Do Guinea Pigs Have A "home Sense"?

[Misty]

My guinea pig chippy was out in the run on the grass today and the patch that he was on was short so he just crawled under the pen and went back to his hutch ,I was in the kitchen, and I had just cleaned his hutch and it was drying. How did he do it? He does surprise me sometimes.

And I will be securing it better next time!

 

[piggieminder]

Well that told you, "longer grass next time please slave".

 

[Janice C]

They must certainly have a homing sense as no matter where I place them whether in a run or out for free time in the garden they'll make their way back to their Piggy Palace!

 

[Freela]

Mine certainly know where 'home' is when I let them run at home (they have a blocked off hallway and can come and go to and from the cage as they please in the evenings. They typically come out for snacks, run or putter around for a bit, then make their way back to the cage when they're done. I believe they leave and follow scent trails in less known environments so they can retrace their own steps. I could see this more obviously with one pig who went blind in old age... she clearly was following her nose to find her way back to the cage, even in the familiar hallway.

 

[Misty]

Thanks
So its not just Chippy!

 

[Betsy]

I have left the doors of my hutch open accidentally on several occasions when transferring the piggies to the run and none of mine have ever come out. I have seen them go towards the door and then turn just on the threshold and not come out but go back in again. Mind you having said that my cheeky boy Christian tries to escape when it's veg time so he can get to it first!

 

[Claire W]

My pigs live indoors but when I am carrying them back to their cage after playtime, they start pulling and shuffling the closer to the cage we get

 

[Lauren f]

My boys have a safe corner of the living room with all their stuff, like an open cage, then a few hiding houses round the room. They love to have a good wonder and watch me from the gate if I'm in the kitchen wheeking at me lol. But when they want to have a nap or snack on some hay they go back to home

 

[DM030819]

They definitely do. I lost Fozzy one day when we were out in the garden. It was only a tiny garden so the pigs would free range when I sat out with them.

After searching for a while I went indoors to ask for help and heard a commotion going on upstairs.

Fozzy had gone back in the house, through the living room, up the stairs and into my room where his cage was. He was rumbling around in front of the other boys cage.