A rat’s urine carries harmful bacteria and diseases that spread. Moreover, a guinea pig is also a rodent. Does this mean guinea pigs’ pee is toxic too?
Here’s the answer!
No, a guinea pig’s pee is not usually toxic to humans. Just like every other rodent, guinea pigs’ pee contains parasites that can make you ill.
What can disturb you is the foul smell of their pee. This doesn’t happen too often. A foul-smelling pee can result from urinary tract infections or poor diet.
It can also happen when you leave the urine in their cages for a long time without cleaning it up.
Now you know guinea pigs are not normally dangerous, but you might still need to know when guinea pigs’ urine can make you sick,
Keep reading as we discuss this below…
Table of Contents
When Can Guinea Pigs Urine Make You Sick?
Guinea pigs’ urine can make you sick when you contact with the parasites and germs in it.
The parasite, E.cuniculi is a common one found in guinea pigs’ urine. This parasite can affect humans, especially people with low immunity.
Specifically, little children and elderly people are more likely to get sick from this parasite. Hence, they should be careful when handling guinea pigs’ pee.
Guinea pigs’ pee also contains other parasites that cause a sickness known as lymphocytic choriomeningitis(LCM). This is a viral condition with symptoms similar to flu. However, this is only a rare case.
You should also know that these conditions can happen mostly because of poor hygiene. However, you can’t get sick by just touching the urine.
You can only be affected when you place unwashed hands in sensitive parts of the body like our eyes, nose, and mouth. This is why germs and parasites can get into your body.
Just don’t forget to wash your hands after contact with guinea pigs’ urine.
However, if you have questions regarding breathing or inhaling guinea pigs’ urine, read below to find the answers.
Can Breathing Your Guinea Pigs Urine Be Toxic?
No, breathing or inhaling guinea pigs’ urine isn’t toxic and won’t harm you. However, it can sometimes have a foul smell, which you won’t like.
The odor might make you believe you’re breathing in a poisonous substance, but that’s not the case.
Besides, you can always put on a face mask when cleaning the cage if the smell of pee disturbs you.
Why Urine Can Be Harmful to Humans
Urine can be harmful to humans when you don’t maintain proper hygiene. No matter how you deal with your guinea pigs’ pee, you should always wash your hands.
More specifically, do it before placing it on other parts of your body. That’s how disease-causing parasites in the urine get into the body.
Guinea pigs are rodents, so it’s common for germs and parasites to be present in their pee. Urine isn’t dangerous. And you can’t fall sick by touching it or breathing it.
How to Avoid Getting Sick:
A Guinea pig’s pee can make both you and your little pet fall sick. However, poor hygiene can mostly make you fall sick.
Guinea pigs on the other hand can suffer from the ammonia smell which isn’t harmful to humans. To sum up, a clean environment is important for you and your pet to remain healthy.
You prevent sickness if you do the following practices:
- Tidy up your guinea pig’s cage thoroughly once a week.
- Use gloves preferably when dealing with guinea pig pee.
- Spaying or neutering guinea pigs is proven to reduce the way their urine smells.
- Replace hay and other food already stained with guinea pig pee.
- Litter train your guinea pigs if possible. This way, they won’t pee everywhere.
- Empty and clean your guinea pig’s litter box or tray at least twice a day.
Pro Tip:
Use white vinegar when cleaning guinea pig pee stains. It can help to remove the calcium residues and foul smell the urine leaves behind.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Why is My Guinea Pig’s Pee Milky Yellow?
Milky yellow urine means your guinea pig is getting lots of calcium from their diet. Calcium compounds are present in their pee and that’s bad for guinea pigs.
Undoubtedly, calcium is an important nutrient for guinea pigs, especially in bone and teeth health. However, if they get excess of it, it can cause serious health issues for them.
Milky yellow urine means your guinea pigs are at risk of having bladder and kidney stones. Excess calcium can cause these problems.
In addition, milky yellow pee can also mean your guinea pigs are experiencing dehydration and poor urine production.
Here are things you should do to manage a guinea pee’s milky yellow pee situation:
- Feed them timothy hay instead of alfalfa hay.
- Stop serving your cavies veggies that are high in calcium content.
- Improve your guinea pig’s water intake.
- Ensure your guinea pigs get regular exercise.
Take Note:
Bright or pale yellow pee should be the normal color of a guinea pig’s urine. Hence, if you spot yellow-colored urine, you’re doing a great job in feeding your guinea pigs.
They’re healthy and are having a balanced diet. Kudos!
Why is My Guinea Pig’s Pee Red?
A guinea pig having red urine normally means there’s blood in the urine. That’s right! your guinea pigs might be peeing blood.
This is a medical condition known as hematuria. However, you should take a careful look first to confirm if it’s blood in their urine.
It’s sometimes pigment from reddish fruits. It happens when your cavy eats these fruits a lot.
To tell if it’s blood, watch out for the color pattern when the pee dries up. If there’s blood, the pee will have a darker outer ring or darker center when dry.
Now, when you’re sure it’s blood in the urine, don’t hesitate to take your cavy to the vet.
Many cavy owners quickly assume their female guinea pigs are having periods when they see red pee around the cage. But, that’s not the case.
Here are a few reasons why guinea pigs can pee blood below:
- Urinary tract infections
- Ovarian cysts
- Kidney or bladder stones
- Cancer
- Trauma
Why Does My Guinea Pig’s Pee Smell Like Ammonia?
Guinea pigs’ pee will smell like ammonia when it stays longer. The longer it stays the more the bacterial activity.
The bacterial activity on guinea pigs’ pee then forms ammonia eventually. Inhaling this ammonia wouldn’t harm you. However, the smell can be very disturbing.
Guinea pigs, on the other hand, aren’t safe inhaling their pee when it turns to ammonia. It can damage their nasal passage, which results in respiratory diseases.
You should make sure your guinea pig’s cage doesn’t stink so badly before you remember to tidy it up.
Final Thoughts
In summary, you’ve learned that guinea pigs’ pee isn’t normally toxic to humans. However, guinea pigs’ urine can make you sick.
But this is only when you contact the disease-causing parasites in it. Hence, you should know that you can’t fall sick by just inhaling guinea pigs’ urine.
Nevertheless, the important thing is keeping both you and your pet safe. To do this, you have to clean your guinea pig’s cage regularly.
Remember, if your guinea pig’s pee smells like ammonia, it has probably stayed too long. Tidy it up!
A healthy guinea pig will have bright yellow urine. However, if you spot red pee (blood in the urine), take your pet to the vet immediately.
Have you heard that guinea pigs eat their poop? That doesn’t seem healthy, right?
Click here to find out all you need to know about this guinea pig’s behavior.
