What Are Some Ways Ways To Maintain Suitable Temperature In Outdoor Guinea Pig Run?

Question

I was thinking of moving my two guinea pigs outside into a moveable run. My idea is to create some large wooden panels, stretch reinforced chicken wire across these, and nail them together in a large (At least 6ft by 6ft) five sided run. This means that I can rotate it around the garden every few weeks to prevent squalor. Of course, there is always the problem of weather. We have a large, hinged top wooden box like storage unit in the shed, and I was thinking of modifying this as a shelter from the cold, and rain, filling it with wood chips, elevating it to prevent flooding. I live in Ireland, so it can get rather cold in the winter. What measures can I take to prevent the inside of the box from reaching unsuitable temperatures? What's the optimum temperature for the box? I was planning of enlarging the herd, so in essence, I need to insulate the box so that the body temperature of say six cavies could warm it. What measures can I take to make sure the box is perfect. I also know that there can be some problems with outdoor housing, but I'm going to make the run myself, so I can avoid these problems. Could someone give me some advice?

Answer 1

Well no guinea pigs should be in a run all the time if they are outside they should be in a hutch or in a shed with a hutch.

They could be kept in a run like cage if you have a heated shed.

But like you said ireland dosn'thave so good weather and being outside in just a run isnt really good for their health.

I don't recommend them being outside in a run all time.

Hope this has helped you



xx



If you need any more help i recommend www.theguineapigforum.co.uk

It is a forum with all different people with guinea pigs that can help you.



once again good lick with your guinea pigs





Anna



(AnnasPiggies)

Answer 2

Hi. I live in England so the same temperate climate as England. Guinea pigs are hardy animals.



In the summer the guinea pigs can stay out at all times as long as they have the covered box for sleeping with planty of bedding and a covered area for eating and some play in the rain. Make absolutely sure the sleeping are lets no water in, this may mean covering it with some plastic sheeting. It is best to confine them to the covered areas in the rain and to keep them off any wet grass.



In the Autumn and spring more warmth needs to be provided. You can achive this by moving the enclosure into a porch or shed or by taking further measures to insulate the sleeping and eating areas. Maybe fit some king of a thermometer to check the temperatures at different times of the day to check it is suitable.



In the winter they really should be in a warm shed or something similar. If the temperature reaches freezing overnight then it is best to have a small indoor cage to use to get them out of the cold.



The more guinea pigs you have the more combined body warmth so with six as long as they get on well they should be fine.



Outdoor run problems include:



Making sure you protect the wood from the weather but with a varnish that will not hurt the pigs if injested.



Foxes and other preditors; you may need something stronger than chicken wire and you must make sure they are confined in the safest cpvered part at night when the preditors prowl.



I find the hinges and bolts soon wear out and need replacing as they get so much use.



Don't worry about foundations or sinking it into the ground - guinea pigs don't dig.



They will eat and mess the grass quicker than you imagine and the run will kill the grass where it makes contact so move it often.

Answer 3

Did you just say bedding's too expensive? Okay this is a last resort. absolutely. Pine. DONT KILL ME. Yes Pine's natural aroma is terrible for their lungs. BUT - Not if it's dried out. if you let it sit out in direct sunlight for a couple days, the strong scent should be "dried out" and it's actually a lot less harmful. it not only takes away the sun it removes some of the dust that also hurts them. Pine in huge bags is inexpensive and it's very compressed. I got a big bag today for 6.68. And that bag was so heavy i had to heave it. It lasts a long time. It's easy to clean also. .. and it's wood. When the pigs are bored they enjoy chewing on the pieces. Just remove any gigantic roughly cut pieces. The cheaper the pine you buy the more large chunky pieces you'll find. For extra absorbency use this stuff from Walmart called "critter care." It's care fresh but really cheap. It comes in small bags but it expands because it's very, very compressed. Really absorbent with no odor at all. Spread this around the cage as an extra layer to the pine. And also try vinegar and water mixture if you don't already. It cleans the surface of the cage amazingly. Oh, and lastly. Puppy Pads. Instead of cardboard layer the entire surface area of the cage with puppy pads. Puppy Pads aren't that expensive and usually if you've had puppies, you have some leftover puppy pads somewhere. They're made for absorbing pee and they do a good job.

Answer 4

ways ways maintain suitable temperature outdoor guinea pig run