do you have the heating on at night? (and a snugglesafe question)

Status
Not open for further replies.
biscandmatt

biscandmatt

Senior Guinea Pig
Joined
Mar 6, 2009
Messages
6,919
Reaction score
3,018
Points
1,315
Location
manchester
we have one room downstairs so the house is really cold and draughty. last year i left the heating on from september to march 24/7.

the bunnies had a snugglesafe aswell, but the piggies didn't. can they have one or will they overheat? i'm worried about them being too cold and then worried about them overheating! rolleyes

i'm trying not to have the heating on all the time until it goes even colder though.

where in their cage would be best to put it aswell? a quarter of their cage is hay and they both sleep under it. it has a blanket and then hay... if i put it under the blanket would this be too warm then, what with all the hay aswell? the other part of the cage has profleece. maybe putting it under that?

and if the heating was on aswell, its on about 15 at night, would that and then a heatpad be too much? (the radiators are turned down because the buns cage is next to the main radiator!)

complicated! :))

sorry for all the questions, i am a worrier as you might beable to tell! :{
 
I'd put it under the blanket and hay. :) I'm sure they'll be fine, cos they can move away if they want. They feel the cold more than bunnies I think, so they'd probably like it if it quite cold.
 
I don't have the heating on at night ever, not even in deepest winter. Us humans survive fine so I'm sure the guinea pigs will be fine too. After all they have fur coats and we don't!
 
lizzie_71 said:
I don't have the heating on at night ever, not even in deepest winter. Us humans survive fine so I'm sure the guinea pigs will be fine too. After all they have fur coats and we don't!
Click to expand...

Surprisingly, they don't have fur coats. They have hair like we do. :) No idea about the temperature thing though.
 
i'm a human and i don't cope well with the cold! :)) thought if we feel cold then the piggies do aswell? read that on here somewhere i think.. :{

i've just ordered two heatpads from vetuk, and will use them at night until it gets really freezing, and then i will just put the heating on at night aswell.

i've never got why people turn the heating off at night when that is the coldest time! :{ but then again, i feel the cold so much. :))

eta: our house is so cold and draughty because we have the front door and back door in the one room, so i can't shut any doors or anything and just heat one room etc. makes it harder to keep warm. so really, the piggies are in the lounge, but opposite the kitchen, but also in the hall! :))
 
Last edited:
lizzie_71 said:
I don't have the heating on at night ever, not even in deepest winter. Us humans survive fine so I'm sure the guinea pigs will be fine too. After all they have fur coats and we don't!
Click to expand...

Sorry, I pressed the thank you button by accident.

UNLIKE bunnies, guinea pigs can tolerate only a fairly small amount of temperatures and suffer if it gets too hot or too cold! They need protection from frosty conditions.
 
Wiebke said:
Sorry, I pressed the thank you button by accident.

UNLIKE bunnies, guinea pigs can tolerate only a fairly small amount of temperatures and suffer if it gets too hot or too cold! They need protection from frosty conditions.
Click to expand...

They are inside so no frost here - it is not too cold for children, so I assume also not too cold for animals!
 
i gave in yesterday and had the heating on in the evening.. until 2.30am when i went to bed. couldn't stand the cold anymore! (i am ill though so maybe why!)

got up at 7.30am after the bunnies made enough noise to wake me up and then i couldn't resist letting them out the cage, little bunny faces were too cute! :)) had the heating on again since then! :)) it's so cold!

so what does everyone else think then - either heating off at night and buy the piggies some new beds, those cube ones off cavy couture, or the cage the same but with a heatpad, or cage the same with the heating on through the night? :)
 
lizzie_71 said:
I don't have the heating on at night ever, not even in deepest winter. Us humans survive fine so I'm sure the guinea pigs will be fine too. After all they have fur coats and we don't!
Click to expand...

Hair not fur - no undercoat to keep their body heat in. If we get cold we put warmer clothes on, extra blanket on the bed, snuggle up under the duvet at night. I bet the piggies would like to do the same!

Every year I have dozens of owners approach me for a new companion for their piggy as one had passed away - it's not a coincidence that this occurs after a patch of cold weather. I've even had pigs that had frost bite damage to their ears - most lost them, after they turned black, withered and fell off - and these had been living in a hutch in a shed.

Piggies have not evolved in a climate where they encounter winters like ours - they simply are not designed to cope.

Me - all mine live in a block built, fully insulated shed through the summer so the temp is nice and stable - garden time when the weather allows - centrally heated conservatory throughout the entire winter. If the temp goes below 10 degrees the heating stays on - 24 hrs a day if need be.

Suzy
 
I put the heating on when its really cold, but probably alot more this winter cos of the skinny, but he has blankets towels and a heat pad!
 
I have my piggies in my room where it is usually during spring/summer/early autumn 20 degrees. During winter we have a wood burner in the living in room which heats up the house and keeps my room warm, it it's still to cold I have a small electric fan heater which does a great job of keeping the room warm.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top