Even guinea pigs. I'm sorry to say, but you just lined the pockets of these cruel people.

Answer 5

Im going to say yes at first. But sooner or later when these two male guinea pigs get older they should grow to be a lot bigger and they will probably out grow that cage. But until they are about 2-3 years old you should probably be fine.

Answer 6

The Department of Agriculture has some pretty sad rules when it comes to the sale of animals and Pet stores. They are allowed to be kept in an over crowed cage because according to the law they only need a space of their own to stand. They do not have to be provided with space to move around.

Answer 7

I agree, pet stores have very little knowledge of guinea pigs.

They either sell them alone and force them to live in those horrible contraptions, or sell people males and a cage that will make them fight.

Avoid supporting pet stores! Adopt small animals, and build your own guinea pig cage (www.guineapigcages.com)

Answer 8

Unfortunately most petshops see animals as money and not as living creatures. This can lead to bad conditions for animals (which can lead to disease), and ignorant employees that are trained to sell instead of trained to teach others how to properly care for an animal. I urge you to not support this and not get pets from a petshop. Always check out your local adoption center first!

Answer 9

not all pet shops are like that. but the pet shop i go to all the time kept two chinchillas in an aquarium. It's due to lack of space with all the animals. And they usually sell fast so they don't have to stay in those conditions very long.

Answer 10

That sounds horrible. Ive never witnessed anything like that in a pet store but if one did that, thats horrible! Maybe you should blame just that pet shop instead of all of them.