guinea pig jumping off bed

[@the3piggies]

hi all! it has been quite a while since i posted on here, but something happened a bit ago.

i was playing with my piggies on my bed (i do this often) and they were fine. they were facing the opposite end of my bed from where i was and so i had gotten up to walk over to the other end so i could see them and i was just kissing them. then i got up to go sit back down and cookie ran to the edge and jumped off my bed.

she continued to run over to the edge of her cage, i think trying to get back inside so i went to try to grab her so i could put her inside but she tried to run into my closet. i managed to get her inside and she shook her head and then walked off and began to eat. i’m pretty sure she just got startled but now she’s fine. she’s running around normal, eating and drinking. i took her out a few minutes ago to check to make sure there was no obvious damage and she looked fine to me. my bed is about 19 inches up. i just wanted to make sure she is okay.

also- thoughts on having them on my bed? is it too high for them? i’ve taken them on it dozens of times before and it’s never been a problem until today.

 

[weepweeps]

Hello. I agree she probably got startled by you moving about and just felt she had to hide. I think a bed is maybe a bit too high. They are so fast aren’t they? I used to let mine on the bed but I got worried about them falling off so now they have floor time in my bathroom. . I’d get her checked over at the vets just in case. They hide any injuries very well.

 

[Deleted member 139433]

How is she today?

The bed is too high for play time unfortunately. Floor time is the safest option. Do you have an area where you can have them play safely for floor time? Somewhere you can block off so that they can't escape?

 

[Wiebke]

Piggies are prey animals and will be more on edge in a new environment; they either freeze or dash off blindly. A bed is too high because their area of sharp sight is very limited and they cannot judge heights well for that reason; beyond that small area of sharp sight (about 1-2 ft), they react to sudden movements. Keep in mind that sight is a guinea pig's weakest sense but is our strongest, so it is often not easy for us to judge the hazards for guinea pigs. But it also means that they have a lot more sensory input than us from their other much stronger senses and that they can be startled by a higher pitched noise or a subtle strange smell that we cannot perceive.

If you haven't got a safe floor area, looking for a cheap foldable puppy run would be best.

 

[@the3piggies]

Hello. I agree she probably got startled by you moving about and just felt she had to hide. I think a bed is maybe a bit too high. They are so fast aren’t they? I used to let mine on the bed but I got worried about them falling off so now they have floor time in my bathroom. . I’d get her checked over at the vets just in case. They hide any injuries very well.

Got it, thank you! I’m probably going to bring her for a checkup anyways. Thanks!

 

[@the3piggies]

How is she today?

The bed is too high for play time unfortunately. Floor time is the safest option. Do you have an area where you can have them play safely for floor time? Somewhere you can block off so that they can't escape?

Got it. She’s doing good today! She seems completely normal, eating and drinking and everything.

I do have some places where I can play safely with them! I often will just sit with them next to their cage and watch them carefully and they’re usually preoccupied with the fascination of seeing the cage from the outside I also have a playpen and we play in the bathtub sometimes. Thanks for your help!

 

[Deleted member 139433]

Time outside of the cage is important very glad you have something sorted and glad she’s doing well today!

 

[@the3piggies]

Piggies are prey animals and will be more on edge in a new environment; they either freeze or dash off blindly. A bed is too high because their area of sharp sight is very limited and they cannot judge heights well for that reason; beyond that small area of sharp sight (about 1-2 ft), they react to sudden movements. Keep in mind that sight is a guinea pig's weakest sense but is our strongest, so it is often not easy for us to judge the hazards for guinea pigs. But it also means that they have a lot more sensory input than us from their other much stronger senses and that they can startled by a higher pitched noise or a subtle strange smell that we cannot perceive.

If you haven't got a safe floor area, looking for a cheap foldable puppy run would be best.

Got it. Thanks for your help! I’ve got a few safe areas to play with them, and a foldable playpen!