Guinea Pig Care: The Cage

Okay, we learned a bit about guinea pigs and now I am going to tell you about what they need for a cage. 

Here are two important things to consider when getting your guinea pig a cage:

1 They need plenty of space,

2 They are pretty messy.

Wire cages with plastic bottoms are the best type of cage for a guinea pig. Never use wire bottomed cages because that will irritate your guinea pigs feet. NEVER use a glass tank for guinea pigs. It does not provide enough ventilation for them.

The cage should be pretty big. Typically pet store cages will not meet the recommended size requirements for guinea pigs. For two guinea pigs the minimum size requirements is nine square feet, but the bigger the better! I would recommend about 30 inches by 42 inches or more for two guinea pigs. This size provides them room to sleep, eat, and run around. Bigger cages actually usually require less cleaning as well. A very small cage gets very dirty fast.  

The best kind of cage for a guinea pig is a homemade one. A lot of guinea pig owners make cages out of cubes and coroplast. These are called C and C cages. The cubes are found at stores like Bed, Bath and Beyond. They are used for making shelves and come in packs of square wire grids. They can be attached together using zip ties to create a custom cage. The plastic bottom would be made out of coroplast. This is just corrugated plastic used for signs. It can be found at some home depots, sign shops, or online. If you are more interested in one of these cages, try searching C and C cages on google. There is also a website: www.guineapigzone.com that sells c and c cage kits to build a cage. These cages are very cool, because you can make it however you want. You can make upper levels too. If you ever build a cage like this, a top is not actually a requirement because guinea pigs typically don't climb. But if you want a top it is really easy to make one. What I like about these cages is that they are easy to clean, you can make it however you want, and they are not very expensive.

A tip for c and c cages: Make sure that they guinea pig cannot fit through the grids

Another cage to consider is a guinea habitat by midwest. I like these cages. They are very inexpensive compared to pet store cages and they offer more space and you can connect multiple cages to make your guinea pigs space even bigger. The only down side is the bottom. It is made out of leak proof canvas. It really is leak proof but it needs to be cleaned pretty often. 

Next time: Accessorizing the cage