My boys don’t want to play or have floor time

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palehunty

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So I’ve tried everything I feel like. Their cage is open 24/7 and even if I take them out they jump straight back in. They’re always in their hideys and taking them out is a battle in itself. I don’t know what to do because I know they need exercise and floor time but they just won’t take it! Any ideas? I’ve tried tempting them with veggies and tunnels and toys but they aren’t phased by it. :(
 
Just give them time they will come out patients ! Mine hide but I pick my little baby Guinea pigs up I have to all they be wild ! Mine love brown bread ! She will kill me when I gave an apple and my brown bread
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palehunty said:
So I’ve tried everything I feel like. Their cage is open 24/7 and even if I take them out they jump straight back in. They’re always in their hideys and taking them out is a battle in itself. I don’t know what to do because I know they need exercise and floor time but they just won’t take it! Any ideas? I’ve tried tempting them with veggies and tunnels and toys but they aren’t phased by it. :(
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They don’t need floor time if their cage is big enough - they will get all the exercise they need in their cage. Exercise is also about mental stimulation, not just movement.

Piggies are scared of big open spaces so floor time and being away from the safety of their territory is a scary experience for a lot of piggies.
Using a playpen can help in this situation. It gives them a change of scenery but without feeling exposed. You can cover the top of the cage with a sheet to help them feel more secure.

How long have you had them?
That is also a big factor in whether they are even ready for floor time.
 
When they are settled enough they will come out. It helps if they have lots of places to hide scattered around until they are comfortable. Mine used to be free roaming and I would have tubes, tunnels and hides out on route to the hay tray.IMG20230808121805.webp
 
Hi

They don't need floor time but if you want them to, you have to take it slowly.

If they are in a run, then use soiled bedding to signal that it is their marked territory and safe; that will go a long way. Place a sheet or blanket over the top since guinea pigs have a deep-seated prey animal instinct to avoid open spaces. Also do that with their cage to make them feel more protected.

Get a children's stool or two to use as shelters from where they can explore their new territory from. At first, place hides about a foot apart so they can dart from one to the other and gradually start exploring from there with short darts out and back. Use their daily pellet allowance to sprinkle just over a body length outside a hide. Then you slowly extend the distance between hides and sprinkle the pellets a little further away.
Whenever they panic, go back to square one the following time but you will find that they come round that bit quicker each time. It is a one step forward two steps back kind of process that takes a lot of patience and persistence but it can be done. I've done it plenty of times with piggies of mine.

My three dumped Cornish piggies that were living rough in the undergrowth in dog walking wasteland now sleep right out in open in and by the hay tray with their hides at the backend - it has taken me over a year to get them that far but it shows that they feel totally safe and at home now. ;)
 
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