I never really knew how smart guinea pigs are, and that they can actually
have you wrapped around their little finger by their cute demands.
We adopted two guinea pigs, mother and daughter of one and three years old in
October of 2011. We actually adopted them from a university student, whom
we'd never met before, and she couldn't look after them any more. We were
also told these two piggies had other owners as well so these little
piggies had to get used to a lot of owners, but we will be their last
owner that's for sure! We just love them, and they have certainly adapted
to us! After buying a house, we wanted to get a pet, and decided against
getting a dog for now. Instead, we are proud parents of two lovable guinea
pigs, Harmony and Melody. The one with the orange markings is Melody, the
daughter. The black piggie is Harmony the mother. Hey, you don't have to
walk them at all hours of the day or evening! We actually adopted our two
piggies from a university student, who we've never met before, and she
couldn't look after them any more. We were also told these two piggies had
other owners as well so these little piggies had to get used to a lot of
owners, but we will be their last owner that's for sure!! We just love
them, and they have certainly adapted to us.
Our two adorable piggies have out smarted us in a lot of funny but very
cute ways. They know our schedules for eating, and by this what amazes me
is that they know of the exact "timing" of different hours for our meals,
and for them to get their pellets and their treats. I'm normally the first
one up, get the coffee on and check up on our guinea pigs. It's really
funny to watch them at that time as they are both standing up on their
little front legs on their empty bowl looking at me, and squealing for me
to give them their pellets. After eating their pellets, they will have a
nap for a while as they somehow know my Husband will be up shortly. Our
piggies know what they will get from him; their treat of different fruits.
Each morning, my Husband cuts up fruit for his breakfast, and they
actually know that it's him in the kitchen preparing this, and not me.
While he's cutting up fruit, our piggies will be watching him and
squealing and running around like crazy. When I go into the kitchen
getting my breakfast, they don't even make a sound! They even hear me
opening the fridge door where their fruit is kept, but they are silent.
When I'm preparing my breakfast, our guinea pigs know that I'm not
preparing fruit for myself. They know I'm the one to give them their
pellets in the morning. It's so amazing how they know each of our meal
schedules and they know who they are getting their fruit and pellets from.
My Husband and I are night hawks, and we do our own thing with our music
in our studios after our late dinner. After dinner, I will make our little
piggies their salad plate. They know what I'm preparing in the kitchen for
them while they are watching me, as I am also watching them for their
reactions. But they are silent again, just watching what I'm preparing to
give them at a later time. It's amazing that our piggies know they will
not be getting their salad plate at this time, but instead later in the
evening. Even though they watch what I'm making for them, they don't make
any of their squealing sound affects.
My Husband and I normally meet in the TV room around 1:00 a.m. and we get
comfortable on the couch to watch TV. Wouldn't you know it, our piggies
are looking at us from their cage waiting patiently, and we know what they
are waiting for. They will look away from us on and off while nibbling on
their hay for a while. Then a short time later, their high pitch squealing
begins with the amazing sounds of opera singing, or what almost sounds
like an electric guitar playing. We just love these incredible loud sound
effects from them. They run around in their cage like crazy, as they know
it is almost "time" for their salad plate. Each time this happens, we
glance at the clock, and their timing is normally the same time of around
1:30 a.m. every night; the time that they demand their salad plate which
is truly amazing. As soon as I get up to go into the kitchen, our piggies
go crazy, squealing again in their high pitch sound as they know I'm
getting their prepared salad plate for them to eat. I will walk towards
their cage, and by this time they are running around in their cage with
excitement, standing up on their little hind legs begging and waiting for
me to put their salad plate down in their cage. They are very happy at
this time while guzzling down their salad.
This unusual knack of them knowing the exact time they will get their
final treat of the night before my Husband and I go to bed is incredible.
It boggles our minds on how they know of this unusual timing thing that
they have developed with us. There have been times though when we both
messed up and got off schedule. They knew we messed up by showing us their
anger, which is expressed by them pushing their little beds up to their
empty bowl, letting us know it is empty and time to fill with pellets.
They both really know they are the boss of the house!
When it's time to pick them up, they will run and hide from us which is
normal for guinea pigs. When we pick one up, the other piggie will know it
is her turn next. She will hide in every place possible so she won't be
picked up but once we do pick her up, she will calm down and be ready for
floor time that guinea pigs need out of their cage for exercise. They will
play and run in and out of a tunnel on the floor which is so cute to
watch. Oh yes, they love chewing on the box as well which is good for
filing down their teeth which constantly grow.
One of the funniest moments we've had with our piggies was when we put a
large carrot on the floor and took them out of their cage to see their
reaction. Oh my God! They started having a tug-of-war, grabbing it from
one another and constantly grabbing it from each other's mouths. It was so
hilarious to watch that we were laughing hysterically with tears in our
eyes. We just had to video tape their performance, and posted it up
on YouTube.
If you want a good laugh, it's certainly entertaining and worth watching!
If anyone is concerned about getting a dog, I highly recommend guinea pigs
as the next best pet to a dog. They are like little puppies when you hold
them and so loving. They are very smart little animals, and once they get
to know and trust you, they are wonderful to have as pets which we have
experienced for the first time owning our guinea pigs. They are like
having little babies, and that's exactly how you have to care for them. Of
course I would recommend getting two piggies of the same sex, as they are
very sociable animals and will tend to get lonely or depressed if you only
have one guinea pig. Eventually, they will out smart you and will be very
demanding in a very nice cute way! They are certainly entertaining pets we
have adopted. We just love our two piggies, Harmony and Melody!
