Ideas for wintering the guinea pigs in the shed!

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Gaile

Gaile

Adult Guinea Pig
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I know it looks 'rough' but with a bit of TLC and lino it will be great.Now the hutch I made last year I reinforced to use outside,so it is too big/heavy to go on the table and the shed,not enough space!So should I buy a small hutch to go under the table or make a mini hutch,but what size should I make it for 3 guinea pigs!They will have a run so they get lots of exercise and do they need to be locked in the 'hutch' on a night time or can they run around! The shed will be locked on a night time! Or can I use c&c? sorry for the amount of questions? O0
 
I have c & c in my shed so they can run around all the time. It is insulated for the winter and there is also a heater in there. I have some pictures somewhere but I suppose C & C would be fine, and you could even put a hutch in there just for night time. Mine have a hutch to wonder in when the feel like it and I know the like to snuggle in the bedroom bit at night.
 
I'm in the same boat as you with a run down shed but hey its for the pigs so we can sort it right ::)
 
hi this is what i have just done to my shed for our wee pigs for the winter but your shed has even more room so you can make it even bigger and better than mine with loads more floor space all the best with what you do and post you pictures when you are finished cheers

pigsdad O0 O0

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I cleared the whole shed out for mine ;D but you have enough room by the looks of it to put a 4ft double hutch in there which is big enough for three piggies ;) or you could have a smaller hutch and a little run :)
 
Put my girls in the workshop last night until i get the shed converted for them. They have a heat pad loads of bedding and a hutch hugger on the top. I had them out today in their run then back in the workshop at night. Starting the shed tomorrow their run will be going in with them once its too cold for them to be out in the day on the grass was thinking about getting a heater as some people have mentioned they have in theirs. Any suggestions as to which type of heater will be safer/suitable?
 
Awww thats a good idea ;D Do they get to run all in the shed or are you separating it ? :smitten:
 
They can run around on the silver area!But I don't really like it!Might not be so easy to clean!
 
Gaile said:
They can run around on the silver area!But I don't really like it!Might not be so easy to clean!
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That looks like the most easiest thing to clean i nthe world ;D You can just sweep up the poo and use a babywipe or tissue for the pee ;D
 
hi hows the best way to heat it for the winter? I'm looking into getting a shed for them to go outside but hoping the OH will let me wait till the warmer weather instead and get a shed for the following winter.
 
Mine were in the shed last year and no heating but they were in an enclosed double decker hutch!So hoping they will be ok this year!
 
Would mine be ok without heating in the shed but I could get the proper cover for the hutch?
 
It could help to insulate the floor as cold and damp could penetrate. How about some polystyrene (sp?) under the silver area? It would raise the level a bit but that wouldn't matter. Polystyrene is a great insulator and its cheap!
 
Polystyrene is a fab Idea, we insulated a hutch with it once and it was fantastic! You can some times get polystyrene on freecycle and go check any boxes you have purchased big items in as they some times have large pieces in :)
 
Last year I covered the hutch with a blanket and Boris was housed in an indoor cage for awhile (few months) until he was save to go with his sisters after his little op! The shed is also about 2ft off the ground!
 
The ideal for a shed heater would be something like an oil-filled radiator (no risk of fire if used properly) that has a thermostat so it comes on when it's too cold and goes off when the shed is warm enough. I would really call this essential for the winter - while sheds keep the draughts down and the temperature slightly higher, it's still not ideal (in my opinion) to have it unheated. At least in my part of the country where many days in winter are below zero.

Temperatures here hit 2 C two nights ago already - dread to think what the winter is going to be like.
 
i've heard oil filled radiators are more expensive to run, compared to something like a panel heater.
 
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