There’s no doubt that over the years, guinea pigs have risen in popularity. Once a pet exclusive to wealthy families, piggies are now welcomed into the homes of people everywhere. And with such a cute face and sweet personality, we totally understand why!
But as you can imagine, much has changed in the way we care for these small animals. Have guinea pig cages always been the same? Are guinea pigs really that easy to care for? Read on to learn more about how guinea pig care has evolved throughout the years.
The origins of guinea pigs
It might be difficult to imagine your piggy living a life unlike the pampered one you offer them, but prior to being domesticated, things were quite different for our furry friends. In the wild, guinea pigs are prey animals who spend most of their time living in herds, looking out for predators, and foraging for food (okay - one thing that remains the same is their love for food!).
They originate from the mountainous area of the Andes, where they lived their wildest lives until a group of Spanish explorers fell in love with them (understandable!) and decided to bring them along on their journey. From then, guinea pigs started spreading across Europe and became a common pet among wealthy families.
Unfortunately, as we hit the 1800s, guinea pigs were also widely used for scientific experiments, something that is gradually being fixed nowadays as brands move away from animal testing. You can learn more about the history of guinea pigs in this blog. Moreover, they continued to be a beloved pet and the number of piggy parents has kept on growing.
Change in guinea pig care
In the 1990s, a piggy parent named Peter Gurney retired early from his job due to an accident and decided that from then on, he would dedicate his time to spreading awareness of guinea pig welfare. He was tired of how veterinary training at the time often forgot these small pets and, from 1992, he began writing books on how to care for guinea pigs.
From shining a light on guinea pig behaviors to sharing some natural remedies for common guinea pig health issues, Peter Gurney played an important role in the evolution of guinea pig care, providing piggy parents everywhere with the knowledge and resources on guinea pigs that were so hard to find back then.
The early days of pet guinea pigs
At the start, it was common to house piggies in small indoor cages or outdoor wooden hutches. With their small physical appearance and rodent-like features, most assumed that guinea pigs don’t need much space. However, these cramped cages limit movement, preventing guinea pigs from living the active lives they carried out in the wilderness.
Now, we know better, but unfortunately, some pet shops continue to sell unsuitable small cages targeted at guinea pigs.
The introduction of C&C guinea pig cages
Around 2017, the guinea pig world was taken by storm with the rise in popularity of C&C cages for guinea pigs. It’s unclear who was the first to come up with this innovative cage design, but it’s easy to see why they became so popular so quickly.
C&C stands for Cubes and Coroplast, as they’re made up of grid cubes that slot together and a coroplast base. This makes them super versatile, allowing piggy parents to adapt each cage to their needs - keeping it spacious for whatever size of piggy herd they have.
Kavee’s founder Clem didn’t hesitate to adopt this trend for her guinea pigs but wasn’t content with the simple classic design. So she innovated the original C&C cage:
- Reducing the size of the grid holes & opting for thinner meshing to prevent small and baby piggies from escaping.
- Applying a non-toxic coating to the grids to ensure no curious nibble would cause piggies harm.
- Lowering the edges of the coroplast base and rounding the corners to give piggies a better view of their surroundings while preventing injuries.
Her guinea pigs couldn’t have been happier with the result, and so Clem decided to share her C&C guinea pig cage design with the world by founding Kavee. The rest is history!
Guinea pig bedding over the years
When it comes to bedding, straw was the first popular choice for guinea pig cages as it’s readily available and easy to dispose of & replenish. But while straw can make a convenient bedding option for piggy parents, its sharp edges and stiff consistency make it an uncomfortable (and potentially dangerous!) solution for piggies. Not only that, straw is also terrible at absorbing piggy mess!
So as piggy parents became more aware of the downsides of using straw as guinea pig bedding, they moved on to exploring other options. So soon came wood shavings, litter pellets, and paper bedding onto the scene. We go into more detail about the pros and cons of each of these options in our blog about bedding. In summary, these can be relatively safe for piggies (as long as the wood is dust extracted and the paper contains no chemicals!) but aren’t as versatile, reusable, and comfortable as fleece liners.
Fleece liners absorb every piggy accident and trap it between its layers to prevent soggy bottoms. The fleece feels comfortable to their delicate feet and can easily be cleaned in the washing machine. Learn more about this type of guinea pig bedding in our guide to fleece liners.
Changes in small pet parenting
As more information on small pets and their care became widely available online, the attitude towards these animals changed for the better. People are finally aware of the differences between guinea pigs and hamsters, what are the many needs of guinea pigs, and what great pets they make.
Then, when the pandemic hit the world in 2020, the ASPCA noted that 23 million American households acquired a new pet. As many more people had time to care for a furry companion, the need to raise awareness of proper guinea pig care became more important than ever. Unfortunately, the spike in popularity is also bound to bring back some common misconceptions, such as piggies only requiring a small cage and being easy pets to care for.
Busting these myths is important, as it's key to ensure that whoever adopts them is ready to become a responsible piggy parent. Otherwise, too many piggies will be given up after a short period of time. The New York’s Animal Care Centers saw an influx of guinea pigs being returned to their shelters post-pandemic, reaching around 600 in 2022 alone. So let’s make sure that proper guinea pig care becomes the norm to guarantee a forever home for piggies everywhere!
Guinea pig care in 2024
Nowadays, we’re lucky to have access to so much knowledge about guinea pig behaviors and needs. And with so much knowledge, many more great products designed specifically for guinea pigs have been developed! Piggy parents no longer have to struggle to find a suitable cage for their furry friends, as they can choose from a variety of C&C cages for guinea pigs available on the market. Kavee’s indoor guinea pig cages are designed to meet every need of your piggies, providing them with a great home through every stage of their lives.
But this change isn’t just limited to cages. Piggy parents of today can get reusable and super absorbent guinea pig bedding that’s safe and easy to use. They’re also lucky enough to have access to a world of accessories to enrich their piggies’ lives and make piggy parenthood simpler, like our litter tray designed specifically for small pets or our complete medical kit which contains all the essentials for great guinea pig care.
In fact, the main difference between piggy care in the past and now, is that we have small pet experts who dedicate their time to finding solutions that make your piggies’ lives safer and happier. Whether that’s by developing a carrier specifically for small pets or designing a comfortable cooling mat to prevent heatstroke.
Conclusion
Many things have changed over the years in guinea pig care. What originally were thought to be easy-to-care-for animals similar to hamsters, are finally recognized for the delicate yet highly rewarding pets they are. Thanks to the work of passionate piggy parents who want only the best for their piggies, we’re now lucky enough to have access to a world of knowledge about these sweet small pets and a multitude of products that help us meet their needs.
We now live in the era of guinea pig welfare awareness, and Kavee is proud to be leading the change in guinea pig care. We not only work tirelessly to come up with new solutions to help you care for your piggies, we’re also dedicated to sharing knowledge about these small pets. If you wish to learn more about your furry friends, look no further than our many blogs and free complete guide to guinea pig care.
