New to forum and to owning g.pigs

[Piglington fan]

Hi everyone,
I have recently become mother to 3 baby female piggys. I do have a few quick questions, I only intended to have 2, but will 3 get along just fine? My hutch is 4ft x 2ft x 2ft and my run is 5ft x 3ft. Also I am not sure how many days to wait for them to settle before letting them out in the run. So far it has been 36hrs.
Lastly what is the general opinion on hutch huggers, and when do people generally start to use them. I noticed today the cold weather seems to have set it.
Thank you in advance.

 

[piggyme234]

I had two groups of three until Rosie died the other day :0. Three usually works just fine. 4x2 might be a little on the small side for your girls when they are full grown but it will be fine while they are babies. I would use the hutch hugger all the time except the hottest days in summer as nights can be quite cold. I have my hutches covered all year round with a tarpaulin to protect them and the girls from the weather and every night I put towels over the front. I would use the run sparingly at this time of year, only let them out when the weather is nice and you are around to keep an eye on the weather. Guinea pigs will not always go inside when it is too cold and wet and then they could get sick.

 

[flips]

Welcome to the forum. p

How old are your girls? 3 girls are likely to get on together but I agree that you will probably need to invest in a bigger hutch at some point. I think it might be a bit cold to start putting them in the run, especially if they are small (but I only have indoor piggies so perhaps wait for some other responses). Is the hutch in a shed or outbuilding?
You might find this thread helpful.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=54309

 

[monica1607]

Hi I have a great winter tip for you if your keeping you guinea pigs in a hutch outside. Get a polystyrene box that will fit into the guinea pigs sleeping area, make sure that its big enough for all 3 of them (if the box is too big you can just make it smaller and use tape to seal it back up again) make a hole in the side where the entrance to the sleeping area is from the open area, so that the guinea pigs can get in, then using thin timber sheeting, create a box that slips into the inside of the polystyrene box to stop the guinea pigs from chewing on the box (if your not very good at building then you can use a cardboard box for the inside just make the sides double thick and check daily for chewing, if they have then replace it), this will keep them nice and snug, you can also cover the outside of the polystyrene with a cardboard box for that extra bit of insultion. I kept my guinea pig like that for the whole 7yrs of his life and he was never ill and lived very happily like that. Hope it helps

 

[Wiebke]

Hi! Welcome to the forum!

Your hutch will be a bit small for three fully grown piggies - the recommendation of the RSPCA is 5X2 ft minimum for three piggies and they can do with that upstairs space for bad weather days. Always close the ramp on really cold days and every night - guinea pigs have been killed last winter by people who forgot about the icy drafts coming in from underneath!

Please think twice about moving young guinea pigs outside if they are currently being kept indoors with their mum at this time of the year. Big changes in temperature can cause illness and loss of appetite/weight. Unlike rabbits, guinea pigs have evolved in a climate without major frosts and big changes of temperature and tolerate only a comparatively small band; heat and frost can kill them both.

 

[Piglington fan]

Thank you all for your responses. We do still seem to get the odd few nice days so I will put them out in the run if the sun shines! I shall get the hutch hugger on for some extra warmth.