Are hutches so bad?

[x0PiggyPerson0x]

Just as VJ said, all these are are excuses. I know you're not trying to be a pain, but step back and take a look at what you just said.

And as my house is small i don't really want them locked away in a room!

Put them out in the living area with you then! Let them talk to you from sitting on a table behind the couch while you watch TV.

My cats are very small and could get in a cage and my dog would just knock it off or break it.

1.) I really don't believe that any cats small enough to fit through cage bars exist. Storebought cage or C&C. They'd have to be, like, baby guinea pig sized to fit through a C&C or even smaller to squeeze through storebought cage bars.
2.) Okay then, easy solution in my opinion. When we'd first built Baby her cage, we used some extremely jumbo-sized rubber bands, used for moving companies, and kept the cage held down to a table with them. Not even my hyperactive, 100 lb and roughly 30 in dog could get into that. (He's taller than me when he stands on his hind legs and I'm 5'3")


It is great however that you get them out of their itty bitty hutches sometimes. Just think about how happy they are when they're in a big space like that, and think about how great it would be for them to be happy all day in a big, spacious cage.

[ilovpiggiesthei]

i know i do not want to be a pain!

My cage is not a tiny nasty horrid store bought one (had to get that off my chest )
If i put them in my living room they would be on the floor and the dog ect may get to them?
Ok the kittens would not fir trough ( they are really CHUBBY!) but im just paronoid (sp?)??
help what should i do then?

[cavy_lover]

I live in a one bedroom unit with my boyfriend. In our room alone we have, 2 wardrobes, a tv, two drawers and cupboards, not to mention a double bed. This gives us around 3 meters of walking space. Thats it.

The bedroom is used as a study room, living room, computer room, sleeping area and I still manage to keep a 2 storey C & C cage in the corner with enough space for four guinea pigs. Ive had to re-arrange my room 5 times. I cant put them in the living room outside so I keep them in the bedroom. I hardly have enough space to work, let alone walk because there is so much stuff... yet I still manage to keep my pets indoors? With only 3 meters of walking distance for me.

Our room is also located exactly opposite the bathroom. There is also an air perfume fragance in the hallway that is on 24/7. We close the door to make sure no fumes come through.

I live in Australia and its almost summer here now that I am frying. I put ice packs in the cage so my pigs are kept cool. I have no air conditioning and only a fan in our room where the pigs are located. It gets to 40 degrees celcius here, and I still manage to keep them inside.

Even with all the space issues I have, I have re-arranged EVERYTHING to fit them in. I am not having a go at anyone at all. I am just stating, if you have no room make room.

I have no room left at all in my bedroom for me none. But at least my pigs do. And your all telling me that within a whole house you cannot find room? You cant re-arrange anything??

If I can find space in a tiny bedroom I am sure you can fit them somewhere.

[ilovpiggiesthei]

Originally Posted by x0PiggyPerson0x

Just as VJ said, all these are are excuses. I know you're not trying to be a pain, but step back and take a look at what you just said.


Put them out in the living area with you then! Let them talk to you from sitting on a table behind the couch while you watch TV.


1.) I really don't believe that any cats small enough to fit through cage bars exist. Storebought cage or C&C. They'd have to be, like, baby guinea pig sized to fit through a C&C or even smaller to squeeze through storebought cage bars.
2.) Okay then, easy solution in my opinion. When we'd first built Baby her cage, we used some extremely jumbo-sized rubber bands, used for moving companies, and kept the cage held down to a table with them. Not even my hyperactive, 100 lb and roughly 30 in dog could get into that. (He's taller than me when he stands on his hind legs and I'm 5'3")


It is great however that you get them out of their itty bitty hutches sometimes. Just think about how happy they are when they're in a big space like that, and think about how great it would be for them to be happy all day in a big, spacious cage.

I do not have iddy biddy hutches as i do not like the store bought one!
They play inside or in the shed with me for the day and then go to bed in a large cc!(wow it took me ages to build them )

[x0PiggyPerson0x]

Okay, well I'm glad you've built them a bid ol' C&C. In the case of putting the cage on the floor, why not head to some kind of fleamarket, unfinished furniture store and buy a cheap table to put them on? Baby is on an old, unused vanity which we had to put an old, sturdy mirror on to make the table big enough for her cage to sit on it. As I said, if you do have room in your heart, which it seems like you do, you can find a way to have them inside, even if it does mean a bit of rearranging.

[ilovpiggiesthei]

Well i have been thinking!
I'm going to move the cc cages inside the living room and pop them on the diner table (i will not eat of it )
Then use my shed for a summer house mabey?!?!?!?!?
They do seem to like the shed?
But im sure they will still be as happy and healthy indoors so i will give it a wurl!
xx

[x0PiggyPerson0x]

Yay!!! The first time I've ever helped to convince someone to get their piggies into a better living situation!

I'm very glad you saw our side of the debate and I bet your pigs will absolutely love you for it. Perhaps you could even renovate the shed into a piggy storage area, where you kept their food, bedding, hay etc. Just a suggestion.

[ilovpiggiesthei]

Yup but please do not think they were unhappy wher they were as they loved it
but yes im sure they will like it inside!
Thanks for all your help!
I love my pigs and would never let any thing happen to them!
so please please do not think it was a nasty shed! it was a shed full of piggy love!
but yes they will live inside and see how they like it!
thanxx again!
EDIT:spelling mistakes!

[x0PiggyPerson0x]

I can tell you loved them, otherwise you would have refused to believe their life could be any better indoors. I'm sure you'll love them wherever they are, but now they're more a part of family life. I can't imagine now what it would we like to wake up each morning and not hear Baby running her laps, pausing to run underneath her bell toy which makes it ring, something she is apparently very amused by. Also it's nice to hear her greet me each morning and then wheek for her breakfast carrot with a few pieces of romaine and chopped up celery. I swear, I must spend more time on her breakfast than I do on mine.

[ilovpiggiesthei]

awww yes it will be nice proberly.
ill move them in tomorrow

[futureguineamom]

I see your point, but there are also danger's with C&C cages, as there is with the world altogether. Rodents, insects, many types of animal can get in, cats even. Some guinea pigs are subected to cleaning products, perfumes, sprays, many things without people realising what they are doing. On another post, I asked some opinions on how to make my outdoor cage more secure, or the best wood to use or something, and I was told to rethink getting guinea pigs etc etc... I'm not saying that it's not best to keep them indoors, but sometimes it's not possible, and we post here so that we can make the best out of these circumstances.

Thankyou Ly&Pigs for your kind comments. Me and my mother have a very fragile relationship, and I just try to keep out of her way. She is not as bad as she was, but it's my brother I sympathise for. He is seven and I work hard at school so that I can take him out of the enviroment as soon as possible.

But anyway, I understand that people have reasons not to keep there guinea pigs outside, but evr heard the saying If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all???

Well said.

ilovpiggiesthei: It's good to hear that you are going to bring your piggies into a better living situation, even given your circumstances. I'm sure you'll enjoy your piggies more, and your family will also enjoy interacting with them.

[AliceTittle]

My piggies will not be in a hutch all day. There is a run around it, ( I will take photos at some point to show you ) and they can choose to come in and out of the hutch into the large play area when they like.

[Salstar]

My pigs are in a C&C cage on the verhanda. I am one of the people VJ mentioned...2 of my piggies have gone missing. I now have their cage padlocked so that my other piggies can not be taken. I accept the fact that it is my fault and I am trying to better the situation. I also live in a small house (renting) with 3 others. We have each lived else where previously and have a lot of stuff (like 4 couches for example! ) I originally had the pigs inside, wedged inbetween the wall and an 8ft long fish tank. A house meeting was called and 2 of my flat mates stated that the pigs had to go outside or go completly. We eventually reached a compromise, I would move their cage to the verhanda on one condition and that was that I would bring them inside in a make shift run whenever I saw the need. I agree that it is not ideal, hence the reason I will not be renewing the lease with them when it runs out in December. I will be moving back into my parents place and while my mum is not overly happy about them coming she has said they can stay inside.

[Kevin]

Yikes.

This is my first day on the forum. Kind of makes me afraid to post now...some of you "veteran" posters seem to be cutthroats. Heh. Not to be mean, but let's keep in mind the feelings of humans, as well as guinea pigs.

I sympathize with Pineapple and AliceTittle. Obviously, they care about their guinea pigs if they're on a site like this. It seems that everyone wants to jump on other people's backs because the way they're doing things is not what this person said/or this site said.

These two have a connection with their pigs it seems, as with AliceTittle saying that guinea pigs are her/his way of getting away from the other stresses of life, and I think they should be commended for that.

No big deal if they have differing opinions on how to do things. As long as the end result is them being happy and their guinea pigs being happy, it's all good.

[futureguineamom]

Wow, well said Kevin. I think you're going to fit right in here at cavy cages, and probably have a lot to offer the forum. Don't let anybody intimidate you though, their bark is worse than their bite.

[AliceTittle]

as with AliceTittle saying that guinea pigs are her/his way of getting away from the other stresses of life, and I think they should be commended for that.

Thankyou for your kind words.

[Cavie Cove]