Guides, Lifestyle

Do Guinea Pigs Need Toys? Options for Happy, Healthy Cavies

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Guinea pig playing with tunnel toy enrichment
03
Jan

If you are a new guinea pig owner, you might wonder whether guinea pig toys are really necessary. The short answer is yes, absolutely.

Guinea pigs benefit from having toys because they provide mental stimulation, encourage exercise, and support natural behaviours like chewing and tunnelling. Toys help prevent boredom and keep your guinea pig’s environment engaging.

Unlike cats or dogs that may roam freely around your home, guinea pigs spend most of their time in their enclosure. Without appropriate enrichment, they can become bored, stressed, and even develop behavioural problems.

Why Do Guinea Pigs Need Toys?

In the wild, guinea pigs cover large distances sniffing, discovering, grazing and foraging. They also have other cavies to keep them company, so they have a fairly busy social life. As pets, guinea pigs spend their days in a hutch, with limited space and not very much to explore.

Benefits of guinea pig toys:

These toys not only prevent boredom and encourage natural foraging behaviour but also promote physical activity, helping to maintain a healthy weight. Flamingopetclinic

Guinea pig toys help with:

  • Mental stimulation and preventing boredom
  • Physical exercise and weight management
  • Dental health through appropriate chewing
  • Reducing stress and anxiety
  • Encouraging natural behaviours

In order to keep your guinea pigs healthy, it is important to keep them entertained and their brain stimulated. In some cases, there is a chance they will start either chewing their own hair, or even chewing their companions’ hair!

What Are the Best Types of Guinea Pig Toys?

Not all toys are suitable for guinea pigs. Here are six safe and enriching guinea pig toys that cavies love.

1. Chew Toys

Chewing is essential for guinea pigs. Guinea pigs have open-rooted teeth, which means they never stop growing. Pets have much softer diets, so you will need to provide plenty of chew toys. Otherwise, your little buddy could develop some very serious and painful dental issues.

Safe chew toy materials include:

  • Apple wood sticks
  • Willow balls and rings
  • Timothy hay-based toys
  • Seagrass mats and braids

Browse our Guinea Pig Toys collection for natural chew options that support dental health.

2. Tunnels and Hideaways

Hiding is an important prey-based behaviour that allows your guinea pig to feel more comfortable in their environment. Oxbow Animal Health

Guinea pigs love running through tunnels and hiding in cosy spaces. Fabric tunnels, fleece hideaways, and cardboard tubes all make excellent enrichment options. These toys satisfy their natural instinct to seek shelter and provide exercise as they zoom back and forth.

Explore our Guinea Pig Hideaways & Beds for cosy options your cavies will love.

3. Foraging Toys

Toys, often called boredom breakers, provide enrichment by encouraging natural behaviour and by challenging them.

Foraging toys make your guinea pig work for their food, which mimics their natural behaviour in the wild. You can stuff hay into cardboard tubes, hide treats in paper bags, or use commercial foraging mats.

Enrichment Idea: Enhance your guinea pigs’ environment by mixing dried forages into their feeding or bedding hay. This encourages their natural instinct to dig and forage.

4. Balls and Rolling Toys

Balls are rolling toys that inspire exercise and playful interaction.

Willow balls, seagrass balls, and treat-dispensing balls encourage guinea pigs to nudge, roll, and interact with their environment. Watch them as they roll, nudge, and chew the balls to their hearts’ content.

5. Hay Mats and Scratch Pads

Hay mats serve double duty as both a toy and a food source. Guinea pigs can nibble, dig, and rest on them. Seagrass mats are particularly popular as they are safe to chew and provide interesting textures.

Check out our Guinea Pig Feeding collection for hay feeders and accessories that make mealtime more enriching.

6. Cardboard and Paper Toys

Cardboard boxes, tissue boxes, and empty soda carton boxes are good cavy-friendly examples. Turn boxes upside down or sideways for a cave.

Simple cardboard toys are affordable and guinea pigs love destroying them. Paper bags stuffed with hay, toilet paper tubes (cut lengthwise for safety), and cardboard boxes with entrance holes all make excellent DIY enrichment.

What Toys Should I Avoid for Guinea Pigs?

Not all small pet toys are safe for guinea pigs. Their body structure is different from hamsters and mice, so some common rodent toys can be dangerous.

Toys to avoid:

  • Guinea pigs have different body structures that do not allow them to be able to play or exercise the same way as a rat or hamster.
  • Exercise wheels and balls (can injure their spine)
  • Toys with small parts that can be swallowed
  • Toys made of or coated with harmful materials such as varnish, dye, glitter, or paint pose health risks.
  • Items crafted from hardwoods like cedar and pine are unsuitable as they can be toxic.
  • Ring-shaped toys where heads can get stuck

Always avoid toys with bells or small items that can come off and be eaten by accident.

How Many Toys Do Guinea Pigs Need?

It is a good idea to keep at least two or three toys in your guinea pig’s cage at all times.

The key is variety and rotation. Guinea pigs can become bored with the same toys, so swap them out regularly to keep things interesting.

Guinea pig toys should be rotated regularly to keep them engaged and prevent boredom. A good practice is to switch out toys every few days to a week.

Tips for toy rotation:

  • Keep 3 to 5 toys in the enclosure at once
  • Store extra toys and rotate weekly
  • Introduce new items gradually
  • Remove damaged or soiled toys promptly

Do Guinea Pigs Need Toys if They Have a Companion?

Yes! You can add another guinea pig to the cage to give your original pet a friend to play with, but both guinea pigs will still need enrichment items to help keep them from getting bored. Gregrichdvm

While companionship is important for these social animals, toys provide a different type of stimulation. Multiple guinea pigs may even enjoy playing together with tunnels, hay piles, and foraging activities.

Keep Your Guinea Pigs Happy and Enriched

Guinea pig toys are not a luxury. They are an essential part of caring for these intelligent, curious animals. From chew toys that support dental health to tunnels that encourage exercise, the right enrichment keeps your cavies physically healthy and mentally stimulated.

At WeLoveMochi, we stock a carefully selected range of guinea pig enrichment essentials. Explore our collections:

Give your guinea pigs the enrichment they deserve. Shop safe, natural toys at WeLoveMochi today.