Moving indoor piggies outside.

Guinea Newbie

Guinea Newbie

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi,
Our newly adopted boys are well settled and despite a dash to the vets last week and medication both now seem to be happy in their new home. They have always been indoor piggies and I fully intend to keep them indoors for the next 5-6 months but then we hope to move them outside. Would this be ok...?
It would be spring and I would of course keep them in if it turns out to be a colder spring. My questions are:
Can indoor piggies transition outside when the weather warms?
Could they spend next spring/summer outside and then stay out for winter with adequate bedding/heat pads etc. They wouldn’t be in a shed though, I would get them a rain cover and thermal layer.

If it got very cold I would always have the option of bringing them in but into a much smaller cage.

My friend says her outdoor piggies always feel lovely and warm and snuggly, like they are in their own little microclimate over winter. She adds loads of hay and moves them close to the house.

I am just trying to think about their long term housing and what’s best for them and would give them maximum space. We can have a double 6ft hutch outside and a 2x4 c&c cage inside.

Advice would be great, especially anyone who has done it or has outdoor piggies.

Thanks.
 
As long as it is over 15 degrees (overnight), then you can move then out next spring/summer.

My boys live outside year round, but they are in a shed (they live in a hutch within the shed, having access to the shed floor during daylight hours) but it isn’t heated and due to its age not fantastically well insulated (but I am getting a new shed soon) but it still keeps the temperature up enough and along with my measures within the hutch to keep them warm and safe in winter. The hutch has a thermal cover (i obviously don’t need a waterproof cover) and under the thermal cover I have two layers of blankets. I also have an old duvet which I throw over all of it when necessary. I time pulling the covers over at the end of the day to trap the warmth of the day within the hutch (their shed is south facing so it can still warm up on a sunny winters day). Inside there is so much hay, and I give them four heat pads between the two piggies - two in the bedroom (one in each bed) and one by each hayrack. With a lot of work, I can keep the temperature up in their hutch and they are always cosy overnight. If you can’t use a shed, then you will need to ensure you have enough hutch covers and blankets, and heat pads, but also, as you have mentioned, bringing a hutch closer to the house, positioning it out of the wind/rain. It is possible, but you just have to be extra vigilant. I check my thermometers about a million times in the winter, and then another few times before I go to bed! But I ALWAYS have a plan to bring them in during winter if my measures fail during a particularly cold time.
 
Thanks. Another thing that has sprung to mind is, if I do need to bring them in and they go into a smaller cage, would they start fighting? They came with their 120cm cage which is way too small for 2 big boys, there’s been a bit of dominance asserting and one ‘scuffle’ since we’ve had them. So I have got them a c&c cage to give them more space. If we need to bring them in would it be likely to cause some ‘unrest’?
 
if you need to bring them in, then bringing some of their bedding from the hutch indoors and their hideys etc, can help to minimise it.
 
Guinea Newbie said:
Hi,
Our newly adopted boys are well settled and despite a dash to the vets last week and medication both now seem to be happy in their new home. They have always been indoor piggies and I fully intend to keep them indoors for the next 5-6 months but then we hope to move them outside. Would this be ok...?
It would be spring and I would of course keep them in if it turns out to be a colder spring. My questions are:
Can indoor piggies transition outside when the weather warms?
Could they spend next spring/summer outside and then stay out for winter with adequate bedding/heat pads etc. They wouldn’t be in a shed though, I would get them a rain cover and thermal layer.

If it got very cold I would always have the option of bringing them in but into a much smaller cage.

My friend says her outdoor piggies always feel lovely and warm and snuggly, like they are in their own little microclimate over winter. She adds loads of hay and moves them close to the house.

I am just trying to think about their long term housing and what’s best for them and would give them maximum space. We can have a double 6ft hutch outside and a 2x4 c&c cage inside.

Advice would be great, especially anyone who has done it or has outdoor piggies.

Thanks.
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Hi!

You will have generally more interaction with indoors piggies and they are generally safer as less exposed to predators, fire works/thunder storms and other weather extremes. Climate change is happening; and it is also impacting on how we keep our pets - the climate is not getting nicely and steadily warmer but we are more and more hit with pronounced and more extreme weather phenomena at all seasons as the jet stream is slowing down and creating larger loops.
Please be aware that heat waves and spikes can be even more fatal than a cold spell for guinea pigs. The last two summers have killed countless piggies, especially outdoors ones. :(
When moving piggies outside, you always have to have a place for them come indoors/under safe cover. The ideal temperatures are 15-25 C, keeping in mind that a sun heated breeze is a lot hotter than the air in the shade, but that it can easily reach a shady area. Forum members have sadly lost piggies in a shady area of their garden to heat stroke this way. :(

Please take the time to read these guides below. It is good that you are doing your research beforehand. There are always pros and cons. I generally prefer to bring my own piggies indoors for the night as our garden is bordering on open land and we also have several cats coming into our garden.
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
Cold Weather Care For Guinea Pigs
 
Thank you very much Wiebke, all very useful information. Yes, the last couple of summers would have been way too hot for them outside too. There would always be the option of bringing them in. Personally I quite like having them in, they are so social and love to come to see us when we get home, it’s just a question of space.

In the garden we do have the option of placing them against the wall that gets the sun in the winter or the wall that’s in total shade during the summer. Our garden walls are 8ft high so throw quite a bit of shade to the lower end of our garden.
Another question, we have used electronic cat deterrents to deter cats from the garden in the past, but I assume these wouldn’t be safe with the piggies....? They are sensor activated so only on when triggered.
 
Guinea Newbie said:
Thank you very much Wiebke, all very useful information. Yes, the last couple of summers would have been way too hot for them outside too. There would always be the option of bringing them in. Personally I quite like having them in, they are so social and love to come to see us when we get home, it’s just a question of space.

In the garden we do have the option of placing them against the wall that gets the sun in the winter or the wall that’s in total shade during the summer. Our garden walls are 8ft high so throw quite a bit of shade to the lower end of our garden.
Another question, we have used electronic cat deterrents to deter cats from the garden in the past, but I assume these wouldn’t be safe with the piggies....? They are sensor activated so only on when triggered.
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I have no experience with electronic deterrents but I can't imagine that the piggies would like them!

Please be aware that the high fences can turn a garden into a heat trap during hot weather as the hot breeze won't stop on the edge of shade.
But you can certainly use a hutch as a second home in suitable weather.
 
There were days in the summer when my piggies spent the day in the house in a cool room and didn’t go back out to their hutch until it had cooled down in the evening. Unfortunately I can’t have mine live indoors permanently but can have my spare indoor cage ready to go quickly if they need to come in temporarily due to heat or cold.
 
Thanks everyone. That’s all very helpful. Especially the advice about keeping them warm in the winter. I figured we would also have to have a plan to come in in the heat too. Thank you Claire W - I thought this might be the case re the deterrents. Will look into non electronic deterrents to keep the local cats away from the piggies and also stop them pooing on the lawn!
 
Guinea Newbie said:
Thanks everyone. That’s all very helpful. Especially the advice about keeping them warm in the winter. I figured we would also have to have a plan to come in in the heat too. Thank you Claire W - I thought this might be the case re the deterrents. Will look into non electronic deterrents to keep the local cats away from the piggies and also stop them pooing on the lawn!
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I have two cats myself and non natural deterrents incline lemon slices and 1 Litre water bottles and citronella x
 
My piggies were outside permanently until we moved 5 days ago and now they are in the garage as there are foxes here. I had them in a 6ft 2 storey hutch with a hutch snuggle and a thermal cover on. They had loads of hay, even more loads of hay, even more, more loads of hay and more than that to keep them warm. They had a heat pad each, fleecy snugglesacks, fleecy tunnels and a blanket down over the front of the hutch to keep the frost out. They were toasty warm in the hutch. :)
 
Thanks Betsy, that’s exactly the hutch we were thinking of, a double 6ft, with hutch snuggle and thermal layer. We are in a town, in 5 years I have never seen a fox in the area, that’s not to say they don’t exist though!
 
I was going to go for the Chartwell one too! Double 6ft. A friend has the single 5ft and recommended it, are you happy with yours?
 
Guinea Newbie said:
I was going to go for the Chartwell one too! Double 6ft. A friend has the single 5ft and recommended it, are you happy with yours?
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Yes very happy. I have no complaints whatsoever. The only time I've brought them inside and shoehorned them into the Conservatory was when the Beast from the East struck and it was -10 outside. As long as you acclimatise your piggies properly they should be able to cope with a minimum temperature of around -2 to -4. As the nights draw in their winter coat is stimulated to grow which is a very thick layer next to their skin which insulates them. You also need to put in loads of hay, snugglesafes and fleecy stuff to help keep them warm. As mentioned before, I recommend a blanket over the top and the front of the hutch at night to keep out the frost. You may find that you need to put a few bricks on the top of your hutch underneath the snuggle cover to stop the inside of the hutch at the top from going mouldy as the angle of the roof is not steep enough and rain tends to sit on there. A quick spray and wipe with F10 SC Disinfectant 100ml Concentrated Solution: F10: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies soon gets rid of it if it does make an unwelcome visit
 
Betsy said:
Yes very happy. I have no complaints whatsoever. The only time I've brought them inside and shoehorned them into the Conservatory was when the Beast from the East struck and it was -10 outside. As long as you acclimatise your piggies properly they should be able to cope with a minimum temperature of around -2 to -4. As the nights draw in their winter coat is stimulated to grow which is a very thick layer next to their skin which insulates them. You also need to put in loads of hay, snugglesafes and fleecy stuff to help keep them warm. As mentioned before, I recommend a blanket over the top and the front of the hutch at night to keep out the frost. You may find that you need to put a few bricks on the top of your hutch underneath the snuggle cover to stop the inside of the hutch at the top from going mouldy as the angle of the roof is not steep enough and rain tends to sit on there. A quick spray and wipe with F10 SC Disinfectant 100ml Concentrated Solution: F10: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies soon gets rid of it if it does make an unwelcome visit
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now that is a great idea Jackie ! ive noticed signs of mould in my hutches due to damp weather.bricks will work a treat.Thanks.xx
 
Great thank you! I will do all that when the time comes. Waiting until the spring to give them time to acclimatise slowly. One is also a bit under weight, so needs to bulk up first too.
If we have a very cold spell we can bring them in.
 
eileen said:
now that is a great idea Jackie ! ive noticed signs of mould in my hutches due to damp weather.bricks will work a treat.Thanks.xx
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I take no credit Eileen it was somebody else who suggested it but I can't remember who it was. :oops:
 
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