Many people worldwide have acquired their pets by purchasing them at pet stores. You can buy just about any pet your heart desires at different pets stores. There are stores which sell snakes and lizards, while you will find those pet stores which specialize in a few more common pets such as Dogs, Cats and Birds. People go out to buy pets all excited and many don't take time to find out anything about the pet store when buying their pet. As a future pet owner, you must know from the store owner the following things:

How do They Acquire Their Animals
There are those pet stores which still buy dogs from dreadful puppy mills. Puppy mills are a bad way to acquire a pet as most of those mills do not provide adequate care and attention to these animals. animals are stacked like cards and given little to no healthcare whatsoever. Dogs that have been bred in puppy mills may tend to develop psychological problems, the dog may end up being depressed or may end up being aggressive. Puppy mill dogs are also susceptible to each other diseases because of how the animals are contained.

Who Owns The Pet Store
You will be surprised to know that you have people owning pet stores which go out hunting and killing other animals. That my friend is a no no for me. Then their are those which do shady business by illegally importing endangered animals to be sold. You must know the store and any reputation they may have

Observe the pet Store
You don't have to go in the pet store to get a feel of what is happening, observe how animals are treated when there i s no customer in sight.

If you find out that your pet store is shady, the best thing to do is not support that pet store. It may be difficult if you see a big teary eyed dog staring at you and just begging to go home with you. But a much as it burns to leave those pets there, that is exactly what the best thing is to do. when people continue to support shady pet stores, they will continue to be in business and at the end of the day, only the animals are getting hurt.

Normally, when someone goes out to acquire a pet they seldom come home with a pig. If they do come home with anything pig related it may be chops, leg or bacon. But just like dogs, cats, birds and ponies, pigs can be just a good a pet as any, probably even better. The bad thing a pig has going for it is that it is seen as livestock and and not something to cuddle hug and play fetch with. But there are many people who knows that the pig is much more than chops. Here are some things you may not know about the pig and why it would make a wonderful pet.

Research Findings
It is not a guess and spell game when it comes on to weighing the intelligence of animals. Many basic test are administered to derive a level of intelligence based upon how the animal reacts to certain situations. Scientist have ran these test and have found that pigs are:

Pigs Cooperate With Each Other

• Any animal that is capable of cooperation with it's peers to achieve certain goals must have some decent level of intelligence higher than the average animal, as cooperation entails the party coming together to meet the same objective(s)

Live In Self Made Communities

• Pigs live in complex social communities where they keep track of each other and learn from each other.

Have Good Long Term Memories

• Don't believe that if you did wrong to that piglet 3 years ago and now return to the farm when it is grown and believes it has forgotten about you. You may getting a lot of squeals from that pig. Pigs have good memory and excellent at solving test which require the location of objects  or finding exits in mazes.

Enjoys Playing

• One good trait in a pet is that it can enjoy itself and enjoy the company of those around him/her

Shows Feelings

• What a great trait to have when it comes on to a pet. Pigs exhibit empathy when viewing the same type of emotion in another animal or person.

Plays Video Games

• OK, tell me if your dog does this? Did you know pigs can manipulate a joystick on a courser screen? The only other animal to do so is the smart chimpanzee.

Very Trainable

• Pigs understand symbolic languages such as sit, stay, jump, rollover, just like a dog would. They are able to combine these symbolic languages an hence capable of learning complex commands, such as;  jump through the hoop and roll over.

So now that you know how great a pig is, you need to know how to care for them when you acquire one as a pet. Here are some brief pig facts to get you started:

Pigs Diet
Ensure that your pet pig has enough fiber in his diet. A suggested serving ratio of 2/3 vegetables to 1/3 fruit is recommended. You can feed your pig vegetables such as cucumber, celery, lettuce, bell pepper, cabbage spinach and broccoli. If you have sweet potatoes, the pig will love you for it. But do not over feed your pig and do not feed your pig farm hog feed as many of these feeds are designed to allow the pig to gain weight fast. It is also ok to have the animal in the backyard to do a little grazing to have a little roughage in his diet. One thing for sure, pigs are not that picky and many things will be delicacy to your pig. Things such as the skins of ripe banana. You will find that the pigs stomach is much more tolerable than most animals.

Pigs Health
Pigs do not often get ill, but they do get ill also. There are many ailments which your pig may suffer from. If ever you notice anything different about your pigs emotion, movement, eye or skin color. You should take the animal to see the nearest pig vet so they can diagnose the problem soon.

Pig Toys
Pigs love to play with ball and many other movable toys. One thing you shouldn't do is to get small breakable toys for your pig as this may cause the pig to try and chew on these small items and swallow and may cause serious injuries.

Pigs Sleep
Pigs will enjoy a nice doggy bed too, something it can lie down on and just be a pig.

One you acquire your first pig pet you will see why pigs are more than just bacon. They are wonderful animals with high levels of intelligence which makes a good pet as any other. Hoink! Hoink!

The first time I heard the term guinea pig I started to imagine a fat pig running up and down and having a mud bath. But when I did my research and found out that a guinea pig is not a pig or even anything close to that. 

Guinea Pig Food
Your guinea pig will need to have an healthy diet just like any other animal. You will have to acquire guinea pig foods or foods the guinea pig would eat in it's natural environment. Ensure that your guinea pig has fresh supplies of vegetables and fruits to keep it filled and healthy. Feed your little ball of cuteness vegetables once per day. This should be one cup full of leafy delights.  You can mix your guinea pig veges and serve stuff like; Lettuce, carrot, spinach, etc. Your guinea pig will enjoy a variety of fruits such as tomatoes, ripe bananas etc. Don't  over feed your guinea pig as this will result in you having an obese inactive pig which may develop health issues later.

Keep Your Pet Guinea Pig Hydrated.
All pets need fresh water
One of the most important elements of caring for any pet is providing it with fresh, clean water at all times. You can use a bowl or a bottle.[6]

• Bottles are less messy but leak whilst bowls don't leak and are more natural for guinea pigs. However, if you use wood shavings expect to see some mess in the water bowl.
• The best water dispenser is a guinea pig/rabbit bottle with the little ball in the spout.

What To Make Your Guinea Pig Sleep On.
Guinea pigs in their natural environment will burrow in holes to keep them protected from many large predators such as birds and cats. You can create a natural bedding for your guinea pig by using shredded paper combined with soft hay for them to sleep in and keep nice and warm.

Guinea Pig Toys
Your long hairs guinea pig will need something to keep it active and less bored. Remember, your world is small compared to that of nature and your guinea pig can sense that and hence need dome guinea pig toys to keep him going.  There are chew toys, obstacle toys and many more to choose from.  As a precaution, do not buy toys with easily breakaway small parts which will harm your guinea pig if chewed and swallowed. ​

Guinea Pig Fleas
Your longed hair Guinea pig can catch fleas from other animals such as a dog or cat. Ensure that any other animal that you may have around your long hair guinea pig is tick and flea free. If your guinea pig does get the nasty parasites, do not just take up a bottle of dog flea remover and begin dousing your pet guinea pig with it. There are a lot of  effective treatments available for all parasite your long hair guinea pig may have picked up. . Your local vet will usually sell these products, and you can administer them yourself at home. It’s a good idea to take pictures of your guinea pig’s ailment to show the vet just to be sure that you’ve identified the right parasite and are purchasing the correct treatment.

Long Hair Guinea Pig Diseases / illnesses.

• Respiratory Infections. Guinea pigs spend much of their time around air that is filled with small particles, and as such they are quite prone to developing infections within their respiratory systems: their noses, throats and lungs.
• Scurvy
• Tumours. 
• Abscesses.
• Heatstroke.
• Bladder Stones. 
• Urinary Problems. 
• Lice.

Some of these ailments can easily be treated at home. While others will require the service of a vet. Observe your guinea pig daily to ensure that the pet is functioning normal. Record any signs of abnormality to ensure that it can be dealt with as soon as it is found out.

Once you have all these thing down. You should be able to take good care of your long hair guinea pig. It all boils down to love, proper diet and a good and clean environment.