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Guinea Pig CareFor a complete guide to everything you need to know about guinea pigs please see Guinea Lynx.
HousingGuinea pigs are happiest when they can run laps and play with each other; in order to do this they must have adequate housing. Aquariums are not suitable as they provide poor air circulation, and only generally too small. Most pet store cages do not give adequate space either and are usually very expensive. The SCGPR strongly suggests C&C cages (cubes and choroplast). We require all adopters to build or buy a C&C cage; these cages give the proper amount of space (10.5 sq ft for two pigs) for the least amount of cost. A 10.5 sq ft cage only cost $35 to build yourself! Please see Guinea Pig Cages for instructions on how to build a cage, as well as where to get materials and tons of design ideas.
Guinea pigs generally enjoy interacting with other beings, so a cage should be in a room which is frequently used. They should be away air vents and direct sunlight to avoid becoming overheated or too cold.
DietGuinea pigs eat constantly throughout the day, this is necessary to maintain a healthy digestion. They should have constant access to good quality timothy, bluegrass or orchard hay. Adult guinea pigs should get at least ¼ of a cup of plain timothy based pellets with no seeds, dried fruit, vegetables or colored pieces. A guinea pig “mix” contains too much fat and sugar and will cause your guinea pig to gain a significant amount of weight. Here at the rescue we prefer to order hay online from KleenMama's Hayloft, we find that this is the best quality hay available. Shippping can be expensive but in the long run it is cheaper than buying a bag once a week. Another good hay and pellet brand is Oxbow; you can often find this brand at pet stores. At the rescue we use the Mazuri brand of pellets, which can also be found in many petstores. Like humans, guinea pigs cannot produce their own vitamin C therefore they need at least a cup of veggies a day to provide this vitamin C as well as other important nutrients. Please see this guide for an easy to understand, color coded chart of which vegetables, fruits and forages that are healthy for your pig. At the rescue we generally feed romaine, cilantro, red leaf, green leaf, or endive once a day as well as red, green, orange or yellow pepper. Two-three times a week our pigs also get parsley, apples, kale, tomatoes or cucumbers, as a treat they each get one small baby carrot before bedtime. Note: Like many treats for humans, most treats marketed for guinea pigs are full of unnecessary fat and sugar. Please stay away from yogurt drops, chew sticks, dried fruit and anything else marketed as a guinea pig treat. Fresh fruits are a much better way to treat your guinea pig.
BeddingGenerally bedding depends on the preferences of the owner.
Not Recommended: Newspaper: News paper is not very absorbent and tends to smell quickly. It is also not very soft on the sensitive feet of a guinea pig. Hay: Hay is also not very absorbent and tends to smell, it also molds very easily which can kill a guinea pig. People have successfully used hay as bedding but it is changed daily or every other day.
Recommended: Aspen: The rescue prefers to use aspen because it is rarely as dusty as pine but is still around the same price. It also generally has larger chips and is less likely to get thrown about the room when your guinea pig plays! Carefresh: Carefresh is the best commercial bedding available; it is made from recycled paper and is completely dust free. At the rescue we use the white Carefresh Ultra for guinea pigs with upper respiratory infections. Fleece: Fleece is by far the cheapest bedding because rather than buying new once a week, you just put in the washing machine. The rescue director uses fleece for her personal pigs. After 3-4 washings (without fabric softener or dryer sheets) fleece pulls urine through to the absorbent layer underneath, leaving the top nice and dry. For the absorbent layers underneath, the director uses two layers of towels. Other people have used puppy training pads, and mattress pads. Please see this article for more information on using fleece as bedding.
Health CareBecause guinea pigs are considered an exotic, most general practice vets have little to no knowledge of the common issues of these small creatures. Therefore it is very important to find a vet who specializes in exotics. Many antibiotics such as penicillin are deadly to guinea pigs, a vet needs to be aware of which medications are safe. Please see this for a list of medications dangerous to guinea pigs. We highly recommend using the rescue vet if you are in the Columbia area:
Dr. Emily Hoppmann
PetFriends Veterinary Clinic
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