Toys To Avoid

Under the category of "things we wish manufacturers and pet stores would stop peddling to guinea pig owners," we'd like to add these exercise balls. We wish manufacturers would remove pictures of and text references to guinea pigs from the product packaging and the product pages on their Web sites. We wish pet supply retailers would stop filing these products under the "guinea pigs" category in their online catalogs. As long as they continue to do so, they perpetuate the myth that these balls are safe, appropriate, and acceptable toys.

Originally created for ferrets, hamsters, mice, gerbils, and rats -- animals with different body types than guinea pigs -- the marketing of these "exercise balls" was expanded at some point to include guinea pigs...even though their bodies just aren't built for these toys.

There's a variety of models, from balls that enclose animals (like the one shown here) to balls that have three open holes cut into them. They bear names like "krawler," "run-about ball," and "roll-about ball."

Stated simply, these balls are unsuitable for guinea pigs. In the balls with open cutouts, we've heard of (and seen) guinea pigs whose legs or feet were injured as a result of being put in these things. In the balls that completely enclose the guinea pig inside, the guinea pig is absolutely terrified by the environment.

We know folks want to keep their guinea pigs entertained and engaged. And that's good. But rather than invest in these balls, we suggest other toys -- tunnels, PVC pipe, paper bags, Chubes, and fleece sacks -- to give your guinea pigs the opportunity to tunnel, hide, run mazes, and play hide-n-seek with each other. Your investment in these objects will last much longer and will give your guinea pigs hours of fun in a safe environment.

Comments

[Cara Fletcher]

Toys are my favorite pet supplies and I have hundreds of them at home but after I read this article I realised some of them are dangerous for my pets.

[MJ]

One "cheap toy" I give my pigs is a plain old paper bag with some hay stuffed in it. The square-bottomed bag that a liquor store gives you when you buy a six pack of beer is perfect-- big enough to turn around in and sturdy enough to last more than a day. Toss a couple of handfuls of hay in and you've got a piggy cave/toy that my pigs love to rattle around in and chew on.

[Whitney]

Some guinea pigs like toys and will regularly play with them. Others won't. Unfortunately, it's hard to tell which category your guinea pigs fall into until you've spent a few bucks on toys.

Your best place to start is to buy tunnels and other safe things they can crawl through or under. Guinea pigs' natural instinct is to tunnel and hide, so toys that accommodate this instinct will always go over well.

You can buy Chubes (which are chew-safe tunnels large enough for guinea pigs). Some tunnels made for ferrets are suitable for guinea pigs for a short time...but eventually guinea pigs' bodies get too wide for these. PVC pipe, found at home improvement and hardware stores, also works well.

For more information, check out our "How To Spoil Your Guinea Pig" page at www.squidoo.com/guineapigconnection. We list a number of great options for tunnel-and-hide toys.

[frankie.b]

hi i am getting 2 guinea pigs from a rescue centre, they are about 1 and a half but im not sure whether they will accept all the toys im buying because they have never had things like that before. Will they accept then or will it be a waste of money?