Bedding for guinea pigs: how to set up the enclosure floor the smart way

The floor is the largest surface in a guinea pig's life. Guinea pigs hardly climb, so almost everything happens on the ground: eating, resting, running, hiding and peeing. How you build up that floor determines how fresh the enclosure stays, how much cleaning work you have and how comfortable your guinea pigs are walking and lying on it.

In this main category you will find everything for that floor. The basis is the absorbent bedding from Zooply, our own premium brand, which we use every day for the guinea pigs in our shop in Bodegraven and in our breeding facility. Around it you will find straw as a warm layer, mats and small blankets for soft resting spots and a few products to dress up the floor. On this page you will mainly read how to combine these components. If you want to compare the materials one by one, take a look at the Bedding subcategory.

In short

• ✓ Think in layers: an absorbent bottom layer, straw on top where needed and a soft mat in the hiding places.
• ✓ Think in zones: an eating and toilet corner, resting spots and walking space. Then you know where the moisture ends up.
• ✓ Low-dust and dry come first: guinea pigs have sensitive airways and cope poorly with damp.
• ✓ An indoor and an outdoor hutch call for a different set-up, and that changes with the seasons.
• ✓ A short daily round prevents a big, smelly clean-out.

What will you find in the Bedding category?

Absorbent base from Zooply

The bottom layer needs to absorb moisture and keep the surface dry. That is what the Zooply materials are for: Hemp Fibre (also with eucalyptus scent), Wood Fibre, Cotton Fibre, Cotton & Sawdust, Cotton & Cardboard, Cardboard Shreds, Cardboard Shreds Mix and Coconut Shreds. According to the product information they are low-dust, absorbent and biodegradable. They come in handy packs and in large bags of 100 litres, and hemp bedding is also available as a 20 kg bale for those with several guinea pigs or a large enclosure.

Other brands of bedding

Besides Zooply, you will find Plospan wood fibre, Back-2-Nature paper pellets and cotton pellets from Natural Pet Brand. Pellets are a little harder underfoot than fibres and, for guinea pigs, are mainly handy in the toilet corner, with a softer layer on the rest of the floor.

Straw as a warm top layer

Zooply Straw absorbs little moisture itself, but insulates well and gives guinea pigs something to burrow into. It belongs on top of an absorbent bottom layer, not instead of it.

Mats and small blankets

The Zolux Neolife microfibre mats with a non-slip base and the mini blankets create a fixed, soft resting spot, for example in a house or under a shelter.

Scatter herbs and topping

With the Zooply Scatter Herbs woodland mixes and the Discovery topping from Back Zoo Nature, you also turn the floor into a foraging area. A small handful is enough.

Think in layers

A good guinea pig floor rarely consists of a single material. The bottom layer does the heavy work: absorbing urine and binding odour. According to the packaging of the Zooply bedding, around 5 cm is enough for guinea pigs. Guinea pigs do not dig, so a deep layer like you would use for hamsters is pointless and only costs more material.

On top of that, where it fits, comes a functional layer. In an outdoor hutch or a cool room that is straw: according to the packaging of Zooply Straw, 5 to 10 cm. Indoors in a warm living room, straw is often not needed. In the houses and on a fixed resting spot, you put a mat or small blanket. Guinea pigs that can lie on a soft, dry spot spare the soles of their feet. That is especially important for heavy and older animals.

Think in zones

Guinea pigs have fixed habits. Most of them pee and poo mainly where they eat, so around the hay rack and the food bowl. That is where you create your first zone: the eating and toilet corner. Put an extra thick layer of the most absorbent bedding here, such as Zooply Hemp Fibre or the Cardboard Shreds Mix. If you want it even tidier, put a low tray in this corner. Some guinea pigs will start using it as a toilet spot, although guinea pigs rarely become truly litter trained.

The second zone is the resting zone with houses and tunnels. Guinea pigs are skittish prey animals; each animal wants its own hiding place, ideally with two exits. A mat or small blanket goes in those houses. The third zone is the walking space in between. That can stay simple, with a normal layer of bedding and some scatter herbs here and there to forage for.

With this layout you know exactly where the moisture is. That means you do not have to turn over the whole enclosure during the daily round.

Indoor or outdoor hutch

An indoor hutch stands in your living space. There you mainly want little dust and little odour. Choose a low-dust base that binds odour well, and do not use air fresheners near the hutch. Place the enclosure out of draughts, out of full sun and not next to the radiator or the TV.

An outdoor hutch has to deal with moisture from outside, changing temperatures and wind. Guinea pigs cope poorly with draughts, damp and frost. The hutch must be waterproof and sheltered. A dry floor is even more important there than indoors, because a wet floor makes a guinea pig cool down quickly. Use an absorbent bottom layer with a generous layer of straw on top, and check every day that the floor does not feel clammy.

The floor throughout the year

In summer, urine starts to smell faster and a dirty floor attracts flies. So refresh the toilet corner more often. Guinea pigs tolerate heat poorly; above roughly 25 °C you need to be careful. In warm periods, remove straw altogether or keep it thin, so your guinea pigs can lie on a cooler floor.

In autumn and winter you build up the layer of straw again. After a rainy period, check extra carefully that no moisture has got into the hutch. A guinea pig sitting on a cold, wet floor often eats less. If your guinea pig eats less, is lethargic or loses weight, contact a vet with knowledge of small rodents.

A cleaning routine you can keep up

The best floor only works if you maintain it. A fixed routine stops the work from piling up:

• Every day: scoop droppings and wet patches out of the eating and toilet corner, top up with some clean bedding and refill the hay rack.
• Every few days: check mats and small blankets and swap them if they are damp or dirty.
• As soon as the floor no longer smells fresh: replace the whole layer, clean the base tray with warm water and let it dry thoroughly. For a pair in a roomy enclosure, that is often about once a week.

Two sets of mats make life easier: one is in the hutch, the other in the wash. Dispose of used bedding made of natural materials according to the rules in your municipality; the packaging of the Zooply Cardboard Shreds Mix states that it can go in the organic (food and garden) waste.

How many guinea pigs, how much floor?

Guinea pigs are herd animals and should live in at least pairs. More guinea pigs means more urine and therefore more need for absorption. With a small group you often see several toilet corners appear, for example at each house. Give each zone its own thick patch of bedding and provide enough feeding spots and hiding places, so nobody gets pushed aside. A larger enclosure also stays fresh longer than a small hutch with the same number of animals.

Useful combinations

The floor works together with the rest of the set-up. These categories go with it:

• Bedding: all Zooply materials and other brands side by side, with an explanation for each type.
• Hay: offer Zooply hay without limit, the basis of the menu and of a calm eating and toilet corner.
• Hay racks: keep the hay off the wet floor, so it does not get trampled and heat up.
• Houses and Tunnels: the resting zone, where you put the mats and small blankets.
• Outdoor hutches: a sheltered, waterproof hutch in which a dry floor with straw works well.

Frequently asked questions about the floor of the guinea pig enclosure

Should I combine different types of bedding?

You do not have to, but it often works better. A highly absorbent material in the toilet corner and a softer or cheaper layer on the rest of the floor gives you a dry enclosure without having to use the heaviest material everywhere. Do keep it simple: two materials are usually enough, plus straw in the cold months.

How can I tell that the floor is not working well?

Pay attention to smell, coat and feet. If the enclosure already smells of ammonia after a day or two, if your guinea pigs' bellies and feet are often wet or dirty, or if you see them avoiding a certain corner, the floor is absorbing too little or the layer at the wet spot is too thin. First adjust the layer thickness and the cleaning routine, and otherwise choose a more absorbent material.

Can straw be the only floor covering?

Preferably not. Straw absorbs little moisture: urine seeps through it and stays on the bottom of the hutch. So use straw as a warm top layer on absorbent bedding. That way you have both: a dry base and a warm, comfortable spot to burrow into.

What do I do with the floor if my guinea pigs are outside in a run in summer?

A run on grass does not need bedding, but it does need shade, a hiding place and fresh water. Never put the run in full sun. When your guinea pigs come back into the hutch after the run, it is nice if they find a clean, dry floor there. In warm periods, remove straw or keep the layer thin.

What is the best resting spot for an older guinea pig?

An older or heavy guinea pig benefits from a soft, dry resting spot in a fixed hiding place, for example a microfibre mat or small blanket in a house. Keep that spot in particular extra clean and dry. If you notice your guinea pig walking more stiffly, eating less or having sore patches on the soles of its feet, have it checked by a vet with knowledge of small rodents.

How do I keep the floor of an indoor hutch as low in dust as possible?

Choose a low-dust bedding, such as the Zooply materials, and do not shake the bag out above the hutch but scatter it gently. Do not place the enclosure in a dusty room and make sure there is fresh air without draughts. Also replace the hay regularly: old, crumbled hay gives off more dust than the bedding itself.

Bedding for guinea pigs at Knaagplaza

At Knaagplaza, the webshop of 't Knaagplein, you can put together the complete floor of your guinea pig enclosure. Zooply is our own premium brand: we use the bedding and straw every day for the guinea pigs in our shop and breeding facility. With an absorbent base, a smart layout and a fixed routine, you have a fresh enclosure in which your guinea pigs feel at ease.