Animal rescue in Oswego County takes in about 80 guinea pigs

An animal rescue in Oswego County needs help after taking in dozens of guinea pigs from a home in Utica.

Friends Forever Animal Rescue took in about 80 guinea pigs last month, 56 being females, and about 45 of them were or are pregnant. Some had a single pup; others were up to six.

“We have now added 20 plus more baby guinea pigs and we still have quite a few are they’re still pregnant. So this is just the gift that keeps on giving,” said Friends Forever Animal Rescue Founder and Director Casey Newton-Mclaren.

She said it’s easy for some animals like guinea pigs to quickly overpopulate, so these animals are often at rescues.

“It’s ongoing with small pocket pets. We have rats, we have guinea pigs, we have rabbits. So shelters people think cats and dogs. They don’t think of everything in between,” said Newton-Mclaren.

Many of the animals are still available for adoption, but help is welcomed in other ways, too.

“Rescues need support right now and that comes in many different ways. It can be from sharing our posts to get the word out there. It could be picking up some extra veggies and dropping it off and say, ‘here, this is for the guinea pigs,’ or checking out a wish list and saying, ‘OK, this is on the wish list. Let’s order them that for this week.’ Any little bit at this point goes a long way,” said Newton-Mclaren.

Veggies for the guinea pigs costs the shelter about $200 a week.