Hutches.....indoor/outdoor...and run etiquette.

[demolitionduo]

Hello all,

Been lurking here for a few weeks since I got 2 guinea pigs (sows). I'm now wondering how I lived 46 years without ever having them before.

A couple of conundrums I'd appreciate your help with.....

We have a single storey hutch in the conservatory which means we see them often. During any time but the summer months, the conservatory is a sensible temperature, but in summer it gets baking so GP's will need to go outside. I'm thinking maybe getting another hutch for outdoors might be wise? That way I'm not having to lug a hutch indoors/outdoors depending on the heat. I know they are quite resilient to all but the severest elements but I'd worry about predators at night, no matter how secure I thought the hutch was! GP's are more portable than hutches!

I have also got a run with an attached under cover pig hut for outdoors. GP's are only about 12 weeks so have had limited use of this in view of current weather, though I hope they'll get more use in the weeks/months to come. I'm undecided as to whether I'd be prepared to leave them in the run all day when I'm at work.......we have 2 cats who show an interest when we aren't on lookout & a fox population close by! I'm thinking I'd feel more comfortable limiting their run time to when I'm at home. What do you think?

Thank you

Hello demolitionduo welcome to the world of Guineas!

Is your outdoor run a hutch with a run or a run and a hide away? Do they have a ramp to get into the covered area?

If it's a ramp, bear in mind baby GP can manage but adult ones can struggle with a steep ramp which will limit where they go.

My boars outdoor pighouse is starting to get warm now so I'm looking for ways to ventilate it for when I'm at work. DH is going to take out the 'windows' and replace with flyscreen (bought from Ebay) .We can replace the window (Perspex) in winter. We've got a solid wood door and a half wood/half screen door which we're going to cover with the flyscreen.

I wouldn't leave mine out in their run (I've got a 7' x 4' rabbit run) if I'm not in the house. Foxes, cats ,the risk of a random dog. Guinea-pigs are vunerable to stress in a situation where they think they are lunch. It's not fair to have them in this state of fear (There's no Fight or Flight for guinea-pigs. Fight isn't an option. They really are woefully ill prepared to defend themselves)

If you get a big hutch, plenty of ventilation with a waterproof cover it will keep them happy and safe. Get a net curtain as a screen against flies.
You can move it if it's in full sun, keep them shaded.

At the moment I give mine 2-3 hours run time.They eat for a while then retire to their wicker house (I bought a Lakeland Limited hedgehog house)
so they don't eat for the whole time they are out.
I keep an eye on their droppings too. If they've had grass then I give pellets and water (they've always got a load of hay) but no supper veg or no breakfast veg depending on when they graze. (GP2 can have softish poohs at times. I'm sure it's his eating pooh, they don't appear in his bed but sometimes he'll have them in his bottom when I lift him).
I give mine a rubber car mat in the run.Easy to dry and insulated.

As yours are still babies, you should really err on the side of caution.

So, a few hours run time (if the grass is dry enough) when you are there and hutch for when you're not to keep them safe.
They really do need some kick their heels up time (and they'll popcorn) which is so cute.

One website I read recently said they are fine to go out on wet grass others says "Noooo". Their reasoning was- let the GPs decide. Give them something to sit on -a mat, a towel, cardboard- and a shelter and let them go out.If they're not happy, they'll hide in their house.

I agree to a point. My boars (who are 18 months old) will sit on their rubber mats and eat if they don't want to walk on the grass. But they always have a walk about and a squabble to themselves. And they've never had wet bellies when I've lifted them.

Make sure as well that there's nothing on the lawn (poisonous plants, animal pooh (fox,cat) bits of plastic) that they can eat.
Mine don't chew their mats, though GP1 likes to nibble the wicker house and GP2 will gnaw a paper bag if I give them one to play in, but that's minimal.

If you read up on bloat it's a problem that can affect some GPs. They get a build up of gas ,their tummies feel hard and swollen but hollow if you tap them.Also alot of pain. Lots on line about it.Peter Gurney, blames a blockage (usually plastic) for alot of blockages.He gives lots of advice about treating too, most of it over the counter stuff which is good to know, but serious bloat is an emergency situation. Having said that, I've kept GPs for years and never encountered bloat, but one of my sows used to get constipated and needed an occasional night in a haybox to pass about 200 poohs (and peace from her daughter )

I weigh up the pros and cons. My 2 are boars which if they don't have enough excercise will get fat and baggy and run the risk of impaction {yuk).
If I put them in a room, or their hoghouse they don't tend to run about but will 'explore'.
In their run they will run around, so are exercising.
(And if they've grazed I cut back their veg)

My little boar is a bit (well more than a bit) gassy. But oddly enough he saves it for me. vom. But they each have their own pooh corner in the haybox (they don't snuggle together) so I can oversee food in = healthy poohs out.