Housing Cage Question - Need Advice

piggycuddler_44

piggycuddler_44

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Hi, I have two bonded piggies. Most of the day, they are in a spacious play area, C and C cage style. I put them together in a much smaller area at night, so they're not running around and getting into situations in their big day pen. I have read that guinea pigs aren't really set on sleeping at night, am wrong for putting them into a small night cage (1m x 45cm ish)? Please respond, I need advice! Thanks so much
 
Hello, yes guineapigs don’t sleep at night they just have naps all day and night so by putting them in a very small cage a night when you have a bigger space available isn’t really the right thing to do… they could potentially fight in the confined space!
 
Welcome to the forum

i agree with above.

They thrive on the stability and safety of their territory so moving their environment so often is likely to be disruptive to them (and potentially to their bond).

They need to be in the correct size cage at all times -
for two sows that is a 4x2 c&c or 150x60cm cage;
for two boars it’s a 5x2 c&c or 180x60cm cage

Unfortunately, the cage you are using at night at 100x45cm isnt suitable for guinea pigs to use in any event as it is below welfare minimum sizing.

The guides below explain further

Wiebke

Thread 'Cage Size Guide'

Remember - guinea pigs are ground roaming group animals and they need as much space as you can spare! More space to run and popcorn in means healthier and happier piggies and in turn more joy for you!

Here is a visual guide to show you the sizes of the currently commercially available cages in comparison to each other:
IMG_2522_edited-2.jpg

This is a 120x60 cm / 2x4 ft cage in comparison with a 100x50 cm cage, which is sadly still very much pushed by pet shops and commercial online sellers; you can see what a difference it makes!
IMG_3833_edited-1.jpg


C&c grids are a size of 35.5cm to meet the size...
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Wiebke

Thread 'Reacting to group or territorial changes: Dominance and group establishment/re-establishment'

- What can trigger a new hierarchy sort-out?
- What can I do to mitigate the impact?

With an average life span of only around 3 years and a hostile environment, wild guinea pig social life is much more fluid and eventful, whether that is losses, births, regular leadership changes, new boars being accepted or changes to the territory due to climate extremes, infectious illnesses, predation and the waxing and waning of group fortunes and the amount of territory they can claim around their denning areas.


What can trigger...
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