Light at night?

Pat Shields · Jun 29, 2011

At night I leave a light on in the garage for the sake of my own sometimes limited vision. I have read somewhere that gp's do not blink or close their eyes. He is not in the direct glare of the light, but there is illumination nonetheless. Last night I put a shield between the light side of his enclosure and the front as well, darkening the area considerably. Should he be given darkness, or does it matter to a guinea pig?

lauralucy · Jun 29, 2011

my piggies live indoors with me and i have there light on in the evening but at night when i go to bed i turn it off but the curtains are open so they still get some light.

they do close there eyes, some piggies sleep with there eyes closed and some dont.

doglovinpiggylover · Jun 29, 2011

my pigs are in my front room with me so the light is on until i go to bed about 11.30, but i also have a a fly killer that lights up so they arent ever in the dark, and they still lay down and snooze.

Last night i found Oscar laid out fully on the ledge with his head hanging over the edge lol bless x)

TaraJets · Jun 29, 2011

Don't worry, it shouldn't bother them. I see my piggies taking naps in the daytime, when it's very bright in the room and at night time when it's very dark. Piggies don't seem to mind light; they just sleep when they please.

lilmisscavy · Jun 29, 2011

They do blink, just not as often as we do or other animals. All guinea-pigs can sleep with their eyes closed but most of them sleep with their eyes open. I personally believe that they will sleep with their eyes closed when they're completely relaxed and fear nothing around them, which for an animal like a guinea-pig is rare. My first guinea-pig, Pepper, used to sleep on my lap with his eyes closed when I was a child which was adorable :p

They sleep on and off during the night and day so having a light on or off doesn't make a difference to them but they need to have a dark place to hide in as it makes them feel more protected and at his age (going by how tiny he is in the photos), I'd say he needs something like a wooden bridge/arch than a plastic house with a bottom because you'd be able to lift it off him and even make a barrier with it if you flip it on its end to pick him up easily, it's what I do with my new babies and it works a treat. Plastic based houses, or 'pigloos' are not for the nervous/young pig simply because they'll get into it, pee in it, likely lay in their pee lol and it'll be a job to get your hand in to remove them from it. Opening a 'pigloo' house is a job in itself and then you have to not scare the pig inside it... it's just handier to have a wooden bridge!

If you're able to give him some natural light for the majority of the day that'd make up for the artificial light during the night

Pat Shields · Jun 30, 2011

lilmisscavy said:
TPlastic based houses, or 'pigloos' are not for the nervous/young pig simply because they'll get into it, pee in it, likely lay in their pee lol and it'll be a job to get your hand in to remove them from it.

I bought what I called a "pigloo" because it is shaped like an igloo, but what it is, is a plastic shell without a bottom. I bought one like this:

The only problem with the one I got is, not knowing how small my guinea pig really is, I got one that fits the adult guinea pigs. I guess it is OK for the baby to hide in, but it is too big to fit inside his dog carrier! I will save it for use later.
I discovered what you said about pee with the first box I made for him; it had a bottom, but of course I had to remove the bottom the next morning.

GeorgesHuman · Jun 30, 2011

Pat, I think you are falling in love with your rescued little ball of fluff! Are you going to keep him. He is such a cutie and really good work from you to take him from a terrible life and make his life so much better. Does your piggie have a name?

Amanda1801 · Jul 1, 2011

I'm always one for natural as much as possible, so if I had lights on, which I will do in a week or so, I would cover them, or at least part of their cage so they have some darkness

sharonS · Jul 1, 2011

Don't think it matters too much, my guineas seem to thunder around in the dark, my husband was sleeping on the sofa one night and he said he could here them running around and playing in the dark.

rolleyes