Guide to Indoor Guinea Pig Cage Sizes

Silvia Carrus
2020-11-05T10:41:20+00:00

If you’re new to piggy parenthood, buying and setting up your guinea pig’s cage can be an exciting if somewhat head-scratching experience. What are the cage size requirements for two guinea pigs versus a mini herd of piggies? Do male and female pigs have different cage needs? Does size really matter?

If you find yourself asking these questions (and many more!) then you’ve come to the right place. In this handy guide, we’ll help you choose the best cage for your piggies. This will give them all the space they need to zoom around, snooze, and popcorn with joy in their new pet palace.

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If you’re new to piggy parenthood, buying and setting up your guinea pig’s cage can be an exciting if somewhat head-scratching experience. What are the cage size requirements for two guinea pigs versus a mini herd of piggies? Do male and female pigs have different cage needs? Does size really matter?

If you find yourself asking these questions (and many more!) then you’ve come to the right place. In this handy guide, we’ll help you choose the best cage for your piggies. This will give them all the space they need to zoom around, snooze, and popcorn with joy in their new pet palace.

Why Cage Size Matters for Guinea Pigs?

In the wild, guinea pigs are ground-roaming rodents that love to forage and explore. It’s important to bear this in mind from the outset, as it means that they require a larger floor space than you might first think. They're much more sizeable than their distantly-related hamster and gerbil cousins, yet they’re often kept in small cages that don’t give them enough space to move around and explore. So let’s take a look at some of the key benefits of opting for a larger piggy palace.

Large guinea pig cages help them stay healthy

Giving guinea pigs a larger floor space means that they have more room for their everyday piggy activities! This means plenty of space to exercise, run around, and play to their heart’s content. Not only is this adorable to watch, it also improves their overall health and can reduce the risk of them developing serious medical conditions like obesity, heart disease and bumblefoot. Especially when you add a soft fleece liner for guinea pigs, which will keep their feet cosy and prevent infection!

More space means less bickering!

It’s true that piggies are generally sociable little furballs who love nothing more than to share their space with a furry roommate. However, just like us hoomans, there are times when even the most extroverted piggy needs some alone time.

When guinea pigs are given plenty of room, they're less likely to get on top of each other and consequently fight. In particular, boars (male piggies) need more space per animal than sows (female piggies) as they’re more prone to quarrels and clashes.

Roomier enclosures help curb boredom

Sizable indoor guinea pig cages also help curb boredom in guinea pigs. While this may not seem like a big deal, bored guinea pigs are not happy guinea pigs. To help your piggy live their best life, it’s important to provide enrichment for them - and this starts with good-sized accommodation.

Bored piggies can quickly become destructive. Whether it's chewing the bars of their cage, nibbling on things they shouldn’t, or riling up their cage mates, these are all common symptoms of guinea pigs that aren’t having their physical and mental needs met. Natural behaviours for piggies include exploring and foraging, so make sure they have a large enough area to engage in these activities!

Pick the Best Size Cage for Guinea Pigs

If you take a look at the minimum guinea pig cage size requirements advised by most animal welfare organisations, you’d be forgiven for basing your purchase on their guidance. However, here at Kavee we're on a mission to give our sweet pigs the life we know they deserve and in our experience, these measurements are a bit on the stingy side.

Our team of small pet experts have worked hard to create piggy palaces that not only look great, but are also roomy enough for your guinea pigs to thrive in. So while general guidance may be outdated, you can check out our size recommendations below.

Guinea pig cage size guide

The minimum floor space advised is simply too small for guinea pigs. And sadly, when they don’t have enough room to move around freely, it can end up seriously hampering their quality of life. Let's compare the minimum space versus the size we recommend at Kavee:

Number of guinea pigs | Minimum floor space | Recommended floor space
2 sows | 2x3 C&C = 8 ft2 | 2x4 C&C = 10 ft2
3 sows | 2x4 C&C = 10 ft2 | 2x5 C&C = 12ft2
2 boars | 2x4 C&C = 10 ft2 | 2x5 C&C = 12ft2
1 neutered boar & 2 sows | 2x4 C&C = 10 ft2 | 2x5 C&C = 12ft2
4 sows | 2x5 C&C = 12ft2 | 2x6 C&C = 14 ft2

If you have the space in your home then you should absolutely go bigger, 100% of the time. Make sure to purchase the best, roomiest cage possible for your guinea pigs. And check out this guide to the different types of indoor guinea pig cages to learn more about your housing options!

Cage size for 1 guinea pig

We always recommend having at least one piggy pal for your guinea pig, as they can become sad and lonely on their own. However, we understand that there may be times when this is necessary, such as pregnancy or quarantining.

Even if you temporarily have just one guinea pig, it’s important to note that they'll still need plenty of space to run around. Housing should be at least 7.5 square ft (0.7 square metres) according to the humane society, however we’d advise that 10.5 (1 square metre) square ft is a much more considerate size. A 3x2 grid C&C cage (41,3 x 27,6 x 13,8 inches or 8.6 square ft) would give your momentarily solitary piggy all the room they need.

Cage size for 2 guinea pigs

As mentioned above, the recommended cage size for two piggies is the same as one, which means that their housing should be at least 7.5 square feet (0.7 square metres). That said, we’d recommend at least 10.5 square ft (1 square metre) as a more ideal size to go for.

This means that a cage offering the bare minimum size requirements would be 4ft x 2ft (122cm x 61cm). This doesn’t give your piggies much room to move around, so we’d advise you to look for a cage measuring at least 5ft x 2ft (152cm x 61cm). Our recommendation, would be to size up and go for a 4x2 C&C cage (55,1 x 27,6 x 13,8 inches or 10.5 square ft). This would be the perfect indoor guinea pig cage size for 1 to 2 piggies - and yep, not far off double the standard advised minimum cage requirements!

Cage size for 3 guinea pigs

The minimum cage size for three guinea pigs is 10.5 square ft (1 square metre), but we recommend a cage measuring 13 square ft (1.2 square metres). This gives them much more space to engage in natural piggy behaviours.

To give you a better idea of how much space this will require in your home, a cage that is just under the minimum requirements would be 5ft x 2ft (152cm x 60cm) and a better sized cage would be 6ft x 2ft (183cm x 60cm). If you have got the space, the best indoor guinea pig cage for three piggies would be a roomy 5x2 C&C cage (68,9 x 27,6 x 13,8 inches or 14.4 square ft).

Cage size for 4 guinea pigs

While the minimum cage size requirements for four guinea pigs is at least 13 square ft (1.2 square metres), it would be better to stretch to a larger cage that is 16 square ft (1.5 square metres).

A square 3x3 grid C&C cage (3.6ft x 3.6ft or 13 square ft) does meet the minimum requirements, but a longer cage is more ideal as it will give your piggies more space to run. The best indoor guinea pig cage for four piggies is a 6x2 C&C cage as it will give them maximum running room (82.7 x 27,6 x 13,8 inches or 17 square ft).

If you're still unsure about cages, check out our full list of frequently asked questions about guinea pig cages.

Conclusion

You now know what size of guinea pig cage you need to choose to make your piggies happy and healthy. However, we understand that this topic can be quite confusing. If you ever have any doubts, don't be afraid to reach out to our customer team with questions, we're here to help!

Guinea Pig Cage Size FAKs - Frequently Asked Kavees

Can I make my guinea pig cage bigger?

One of the reasons C&C grid cages are such a popular choice is because they're so easy to customise and expand to your current needs. To make your cage larger, simply use additional grids, connectors and coroplast in the relevant size.

Do male guinea pigs need more space?

Yes, male guinea pigs need more space than female guinea pig pairings. This is because boars are more likely to get into fights than females if they don’t have a large enough space to live in. As such, we always recommend going up to the next cage size if you plan on housing male piggies together.

How much space do guinea pigs need?

According to the Humane Society, the minimum cage size requirements for 1 or 2 guinea pigs should be at least 7.5 square ft (0.7 square metres). However, to give your cute cavies the best quality of life possible, we’d recommend that 10.5 square ft is a much better size. In short: the bigger, the better!