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Chewing Two bar chewers...

BaconAndEggs

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Bacon and Eggs are massive bar chewers! However, it is only when they are out for floor time or when I come into the room with vegetables when they do it. Is there any way to really discourage bar chewing, or stop it altogether?

Or should I not even be worried? I have tried gently pushing them away, but they just come back and do it again. I don't want them to think I'm mean, but it does get a bit frustrating. I have heard that if your guinea pigs chew on the bars enough, the protective layer will come off and expose the metal, and if the metal is wet it can rust. They always have hay, but, as I said before, it is only during floor time mostly. I understand when I come into the room with veggies, they can smell them and want to eat. Is chewing on the bars just their way of saying "Mom, I'm tired. Can I go back in my cage now?".

I'm just at a loss here. Any suggestions on how I could discourage them lightly, but enough that they don't do it that often? Or am I just overreacting? Thanks in advance.
 

Pinny Gig

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I'm in the same boat as you, except my girls will chew as soon as anyone approaches the cage (barring you try and pet them, god forbid you even touch them)!

I've heard of bitter apple and vinegar wiped on the bars would discourage them, but Dottie went so far as to try and eat the paper towel soaked in diluted vinegar as I was applying it.

The only solution that might work is getting plexiglass and attaching it to the inside of the cage. You'll have to drill holes into it so you can attach it to the grids. Good luck!!
 

BaconAndEggs

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[MENTION=33764]Pinny Gig[/MENTION], my problem is mostly during floor time, but you do have a good point there.
 

jinxie

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You are lucky it is just during floor time. I have a couple bar chewers when I open the fridge. The guinea pig store sells clear plastic "windows" you can put up with zip ties to prevent chewing. I made some myself with plastic acrylic sheet but it is probably easier to just buy them. Watching the pigs come up to the side and look out a window instead of chewing is SO CUTE. They will still go up to the side but it's like once they get there they are like "huh?".
 

PeanutnCookie

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Unfortunately, bitter apple spray and vinegar will not work in most cases. Guinea pigs strangely seem to like the taste... You could put plexiglass or an acrylic sheet up, but other than that, I don't really know how to stop it.
 

PeanutnCookie

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I might know something that will help, but I've never tried it and it will probably cost you like $20 if you are willing to spend it. You can buy and/or make chew toys that hang and put them all across the wall of bars that they are chewing, so the toys will get in the way, and they might chew those instead. They might just go around them and go straight to the bars though... As I said before, it only MIGHT work.
 

CharScoobJoey

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Hmm, I have one boar that does nothing but chew on the bars of the cage. Day and night-just cage chewing. He will only stop when taken out for floor time in another room or when he has veggies. It's super frustrating, and I think that I will be putting up the clear plastic "windows," which has been suggested earlier. It seems like a good idea, and I suggest that you do the same. :)
 

Christin Barnes

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My pig will chew in the bars to his cage but only when he is hungry. If I walk by and it's dinner time he shrieks and gnaw on the bars like he is starving to death. He will also gnaw on his hay rack if it's empty and he's even knocked it down in the middle of the night because he ate all the hay out of it and probably got frustrated that there wasn't more. He doesn't chew bars all the time and he knows it isn't food so I'm not really worried about it. It sounds like my pig is hungry all the time by this post but he gets fed well and he's learned to act hungry in front of my parents in the hopes that they'll pass him a snack.
 
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