Caging!

Crystal.L

Crystal.L

Junior Guinea Pig
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Can guinea pigs be put on top of each other? (cage wise) I have a cage but it's too small for two guinea pigs (thanks too Pretzelpigs, Rivervixen, Betsy, Piggies&buns, Siikibam, and Swissgreys I will be preparing for two guinea pigs instead of just one). I have a larger cage but it's more of a ferret cage, it's taller instead of wider. There are these little "ramps" (not really ramps, they're just areas you can put inside the cage so the animal can jump on them and get to a higher level) they're only 8 inches wide but luckily I have three of them (they came with the cage), but even after putting the "ramps" side by side, I still have about 3 inches left. So basically, I have a large cage that I can divide in two (there are doors on a high level and doors on a lower level) but...
1. Is it okay if I put one guinea pig on top (just for housing, it's not like they'll be separated all day, it's just so they have their own areas) and put the other one on the bottom?
2. The cage won't be completely divided in two because there are 3 inches left (I know it's pretty confusing without a picture but I can't take one because it's in my garage because I've only used it once and I have to take it out of the tight space it is in right now but I'd have to open up the garage door first and it's snowing outside.) and I'm worried that the guinea pig can slip through it and fall or hurt itself. What can I use to cover up that area? Like wood? Or a large hidey house with a bottom covering? The cage is pretty big so I'd need a box about 20-24 inches but I can't fit that through the doors. What can I do?
 
Guinea pigs need a large flat single level cage, not a multi level cage. I can picture the type of cage you mean (more appropriate for climbing or jumping animals like chinchillas, rats) so there is little point in commenting on the points as the cage is entirely inappropriate for guinea pigs. You need to buy a different cage.

Guinea pigs live together, they don’t live in separate areas.

For two sows, you need a cage measuring a minimum of 120x 60cm on a single level. However, 150x60cm is better.
For two boars, you need a cage measuring a minimum of 150x60cm on a single level, but 180x60 is much better as they are more territorial than sows and need a larger space.

Please look at the guides below which detail the kind of cage you need for guinea pigs

Cage Size Guide
Member Gallery: C&C cages/homemade cages
 
Guineapigs are ground roaming animals so multiple levels do not work for them unfortunately, as has been said in your other thread they also need companionship so having them on top of each other would not work, there is a members gallery of cages and lots of options for DIY c&C cages which you can build to fit your space.
 
I agree with everyone but I don't have the space for a long horizontal cage. My rabbit cage isn't even the size of the recommend size for guinea pigs. I know the cage isn't appropriate for guinea pigs but (just for) right now, I only have that one and another that is 1/4 of it's size. I can divide the cage so that the larger cage will literally be like two cages and have one guinea pig in on the top "cage" and the other one on the bottom "cage". I want to know if I can just do that now, I don't have the guinea pigs right now but hopefully I will soon and I don't have another cage right now.
 
Crystal.L said:
I agree with everyone but I don't have the space for a long horizontal cage. My rabbit cage isn't even the size of the recommend size for guinea pigs. I know the cage isn't appropriate for guinea pigs but (just for) right now, I only have that one and another that is 1/4 of it's size. I can divide the cage so that the larger cage will literally be like two cages and have one guinea pig in on the top "cage" and the other one on the bottom "cage". I want to know if I can just do that now, I don't have the guinea pigs right now but hopefully I will soon and I don't have another cage right now.
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No you can’t do that - it’s not meeting the welfare standards required.
if you can’t provide them with the flat space and appropriate sized cage they need, then you shouldn’t be getting them. They cannot live one on top of the other as they cannot communicate and will get lonely if they cannot see each other. Simple as that I’m afraid.

if your rabbit cage isn’t big enough for guinea pigs then your rabbit doesn’t have a big enough cage either. Rabbit cages need to be bigger than guinea pigs cages - rabbits require a space covering 60 sq ft (180x300cm) with any area they get locked into being 180x60cm
 
Piggies&buns said:
No you can’t do that - it’s not meeting the welfare standards required.
if you can’t provide them with the flat space and appropriate sized cage they need, then you shouldn’t be getting them. They cannot live one on top of the other as they cannot communicate and will get lonely if they cannot see each other. Simple as that I’m afraid.

if your rabbit cage isn’t big enough for guinea pigs then your rabbit doesn’t have a big enough cage either. Rabbit cages need to be bigger than guinea pigs cages
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Alright. I'll be looking for a bigger area in my house to move my rabbit into and then a different area big enough to build a DIY c&c cage.
 
Maybe now is not the right time for you to be getting Guinea pigs if you cannot meet the space requirements as any less is neglectful and cruel. If you have a rabbit they need a really big space or should be free roamed. Welfare standards are not something to compromise on.
 
Sweet Potato said:
Maybe now is not the right time for you to be getting Guinea pigs if you cannot meet the space requirements as any less is neglectful and cruel. If you have a rabbit they need a really big space or should be free roamed. Welfare standards are not something to compromise on.
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I actually don't have the guinea pigs right now but I might have them in a month or two.
 
I really would hold off getting any guinea pigs until you can actually provide a pair of guinea pigs with accommodation that meets minimum welfare standards. If you don’t have the floor or table space for an appropriate single level cage for piggies then please don’t get any.
 
Can you find picture of it online?
I think I know which one you mean, I wouldn't keep piggie in it as it's just not practical and not suitable. Much easier to build c&c cage (you can always put it on a DIY table or do a stand using grids). If your bunny doesn't have minimal cage size requirement for pigs then that should be your priority instead of bringing more pets in. Please, focus on that. Many people don't realise because they were never told and pet stores sell unsuitable cages, but now you know and cannot ignore it.
 
I have two extra rooms that aren't being used, they're about the size of a elementary bathroom (it's pretty big, it has to be able to fit a couple of small stalls and I think one big stall), thinking back. Can I just bunny proof one room and guinea pig proof the other room for my rabbit and my future guinea pigs? One of the rooms were supposed to be for my mother but she didn't want to live in a house with a rabbit so she moved in with my sister instead. I didn't move my rabbit into one of the rooms because...
1. The floors are tile and I'm worried that she'll slip, can I use fleece to cover the ground?
2. I moved in a couple of months ago and I had no idea what to do with the cages, the cages were pretty expensive and I didn't know where to put them if they weren't occupied.
I would love to have my rabbit free roam but I eat and cook a lot of meat and once I ate duck meat then went to go see her and she freaked out.
 
Hath said:
Can you find picture of it online?
I think I know which one you mean, I wouldn't keep piggie in it as it's just not practical and not suitable. Much easier to build c&c cage (you can always put it on a DIY table or do a stand using grids). If your bunny doesn't have minimal cage size requirement for pigs then that should be your priority instead of bringing more pets in. Please, focus on that. Many people don't realise because they were never told and pet stores sell unsuitable cages, but now you know and cannot ignore it.
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I can't find a picture of the cage online because I bought it at a antique store. But I won't be housing them in it now, I'll prepare my extra rooms for my rabbit and guinea pigs.
 
It’s fine to have a room for the rabbits and another separate room for the guinea pigs.

They can free roam in their respective rooms provided they are entirely safe - no wires, harmful woods etc they can chew or any other way they may hurt themselves. If you ever lock them into a cage, when you aren’t there for example, the cages must meet size requirements and be appropriate for them.

You can put fleece down but you must have something absorbent underneath it such as puppy pads - fleece by itself isn’t enough.
How your rabbit will take to fleece is rabbit dependent. Two of mine are fine with fleece items, but the other one just tries to eat it (he won’t even tolerate having newspaper as a liner under his hay)
 
Piggies&buns said:
It’s fine to have a room for the rabbits and another separate room for the guinea pigs.

They can free roam in their respective rooms provided they are entirely safe - no wires, harmful woods etc they can chew or any other way they may hurt themselves. If you ever lock them into a cage, when you aren’t there for example, the cages must meet size requirements and be appropriate for them.

You can put fleece down but you must have something absorbent underneath it such as puppy pads - fleece by itself isn’t enough.
How your rabbit will take to fleece is rabbit dependent. Two of mine are fine with fleece items, but the other one just tries to eat it (he won’t even tolerate having newspaper as a liner under his hay)
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Do I need fleece if I have a cat litter box for my rabbit?
 
Crystal.L said:
Do I need fleece if I have a cat litter box for my rabbit?
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You said you were worried about the tiled floor. If you don’t want your rabbit on a tiled floor, then it has to be covered with something. That is a separate issue from a litter box
 
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