Crucial enrichment for guinea pigs consists of a big cage, locations to cover, and different guinea pig companions. Upon getting these lined, attempt different actions akin to ground time, enrichment toys akin to hay mats, or meals enrichment akin to scatter feeding.
On this article, we’ll talk about 27 methods to offer enrichment to your guinea pigs, from actions you are able to do collectively to toys you may maintain of their cage.
Why is Enrichment for Guinea Pigs Essential?
Enrichment for guinea pigs is supposed to provide them retailers for pure behaviors and to maintain them bodily and mentally stimulated.
When maintaining pets, it’s vital that we aren’t limiting their lives in any approach by maintaining them in our properties, versus how the species would act in nature.
Some pure behaviors your guinea pig should have the ability to act out embrace chewing, working, socializing, and burrowing. Not being allowed these items can have destructive impacts on their psychological or bodily well-being.
Enrichment additionally helps maintain your piggies from changing into bored, which is particularly vital for caged animals.
On a regular basis Enrichment for Guinea Pigs
Under are baseline issues that each guinea pig wants so as to thrive. Whereas many enrichment actions are non-compulsory, the beneath are important components of their every day care.
In the event you’re seeking to enrich your piggies’ lives, prioritize these items, as they’ll make the most important distinction!
1. A Massive Cage
Nearly all pet retailer cages are too small for guinea pigs. The minimal cage dimension for 2 piggies is 7.5 sq. toes, whereas 10.5 sq. toes or extra is most well-liked.
Keep in mind that these measurements are for flat, unbroken ground area. So, a loft space is a pleasant addition, however doesn’t rely towards the sq. footage of the cage. Multi-level cages like these made for ferrets aren’t good for guinea pigs, as they aren’t climbing animals.
It’s typically beneficial that you simply purchase the most important cage you may afford and have area for in your house. There’s no such factor as too large on the subject of guinea pig cages!
2. Cagemates
The most effective enrichment you may give your guinea pig is one other piggy! They should dwell in teams of two or extra, with out exception. In some international locations, having only one guinea pig is definitely outlawed because it’s seen as animal abuse to maintain herd animals alone.
Whilst you’ll very hardly ever come throughout a guinea pig who can not bond with others, they need to nonetheless dwell side-by-side with a pair of different pigs in a separate cage. Whereas it isn’t splendid, with the ability to see and listen to different guinea pigs will nonetheless give them the power to socialize.
Within the wild, guinea pigs dwell in teams consisting of many females and one male. These teams are sometimes mentioned to work finest, as long as the male is neutered. You may also maintain a pair or group of females or a pair of males.
Teams of three or extra male guinea pigs don’t normally work out until they’ve the right temperaments and an enormous quantity of area.
3. Hides and Tunnels
Lastly, guinea pigs ought to all the time have hides and tunnels of their cages. Please maintain at the very least one cover per guinea pig, however extra is all the time preferable!
Hides may be as low cost as a field with a door cutout, or a towel draped over one nook of the cage. You may also purchase dearer hides, akin to fleece cat homes or handmade gadgets from small companies.
Personally, I favor to keep away from plastic gadgets and as an alternative go for both fleece or edible supplies, akin to guinea pig-safe wooden. Plastic can simply be chewed and eaten, which might trigger intestinal blockages.
Enrichment Actions for Guinea Pigs
4. Flooring Time
One of the widespread enrichment actions for guinea pigs is ground time! Whereas it’s not crucial, it does give your piggies new locations to discover.
Not all guinea pigs will like ground time, and most will need to return to their cage after round 15-Half-hour. They’re homebodies at coronary heart, which many human introverts can relate to!
In case your piggies take pleasure in ground time, you can also make the expertise contemporary by utilizing a unique set-up every time. Carry out hides and toys you haven’t used shortly, cover treats for them to search out, or attempt ground time in numerous rooms.
You’ll want to additionally make floortime secure by selecting up something harmful, maintaining electrical cords out of attain, and offering contemporary hay always.
5. High quality Time
High quality time with you or different relations can seem like snuggling your piggies in your lap, sitting with them throughout ground time, or chatting with them whereas they’re of their cage.
This may enable you to develop a detailed bond, and can make your piggies’ days extra attention-grabbing!
6. Studying Methods
Take into account educating your guinea pig methods akin to standing on two legs for a deal with, spinning in a circle, or following you across the room. This promotes a bond between the 2 of you and retains your guinea pig’s thoughts engaged. It’s additionally tremendous enjoyable to see how sensible they’re!
7. Cage Renovations
Increasing your guinea pigs’ cage, including a loft area, and even altering the form might help to maintain issues participating. It’s form of just like the contemporary feeling you get after transferring round furnishings in your bed room!
8. Combine it up Throughout Cage Cleans!
In the event you don’t need to full a complete cage reno, attempt mixing up the format throughout cage cleans. Put hides and tunnels in locations you haven’t tried earlier than, or add new toys to the combo.
For many guinea pigs that is enjoyable and enriching! Nevertheless, take into account that some guinea pigs, akin to blind piggies, could discover format adjustments annoying and troublesome to navigate. It’s vital to know your fur infants and stick with what’s proper for them.
9. Protected, Supervised Out of doors Time
Out of doors time may be harmful for piggies, so earlier than you exit: ensure they’ll be correctly enclosed, and that you simply gained’t be taking your eyes off of them. Dangerous issues can occur in a short time!
When guinea pigs are supervised exterior and are solely allowed in a small, safe space with a prime overlaying, it may be a variety of enjoyable for them.
In the event you’re permitting your piggies to graze, ensure the yard hasn’t been chemically handled and that no predator animals, akin to canine, are urinating within the space.
Lastly, that is one other one the place it is advisable to know your pig. Most of my piggies have favored going exterior, however I had one who feared it intensely. It’s solely an enriching expertise in the event that they’re having fun with themselves!
10. Arrange a Maze
Many individuals arrange cardboard mazes for his or her guinea pigs with treats within the middle. Some piggies will catch on to easy mazes, whereas others can be disinterested, even for meals.
You may also use home goods to dam off a maze. Whereas some folks arrange extra elaborate impediment programs, be sure you keep away from something that might damage your piggies akin to heights, jumps, or steep ramps.
11. Watch TV Collectively
A guinea pig’s curiosity in TV will rely on their persona. Personally, I had one who cherished watching recreation reveals with bells or child’s TV with high-pitched voices. These reveals had him hooked and staring on the display screen.
It may be enjoyable to determine what, if something, will catch your guinea pig’s consideration. You’ll be able to even attempt watching YouTube movies of different piggies!
12. Develop Grass for Your Piggies
Rising pots or patches of indoor grass to your piggies is nice in the event you dwell in an residence, or in the event that they don’t prefer it open air however you need to enable them to graze.
Contemporary grass is likely one of the most pure issues a piggy can eat! They’re virtually certain to take pleasure in munching away, and it may be enjoyable for you as nicely to look after the plant and watch it develop.
Listed here are directions on rising grass and the kinds of grass piggies love!
Enrichment Toys for Guinea Pigs
Toys can present a lot of enjoyable for piggies who take pleasure in them, however all the time ensure they’re guinea pig-safe. Many toys and treats bought at pet shops comprise dangerous substances akin to dairy or seeds.
I like to recommend wanting on the substances checklist and researching every earlier than shopping for. Over time, you’ll be taught what’s secure and what to keep away from.
13. Compressed Hay
Compressed hay can’t substitute free, contemporary hay. Nevertheless, it might present some further enjoyable to your piggies as they munch on it. They will additionally carry it across the cage, which isn’t fairly as straightforward to do with their regular free hay.
14. Hay-Stuffed Bathroom Paper or Paper Towel Rolls
What’s higher than a free toy? Stuffing hay into rest room paper or paper towel rolls could make it really feel completely different and enjoyable to your piggies to eat.
You’ll be able to even get inventive and add a deal with hay (one your guinea pigs aren’t normally fed, however is secure for them) or combine forage into their common hay to make them extra engaged.
15. Wooden Objects
Wooden gadgets like apple sticks, willow balls, and picket blocks may be attractive for guinea pigs since they like to chew! In fact, ensure the wooden you select is guinea-pig secure.
Although it’s not technically a wooden, bamboo chews are additionally fashionable with some piggies!
Watch out with any holes your guinea pig chews of their gadgets, simply so that they don’t get their heads caught. This may particularly occur with ball toys as soon as they begin unraveling.
16. Hay Mats
Hay mats are one other nice edible enrichment toy. As with compressed hay, it might’t substitute free, contemporary hay.
As an alternative, consider it as an additional deal with to your piggies to munch on. Some will even lay on their hay mat and go to sleep!
In case your piggies pee on the mat, be sure you toss it because it’s now not sanitary, they usually’re unlikely to eat it.
17. Paper Luggage
Paper baggage could make enjoyable hides or tunnels for piggies throughout supervised ground time, or they are often filled with hay and forage and folded over in order that your piggy has to work for his or her treats. (This could by no means be the one supply of hay within the cage, because it should be simply accessible always.)
To make sure your piggies can’t get caught contained in the bag, don’t depart them with it unattended.
18. Cardboard Containers
Cardboard bins positioned on their facet, or the wrong way up with door holes lower out, are the right free hides. Keep in mind that your piggies solely care about operate, not the worth tag on their issues or the best way they give the impression of being!
If you wish to change up your piggies’ cage however don’t have the finances for brand new gadgets, issues like this are an excellent different.
19. Plushies
Some folks give their guinea pigs plushies after the passing of a cagemate, or whereas they’re sick and separated from others. Some piggies gained’t care, whereas others will snuggle up sweetly to the stuffed animal.
If you first add a plushie to the cage, supervise your pigs for some time to make sure they aren’t chewing it. Routinely examine for any injury, and take away it from the cage if wanted. When chewed, plushies may cause choking or intestinal blockages, so it’s finest to watch out.
Meals Enrichment for Guinea Pigs
20. Scatter Feeding
Scatter feeding is rather like it sounds. Take veggies, pellets, or treats, and scatter them across the cage relatively than putting them in a bowl.
Guinea pigs have a pure urge to forage for meals, and this helps them to behave out that intuition. It’s a straightforward technique to have interaction their minds and our bodies.
21. Hay Piles
Hay piles, relatively than hay racks, enable guinea pigs to burrow. Many individuals see themselves going by extra hay this manner and discover it wasteful, however with the ability to burrow is definitely very enriching for guinea pigs. And there aren’t too some ways we are able to safely present this for them!
Hay piles are additionally safer than many hay racks. They don’t prohibit hay entry or make piggies work for his or her hay, which is essential. Additionally they can’t get their heads caught on something, as they may with some hay racks.
22. Snuffle Mats
Snuffle mats are sometimes made from fleece, with layered material that you would be able to sprinkle treats into. Your guinea pigs must root by to search out their pellets or treats, making them assume a bit greater than in the event you’d solely fed them in a bowl.
23. DIY Puzzle Toys
There are such a lot of nice do-it-yourself puzzle toys! As an illustration, attempt placing treats in a small muffin tin and overlaying them with willow balls, in order that your piggies should raise the balls to get the treats.
The paper bag filled with hay and forage we mentioned earlier is one other model of a puzzle toy since piggies want to make use of their brains to get the meals out.
The probabilities are infinite once you get inventive with piggy-safe gadgets in your house!
24. Storebought Puzzle Toys
You may also purchase easy puzzle toys made for canine, cats, or rabbits. Most puzzle toys in the marketplace are made for canine, however the easy-level ones are sometimes good for piggies as nicely. The tougher toys with a number of steps will probably be too troublesome for them, nonetheless.
I’d counsel in search of ones the place your piggy merely has to take away an merchandise from the highest or push a canopy off of the meals.
25. Attempting New, Protected Meals
As we mentioned above, guinea pigs love foraging. Wild guinea pig species eat an enormous number of meals all through their lives, as they’re taking no matter they’ll discover!
In fact, we all the time need to guarantee we’re feeding secure meals in the suitable portions. You don’t need to give your piggy an enormous piece of fruit to attempt on daily basis of the week, as an example, however attempting a small piece of fruit weekly is superior.
This may additionally open you as much as new meals since somebody might want to eat the leftovers!
26. Deal with Balls
Deal with balls are sometimes marketed towards canine or cats. They’re sometimes plastic balls that you would be able to fill with pellets or forage, and the treats will fall out as your guinea pig pushes the ball round.
27. Stacking Cups
Lastly, stacking cups are most-used for pet rabbits. However, guinea pigs can take pleasure in them as nicely in the event you cover some treats between the cups! Simply ensure they don’t chew the plastic.
In conclusion, there are such a lot of methods to complement your guinea pigs’ lives. You don’t should do every little thing on this checklist, and your piggies may not even like all the issues listed right here. Attempt selecting one or two to concentrate on at a time, and see what you and your guinea pigs assume!
