Warmer weather

I don't know about where you live, but the last week or so in Brisbane has been HOT! Unseasonally hot for September! And I think the weather has caught a few people, and piggies by surprise. Unfortunately I've heard of so many heat-stroke related guinea pig deaths in the last few days that I decided we needed to do something to help keep our pigs keep cool.

I was given this old curtain yesterday to possibly use as another cooler bedding alternative to polar fleece. It's just your basic thick cotton with the blockout backing. I sewed a couple of ties to the corners of the curtain, then looped them around the points on the roof of the cage. It's the perfect length to then drape over the side of the perimeter fence, meaning a large chunk of cage floor space is shaded without blocking the airflow.



It was so simple, yet so effective. I can already feel the temperature difference when I walk in there, so hopefully the girls have a more comfortable day today than they have the last few!

The new old cage

We were lucky enough to be given a new old cage on the weekend by some friends of ours. It is huge compared to the old Love Shack! Liam, Alba and Alice moved in that afternoon and have been getting up and down the ramp with ease (Alba was the only one to have a little fall, but she's figured out where the edge is now!).



So the old Love Shack has become the Quarantine Quarters until further notice, while Beeno and Sprout get better. I took out a Cuddle Sack for Beeno and Sprout this afternoon so they could have it for the evening. Beeno loved it! Sprout is still deciding I think. I'll know if they've used it in the morning because it will be full of little piggy poos!




I took another Cuddle sack out to the Love Shack Trio as well. These guys were a little nervous of it, so I let them have some time in the pen with it to get used to it's smell/presence. When I cam back later Alba was nestled up snug inside, so I think it has been accepted!

The BIG cage is Finished!

This is the finished cage first thing this morning. We still had a fair bit of work to do though - building a perimeter fence to keep Chelsea and Oliver away, levelling the ground so it wasn't on such a huge lean, fixing the ramp in place, sealing up the many gaps in the closed in section so the rain wouldn't come in etc...



First step was the get the fence up. We're not that good at handyman stuff, so it doesn't have a gate. This is fine for Mark and I as we're both quite tall. But regular sized people will need a step ladder to get in if they want to see the pigs!




It worked perfectly! Excitable toddler and dangerous dog are kept out of harms way!




This is Mark fixing up a few weak spots Chelsea and Oliver managed to find for us!




Sitting back and enjoying the cage. You can probably see the two chairs we bought for inside the cage too - a big one for us, and a little one for Chels. She loves it!



This is a view from inside the cage. We've since added some extra grip to the ramp as the girls were having a bit of trouble getting up and down.



The enclosed section is really roomy and secure. If I was a guinea pig, this is exactly where I would want to live!

The new cage!

So we've decided to extend our guinea pig family! I am so excited. We had been trying to work out if we'd get chickens and have lots of yummy organic eggs, or get more guinea pigs, and maybe try and breed some unusual varieties.

Guinea pigs won!

We purchased a monster of a cage, which is actually a chicken coup, on eBay last weekend. It arrived today! My hubby got home early from work, we managed to get both kids down for an afternoon nap and set about putting the darn thing together. It was a mission and a half.



This was about 90mins into the process. We had to tie Oliver the dog up to his bed as he was getting a little excited and standing under our feet!


After four hours, and a couple of child-related interruptions, it is finally done. I don't have photos yet though, as by this stage it was dark! But I promise to take lots more tomorrow. I can't wait for the guinea's to move in!!