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For decades, pet parents across the globe have understood the important role proper nutrition plays in helping guinea pigs (and other small mammals) maintain physical health and minimize the risk of preventable health concerns. While the importance of a high-quality, nutritionally appropriate diet cannot be downplayed, even the most well-intentioned pet parent sometimes overlooks their fur babies’ needs for physical, mental, and nutritional enrichment. By creating a stimulating environment that encourages your piggies to express their natural behaviors, you can ensure your little ones are living their best enriched lives while simultaneously strengthening that ever-important human-animal bond.
Socialites
In order to provide the most enriching life possible, it’s important to understand guinea pigs’ unique needs as a species. As herd animals, guinea pigs are incredibly social creatures and tend to best thrive when living in pairs or groups. Though guinea pigs can, and do, form strong bonds with their pet parents, as humans it is nearly impossible to interact with our piggies on the same level as a fellow pig. It is also important to remember that you will not always be home or able to interact with your pets, meaning a solitary guinea pig would likely spend at least a few hours of each day alone. As much as our piggies appreciate our attempts to fulfil their social needs ourselves, we can never truly take the place of having a constant companion who speaks the same language.
Building the Bond
Even though humans can’t provide the same level of companionship as a fellow guinea pig, we can still establish a close human-animal bond through thoughtful, species-appropriate interaction. As sensitive prey animals, it takes time, patience, and understanding to earn your little ones’ trust. Speak softly, engage in daily play, and take the time to figure out your piggies’ unique likes and dislikes. When at all possible, don’t force interactions with your guinea pig when they aren’t feeling up to it. If you happen to have an especially fearful piggy, or one who is taking a little bit longer to warm up, the assistance of offering a high-quality, all-natural treat, or a few small pieces of their favorite greens or herbs, can also go a long way to establishing trust. Though these may seem like simple steps from a human perspective, your time and patience (not to mention treats) will establish you as a welcome source of positive interaction.
Comfort Food
While it’s true most guinea pigs love a snack, treats should make up a very small fraction (1% – 2%) of a piggy’s overall diet. Though the bulk of your guinea pigs’ menu should be composed of an unlimited supply of grass hay, it is important to ensure their diet is as varied as possible. Our cavy’s wild cousins used to scurry around eating a wide variety of fresh vegetation daily. In stark contrast, our domesticated piggy friends are often only offered a bowl of pellets, one type of hay, and a limited variety of fresh greens/veggies. Though it is not recommended to routinely change your pets’ pelleted diet, by feeding a variety of grass hays and fresh produce we can provide a substantial amount of mental and nutritional enrichment by stimulating the natural foraging behavior still ingrained in these animals’ DNA. While some piggies are pickier than others, through gentle patience and persistence you can usually expand your guinea pigs’ menu to include a wide variety of hays and species-appropriate produce. Not only will the variety mix things up, it will also provide your small friend with essential macro- and micronutrients, helping ensure they are living the healthiest life possible.
Room to Roam
Let’s be honest: guinea pigs tend to be a bit lazy. While piggy parents far and wide understand the heartwarming splendor of gazing upon a lounging guinea pig, chronic inactivity can quickly lead to obesity and other health concerns. In order to encourage a healthy, physically enriching lifestyle, it is important guinea pigs are provided with a spacious enclosure and daily access to a large, “piggy-proof” play area. In addition to the benefit of a trimmer waistline and better overall health, providing ample living and play space will help limit boredom-based behaviors by providing more room to roam, run, and explore.
Playtime
While a large enclosure and play area are ideal, spending the majority of your life in the same room would not be the most enriching experience. To avoid the boredom and monotony of exploring the same habitat day after day, it’s important to fill these areas with species-appropriate enrichment items that will satisfy your guinea pigs’ instinctual behaviors: exploring, playing, chewing, and hiding. Simple actions such as switching out hides, rearranging their enclosure, or adding a cardboard box can pique a piggy’s interest, as can the addition of new chew toys. As with anything your guinea pigs come in contact with, it is important to ensure any chew or activity center you provide are made from species-friendly materials that have not been treated with any chemicals, preservatives, or artificial colors or flavors.
As pet parents, we all want to do what’s best for our fur babies. Though love and affection go a long way, it is important to consider the unique physical, mental, and nutritional enrichment needs of these special little animals. Through thoughtful daily interaction, appropriate husbandry, and a healthy, varied diet, you can help foster a meaningful bond while also helping your guinea pig live a long, happy, healthy life.
