Guinea Pigs Will NOT stop eating the coroplast!!??

[Kimberly713]

Its new as of yesterday or maybe the day before. They all do it but Cinnamon and Calypso do it CONSTANTLY I have to make a noise at them to stop every minute or so! They have like 6 apple stick chews and these little puzzle peice shaped loofa chews, and hay, and a chube tunnel, and a twig tunnel and would rather eat plastic... WTF?! How do I get them to stop? I don't want them getting sick

 

[Kimberly713]

Really? NOBODY else's guinea pigs have eaten the coroplast before? And noone knows what I can do to stop it or if its even bad for them to chew...

 

[brindyzoeycandy]

I know it's common for guinea pigs to nibble on coroplast, but I'm not sure if it's harmful. I know that all of my pigs will chew on the coro if it's not covered with fleece (by being binder clipped to the sides), so that stops them.

 

[Shurrim]

I've read somewhere in a thread piggies were doing that when bored.
And someone had found something to put on the edge of coro.. Can't find it back though. Sorry
But maybe covering with fleece would help.
Doby nibbles on coro where there is no fleece.

 

[cam767]

Levi would chew the coro but not the plastic tubes. Not sure why. I fixed it by covering the coro with fleece and binder clips. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't need to have the fleece up the sides and it wouldn't take so long to clean the darn cage. :melodrama

 

[tabikat55]

I put cat ball toys and beenie babies in the cage. Tasha and Carly both drag the toys from one end to the other. Maybe that'll work.

 

[Shauna&Kerri]

I have a chewer, but she leaves the coroplast alone if it is covered in fleece.

The thing that a previous poster mentioned to put on the edge of the coroplast isthe plastic report binding bars that you can get at office supply stores.

 

[daltonpearson]

i noticed mine did that too although not very often and i only found this only happened when it was about time for new hay so as long as there's fresh hay she wouldn't chew the coro.

 

[pinky]

Mine don't chew the coroplast. They do like to chew on the edges of their pigloos, though. I think they do it to make noise, not eat the plastic.

 

[Peggysu]

I have some chewers. I stoped it when I replaced the coroplast with 11 inch sides.

 

[jenga122]

In cages store ( (broken link removed) ) they sell the binder edges to prevent it but it looks like something that could be bought at any office supply store. They look like the plastic binder edging for turning in essays or short stories in school. In accessories they are 50 cents for 11.5 inches of it.

I found a box of 100 here for $16.52. That would be 16.5 cents each but who really needs 100 foot of it? (broken link removed)

 

[amcashes]

Most of the time they chew on stuff like that because they are board. I would get them some toys to play with and when my girls chew on stuff that they are not to I put a bit of vinegar water on it and that has always stopped my girls.

 

[Titus2Woman]

In cages store ( (broken link removed) ) they sell the binder edges to prevent it but it looks like something that could be bought at any office supply store. They look like the plastic binder edging for turning in essays or short stories in school. In accessories they are 50 cents for 11.5 inches of it.

I found a box of 100 here for $16.52. That would be 16.5 cents each but who really needs 100 foot of it? (broken link removed)

They make something similar that they sell at Lowe's for $4 for 8' I am going to try to do that to keep Oreo from chewing on it before she makes a whole in the cage!

 

[Kimberly713]

Cool! I might look into those! My piggy finds coroplast tastes amazing for some reason.

 

[jenga122]

Titus2Woman, what would I ask for or search for if I went to Lowes to buy it. That is a very cheap price and I would be willing to pay that even though I would only need about 2 foot of it right now. Nice find, hopefully my Lowes carries it also.

 

[TwilightStar]

Its new as of yesterday or maybe the day before. They all do it but Cinnamon and Calypso do it CONSTANTLY I have to make a noise at them to stop every minute or so! They have like 6 apple stick chews and these little puzzle peice shaped loofa chews, and hay, and a chube tunnel, and a twig tunnel and would rather eat plastic... WTF?! How do I get them to stop? I don't want them getting sick

...Guinea pigs are not dogs, no need to make a noise (scare them) to discourage a behavior that is natural to them.Guinea pigs aren't really chewers and most do not use toys. Unlimited hay is sufficent for good teeth health. How big is their cage? Do they have hideys or tunnels? I like to rearrange the cage in a new way every month to keep my pigs from getting bored.

 

[jenga122]

Mine also chew on the Coro and I have 35 sq. ft. of C&C, 5 hideys, 6 tunnels, 2 ping pong balls and some other misc. stuff to chew on. Also, a pile of 3rd cut timothy the size of a basketball. This is for 3 piggies.

I don't make noises at them but I do try to discourage them from chewing by putting an alternative in front of them. Even switching the cage around alot doesn't always prevent them from chewing on it. Especially one of my pigs.

So, having an alternative that is cheap for her to chew up in place of a $20 sheet of coro sounds like a good thing to me. $4 to basically cover all of her favorite chew spots is not a big deal.

 

[Titus2Woman]

Titus2Woman, what would I ask for or search for if I went to Lowes to buy it. That is a very cheap price and I would be willing to pay that even though I would only need about 2 foot of it right now. Nice find, hopefully my Lowes carries it also.

My husband is going there to night to get some stuff we need and to pick up my piece since my pig has decided that coroplast is a delicacy... LOL! So I will get you the exact name and price later today. All I remember is it is in the trim area where they have modling and stuff and this is for use with plastic wall pieces etc.

 

[Kimberly713]

...Guinea pigs are not dogs, no need to make a noise (scare them) to discourage a behavior that is natural to them.Guinea pigs aren't really chewers and most do not use toys. Unlimited hay is sufficent for good teeth health. How big is their cage? Do they have hideys or tunnels? I like to rearrange the cage in a new way every month to keep my pigs from getting bored.

I am aware... This thread is from a few months ago, i was a newb still hehe... they were doing it literally every 2 minutes and it was driving me up the wall, I only would say like Hey or stop it girls I dont mean I grabbed pots and pans and banged them around or something lol

They have everything they need, huge cage, but they eventually just stopped doing it so much. Every now and then calypso will do it so i still plan to get those covers for the edges.

Aren't avid chewers you say? Have you met my girls? haha they chew everything and constantly too. They really love those cardboard tunnels.

 

[Titus2Woman]

Ok the stuff I got is tile board cap molding. It was $2.28 for an 8 foot piece! I can't wait to get it cut and in place!