Guinea pigs - what size cage/hutch/run?

Humphrey10 · 22 February 2012 at 3:40PM

Anyone know much about guinea pigs?
Roughly what size 'house' should a pair of guinea pigs be kept in?
Can you get multi level cages for them? So they can have more spare while it would take up less floor space.

I always thought they had to be kept outside, but from looking on the internet it looks like a lot of people keep them inside, is it OK to keep them inside all the time?

What's the minimum temperature they can live at? I've seen websites saying room temp eg 17-19 degrees C but everyone I know with guinea pigs keeps them outside (not all year round though), it will drop far below 17 degrees C at night surely?

Am I right in thinking they can't be house trained?

Inclusive · 22 February 2012 at 3:53PM

http://www.rspca.org.uk/allaboutanimals/pets/rodents/guineapigs/environment

http://www.pdsa.org.uk/pet-health-advice/guinea-pigs

My colleagues children's outdoor guniea pigs died in the really bad winter last year :-(

krlyr · 22 February 2012 at 3:59PM

The bigger the better! Not sure on recommended dimensions nowadays but as a general rule of thumb, most hutches you can pick up in petshops will be too small. Ordering a hutch online will most likely get you more for your money - a nice deep (petshop hutches are often not very deep, which limit floor area), long hutch will suit. If you house them outside then you need to move them somewhere more sheltered in winter, a shed or a garage may do (conservatory can work but do be cautious as we do get the surprise sunny day in winter which can cause a conservatory to overheat quickly)
They can live indoors all the time, "C&C" cages are quite recommended - http://www.guineapigcages.com

See if you have a guinea pig rescue locally, or an RSPCA branch that rehome guinea pigs. Worth joining a guinea pig forum for more specific, up-to-date advice than online articles too.

antw23uk · 22 February 2012 at 4:04PM

You should be going for the biggest possible cage you can afford and fit in your home. I think keeping them indoors is a fantastic idea and you should never keep one on its own, that would be very cruel. They love company and work well in M/M and F/F groups and if you get the boar 'done' he will live happily with a trio of females.

The only downside to keeping them indoors i can see right now would be the central heating but as long as they were kept away from the radiators and given a good diet you shouldnt have a problem with dry skin.

I cannot stress enough the importance of researching BEFORE you get them. Cavies are wonderful animals and make great chatty pets but they do need a varied diet of good quality dry mix supplemented with hay and lots of dark leaf veg. Unlike rabbits cavies cant make there own vitamin C (we can as well) so they need this supplemented in their diet and this can be acheived by a good variety of fresh veg daily.

Toilet training can be a bit hit and miss. You will find some will take to a corner and stick to it as their loo but mainly its a go as and when they need to!

blossomhill_2 · 23 February 2012 at 8:59AM

As far as house training goes; they don't have to wet on you - they will give a verbal signal (it's a nosie they dont make for any other reason and you will learn to recognise it) when you are holding them if they want to wee - coupled with a slight backward shuffle - if you use this prompt to pop them back into their cage at the spot you want them to use as a litter spot they will learn and you will stay dry

balletshoes · 23 February 2012 at 1:29PM

we have 2 guinea pigs in a big rabbit hutch. the hutch lives outside except in winter, when I move it into our sheltered covered alleyway between my house and next-door. in the worst of the winter I also put layers of cardboard and bubble wrap around the hutch to insulate it better.

we also have a big high run with a net and the piggies are out there as soon as the grass is dry, morning until night, when the weather is better. our garden is completely enclosed but i do put the piggies back into their hutch if we're not at home all day.

guinea pigs are fabulous pets, they generally love being handled and they are very talkative little things

. Definitely agree with going to your local animal rescue for them too, they always seem to have loads of babies at ours.

heretolearn_2 · 23 February 2012 at 5:57PM

When I was a kid I had a guinea pig that started off outside in a hutch in the summer, then come winter we couldn't bear to have him shut away in the shed (they can't be left right out in the weather) so he came to live in his hutch under the stairs (no doors/cupboard, just the space there). We and he loved it so much he stayed there for the rest of his life. We did keep him on his own which is not a good idea but we didn't know any better then. They thrive on company. As soon as he heard a key in the door he'd start squeaking hello to us and there was always someone walking past to have a chat. In the evening he'd be let out to run around the living room and would sit on his special cushion on my lap to watch tv. He used to widdle quite often albeit only a tiny bit, which was why he sat on his cushion when he'd had enough running around. Any poos are just like little pellets, similar to rabbits, so not a problem to pick up if they happen outside the cage. We also made a wire run in the garden so he could get outside on summer days.

Great pets. Give yours as much room as possible and get them out of their cage as well. They tame really easily and can't do much harm under supervision of course (don't just leave them wandering in case they chew a wire or something). You can have great conversations with a guinea pig. It's not only awful for them but also a waste of a great pet to just keep them outside in a hutch all the time.

chocdonuty · 23 February 2012 at 10:41PM

I love guinea pigs and currently have six lol!
As a general rule as previous posters have mentioned the bigger the better. Indoor is fine all year round, it's great having them there to talk to you and watch them jumping about and shouting for their brekkie lol
Ebay is a great place to get a cage, especially the pick up only option as you should get a good price
As for commercial cages, generally a 120cm long cage is suitable for two piggys and you could probably get 3 in a 140/150cm long cage and as far as I'm aware thats the longest they go, after that it's a c and c or possibly an adapted cage, some use dog cages with levels inside.
One thing to remember is that guinea pigs cannot walk on wired bases or ramps so if you do have a cage this will need modifying.
As for bedding you can use sawdust, megazorb or carefresh with hay on top for sleeping in and eating. Also many with c and c cages use fleece.
Some guinea pigs can be toilet trained but it really depends on the piggys, generally they will do most of the business in one corner but still poop and pee all over the cage too!
Theres a bit of advice there but theres loads of info at https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk

Blackpool_Saver · 23 February 2012 at 10:43PM

I have 5 and would never keep them outside it's cruel

vixarooni · 23 February 2012 at 10:49PM

When i first bought fudge and alf, they were tiny, so we had a cage that i thought would suit them. They have now doubled in size so we have a multi storey cage for them! It works well, if they have a disagreement they can get a bit of space, but generally they are always together.

As for training? We haven't managed it! They do normally go for a corner though, so we just wacked down some newspaper and they normally have a little wee and poo fest on that when they run around the carpet.

I adore my guinea pigs, they are so gorgeous and cute and have kept me entertained so much! Hope you enjoy yours when you get them!

Humphrey10 · 24 February 2012 at 3:23PM

I went to look in the pet shop at cages, I wasn't impressed, the ones they had for guinea pigs looked far too small.

The space where the cage could go is 86cm high, is this tall enough for it to have two floors?
The cage could be 150cm long and 50 cm wide or larger.

Would they be safe(-ly contained) if left inside in a run (attached to their cage in some way so they can go 'back home' if they want) during the day when I'm at work? We had guinea pigs as children, I don't remember them being any good at escaping. They'd have to have a run with a groundsheet under it, rather than just running about the room, I'm currently renting so don't want to risk the carpets being damaged.

That forum looks helpful chocdonuty I will check it out thanks.

Guinea pigs - what size cage/hutch/run?

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