Bunnies are getting neutered! But guinea pigs have been fighting...

Bunnies Nibbles and Summer have just left the house to be neutered. My sister took them as I've got work in an hour. They had their breakfast pellets and as rabbits do not vomit, they are allowed food before the surgery. Their carry case had a whole pile of meadow hay at the bottom for them to nibble and I made a mix of timothy hay, alfafa,  clover, plantain leaves and some meadow herbs for them to eat after surgery at the vets. They also got a small bag of pellets as a treat.

At Rabbit.org they have a decent faq on spaying and neutering of rabbits. It's got information such as what questions to ask your vet, pre- and post-surgery advice and the benefits of neutering and spaying.

The guinea pigs have gone too as I think they had a fight yesterday when I was at work, Peanut must have taken a chunk out of Butter's nose. It's very sad as when I got back, they kept sizing each other up and in the end we decided to separate them in the cage. This morning, they had not fought when put back together again and it was decided that they should be kept together for the journey to the vets as pigs are less stressed when put together. I just hope they won't fight after. Anyone know if pigs can get along after they had a fight that's serious enough to draw blood?

Guinea Pig Sitter

I am pig sitting my sister-in-law's two guineas. It took an hour's drive from my brother's house to mine so they were pretty nervous by the end of it. My brother and his wife will be going to the south of France for a week but the pigs will be with me for three weeks. I've stayed at their house before to look after the pigs for a few days but this is the first time I've had them in my house.

Their names are Peanut (light brown and white short hair) and Butter (yellow and white short hair). Peanut and Butter are very nervous piggies as they do not seem to get enough human contact at home. Whilst they do not bite they dislike being held and will run and hide all the time. I hope to change this in the three weeks they are here and hopefully their quality of life will improve. I will keep my animal diary updated with any progress I make with this piggies.

As a general rule, when moving animals to other houses or when buying your pet for the first time, it is best to leave the animal alone for a day. This lets the animal calm down as travelling can be stressful and it lets them explore their new surroundings at their own pace. Basically, you are giving the animal back some control over it's life.
These are a few key steps when bringing a pet home:

1. Ensure you have all the necessary items to look after your pet before you buy it. (Food, Housing, Toys and Litter). Choose a quiet room and set the new home up. Choose a place out of direct sunlight and draught.
2. After you have chosen your pet, get home straight away.
3. Fill up the water bottle and add some food to it's food bowl or hay if it takes hay. Make sure there is adequate bedding.
4. Gently place your new friend into it's home and leave it to explore in it's own time. It might seem like a good idea to play with it straight away but if you think about it from an animal point of view, its just moved from the only home it ever knew to an unfamiliar place. It will need some time to get used to its new home.
5. After a good few hours, some people recommend to wait till the next morning, you can begin to bond with your pet.

I chopped some peppers (for the vit C) to give to the pigs and left them to their own devices. I went in the room briefly to check on them before bed time and they were still hiding so I let them be. No photos yet but will add them soon!