Where in your house do you keep your Guinea pigs?

[Elderlydogsrus]

My children would really like some Guinea pigs and we aren’t really against getting them but we are struggling to find a place in the house that would be suitable for their cage set up?
so I’m wondering where in your house do you keep them? Children bedroom? Kitchen diner? Hallway?

We used to have them outside, our friends had them inside they were much more friendly and were very interactive, tricks and popcorning when they saw them.

Keep them in your kitchen diner if you want your children to remain engaged

my cage is in my living room so i can talk to them and spend a lot of time with them. I wouldnt have them in my bedroom as they munch hey constantly and zoom around making noise. Please dont put them outside they are very vulnerable little creatures. Good luck x

Kitchen/dinner. They use to have an adapted play house in the garden for summer, and they just came in for winter, but they get so much more attention inside, so this year we given up the space and keep them inside.

Mine are in my office. Just keep in mind that two piggies need a minimum 140cm x 60cm, ideally more 😊

Outside by the back door all year round. They had interaction every day, were out in the grass weather permitting every day. Happy and healthy. Lived until 8 years old.

In the diner part of my kitchen. I've a large 6x2 c&c cage (wouldn't recommend other than for the size) so hay and whatnot falls out, and so keeping them on carpet isn't good for keeping a clean house. They love being near the fridge and demand food every time you open it which is adorable.

In the bathroom (it's quite big). However, we also had an outdoor movable run and they would go outside when it was dry. The run had a roof do they were protected from predators. They loved outside.

When we had them we had a huge utility room, which was the informal entrance that we used and lead into the kitchen and the boot room, so doors all open & in & out all day. Very social area for them.

loved them to bits, but the smell, dear god. I tried every bedding option known to mankind & they still smelt!

they had a huge 'cage' and also came out to run around the kitchen & large octagonal reception area by the actual front door entrance. Popcorning galore!!

it's the reason I don't have any now, as much as I'd love them. Now (thanks to 'life' happening) I'm in a very small place, they'd have to go in the lounge and I couldn't cope with the smell.

Thanks everyone.

I had originally wanted them to be outside by the back door but we do get a lot of foxes near us and I worry they might get in to them…

Im really concerned about the smell, it seems to be a mixed message. Some say they don’t smell as long as you keep on top of their cage whereas others say they really smell…

we have space in the kitchen diner in an alcove for a 3 by 3 c and c cage, do you think this would be big enough?

In the garden, palatial homemade hutch with grass roof terrace 😁
Used to run loose in the garden with the dog in the summer.

Our older dog was very protective of them. When we got a second dog, she kept the pup away from them when they were in the garden.

I think a 3x3 would be fine with two but you could always ask a rescue near you before you buy one just to make sure.

I'll be honest they can smell but the best advice I can give is to keep on top of it. I keep my girls on blankets specially designed to wick away the wee. They have waterproof pads under that, then a noodle bath mat they love to sleep on and cosy beds. Mine also have a kitten litter tray with a puppy pad inside and hay on the top.

I clean mine twice per day, a sweep out every morning, change the puppy pad in the hay area with fresh hay. At night I do the same but every other day I replace all the blankets and stick them in a horse bag in the wash at 60 degrees.

I love mine to bits and wouldn't change them for the world but they do take up time and effort. I sometimes think they're harder to look after than my three cats x

On the landing so we're constantly going past them!

Please dont bother getting guinea pigs just to leave them outside. You need to look at your pigs a lot to make sure they arent unwell. They are prey animals. I keep mine inside and spoil them rotten and i still spend thousands every year at the vets. My pigs are part of my family not just launched in the garden to be scared and ignored most of the day.

Ours lives in our child’s bedroom, he has no problems with any noise keeping him awake and no do we and we are very close and the sound insulation in our house is hopeless. They much prefer being inside, we do have an outside run for them for sunny days and have tried so many times but it is obvious they absolutely hate it and can’t wait to get back in the house so have given up on that they would be very unhappy if they were kept outside permanently plus they seem so much friendlier if kept inside. They know the sound of the fridge opening even though they are upstairs and fridge downstairs and will shout for veg when they hear it or if you go upstairs shouting ohhhhh guineas do you want a treat they go beyond mad with there very shouty squeaks. They are very happy snuggling up on our son’s lap while he plays on his computer and love the cuddles. They quite like a little potter around the kitchen though particularly if we put the heated floor on for them. We find they don’t smell if you use a really good thick layer of sawdust and obviously clean them out often.

Ours don't smell at all (two girls)
We did have them in the play room in a cage when they were babies but as they got older it was clear the cage wasn't big enough, so they are now in a spare room which is between our office and the kitchen, in a large run. We bought a large hutch because we thought we would put them outside in the summer but then changed our mind because they had got used to being indoors. We do put them out in a run on the grass when it is nice though, and they love it.

Mine live in the living room, but they can be stinky especially when they get older. They're also not great pets for smaller children in my opinion despite me adoring them. They're not always as friendly as people think and I find children can find that a disappointment

Thanks everyone! So I think maybe either the kitchen diner in a 3x3 or hall way in a 4x2 or a 5x2…

@Genegeniehunt I do take choosing to get a pet really seriously and always consider everything and more before making the decision, I would never launch a pet in to the garden to be scared and ignored all day!

You can put them in the garden in spring/summer, but bear in mind that they need a large run, preferably on grass. Either you need to put them out everyday, or you need a hutch with a run attached.

If you have a separate run, put something in for piggies to hide in (e.g. a little wooden box). Foxes won't get them out of a hutch/run.

Also bear in mind that they aren't as hardy as rabbits. You will need to bring them in during winter if it's cold.

I would never launch a pet in to the garden to be scared and ignored all day!

This is silly. Guinea pigs don't need human company, they need the company of other Guinea pigs, space to run around, and preferably grass to graze on.

@MidnightMeltdown this wasn’t a criticism of anyone who keeps them in the garden. The poster before told me not to bother getting them if that’s what I was going to do…even if they were in the garden they wouldn’t be launched and ignored as I’m sure those with them in garden don’t do…

Ours spent time both in the garden and indoors. I certainly didn't spend thousands every year on vet bills as they were extremely healthy. Fresh air, fresh grass, dandelions etc are good for them. Obviously you need to ensure they are safe, that the weather conditions are appropriate for them and that they have shelter while outside. Our two would get very excited when they realised they were going outside so they obviously liked it.

Ours had a wooden playhouse that DH converted . It belonged to the DC and was on a wooden sturdy base , there were four windows , 2 could be removed and the space was filled with bars+chicken wire and mesh to keep everything big or small out . The windows bolted back in place .
They had a big haybox (or two depending on how many we had) with access out onto the floorspace .

In winter we gave them the small bedroom which had no door and we kept the radiator off . They had C&C / big cage .Again depending on the groups .

Indoors or outdoors they need protected from damp, extremes of heat or cold , draughts , changes from hot-cold or cold-hot . Predators -cats,dogs,foxes

They are messy little gits and the hay smells . Ours were never able to go more than two days . Daily cleaning worked best , roll up the dirty newspaper , lay fresh and fresh hay . Proper clean weekly .
The hay gets everywhere !
And they are noisy . For such prey animals they were quick to tell us they were starving . Walking down the garden with their supper we could hear them squeak .

In summer they had big rabbit runs secured with heavy tent pegs , not open topped pens .
They loved being out but need to be secure and protected and of course the fixes are round at dusk .

They are gorgeous little creatures but hard work and you need to be checking for illness as they hide it .

I used to love emptying the piggie house , cleaning it , replacing the flooring and re arranging their houses . Lots of fresh hay .
They'd come in from a hard days graft ( eating grass) hungry for supper , think "When did this happen, we didn't leave that box there " before turning my beautiful clean pigshed into a sty in ten minutes