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It's a hutch for Winter for this lot!

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Well, despite a few weeks of trying, my 4 guineas will NOT go out in the run. Absolutely no way. They are fit and well but live inside the Eglu all the time. They sleep in the hayrack and food dish, have tons of hay and hemcore for bedding and the contents of the local greengrocers every day but will not venture outside. To this end, and much to my husband's amusement (my word, not his) we are having a new wooden hutch built as I type. I don't honestly feel there is enough room inside the Eglu for 4 adult guineas to live permanently so I am converting back to a good wooden hutch for the Winter and will try the Eglu on the grass in the Spring when I do feel they may take the plunge and go out. Presently the Eglu is sited on the patio because of boggy grass. Also when the weather is foul and it's horrid all day I don't like the fact that with the door shut to keep them cosy they are in the dark when it's still daylight. I do like the Eglu, but feel that it is not perfectly suited to guineas all year round. I definitely like the ease of cleaning etc but not having to crawl on the floor to extricate them when I clean out every other day. Obviously rabbits are more accommodating and will happily venture in and out. I also feel that the run could have a small hatch type door sited near the front of the Eglu so you can reach into the run if you have to clear bedding for instance away from the front of the Eglu. I look forward to hearing other owners' views.

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Hi l have 2 pigs in an eglu too and l give them alot of bedding but they wee all over it and it gets sqashed so l dont think it keeps them that warm.Reading the posts about keeping them warm is now worrying me.I picked them up this morning and they feel fairly warm.I dont know what to do now just dont want to leave them if its to cold. :?

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Hi :D

 

I've had a guinea pig eglu for over a year now and agree that they are far from ideal for g-pigs. The living compartment is small for them and unless i clean them out nearly every day they end up sleeping and laying on wet and smelly shavings which seem to turn to a type of 'compost' really quickly. The eglus in my opinion are only suitable for summer use too as they get far too cold in the winter and the g-pigs don't want to venture outdoors in the cold so they end up living in a tiny dark eglu which very quickly gets dirty and wet. I'm going back to a winter hutch and summer outdoor run and the eglu is sadly being sold. The eglu is advertised as "your guinea pigs will be snug and warm in winter" but I don't think that is true. To keep them warm the eglu has to be closed up all day and they never see daylight and have little room to move around. Sorry Omlet but the g-pig eglu is not for me or my guineas :cry:

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I don't have piggies these days as I don't have anywhere to keep them indoors during the winter,

 

I have a lovely pink rablu, which I bought 2nd hand on the forum. My bunnies love it during the summer as I said above.

I used to use a wooden hutch and run on the grass for them, but found that this quickly went mouldy on the damp grass.

 

They do so love the rablu and the length of the run in the summer and seem very content with it, even if they do prefer to use the 'indoors' as their litter tray! :roll:

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Just posting a quick update since November. The GP's are happily situated in a new wooden hutch and really are much more content. They are behaving as GP's should now and not huddled inside the eglu all day so I am very happy that I took the difficult decision to transfter them back to a hutch, which seemed to go against everything I had planned for them, but their welfare is more important than my whim of wanting an eglu. I will try them in it again when it warms up but if they still decide they don't like it I will have a run built for them and part with my eglu. I am still totally convinced that they are suited to rabbits but not really for the guineas.

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Hi - new to forum but felt compelled to join so I could make a comment re eglus in winter for guinea pigs. I live in Scotland, so we have lots of cold and rain here. We got our 2 girls 9 months ago and they have lived happily outside in eglu ever since. They had previously lived indoors. I was paranoid at first and kept checking on them, but after a week they really adapted to outside life and have coped regardless of the weather - wind, rain (lots of in Scotland), ice and snow included. They refuse to have their door shut and will shout to us from the doorway if the weather is too bad for them to want to venture out in the run. They love gathering leaves that have been blown down in the wind and seem to have grown thicker winter coats to cope with the cold - they are always warm to the touch and in great health. We have positioned the eglu in a spot that offers some shelter from the elements and use the rain cover on the run - even so, the weather can be cruel in Scotland, but our 2 girls seem proof that an eglu can be just fine for winter guineas too!

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Hi, well I disagree about it being unsuitable for year round use. Despite my initial reservations about housing them in it year around. I have two Eglus - one housing 2 boars and one of them housing a neutered boar and two sows. I always leave mine open during the day and close up last thing at night. All of them keep warm in plenty of hay, given at night. In the howling wind, and rain they still come out in the run and popcorn around! (I would love to be able to post a video!) I have a shade over the top which protects from rain and to a certain extent the wind. In the hutch area I use Megazorb (pulped wood) http://www.northerncropdriers.co.uk/megazorb.htm as an underlayer which is extremely absorbent, soft and warm, then plenty of hay on top. I have checked on very cold mornings and they are definately nice and warm. Of course, it's also fine to bring them indoors for the Winter - makes them become more part of the family :)

 

It is also important to clean out regularly (same as in a wooden hutch) - soggy bedding will cause dampness in the air and will also get cold.

 

I guess coming out on a patio may be very cold on their feet which is perhaps why they won't venture out? You could try putting some hay in the run? Plus also a few tunnels.

 

I do agree though that the Eglu unit it is not big enough for 4 Guineas to be shut in. In fact, I would only advise a pair as I've often noticed the Eglu that has 3 guins, has one Guin usually sitting in the food bowl! So I don't know how you're going to get around that problem unless you just use it for daytime use and make sure the door is left open.

 

A hatch on the side of the run would be useful as the hay always falls out the front and it's very difficult to reach and remove it through the Eglu itself!

 

I also wanted to say to the original poster, that, very sadly, some Guinea Pigs are kept in horrendously small cube like hutches with nothing to do and nowhere to go for the whole of their lives, and unfortunately, because of this, brain cells simply die. From another post, yours were adults when you got them and it could be that they simply haven't a clue that they are supposed to actually move around. In other words, they are doing what they are used to - sitting still all day, every day. Anyway, just thought I would mention it as it could take many weeks of persuasion if this is the case and, depending how long they've been subjected to boredom, potentially may never fully recover from experiences in their early lives.

 

Hopefully, once you can get them out on the lawn, and give them the taste of Spring grass, you will find it will tempt them!

 

Sorry for the long post, I have had rescue pigs from the above circumstances, and so have had experience of the resulting mental damage it can do.

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hi, my pigs are always kept indoors, but i've noticed they happily run round the living room carpet, but if i put them in the utility room, which is tiled, the just freeze for a while and reluctantly explore but dont seem too keen.

 

You could try putting a cutting of carpet in the run when you let them out in the winter, given the weathers not wet, and they may be more adventurous.

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