It’s without a doubt that being a guinea pig parent must be one of the most rewarding things that we can experience—guinea pigs are the tiniest, fluffiest bundles of joy ever, and we wanted to wax poetic about the reasons why guinea pigs make us happy, and why guinea pigs make the best pets.
Settle in and get ready to get a little emotional with us—we love our guinea pigs!
Their enthusiasm for food
We thought we loved food, but guinea pigs may have us beat in that category! We’re guilty of watching videos of guinea pigs eating for what feels like hours. It’s just so mesmerizing!
Everything from the way they move their mouths, the sounds—and that’s when we’re not watching our own piggies, Ru and Mi! It’s like live eating ASMR except it’s all crunchy. It’s so satisfying how much these piggies seem to enjoy and love their food.
Not to mention that guinea pigs somehow manage to make everything they’re eating look really tasty—even their hay! As you know, hay makes up most of their diet and they’re munching on it pretty much all the time. When it comes to Ru and Mi, they seem to prefer their hay over vegetables sometimes! It almost makes us want to add a handful to our own dinner plates.
Of course, when we’re feeding our guinea pigs hay, we use our GuineaDad Hay Bar and GuineaDad Hay Box. The girls don’t seem to have a preference, because they can easily munch on their hay from both! We never have to worry about taking the time to refill any hay either, so we can spend less time preparing their food and more time just watching them eat.
They especially make veggies look super delicious, and it makes us want to add more veggies to our own human diet. Sometimes when we’re chopping up that fresh produce for them, we may munch on some of it along the way as well. We may or may not be guilty of trying their treats.
And just so you don’t have to, pea flakes taste like peas (duh!), RoseHip is kind of on the tart side, and the list goes on. Since we’re not naming the rest, you may have to try them for yourself after all! The bottom line: Watching our guinea pigs eat brings us as much joy as eating brings them.
Piggy kisses
Depending on the guinea pig, each of them have different levels of comfort that they have when it comes to giving affection to their humans. For those of you who are lucky enough to have guinea pigs that are affectionate and don’t shy away from contact with you, then you know the joys of the Piggy Kiss.
Sometimes even guinea pigs who don’t like being touched by their humans will occasionally give their piggy parents a gentle lick on the finger once in a while. Even something as simple as this can bring so much overwhelming joy to us.
Even guinea pigs who are newer to the bunch will sometimes utilize this method. In general, piggy kisses can be their way of showing affection, or they’re simply acting on their curiosity. Some say they do this because they can taste the salt on our skin, but we’ll pretend and tell ourselves it’s because they love us!
For those who haven’t experienced this yet, whether it’s because your guinea pigs are still in the process of becoming more comfortable around you or otherwise, there is a way that you can ease into it. You can try using treats as a way to encourage this behavior, just like how you would for encouraging overall bonding.
Hold one treat at a time between your finger tips and let your piggies come up to you to take it out from between. Don’t hold the treat with too much resistance—keep a loose grip! This will encourage them to lap at your fingers, knowing that you’re not trying to give them a hard time.
Sleeping guinea pigs
Okay, yes, any kind of sleeping animal can be cute but we’re here to talk about guinea pigs. What’s more precious than looking into your guinea pig cage and seeing your piggies snuggled up and catching some Z’s?
Guinea pigs have such unique sleeping habits, you never know what you’re going to get! Most guinea pigs sleep with their eyes open, which is partially a survival instinct that they’ve developed since the time before guinea pigs were domesticated.
This can be a little terrifying, and some guinea pig parents even call it a “death nap.” Unpleasant name aside, it can actually look a little funny once you’ve gotten used to it.
Our favorite is finding our piggies tucked into a hidey, or in the pocket of one of our GuineaDad Liners! The pocket is a favorite guinea pig sleeping spot! We added the pocket as a way to encourage a guinea pig's tendency to hide, because we know it makes them feel safe and comfortable—which is why so many piggies enjoy sleeping inside. It’s especially perfect for them when you insert one of their favorite hideys for a double-layered hiding spot.
Other times, guinea pigs will sleep in the most random spots that you never would have thought was comfortable. We sometimes catch Ru and Mi sleeping inside their Hay Box or Hay Bar, and we’ve been tagged in many pictures on our social media of other piggies doing the same!
Guinea Pigs Popcorning
Who doesn’t get happy seeing their guinea pigs do the tiny little hop and pop when they’re happy? It’s impossible not to feel that rush of joy and excitement when you happen to see it.
As much as it brings a wave of pure serotonin when we get to see it, you’ll know that it’s so hard to catch it on camera sometimes! It can be frustrating trying to capture a video of the popcorning, because who doesn’t want to look back on their happy guinea pigs from time to time! It would be the perfect pick-me-up.
However, we piggy parents will have to settle for seeing it live, in the moment, for the time being. If you’re one of the people who have been able to capture a video, please post on Instagram and Twitter and tag us—we’d love to see!
There’s no set time for when guinea pigs popcorn, and that makes sense because it’s one of their ways of expressing their own happiness. The popcorning can come at any time, at what seems like the most random moments sometimes! We’ve heard of guinea pigs popcorning when they get their favorite vegetables, or even when their human has just cleaned their cage and they have fresh, clean bedding.
Clean, sanitary bedding is definitely something to jump for joy over! And not to toot our own horn, but the GuineaDad Premium Liner and GuineaDad Liners definitely will have your guinea pigs popcorning since they’re so easy to clean, and they’ll definitely feel the difference—the GuineaDad Liners are made with the softest fleece and have the best cushioning, which means their delicate feet will stay strong and healthy even with all the popcorning. It’ll be like they’re jumping around on clouds!
Zoomies
There’s nothing quite like watching a tiny little ball of fur run back and forth and all around their cage at random intervals! Sometimes it’ll come after a particularly great meal of vegetables, or maybe your guinea pigs will simply hop up from their spot and run back and forth a couple times and then call it a day.
For those who don’t know, zoomies are usually caused by a build-up of excess energy that is then released all at once in a short burst, in a short amount of time. Zoomies are pretty unpredictable, and can occur at any time! Scientifically, they’re called Frenetic Random Activity Periods (FRAPs) and they’re pretty common among most animals.
And keep in mind: popcorning isn’t the only way that guinea pigs express their happiness, and zoomies are another way that they do this too! This is another one of the guinea pig behaviors that can be tricky to capture on camera.
Either this happens too quickly that we can’t pull our phones out on time, or we do get our phones out on time, but we can only capture part of the zoomies! They just happen too quickly and too suddenly for us to keep up.
Guinea pig noises
This is a pretty obvious one! Guinea pigs are already so cute to look at, but listening to their little guinea pig noises is so cute, so unbelievably joy-inducing. Our favorite noise, of course, is the wheeking!
Guinea pigs wheek pretty often, and they especially do it when they hear anything having to do with their food and getting to eat! Our guinea pigs start to wheek as soon as they hear the fridge opening.
Sometimes they’ll even start going crazy hearing the sound of a salad being mixed around in a different room. There are other times where the wheeking will start up when they get a fresh Hay Box or Hay Bar—food is probably one of the biggest sources of guinea pig joy, and honestly, we can’t blame them!
GuineaDad tells us that Ru and Mi will start wheeking excitedly as soon as he steps into the door of his home and they sense that he’s returned for the day. The imagery of that is pretty heartwarming, we have to say. There’s nothing quite like the feeling you get when your pets are happy that you’re home!
Guinea pigs competing for food
This is much different from guinea pigs fighting—don’t get them mixed up! We’re talking about the phenomena that occurs when we are trying to hand-feed our guinea pigs anything from vegetables to treats. The guinea pigs will gather around and they’ll each try to grab it from between our fingertips and it’s just so adorable to watch.
This is something that happens often when hand feeding your guinea pigs, and for us, it happens especially when there’s cucumber or red bell pepper involved. It even happens over the smallest pieces of pea flake or marigold treats. The food competition is never-ending, and it’s something that we don’t mind as long as it’s just some friendly, playful competition!
Guinea pig ears
Who doesn’t love a cute little guinea pig ear twitch? Guinea pig ears are so active, and this one goes hand-in hand with watching guinea pigs eat. Their entire face moves whenever they’re eating, of course their ears are going to do a little flick and twitch as they munch on their favorite foods.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that too much ear twitching could be a sign of an ear infection! That being said, ear infections aren’t that common in guinea pigs, but if you have any suspicions, then it doesn’t hurt to give your veterinarian a call to see what could be up!
The best way that you can ensure that these little ear flicks are just a response to a loud noise, or their ears are just moving because they’re eating, is to ensure that your guinea pig’s cage is clean and sanitary to prevent any kinds of infections.
Ear infections come from bacterial infections first, and those come from having a living environment that isn’t as sanitary as it could be! In order to eliminate that possibility from the get go, make sure that you’re constantly cleaning your guinea pig cage and are using the best bedding possible for their health.
This means using a bedding that can be washed and sanitized easily. The GuineaDad Premium Liner and the GuineaDad Liners are the best choice for this, like we mentioned before!
The fibers that our fleece liners are made of are coated in an antibacterial agent that inhibits the growth of bacteria and prevents it from lingering in the first place. Using this is the best way to not only prevent things like ear infections, but other kinds of infection whether it be upper respiratory infections or otherwise.
Guinea pig follow the leader
You may have seen this during your guinea pigs’ floor time! Whenever guinea pigs are out and about and exploring your home together, they tend to walk around in a line, with their noises practically touching each other’s butts!
This is one of the cutest sights to see when it comes to guinea pigs! It’s similar to the way super young school children will walk in a line holding hands to get from place to place—we think the guinea pig nose to but touch is their way of holding hands as they explore the unknown (your home).
Our favorite way to facilitate this activity is by utilizing our Small GuineaDad Liners without the pockets! These are the perfect item to lay across the floor of your home to ensure that their feet are comfortably padded and cushioned as they sniff around and explore with their piggy companions!
Guinea pig personalities
While each guinea pig breed has their own generalized characteristics, each guinea pig is going to have their own unique personalities and quirks to their behavior! This, of course, depends on the environment they’re living in and how comfortable they are, and their individual piggy experiences.
For example, GuineaDad’s piggy Ru is super friendly, and will always be the first to come out and greet new people. She’s also a little ditzy, because she’ll come out to sniff around and take a look at new people, then she’ll run away because she’s scared—but then will come right back out again as if she’s forgotten that she was scared!
On the other hand, Mi is a little more cautious and takes a little more time to come out of hiding and get a look at anyone new nearby. What’s funny is that Mi enjoys bothering Ru—she’ll bother Ru and provoke her until Ru has had enough! She always seems super satisfied with her efforts each time this happens.
You could say that Mi practically thrives off of annoying Ru! This doesn’t usually result in any fights either, so it’s almost like Ru kind of allows this to happen before she responds, like it’s a game that they play often because it’s fun for both of them.
Bonus: Guinea pig cuddles
We put this one as a bonus because not everyone gets to fully experience the guinea pig cuddles. It’s sad, but it’s the truth—not all guinea pigs enjoy being picked up, let alone touched! It’s important to only approach our guinea pigs in a way that they’re comfortable with, because this is what maintains their trust and the level of comfort that they have with us!
If your guinea pig isn’t comfortable with you touching them, but you’d still like to hold them in some way, you can utilize a pouch of some kind, gently guiding them inside with the help of some treats or veggies, and then you can hold the pouch in your lap.
The Offbeat Piggy Play Package has the perfect, cutest pouch that is great for this purpose, and can help you in slowly introducing the idea of lap time to your guinea pigs!
The bottom line: guinea pigs are bundles of furry joy!
We’ve said this before and we’ll say it again—guinea pigs are the purest little friends, and humans really don’t deserve them! There is nothing as good in this world as guinea pigs.
Want to read more about your guinea pig’s behaviors and what makes them tick?
Check out these blog posts to learn more.
