No cage for cavy?

[miccee]

Izzit ever possible not to have a cage for a guinea pig? I mean like leaving it in the room... but of coz it'll mess up the room with its droppings, rite? Is there anyways to get the guinea pig to answer its' nature's call at some place ( for example, you put bedding and etc ) while leaving the guinea pig free to walk around in the room? If not possible then... izzit ok if I were to take the guinea pig out of its cage to let it walk around in the room instead of it always in the cage?... I'm afraid if I were to let it out it'll mess up my room with.. y'know poos... help pls... 'cuz my room is a bit small so it's hard to create a heaven nest for it to have more comfort... thankz...

 

[Piglet]

Hi. Please can you use proper spelling. Didn't you read the note when you post?

Yes, some people do have their guinea pigs free range but thats usually if they have litter trained their pigs. Litter training is not always sucessful but you could give it a go I suppose. In the cage. I have a tray that has got some bedding in. I put some poo's in there so they would get used to it. It hasn't really worked... For a couple of hours, you could let your pigs out because thats what you are supposed to do daily. They need exercise everyday. The alternative solution is to have a 'play pen' - a designated area for floor time. Do you have one pig or two?

 

[tashagurl]

Treen's pigs are free range.

 

[miccee]

Heh... to be honest I don't have any piggies yet... I was thinking of buying 1.. but 2 sounds fun... either female-female or male-female... 'cuz I live in Malaysia and there's a limit in guinea pigs ( meaning : very few ppl rear guinea pigs here and it's not a trend ) so it's kinda hard to adopt/rescue a guinea pig... thus have to purchase 1... I was thinking of a free range cage 'cuz I don't really have much space to put a comfortable sized cage... so I'd rather toilet-train my piggies ( if successful ) and let them run around my room... heh... sounds fun if I really can train them... if not then I'll have to cage them and take them out during playtime for exercise... 1 question... during playtime will they poop along as they walk/run? Are they fast in running?

 

[DocDolittle]

Male-Female? Are you going to spay or neuter one of them then?(Preferably neuter, spay has more of a risk)

 

[ChadWPB]

miccee, if you want us to help, please don't use chatspeak! Please do not use "'cuz" or "ppl" or "...".

Please get two pigs of the same sex (male/male or female/female). It is good that there are not many guinea pigs in Malaysia. This means that few, if any are abandoned or neglected. Besides, breeding is dangerous for your pigs for many reasons.

As for potty training: Make sure your litterbox area is covered so it's cozy. Guinea pigs are like humans, not only for the Vit. C requirement, but they also like to potty in private.

Pooping is something guinea pigs are only partially aware of. They will poop while running around, but poops are firm and easy to clean.

Guinea pigs can ran fast but are not impossible to catch.

 

[cjguineapiglvr]

If you do let them go "free range" in you're room make sure that you don't have any wires, chair legs or anything else that they could it because it could be harmful for them.
Also couldn't you put a cage in another room like you're kitchen or living room where there's more room for a cage? Putting them in you're bedroom isn't a good idea because they can be very noisy.
I also personally think it would be easier to potty train them in a cage because you know everywhere they go (so on and so forth). If you have carpet or something in you're room it may not be too good to have them pee on it because not all guinea pigs can be potty trained!
Make sure that you get more information on them BEFORE you buy one (or two).

 

[Piglet]

You get used to the noise! They're in my room and I would have to put them outside before (in a mini cage), but they now sleep in the same room

 

[citronsoul]

Thanks to guinea pigs, I've developed the ability to sleep through anything.

Potty training really depends on the pig. Some figure it out, some don't. I've had a lot of luck with my current pig when it comes to potty training. She figured it out the first time she had floor time. I followed the advice given on Treen's webpage: (broken link removed)

She always pees on newspaper & leaves in poops in two areas.

But if it's going to be free range, then I still suggest that there be some kind of cage they can easily reach, or hidey place where they can relax.

I also suggest choosing pigs of the same sex (unless you neuter or spay.) Breeding is a health risk. It also means extra care & attention. If these are your first guinea pigs, then it's best to stick to the basics.

 

[miccee]

sorry for using chat-speak, didn't see the caution given above. I think I'm going to get 2 females as I think getting one might be a bit lonely for her. Anyway, I can't rear them in the kitchen or living room which I would really love to because I am just simply not allowed to rear them outside. Thank you for the useful information! Are the poops sticky or wet? Or will they dry out and you can pick them up just like that instead of using antiseptic or vinegar to wipe it. Regarding the potty training, I am supposed to place the poops at the DESIRED area which I want them to do their business, right? And place a cover on top so that they will have more privacy? I just hope that they can be potty-trained because I really like them to be free instead of staying in the cage. Oh yes, why is chair leg harmful towards cavies? And what about the wires? They will chew on it?

 

[citronsoul]

Their poops look like beans. They're pretty hard so it's easy to scoop them up without them being smooshed against your floor.

Yep, poops go in the desired area. You can also place some soiled bedding there to attract them (they'll follow the scent) & some hay (they follow their stomach too.)

Basically try to make sure they can't chew on anything dangerous (or anything they can damage) & close off any areas where they could get stuck.

Two girls sounds great!

 

[miccee]

You can also place some soiled bedding there to attract them (they'll follow the scent) & some hay (they follow their stomach too.)
!

soiled bedding... does it mean the bedding which the cavies have pooped on or urinated? If urinated, how do I know whether they've urinated that particular area. Thankz

 

[Piglet]

Yes, thats what soiled bedding is. You will know they have peed because the bedding goes dark in colour

 

[miccee]

Will the soiled bedding smell? I mean if I were to potty-train my cavies I'll have to put the soiled beddings on to the desired area for them to poop and how long should I remain that soiled beddings on that area?

 

[Piglet]

You can always replace the soiled bedding, so theres no smell