can big cages be bad????

[loves2travel]

lately, as i've been going around to forums and sites around the internet, ive read some pretty shocking things. Ive read stories of pigs who get scared in big cages because they are prey animals and prefer small, enclosed spaces. Many said when their cavies were in cages bigger than 18' by 24', the animals started rapidly losing weight.

weird, huh??? just wanted to throw this out there and see what you guys thought.

 

[Sierra]

I would think if you had a large cage, plenty of room for them to run around, but then things like stools and hidey houses and towels to make small, dark, enclosed spaces, it would be perfect. I think you have to have a mix of the two.

 

[loves2travel]

thats what i thought...but weight loss?????? just because he had a nice roomy cage????
do you think the poster was just exagerating?

 

[Sierra]

There were probably some other factors involved, and they probably didn't have anything for the guinea pig to hide in.

 

[loves2travel]

true, but it was still shocking. anyhow, this doesnt change my mind at all. my piggers are still going to get a nice big C&C cage and lots of floortime every day.

 

[cinn&sprinslave]

I think they probably lost weight because there were no hidey houses or toys in their cage. I mean even big open places scare me. Because I feel small. And their may have been other factors to the weight loss maybe they had a cat or dog. And with no hidey house they would start losing weight if they feel stressed or in danger etc.

 

[loves2travel]

hmmmm...it was a very thought provoking comment

 

[TinaFabulous]

Ya I was really a thought provoking comment... You'd think they would like it bigger, but that makes sense too

 

[cinn&sprinslave]

Ya I was really a thought provoking comment... You'd think they would like it bigger, but that makes sense too[/QUOTE

yep you would....

 

[CavyCrazyMom]

I personally don't think it had anything to do with the age, it was probably something else that was causing it...health wise and they were just trying to justify their pigs being in small cages. I can't see that a large cage is detrimantal in any way...they live in the wild fine...in a large space that's not even closed in! lol I think it's a care issue and not a cage issue. Either that or they were flat out lying for the reasons above. That seems more likely.

~~Cheri~~

 

[loves2travel]

this is a possibility, but SEVERAL people had similar testimonies that their C&C cages just flat out were a flop.

 

[CavyCrazyMom]

That's wierd. I can't see why.

 

[cinn&sprinslave]

this is a possibility, but SEVERAL people had similar testimonies that their C&C cages just flat out were a flop.

yep yep weird can you give me the website so i can read um?

 

[mncavylover]

Was it at petshub? Stay away from that forum. There are several reasons, like the fact that the most 'respected' people there are breeders and every word that comes out of their fingers is deemed unquestionably true. Really, it's just not a great site.

 

[mncavylover]

Oh, and I forgot to mention that they'll throw you out if you even suggest breeding is horrible. They also censor links to cavycages and guinealynx--pretty dirty, if you think about it.

 

[loves2travel]

no, it was not petshub. it was caviesgalore. same place that said ehtoxyquin was good.

 

[roosterboy]

This is an interesting topic, because I've been wondering if there really is an ideal size to a cage.

I think for us, for practical reasons there is. I'm guessing it is somewhere in the 2 by 3, up to the 3 by 6 max range if you can get around all sides of it. Certainly no bigger than you can easily reach into the enclosure, and no bigger than what is easy to maintain.

For the pigs, I think a certain balance of cover and open space is what is important to them. I don't see my pigs going for walks or laps around their cages when they are three by six.

I'm thinking of going to 2 by 3 cages for all of my pigs, and for me.

 

[Katie]

Did they just lose weight, or did they die also?

I don't think big cages, especially for guinea pigs can't be bad at all. In the wild cavies run all around open terrian, they don't just stay in one small place.

Weight lose can be due to more exercise. They can actually run around and do laps in big cages, where as in smaller pet store cages they just sit their all day and only need to move 2 inches one way for water, and 2 inches the other way for food.

My sows cage does not have any hidey houses, and they are doing fine.

 

[cinn&sprinslave]

Only a couple of my piggies even run around in their C&C cages. At first they did but I guess they got tired of it. But I would never put them in smaller cages because they love their c&c cages even if I never see them run in them. I can just tell they are happy.


All of my piggs have hidey houses, on another forum I posted a thread about why piggs shouldn't have hidey houses. And I got some major verbal lashings. At that time I had just adopted a really scared pigg and he wouldn't even step out of his hidey hut to eat (I imagine he did when I wasn't looking). I waited three weeks. Then after three weeks I took the hidey house away and his progress was amazing he would come to me and let me pick him etc. So I posted my success story at least I felt it was a success and I got some really nasty coments made etc.

 

[CavySpirit]

I have a very low tolerance for statements of riduculous information being repeated on this site. Very low. I especially will not tolerate vague references to "other forums" -- particularly those that I have absolutely ZERO respect for. Those are CaviesGalore and PetsHub. If you want to believe the slams and propaganda being pushed by the breeders, that's your choice. If you can't read the HUNDREDS upon HUNDREDS of testimonials (on this site alone) from people who have great success in all aspects of cavy care with larger cages, well then, there's not a whole lot more I can do about it. If you choose not to believe the RESCUES across the country who have experience with THOUSANDS of adopters and C&C (or large) cages, again, there is nothing to be done about it. If choose to believe a few embittered breeders with an ax to grind, that is your choice. They absolutely do not want to promote or believe in bigger cages because it's too much work and space for them. AND if they believed in them, they would have to have their 'CUSTOMERS' get or make them too, now wouldn't they? How could they possibly continue to crank out and sell babies if they actually had to have a hand in making sure their PRODUCT went into half-way qualified homes?

It's quite simple. If you don't believe that guinea pigs belong in larger cages and you think downgrading your cage size on general principles is the right thing, then fine. But, don't participate on this forum. As you can see, there are other forums that welcome those ideas. This thread is closed.