Guinea Pig Playhouse Advice

[Tiggy11]

Hi there, we are first time guinea pig owners and got our two little pigs 2 months ago back in January. They are currently in an indoor cage (they've never been outside before as they were babies when we got them), but we have a lovely big wooden playhouse in the garden with run attached that was used for bunnies by the previous owner of our house. I have a few questions...

When should I think about putting them outside - I was thinking maybe beginning of next month when it gets a bit warmer (April)? Would you recommend bringing them back inside into the indoor cage in the winter, or leave them outside all year and make sure they're properly insulated etc?

Also, the main playhouse floor is lined with vinyl. They have a wooden hutch inside the playhouse which I'll obviously fill with bedding/hay etc and I was thinking of getting some litter trays with woodshavings in for the main playhouse floor, but not sure if I need to line the whole thing, or just the hutch section?

Finally, is it OK to leave access to the outside run open all day? I presume close this off at night as it would get too cold.

Any help much appreciated!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Welcome to the forum

Mine live in a shed with a hutch inside. The shed has internal mesh doors so I can leave the outer stable doors open for ventilation.

You should not move them out until the night times are warmer - April/May time generally but if they are going into a playhouse you might find its warmer sooner. My own shed usually remains 5-10 degrees warmer than outside temperatures (except in the height of summer when things get dramatically hotter in there).

Regarding whether you bring them back in next winter is dependent upon the weather And the temperature your playhouse is at. I always have a spare cage so can bring my boys in if I need to but I personally generally find it easy enough to keep them warm and mine don’t tend to need to come indoors in winter.
You will need snugglesafe heatpads so they have somewhere warm to sit but they don’t heat the space. They are locked into the hutch at night during the winter but have access to the shed floor during the day. The hutch also has thermal covers and blankets on it.

It’s summer I struggle most - I find the shed so difficult to keep cool. It gets dangerously hot in there as sheds and hutches tend to trap heat (mine can reach 40 degrees, if not more).
From late spring, i tend to have to get them out of the shed around 9am and into the lawn run if I’m going to be at home, or into the house in their spare cage if I’m going out.
Come the height of summer, they tend to have to be moved out of the shed entirely and move into the house for a couple of weeks due to the heat, with the shed often not cooling down enough even at night. Obviously your shed may not struggle with heat as much as my shed does, but it is something to be very aware of as it happens so quickly. Just last weekend with a 9 degree sunny day, my shed reached 21 degrees

Mine free roam inside the shed during the warmer months (unless they have to come indoors) and don’t get locked into their hutch at all. The shed floor is covered with an old oilcloth tablecloth, then some newspaper/puppy pads and hay. In summer I’ll sometimes use fleece instead of the hay to save on hay costs. The hutch is always filled with hay year round.

You would only want them to have access to outside the playhouse when you are there to supervise them in case of cats etc.

 

[Tiggy11]

Thanks so much for this. All very useful. Yes I hadn't really considered whether they might overheat in there. There is a large meshed window that opens so hopefully it can be well ventilated. We did have them in our conservatory to start with, but it was either freezing cold, or like you we saw temperature soar to about 25 degrees in there as soon as we had a little bit of sun the other week!

 

[weepweeps]

Hello and welcome to the forum