Page Contents
Introduction
Your guinea pigs have quite many requirements in order to live well such as a healthy mixture of hay, fresh fruits and vegetables, and pellets.
In addition, means of entertainment and suitable bedding are also crucial.
Keep scroll to find out more about these things.
What are some good ways to entertain a solo guinea pig?
Adopting a solo guinea pig doesn’t merely relate to feeding and taking care of them.
As guinea pigs, in general, are very sociable and intelligent, they need both human affection and entertainment.
Therefore, keeping them from not getting bored is of extreme importance for a healthy and active domestic guinea pig.
There are several approaches to entertain a guinea pig when he lives alone in a cage such as providing toys, food treats and making the hay rack more interesting.
Providing toys
- Guinea pigs’ toys must satisfy their chewing instincts and evoke stimulation or curiosity.
- You can try some ways such as crumpling up a piece of paper into a ball and let your guinea pig play with it.
- Using cardboard paper to create tunnels for a guinea pig to toss around is another cheap and effective means of entertainment.
Offering food treats
- Guinea pigs particularly require a vegan diet with plenty of vegetables and fruits.
- Thus, there is nothing better than offering them a healthy menu of carrots, apple or even apple tree wood to make them happy.
- However, don’t make it too easy! You should hang these things on strings around the cage that requires them to grab.
- This is also a good way to stimulate muscle strength.
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Create a more enjoyable cage
- The guinea pig cage will be more interesting when it includes not only basic necessities, tunnels, hiding places, and chew toys as well.
How often should I change out the hay in my guinea pig’s hay rack?
Hay hygiene plays a crucial role in guaranteeing the health of guinea pigs.
As a result, many guinea pig owners often wonder about how often they should change and refill hay in the hay rack.
Although there is no particular instruction about the frequency of changing hay, it’s best to keep hay track cleaned out and refill the hay inside daily.
In case you’re too busy, at least try to change it out whenever it gets dirty.
It’s also good to freeze hay for a couple of weeks before using it to avoid mites, a very small creature like a spider that lives on plants, animals, and carpets.
Alternatively, you should use a rotation system to take dirty hay out and save a fresh one.
What is the best bedding for a guinea pig?
Guinea pigs spend most of the time in their habitat so it’s really necessary to find suitable bedding for them.
The best bedding for guinea pig must qualify some specific requirements such as high absorbability, softness, coziness, easy to clean, and dust control.
Below is the list of some types of guinea pig bedding that are highly recommended.
Fleece cage liner
- This kind of bedding is eco-friendly, dust-free (as it is usually made of natural materials), absorbent, cheap and possible for laundry.
- It’s also soft and cozy, really comfortable for your pet.
- The only downside is that it requires a lot of time for laundry.
Aspen bedding
- Aspen is a non-aromatic hardwood so aspen bedding doesn’t contain any aromatic oils or phenols resulting in dust-free and odorless.
- Without any toxins or chemicals, this kind of bedding is totally safe for your guinea pig.
Natural paper bedding
- Living up to its name, natural paper bedding is 100% eco-friendly paper-based bedding that is really comfortable and safe.
- However, this material is a bit costly and can easily break down into mushy substance if you don’t replace it after 5-days.
Crumble paper bedding
There is no doubt that this bedding is soft and cozy for an indulgent night’s sleep of guinea pigs. It’s not too expensive and can be changed easily. Another plus point is its high absorbability.
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How much should one feed a guinea pig?
When it comes to guinea pig feeding, generally speaking, guinea pigs usually require a balanced diet of pellets, hay, and vegetables.
Because they literally cannot overdose on timothy hay, an unlimited amount of hay should always be available.
In terms of pellets, about 1/8 cup of pellets per day is enough.
To be specific, it should account for about 20% of their diet. Vegetables including romaine lettuce, spinach, kale, and parsley and fruits must be fresh and changed out daily.
About one cup total per guinea pig per day is a reasonable amount.
Additionally, other fresh produce such as zucchini, carrots, and sweet potato should be offered only once or twice a week.
How to use guinea pig hay rack?
Hayrack is one of the most important investments in raising a guinea pig.
It is not only a place to cage your pet but also a means of entertainment and safe habitat to keep them stay healthily. Good guinea pig hay racks have various styles, shapes, and sizes.
You can choose among metal rack, wooden guinea pig hay rack, and big hay rack.
While the metal rack is a good option to keep hay or dried grass clean and neat, wooden guinea pig hay rack is eco-friendly and cheap and big hay rack offers spacious living habitat for 2 or more guinea pigs at one time.
The usage of hay rack for guinea pigs is easy and straightforward. Both D.I.Y and commercial hay racks should be hung inside the pet cage to protect it from dropping and urine.
Conclusion
While a healthy eating diet is important for a guinea pig to grow up healthily, good hay rack ensures them to keep entertained and comfortable.