Hello, we are getting our first piggies in the next couple of weeks and currently just getting set up.
Our piggies will live indoors in a 6x2 c&c.
Only thing I’m worried about is that in our garden we only have a small patch of artificial grass and a patio.
On a nice day I’d like to put the outside for a change for them.
Is it best to put the run on the artificial grass or the patio?
Hi
You need to put some towel or fleece blanket down onto the ground; especially the patio area. Also make sure that the top is cat and fox safe and peg a towel or sheet over half of the run top to provide a shady area (keep in mind that the sun is moving).
Please make sure that you are around to keep an eye out. There has just been a sharp rise of guinea pig and rabbit theft from hutches and sheds at the start of the summer holiday (presumably for dog baiting).
Try the ground with your bare feet first for 5 minutes. If it is too cold or too hot for them, it is going to be the same for your piggies, who are lower to the ground. This will help you to decide where better to put the run and whether the ground is still too cold, too damp or already too warm - and it will help to avoid a vet trip for urinary trct infection or heat exhaustion/stroke.
Just some nice sun-warmed air can be very deceptive, so can double shade in hot weather with a sun-heated breeze of over 50 C blowing right onto the cage. Your bare feet will give you the best feedback.
These inside air and ground temperatures here have been taken on a nicely warm 25 C on a sunny lawn with no extra protection.
(Shared with permission of East Anglian Guinea Pig Rescue)
- How to provide the run
- How to prepare guinea pigs for the lawn season
- Beware!
Warmer spring weather is on the way - and that means the start of the lawn season!
How to provide the run
- Provide a shelter against wind and weather, as temperatures can drop quickly as soon as the sun has gone or a sudden shower crops up. Make sure that your piggies have access to hay to help balance the digestion and ideally a place slightly above the ground that is dry and warm, so...
The first and fourth chapter in our hot weather guide should be a bit of an eye opener as to how surface temperatures on the ground and temperatures inside a hidey in the sun can differ from the air temperature:
Hot Weather Management, Heat Strokes and Fly Strike
Please also brace yourself for the fact that you will have to spend your first summer accustoming your piggies to the outdoors. It is usually rather overwhelming and scary for them at first. Treat them like you would tender plants in spring.
Please give your piggies time to settle into their new home first.
Intro
1 What to do on arrival at home
- A welcome in piggy language
- Health check, sexing and weighing
- Quarantine or not if you have other guinea pigs?
2 Helping your guinea pigs to settle in
- Some practical tips for settling in new guinea pigs
- Avoiding predatory behaviours
- Skittish or ill?
- Group establishment and dominance
3 Handling and human...
Getting Started - Essential Information for New Owners (for bookmarking, browsing, reading and re-reading at need)
