Why is a guinea pig gnawing on a cage?

Small cage

Crampedness can be one of the most common reasons. The recommended size of the area on which the guinea pig should live is 0.7 square meters, which is approximately equal to the area of ​​a cage measuring 60×100 cm. Having moved into a cage of this size, a guinea pig in 99.9% of cases stops gnawing rods. She finds herself other activities – running, jumping, exploring the cage, etc.

What is the cage size of your guinea pig? If this is “standard” 30×40 cm, then such a piggy behavior is just a cry from the heart! “Let me out! I’m cramped!”

Read, please, about what should be a guinea pig cage .

Boredom

Does your pig have a sibling friend? After all, you know that guinea pigs are social animals, for which loneliness is destructive? Don’t dismiss it! All this is so serious that in some European countries it is forbidden to keep guinea pigs alone. The most suitable option is a same-sex pair of guinea pigs. In this case, they will always have something to do. And, believe me, the pigs will not chew on the cage.

Does your pig live alone? When was the last time you put a new toy in the cage? Does the pig have a tunnel? What about a paper tube filled with fresh grass or hay? Toy options for guinea pigs

Very often, boredom becomes the cause of the gnawing of the cell. Change the cage, buy a friend for the pig, add toys to the cage and forget about the gnawed bars of the cage forever.

Grinding teeth

This is the reason why not the most responsible breeders usually reassure themselves, who do not want to make unnecessary gestures, such as: improve living conditions for the pig, make her a friend and bother with some kind of toys … “It is she who sharpens her teeth,” – a great opportunity to ignore the torment of the poor animal.

Even if the pig is very impatient to sharpen its teeth (although for this purpose pigs, as a rule, have enough roughage), then it is necessary to offer her much more suitable options than the cage covered with paint. Sprigs of fruit trees, special chewing sticks that are sold in pet stores, pieces of wood, at worst. But not the iron bars of the cage!

And if, in the presence of the same branches in the cage, the pig still continues to gnaw the cage, then. Believe me, it’s not about the teeth!

Nervousness

Sometimes, chewing on a cage can be a sign of a guinea pig’s nervousness. If this happens during or after some stressful event for the mumps (and this may be the appearance of strangers, noise, prolonged absence of the owner, etc.), and all other conditions for keeping the mumps are met, then it is enough to simply remove the cause of the nervousness, and the pig will calm down.

To attract attention

If the guinea pig lacks attention, it may try to attract it in a variety of ways, including by chewing on the cage. If this succeeds, and when you see your pet actively and methodically trying to gnaw the rods of the cage, take him in your arms or bring him a treat, then the pig will quickly realize that “if I gnaw the cage, I get a bonus.” Guinea pigs learn new skills pretty quickly, so if you want some of their habits to change, then you have to change yours.

Do you have any idea why your pig is chewing on a cage?

The most effective way is to remove the cause of this behavior. Feed the pig, let them play with their relatives (or remove them from the room, if this is undesirable), buy the pig a same-sex friend or purchase a more spacious home.

If it is not yet possible to remove the cause, then the following measures may show a temporary effect.

Experienced breeders advise to wean the guinea pig from the habit of chewing on the cage by moistening the cage rods with vinegar, because its smell is unpleasant for the animal.

European breeders suggest using the following method for this purpose: wipe the cage with a cloth with the smell of menthol, which does not harm either the pigs or the cage itself, except it smells a little. Usually, after such a treatment, the pigs stop gnawing on the cage.

By virtue of their natural peculiarity, guinea pigs are ready to taste not only cage rods for a tooth.

So what else can guinea pigs chew on?

Carpets and wallpaper. Unfortunately, guinea pigs are almost impossible to wean from gnawing. The animals act in accordance with their natural tendency to gnaw, as this contributes to the grinding of their teeth. In these cases, it is better to proceed from their natural needs and make sure that the animals cannot damage anything. Hide or cover valuables that the animal can spoil.

Drinking bowl . It happens that some guinea pigs gnaw on the drinking bowl tubes. If this is the case, you can remove the drinker and pour fresh water into the drinking bowl each time.

Fur of relatives . If a long-haired guinea pig gnaws the fur of its relative to the base, then this may be due to the fact that the animal is bored, or it has nothing more to chew on. Rarely is there any congenital defect as the cause. If nothing succeeds in weaning the animal from such a “caress”, it should be kept separately or put in a cage with a short-haired guinea pig, whose fur it is unlikely to damage.