Should You Get A Guinea Pig

Are your children bugging you for a pet? Are you looking for a small furry companion to share your home and life with?

Have you ever considered getting a guinea pig? These furry rodents are popular pets, are inexpensive to purchase (or you could look for a guinea pig rescue and get your piggie from there!) and are low maintenance pets. As with any pet, there are advantages and disadvantages to getting a guinea pig and you will want to know what they are before you welcome a guinea pig to your home. 

Should you get a guinea pig? 

Here are some of the advantages to sharing your life with a guinea pig.

Guinea pigs love attention. They love to be petted, love to sit in your lap and will squeal when they see you! 

They are healthy pets. Guinea pigs require little in the way of healthcare other than an annual wellness check at the vet. If you feed them quality and healthy food they will be with you for many years. 

Relatively long lives. A well-cared for guinea pig can live for up to eight years.

Guinea pigs are cute, friendly and social. What more can we say? 

Wide variety. Guinea pigs come in a variety of colors and you can also choose from short-hair or long-hair guinea pigs.

Great pets! These three reasons above are three of the best we have discovered that make a guinea pig a great pet for a child and a family. 

Here are some disadvantages to think about before you bring a guinea pig home. 

Associated costs. Guinea pigs are relatively inexpensive, but you need to make the investment in a home for them. They can live in a wire cage or even a glass aquarium. You will want to buy them toys to play with, a wheel to run on, bedding, treats and something for them to sleep under (they like to burrow). 

Cleaning their home. You will need to clean your guinea pig's home regulalry -- daily is best. Change the bedding, remove the soiled bedding and add more bedding. 

Daily feeding. This isn't a disadvantage because no matter what pet you share your life with you will need to offer food. A guinea pig loves to eat hay, fresh veggies, pellets and you will need to make sure there is always fresh water available. 

Being educated about the unique needs of any pet before you bring him or her home is the best way to assure you're going to be a fit for a lifetime!