Outdoor

[jac13]

Hi yeah I have a 5x3 double hutch for 2 sows they live outside and have a shower and thermal cover on it love learned Ng from these groups they have shaving bedding as well as hay how do I best care for them in winter so I need a shed and is so does it need a window please

 

[Piggies&buns]

You don’t need to have a shed but it does make things a bit easier - offers wind and rain protection plus means it would be easier for you to spend time with them, clean them out. Yes the shed would need a window.

Either way (inside a shed or not), their bedding needs to be lots of hay everywhere in the hutch (and changed more often if it is very cold, to ensure there is no damp bedding which could freeze). You will need snugglesafes (microwaveable heat pads) for them whether they are in a shed or not. The heat pads are essential for outdoor piggies as they provide a warm spot for them to sit. They say they stay warm for 10 hours but I’ve never found they do outside particularly as it gets very cold - around 6-8 hours - so I heat them up a few times a day and leave it as late at night as possible to reheat one for overnight.
You can also add additional insulation to the hutch - you can staple silver foil insulation to the outside.

Mine live in hutches in my shed. It’s a 8x6 foot shed, it’s insulated. It had an internal mesh door for security while allowing ventilation.
They have thermal covers and blankets over their hutches even in the shed. I also throw an old duvet over all of it when the temperature really drops.
When I had just the two piggies they free roamed the shed with the hutch door left open. At night in winter they were locked in the hutch (left to free roam the shed during day and night in summer).
The biggest issue I face with the shed is in summer, it gets far too hot and they need to come out. In winter it is brilliant though, as I say;, it means they’re out of the wind and rain plus it is always a few degrees warmer in the shed in winter than outside.

Cold Weather Care for Indoor and Outdoor Guinea Pigs
Member Gallery: Sheds

 

[jac13]

Great thank you so much even in the summer my hutch could come out when you say mesh door do you mean mesh on the shed door? Also do you leave window open please I just wish I had the room indoors but I don't and hubby won't allow them anyway lol plus also with shed means somewhere to go and sit and hang out with them as I know it's bad to bring them indoors for cuddle time in the winter do you put a heater in your shed

 

[Piggies&buns]

Yes an internal mesh door in addition to the normal shed door. I’ll add pictures of my shed and its mesh door.
Both the outdoor door and internal mesh doors are stable style so I can have it fully open or half and half. My shed was custom built but we made the internal mesh door ourselves (it was cheaper!)

My window doesn’t open (annoyingly). If it did open then it would also need mesh inside for protection so nothing to get in with the window open.

I don’t have electric in my shed so no heater.

Oh, just realised I’ve deleted the pictures off of my phone
- this thread of a conversation I had with another member contains the photos of my shed door
How to make inner mesh door on playhouse

 

[jac13]

Yes an internal mesh door in addition to the normal shed door. I’ll add pictures of my shed and its mesh door.
Both the outdoor door and internal mesh doors are stable style so I can have it fully open or half and half. My shed was custom built but we made the internal mesh door ourselves (it was cheaper!)

My window doesn’t open (annoyingly). If it did open then it would also need mesh inside for protection so nothing to get in with the window open.

I don’t have electric in my shed so no heater.

Oh, just realised I’ve deleted the pictures off of my phone
- this thread of a conversation I had with another member contains the photos of my shed door
How to make inner mesh door on playhouse

Just seen it great thank you so much then do you close main door at night with no ventilation and they are ok? I'm not sure I would need mesh as we are in an estate thankfully also do you keep yours locked in their hutch at night

 

[Piggies&buns]

Just seen it great thank you so much then do you close main door at night with no ventilation and they are ok? I'm not sure I would need mesh as we are in an estate thankfully also do you keep yours locked in their hutch at night

Yes the main door is closed at night. They’re absolutely fine.
I would add mesh doors - cats, urban foxes, anything could get into them. I would not risk it.
I live on an estate in a country village and would never risk it.

When I had just two piggies (a bonded pair) they were not locked in the hutch at night (except in winter when they were locked in at night to keep them warm). They free roamed the shed with the hutch door left open so the whole shed was their living space.
Now I have four piggies who cannot mix so they are kept in their respective cages all the time. (Obviously they go out into their runs during summer. In winter they each get a turn on the bit of space that is left on the shed floor for a bit of time out of their hutches.)