If you have seen a guinea pig shivering in cold, you might be curious to know if guinea pigs are cold-blooded animals.
No, guinea pigs are not cold-blooded animals. Just like humans and other mammals, guinea pigs are warm-blooded.
It means guinea pigs can regulate and maintain a constant internal body temperature no matter what’s the outside temperature.
It helps guinea pigs to adapt to harsh weather like extremely hot or cold temperatures.
Now that you know guinea pigs are cold-blooded animals, you might want to know if guinea pigs need to be warm? Let’s find out!
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Do Guinea Pigs Need to be Warm?
Yes, guinea pigs need to be kept warm when it’s too cold outside. Although guinea pigs can survive in a wide range of temperatures, the ideal temperature for them is 70°F (21°C).
They can cope with some changes in the temperature. However, they need to be protected from cold when the temperature drops considerably.
Does it mean your pet can die from cold?
Can Guinea Pigs Die From Cold?
Yes, guinea pigs can die from freezing cold if left outside. Temperature below 50°F (10°C) is dangerous for your pet.
Guinea pigs feel cold the same way as we humans do. Although we can survive cold temperatures, we need to keep ourselves warm in winters.
The same is true for guinea pigs. They need extra care and protection when it is cold outside. Otherwise, there are chances that they might fall sick or even die.
In case you want to figure out if your pet is feeling cold, look for these signs.
4 Common Signs that Your Guinea Pig Feels Cold
1. Shivering
Just like we shiver when we feel cold, guinea pigs shiver too. It’s a good sign to check if your pet is feeling cold.
2. Cold Ears
Just like we check our foreheads to see if our body temperature is colder or warmer than usual, you need to check their ears. If the ears of your pet feel colder than usual, it’s a sign that they are feeling cold.
3. Huddling
Imagine how you hide in your blanket when you feel cold. Similarly, guinea pigs curl themselves up in a ball on feeling cold to keep themselves warm.
4. Fever or other Sickness
If your pet gets sick when it is cold outside, it’s an indication that it feels cold. Fever, cough, and sneezing are some diseases that guinea pigs can catch due to cold.
To prevent your pet from cold and getting sick, it’s important to keep them warm. Let’s see how you can keep your cavy warm.
How to Keep Guinea Pigs Warm Inside?
It’s required to keep your cute little pet warm when winter starts.
Below are a few ways to keep your cavy warm inside.
Keep Doors and Windows Closed
It’s better to keep doors and windows closed when it is cold outside. It will help keep the interiors of your home warm and protect your guinea pig from getting cold.
Cover the Floor of Cage
Since the floor of your pet’s cage can get cold in winters, it’s better to use a small carpet as the flooring for their cage.
In case you don’t have a carpet, you can also spread old clothes at the bottom of your pet’s cage.
Make Your Pet Wear Warm Clothing
Try getting some warm clothes for your guinea pig. Yes, there are some guinea pig stores that sell guinea pig accessories like mini sweaters and woolen coverings.
Wrapping your pet in some warm clothes will not only make it look cute but will also keep it warm.
If you are good at creative stuff, you can even knit a cute little sweater for your pet at home.
Cover the Cage With a Blanket at Night
Since the temperature drops further at night, it’s advisable to cover your pet’s cage with a warm blanket.
Nonetheless, make sure you don’t end up scaring your pet.
Keep one side of the cage uncovered so that your pet doesn’t feel trapped.
Use Pet-friendly Heating Pads
You can invest in some safe pet-friendly heating pads.
Keeping 1-2 heating pads in your pet’s cage will help keep them warm.
Pro Tip: You can also use a rice sock instead of a heating pad to keep your pet warm.
For this, take an old sock fill it with rice, and microwave it for a minute to use it as a heating pad.
Put Shredded Paper In Your Pet’s Cage
Fill your pet’s cage with lots of shredded paper which they can crawl under. It will help your cavy hold its body heat.
Place Small Plastic Tunnels in the Cage
Guinea pigs love to snuggle and hide when it is cold.
It’s good to keep a few small plastic tunnels or igloos in their cage where they can go and snuggle to keep themselves warm.
Keep Guinea Pigs Together
If you have two or more guinea pigs, it’s better to get a bigger cage and keep them together.
Guinea pigs are good at keeping each other warm.
Final Thoughts
In this article, we have learned that guinea pigs are warm-blooded animals because they can produce body heat to maintain a particular temperature.
Although guinea pigs can adapt to cold temperatures, they do feel cold as we do.
It’s important to look for signs like shivering, huddling, and cold ears to see if your pet is feeling cold.
Besides, it’s required to keep your pet warm when it’s cold outside by covering its cage, using heating pads, and other ways discussed in the article.
Feel free to share this article with others if you find it helpful.
