Behavior Sleeps where he pees

[jayk0426]

Hi guys! I'm new to the forum. We were just given 2 guinea pigs. As we're first time owners, I'm trying to research all there is to know about our new piggies. I just would like to know if it's normal that they like to sleep where they usually pee and poop. I try to always clean the area but for some reason, after I clean it, they poop on that area again and lie in it. Why? And for some reason, they spill water whenever they drink from the water. Is that normal as well? Thanks in advance!

 

[New Low GP]

All of that is quite normal. You're going to want to elevate your water bowl if you do choose to use a bowl, otherwise they will their feces/urine will get into the water. This will also prevent spillage if you secure it to a wall for example.

Piggies prefer to use the same spot as a bathroom, typically a corner or something specific in their cage. Mine for example poops in the corner of their cage by the water water about 70% of the time, and she pees their almost 100% of the time. Makes it much easier to clean, and if I have her out for floor time she used the back right corner every time. I'd recommend a water bottle to avoid contamination.

 

[New Low GP]

Here's a picture I took showing what I mentioned in the previous post. I took that while cleaning up after a quick floor time; I'm not sure how your cage is set up but Spaz tends to choose a spot where she is close enough to eat her hay but far enough away to avoid getting any feces/urine on it. After that she'll just kinda chill eating hay and will pee/poop when ever the need arises. They truly are lazy creatures haha. Spaz doesn't do it quite as much, but many piggies will lay in their hay and use it as a bathroom as well, so keep an eye out for that.

 

[jayk0426]

many thanks for the response. we have water bottles for each of them. i put a small unused tray under the water bottles to try to catch the water they seem to spill whenever they drink to try to keep their cage dry. that's where they like to sleep/hang out, the tray. they take turns sleeping there. good to know that's normal ha ha