Strange Night Activity

Question
Hi Ryan,

I  just adopted a girl guinea pig, Nugget,  2 weeks ago from the pet shop. Nugget is my first guinea pig

The pet shop did not really sure how old Nugget, however, based on her body size I think she still young guinea pig.

Nugget eating and drinking habit is normal and I already gave wormer for small animal (worm medicine) for her as suggested by the pet shop.

We put a half circle tube with many holes as her room in the aquarium.

Currently, she has a very funny habit at night, usually she jumps, crawls and runs around in her room, like playing activity by herself. This activity is usually occurred 5-10 minutes before she goes sleep.

Is her activity normal?

Thanks for your information.

Anita


Answer
Hello Anita and thanks for the question,

The behavior is completely normal. When a GP is young, it is not as trusting of humans as it could be when it gets older. A good idea is to "force" affection on her early. If you don't she may never be truly affectionate with you and your family.

I have a couple tips to help you with her hapiness and health. Lose the aquarium. And aquarium is way too stuffy for a GP. They need air and an aquarium can also create a "greenhouse effect" (too warm and moist for the GP). She would also be much hapier with a companion GP. GPs that are solitary pets are never as happy as they could be with a friend. Getting her another female is the nest option here.

Each GP needs 2 square feet of space to eat, run and live. Search for "choroplast guinea pig cages" on any good search engine and you will find very affordable DIY GP cages.

I hope this helps and good luck to you!
Ryan
PS: If this does help you out, please rate me.