Guinea Pig Care Sheet:

Guinea Pigs make amazing pets. They are so cute and interesting and can be very loveable.

• Housing

The cage should not be smaller than sixty centimetres long. In this case, bigger is always better. The bottom of the cage should be plastic, wood or metal (but not wire or mesh, as guinea pigs have small feet that can get stuck in the wire and result in injury). A sliding or clip off bottom will make life easier when it comes to cleaning. Make sure the cage is well ventilated. You can put rocks and bricks in there cage for them to walk on to keep there nails trimmed. Wooden toys can be used for them to chew on, even parrots wooden toys are suitable. Plastic tunnels and wooden caves are great for them to hide in.

• Feeding Equipment

Water bottles are great because they won’t spill their water and they are more hygienic than traditional dishes as nothing can get into them. If there is no where to hang a bottle from then a heavy dish is needed, so they don’t spill their water. You will need a heavy dish for food as well. Hay racks are good if you use hay as bedding, this way they will be able to eat fresh hay that they have not urinated on.

• Bedding

Youcan use hay, straw or sawdust. Do not use cedar shavings as they can cause respiratory problems. The bedding must be soft enough for your guinea pig to walk on and warm enough for them to sleep on.

• Feeding

Guinea Pigs are herbivorous and need fresh food and water every day. Rabbit pellets and chinchilla pellets are suitable for guinea pigs but they can’t be their only food source. You need to supplement their diet with fresh hay every day and you should give them enough hay as they can eat. The hay will keep their digestive system regular. They will also eat many kinds of fresh fruit, vegetables and greens; these will help to make their diet a bit more exciting than just hay and pellets.

Food we recommend : Apples, carrots, carrot tops, bananas, celery pieces (not the whole stalk as it’s too stringy to digest), cucumber, red peppers, green peppers, romaine lettuce, broccoli, kiwi, raspberry’s, oats, oranges, parsley, grass, spinach and tomatoes. Orange peel is great for vitamin C.

Food to avoid : Ice berg lettuce (high in nitrates, no nutritional value), shelled nuts and seeds (they might choke on them), Raw beans and rhubarb (poisonous).