In general - tell me about them. My current pair of rats just arent my favorite. Of course they are sweet and smart but they just.. dont speal to me ya know? So if I do decide to get a guinea pig - could I get just one or would I need to get a pair?
How come your bored with your rats? anyway...
you HAVE to get a pair lol. gps are very social animals, and enjoy the company of each other, plus you get to have two lol. its best to either keep two females, or two males. two males can live together without fighting if they were raised together.
I got my guineas when they were young and handled them alot, so they did not bite or run away. I let mine go outside all the time they loved to run around and eat clover. mine loved carrots, lettuce, etc. guinea pigs need vitamin c, since like people they can not produce it on their own, you can buy drops to put in their water.
guinea pigs can not climp, so you want them to have a 1 story cage, it should be large enough to allow them to run around. mine loved those igloo things to hide in. they need a place to hide. they need a good quality guinea pig food, and timothy hay. also make sure the cage does not have a wire bottom, that care hurt the piggies feet.
do not use ceder shavings, aspen is okay. you want to make sure the cage is clean because they can get sores on the bottoms of their feet if the cage is dirty.
they can be given baths using bunny shampoo, and depending on how long their hair is they will need to be brushed daily. their nails will need to be cliped when they grow too long.
like rats and other rodents, their teeth grow quickly, they will need some kind of chew block, or wood to help grind their teeth down.
I would check local shelters first before petstores. petfinder.com, etc. they always have tons of guinea pigs. my friend's petstore won't sell guinea pigs, but people are always bringing them in because their kids became bored with them. not sure how one can get bored with a guinea pig.
I can look up more info about keeping them, but that is what I remeber, I haven't had guineas for a few years.
but they were one of my favorite pets to have. I am waiting so see if any one else brings some in the store, so I can convince my parents to let me get it lol.