Will floor time be necessary?

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AbiS

AbiS

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Over the winter Toby and Barney will be moving indoors into a cage that will be the equivalent of a 4x2 C&C with a 1x2 loft. Is this big enough so that they will not need extra floor time?

If you think they will need extra floor time how can I work that without them pooing and peeing all over the carpet or hiding under the sofa and not coming out again? I feel that the answer is going to make me feel really stupid but had to ask. I have seen photos on here of piggies having floor time on the carpet and I just don't understand how carpets don't get destroyed!
 
I run my piggies in the kitchen as I have laminate flooring. I block off all the gaps and put down hideys, boxes filled with hay etc. It's easy then just to sweep up the poo and wash the floor afterwards.

Could you use your kitchen? Or possibly your bathroom?
 
We bring their metal fold-able outdoor run inside, put a plastic sheet down with a camping mat on top & they have an approx 5ft x 4ft play area.
 
During floor time mine have their 'corner'. There is a protective cover we got from babies r us, it has a waterproof bottom, and then they have hideys and a litter tray. They see that as home and so sleep, wee and poo there and use the rest of the space for running around in. To begin with they only went down in their corner so they learnt to recognise it as safety, before we opened up to the pen they have now. If you can train them like this then no damage should be done!
 
I would say they still need floor time. You can place fleece or newspaper on the floor. Personally, I would make the c and c cage bigger so they do not need any floor time.
 
PipandPop said:
During floor time mine have their 'corner'. There is a protective cover we got from babies r us, it has a waterproof bottom, and then they have hideys and a litter tray. They see that as home and so sleep, wee and poo there and use the rest of the space for running around in. To begin with they only went down in their corner so they learnt to recognise it as safety, before we opened up to the pen they have now. If you can train them like this then no damage should be done!
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wow - they seriously don't poop and pee anywhere else - that's impressive!
 
Poppy has naughty moments if she gets nervous or scared of something, or overexcited...but generally it's all in the litterbox. Pippin is a massive neatfreak and won't do it unless it's in a box. Think i'm just lucky. But mats like the one they have underneath there corner are brilliant. For an initial investment of about £15 for a metre squared one they have lasted about 5 years. It's meant that the pen they have is nearly 10ft by 5ft and they get to go out for about 4 or 5 hours a day.
 
PipandPop said:
Poppy has naughty moments if she gets nervous or scared of something, or overexcited...but generally it's all in the litterbox. Pippin is a massive neatfreak and won't do it unless it's in a box. Think i'm just lucky. But mats like the one they have underneath there corner are brilliant. For an initial investment of about £15 for a metre squared one they have lasted about 5 years. It's meant that the pen they have is nearly 10ft by 5ft and they get to go out for about 4 or 5 hours a day.
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It sounds great. Will have to give it some thought - the priority at the moment is getting the cage built before the weather turns cold. Will have to iron the rest of the problems once that is sorted
 
I have a temporary pen made with C and C grids, it is as big as I can get it 6 by 5 with an odd bit to fit round the corner of the bed, I use a waterproof picnic blanket and newspaper. Sometimes I block off under the bed and let them run round but that does mean a lot of hovering (they only pee on newspaper)
 
I would say floor time is necessary however large the cage is, as it allows a change of scenery and more variety of toys. I use a 3ft x 3ft playpen in my bedroom, covered by fleece. The wee does go through but as its an old carpet, it doesn't matter too much, but you could use a waterproof lining to protect your carpets. In the summer, I plan to get a 10ft x 43ft run for the garden so they get outside in a large space daily.
 
i have c&c cages but instead of correx have ground sheet underneath you could get a couple of metal playpens and put ground sheet then fleece under them then your carpet is protected You could use a shower curtain instead of groundsheet.
 
Cute_Guineapigs said:
I would say floor time is necessary however large the cage is, as it allows a change of scenery and more variety of toys. I use a 3ft x 3ft playpen in my bedroom, covered by fleece. The wee does go through but as its an old carpet, it doesn't matter too much, but you could use a waterproof lining to protect your carpets. In the summer, I plan to get a 10ft x 43ft run for the garden so they get outside in a large space daily.
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Blimey! That's HUGE!

I do have an collapsible run that I have used indoors over the summer on rainy days - I am more than happy to used that, Mr S made a base for it so it is watertight, however, it is pretty much the same size as the cage we are building. But I hadn't thought about it just being a change of scenery so maybe that will do the trick?
 
I just have a waterproof backed picnic mat that I have on the floor during floor time, that way I can wash it, sweep up the poos easily and to be honest they prefer it to the cold Lino.
 
MerryPip said:
I just have a waterproof backed picnic mat that I have on the floor during floor time, that way I can wash it, sweep up the poos easily and to be honest they prefer it to the cold Lino.
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What do you do to keep them on the mat and not wander off?

Cute_Guineapigs said:
Sorry I meant 10ft x 4ft. Typing error. Lol.
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I was wondering where on earth you would be getting a run that size from!
 
AbiS said:
What do you do to keep them on the mat and not wander off?



I was wondering where on earth you would be getting a run that size from!
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The mat covers most of my kitchen! lol! Suilven will rpetty much stay on the mat anyway but Struan and Angus don't so I either just shut the door to keep them in or I use grids to build a fence across the kitchen. I have a play pen that doubles as a fence or we just use the poen if I don't have time to set up the kitchen but it's a bit small for two big boys, they prefer the whole kitchen.

We used to let them use the hall too but Angus ate my wife's shoes :( and some other stuff so now we just stick to the kitchen.... Angus is a menace though so don't let his unruly behaviour put you off floor time, they love it! I use tunnels and hideys and things to keep them busy and interested.
 
hahaha - Angus sounds like a Tasmanian Devil!

My main concerns are not letting them poo and pee on the carpet or enabling them to escape. I think once we have them in the house it will become clearer (I hope). Can't happen soon enough - I have just put them in their run in the block paving and they haven't come out of the tube, other than for food, think it must be getting too cold on their little feet. I cant bring them into their indoor run anymore as it will be too cold for them to go back outside!
 
We also have laminate flooring, and they are usually so interested in exploring the space around that they rarely ever pee or poo on it. When we notice that they become nervous, we take them back to the cages.
I think that guinea pigs should always have some free floor time, reglardless of how big are their cages, for both physical and mental exercise. You can also block off any areas that you consider are potentially hazardous for them.
 
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