Very sensitive to smells

B

.Bell

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Hi, our family is looking into getting guinea pigs. But we want little to no smell as it will get irritating to be smelling poo, urine and hay all the time. We are thinking about getting two sows and keeping them in the spare bedroom on the top floor of the house, away from the main body of the house. Fleece will be our preferred bedding too. We will be very good at cleaning regularly. We were just wondering if the above will suit a family that really doesn't like smells?

Thanks to everyone who replies.
 
Guinea pigs themselves should not really smell but they are not completely odour free either but with good maintenance you shouldnt smell poop or urine but you will always smell hay - hay is essential to them, they need lots of it all the time, so if the smell of hay is going to be irritating to you, then piggies will not be the right choice for you. Hay, however, should always smell sweet and is a rather nice smell!

Wet hay will smell if it isn’t changed frequently enough. If the fleece doesn’t wick properly or the absorbent layer underneath isn’t doing its job properly, then that can increase the risk of smells, not having a big enough cage can make smells worse, or lack of ventilation. Using pee pads in high traffic areas can help as they can be removed more frequently without having to change all of the bedding.
So you can see that if you do notice any smells, then there is usually a reason for it which can be rectified.
I have two boars (they live in my shed) but being boars they love nothing more than scent marking fresh bedding so sometimes, if they are feeling particularly dominant, then there is a whiff of boy smells in their shed. Sows do scent mark but they tend to not be quite as strong smelling.
 
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Guinea pigs shouldn't smell too much. I have two boys (which can be more smelly that sows) in my kitchen and I've never had problems with smells
 
We have two sows and they’re in the office next to our bedrooms. They’re on fleece and I spot clean and change their litter tray twice a day and change the fleece regularly. I sprinkle some cafe fresh granules underneath the fleece. I was worried before we got them as someone told my husband how smelly guinea pigs are and he was a bit unsure about getting them. However, we’ve never had any issues with smells at all. You can smell the hay a bit, but I think that’s a lovely smell!
 
If guinea pigs are cleaned out regularly there should be no unpleasant odours but every animal brings it’s own smell, even if it’s the fresh hay.
 
:wel:

I have a sensitive nose too. Even after cleaning the guinea pig house, I can still smell them. Nobody else seems to notice; we have guests over and they comment that our house doesn't smell like piggies. If you really do have a sensitive nose that could be bothered by piggies, maybe you should make a trip to a local pet store and see if the smell of the piggies bother you there, but don't buy them (adopt, don't shop). If the smell doesn't bother you, than go ahead and adopt some piggies.
If the smell does bother you, then maybe you should pass on the piggies.

Best of luck!
 
I have such a sensitive nose that if anything smells too strongly I start sneezing and my nose sometimes bleeds! :yikes: It has never been affected by piggies at all. They are now in the garage which is linked to the house by a lean to/shack (which will be converted next year into a Conservatory). Both the garage door to the lean to shack and the lean to shack door into the kitchen have been open since March and I have been OK. They are bedded on fleece. As said earlier, if you clean regularly the smells shouldn't be a problem.
 
Thanks everyone for your great help. We will consider your answers. Thanks again!
 
I do my boys full cage clean every Friday and it gets a bit stinky towards the end of the week but I'm sure if you were able to do a full clean maybe twice a week they should be ok. I think we all get used to it but if you are particularly adverse to smells they might not be the best pet for you but then again most pets do have some sort of odour
 
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