Moving Guinea's to Garage

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tinky75

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I wish I was asking questions on moving my piggies from outside to a garage, but unfortunately I'm not. Due to becoming allergic to the hay, I am having to reconsider housing my guinea's indoors. Have just read so much on how it could cause serious illness and be fatal for them but I have no other options other than them being rehomed 8...

Current set up is that are in their indoor cage (on fleece) in our little spare room and are downstairs most days in an indoor pen which is more or less left up during the week (as hubby works away) so they have lots of room to exercise. As you know, hay ends up everywhere and as recommended by the dr they have asked if they can be moved into a shed or garage.

My husband went and bought a hutch at the weekend, along with a hutch snuggler and set this up for me as he knows how much I adore my piggies, we have covered the hutch also in a big thick fleece blanket keep out drafts. He also got a snuggle pad to heat in the microwave.

We also need to get some heat in there but not sure what, it feels really cold in there at the moment and I do not want to move the guineas to in there I am so upset. Any advise on heating the garage?

Any help would be much appreciated. Obviously if most advise I am wrong in putting them in the garage, I will seriously consider rehoming them :(
 
Oh hun, how sad for you :(
My concern would obviously be moving them from a warm place into a colder one is riskier than the other way around.
Once they have lived in a warm environment, they are climatised to it. Basically, I cannot offer you any sound advice as my piggies are all indoors in our lounge and I would worry if I had to move them to a cooler room etc. but many people do and assume as long as they are warm enough and not open to the elements, will be ok ?/ Sounds as though you have all of the stuff you need to keep them snug :)
Hope someone with experience of this can give you their opinion and give solid further advice.
 
Maybe you could buy them a heatpad? If your worried about them been effected, as it's going to be much colder for them!
Plenty of straw, and maybe use a oil filed radiator?But not to close to the hutch, and put a fleece sack in there hutch.Hope this helps!
 
Amysguineapigs said:
Maybe you could buy them a heatpad? If your worried about them been effected, as it's going to be much colder for them!
Plenty of straw, and maybe use a oil filed radiator?But not to close to the hutch, and put a fleece sack in there hutch.Hope this helps!
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Hope you mean hay hun rolleyes ;) Straw is not recommended for piggies as it is sharp and risks eye injuries :(
 
Thank you..yes I have two of the heat pads, tried them out and surprised how the warmth came through the hay - do they stay as warm as they say they do?

Normally I use carefresh in their indoor cage - in the litter trays, but of course it will be expensive to use in the hutch and have read good and bad thing about using woodshavings? Plan to use newspaper to line the cage, woodshavings if ok and lots of hay.
 
I've been using a snuggle pad for my young piglets as they are outside during the day and in the garage over night and they really do stay as warm as they say they do. I put them out in their hutch this am at about 8.30am and brought them into their garage set up at about 6.30 and it was still warm....brilliant!
 
wow yes they really do stay warm, have moved piggies now and they seem to love their new hutch, they have more room aswell. I put one snuggle pad in the sleeping area and another in the other bit as honey seems to always lie in there, and she has been flat out on her heat pad :) Think I may have to get a couple more so Willow has a chance of going on one rolleyes
 
What your doing sounds great, please dont take this as me having a go but guinea pigs CANNOT live in the garage if theres a car in there. The fumes may very well kill them. Otherwise it sounds like your doing exactly what you should be. :)
 
Guinea pig slave said:
Oh hun, how sad for you :(
My concern would obviously be moving them from a warm place into a colder one is riskier than the other way around.
.
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How risky is it the other way round? I want to move my pigs inside. I was going to do so at midday so the temperature change wasn't so enormous, and make sure they're snuggle pads were in the hutch all morning. I do have one of those icepod things, is it worth popping one of them under the fleece so they have a cool spot if they want? Or is that just being silly, will they be fine?

No heating is on as yet in our house, my alarm clock says it's 19 degrees in the house.
 
Connie said:
What your doing sounds great, please dont take this as me having a go but guinea pigs CANNOT live in the garage if theres a car in there. The fumes may very well kill them. Otherwise it sounds like your doing exactly what you should be. :)
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No don't worry there is no car kept in the Garage.
 
A weird thought dunno if it would work but if you put in an electric heater the sort that you use in caravans etc ? not to close obviously but if you turned it on in the evening and turn it off when you went to bed I'm sure it would at least make it a little warmer for them ? just an idea but you sound like your doing a great job, sorry to hear you've had to move them though :/
 
My piggy lives in the garage and he seems fine :) What kind of garage is it? Ours is attached to the house so it gets warmth through the door into the garage (although it is still cool)
How about giving them fluffy vet bed? surely that will help to keep them warm :) some cozy sacks, your heat pads, fleecey blankets to snuggle in? I am sure they will be fine and even though it might be cool there isn't any winds or rain to make them cold
 
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