Where do you keep your guinea pigs?

[MillyMollyMandy78]

I am thinking of getting a couple of guinea pigs after xmas (with view to possibly increase gradually to a couple more). Never had any before but thought carefully about it and done lots of research. However, i am a bit stuck as to the best place to keep them.

Ideally i want them in the home (2-bed bungalow) but am concerned as noticed in pet shops etc their bedding does smell a fair bit (but not in a dirty way, iyswim). We also have two small dogs, so thought the guinea pigs might want their pen somewhere without the dogs sniffing around. We do have a double garage and a large summerhouse at the bottom of the garden, but i thought they won't get as much time or attention if out of the house, especially in winter etc. We have a large garden so exercise space is no problem. So where do you keep yours?

We have four (two boy/girl pairs) living in indoor hutches. They're in the playroom which is just off the kitchen. Their cages are off the floor on special frames - in our case it's the toddler rather than the dogs they need to be away from

Tbh, unless they're due a clean out (I do a full clean out every 3/4 days and do a quick freshen up/give fresh hay daily) mine don't smell of anything other than hay. I love the smell of fresh hay so this doesn't bother me! But obviously if you don't like the smell then that would be a problem-guineas need hay.

It is lovely having them indoors but with small dogs around you will need to be really careful about keeping them separate... Even if the hutch was very secure and the dogs can't actually reach the pigs, their smell/noise would still be enough to cause considerable stress.

That said though, if they live indoors they do become accustomed to the hustle and bustle of family life and can become quite laid back about things. Our four are more confident and cheeky and keen to interact than any of my childhood guineas (who were always housed outdoors in a shed). They might start at sudden noises, but other than that they are pretty chilled out.

Mine are in-and-out

They have a wooden playhouse cleverly recycled into the Pighouse.
In Winter hey're in the small bedroom.

neWe have had GP1+GP2 (brothers) then GP1+GP3 (two boars) now GP3 (neutered) + GP4+GP5 (sows)

Three adults piggies create alot of waste
I clean the sleeping cage and the haybox of the pighouse daily.

YY they do have a hay smell rather than a pig smell. But the hay gets everywhere

Our married couple are in the kitchen. Four foot indoor cage with a shelter (carrot cottage) and herb n hide tunnel from Pets at Home.

They are on safe bed (paper wool) and hay, with thick newspaper lining underneath.

If you buy decent quality bedding, top up every day with fresh hay and clean every three days then they shouldn't smell at all.

Mine are in our utility room. I usually leave the door to the kitchen open and I don't notice any smells. I clean them out most days and they spend a large part of each day in their indoor run in the conservatory (also cleaned out daily). The only smell really is hay but I love the smell of hay.

I thought one of my guineas was singing last night (their room is next to DH and I )

I was going to wake DD..............then realised it was a car alarm

I need to play a "Singing Guineas" You Tube to the girls to inspire them.
(I know males can sing but the only singers I've had were two sows (mum sows) when I was a child)

GP4 and GP5 were Mum Sows before they came to live with us.
They might sing on Christmas Eve?

They SING!? (Goes off to search on Youtube)

Wish i had a utility room as would be perfect solution. The garage is just a few steps away from the house - maybe that would work. Has a couple of small windows - would it be too dark for them? We have a conservatory so they could play in there during the day, but don't really want them in there all the time due to the smell (yes, it is the hay i can smell, but i just don't like it very much)! Definately don't want them in either of the bedrooms either. Really want this to work, but won't do it unless i can give them a good home

The singing sounds like a bird song - can be lovely and melodic or it can sound urgent and squawcky, like a trapped bird.

Garage sounds fine if it's an ambient temperature, (ours has a concrete floor so it does get colder than their wooden house, but they've had to move in on an emergency basis and 'glamp' sometimes. We insulate them well )
As long as you don't have fumes (they can't share with the car) you could paint a wall white to give good light reflection.
Mine tend to live in their hidey houses or haybox so they seem to prefer being in the shade. But yes , I do feel sorry for them when there's minimal daylight hours.

If they are having playtime in the conservatory you could give them a couple of haycookies (solid discs of hay) that they can bite at, and some veg.
As long as they have good access to hay the rest of the time.

Mine are in a 4'x2' cage at night to sleep in.( it is too small in reality for daily life) I tried a nice big run made of panels but they stayed in the boxes of hay and managed to get all their mess outside the run .
I can roll the paper and hay up daily, give them fresh and put a cover (fleece blanket) over the cage.
So far (cross fingers) they're ok, but they go out to their Pighouse by day.