Guinea-pigs are not as tough as what they were 10-15 years ago. There are a number of reasons why this is and these include breeding, genetics and owner knowledge.
Some breeders are not choosing wisely which guineapigs they mate. To get the 'perfect' guineapig, both the male and female need to be healthy and have good genetics so that their offspring will be as healthy too. Breeding a guineapig that has health problems is only passing on those genes to the offspring which means they too will get sick. Now of course, every animal will become ill at some point in their life but what you don't want is an animal that's constantly sick. This is not good for the animal or you as it's distressing on both parts.
Owner knowledge is also something that could be a reason for them not being as hardy as they used to be. Not everyone knows their needs and signs/symptoms of illness etc. This is purely why I decided to set up this blog.
Anyway..
Bedding
The best bedding for guinea-pigs is a layer of newspaper with LOTS of HAY.
You should never give a guinea-pig straw as it does not provide them any nutritional value. It can also irritate your guinea-pig too. Hay like vitamin C is essential in keeping guineapigs healthy.
Another thing you should never give guinea-pigs is sawdust. A lot of owners use sawdust to soak up the urine and the smell (especially if the guineapigs are kept indoors). Whilst, it does a good job at soaking up the urine and masking the smell, it's SUPER BAD for your guineapig. Sawdust gets stuck in their ears, eyes and paws which can cause infections and illnesses. It's also not very nice to lay on, just imagine sleeping on a bed of sawdust - sharp, smelly and rough. Vets do not recommend sawdust and blame most eye and ear infections on sawdust.
If you want something to soak up the urine and the smell, I recommend you use carefresh. It's a little expensive but the benefits for both you and your guinea-pig are far greater than sawdust. You can get it at pets@home, amazon, ebay and most pet shops.
Carefresh is soft and enables guineapigs to make little nests and feel safe and comfortable. It soaks up urine and you wouldn't even notice the smell. For more info on carefresh, check out their website: http://www.carefresh.com/products/happy-habitat-system
Of course, if you use carefresh, make sure you add hay on top too.
Enrichment
For those that don't know, enrichment means to make your animals life fuller and happier. Guineapigs are very sociable animals and so you should always keep them in pairs or small groups (preferably the same sex).
Guineapigs love exploring and 'tunnelling' - it's something they would do in the wild. Add tunnels to your guineapigs enclosure, even stuff the tunnels with hay, they will love exploring them.
Guineapigs need things to chew to keep their teeth trim and in good health. Lots of pet shops have toys your guineapig can chew but most guineapigs are happy with one of these:
Yep, toilet roll tubes are guineapigs favourite toys. They love to pick them up, chew them and are lots more fun when you hide fruit in. They're also extremely cheap for you too, everyone has toilet roll so there's no reason why you can't give your guineapig the toilet roll tube when it's empty.
Recently, I noticed my guineapigs love the sound of bells and chimes. So, off I went to Asda for some kitten bell balls. They were super cheap and strong enough that I knew they wouldn't break and cause a choking hazard. As soon as I put them in their cage, they were intrigued and were soon picking the me up by their teeth and shaking them. Guineapigs LOVE them and they're super cute to watch them playing with them.
It's extremely important you provide your guineapig with something to do. How would you feel being stuck in an empty room ALL DAY EVERY DAY. Make sure you let them out of their cage too, guineapigs need exericise every day. Just because the weather is bad outside does not mean you cannot bring them inside and let them on the floor (Make sure you get rid of wires, block holes, no dogs/cats around and it's safe to let them out).
Perhaps even buy your guineapig a play run so that you can feel reassured your guineapigs are safe during floor time in your house.
Well, I hope this has helped some of you. Please check out the following links for places to buy enrichment, bedding and for more information
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