There are two options when owning a guinea pig and deciding where to house them and those are keeping guinea pigs outdoors or inside the main family dwelling. Many people believe that guinea pigs smell quite offensively and nothing could be further from the truth although if you plan to only clean the cage once in a while it is probably better that you look into other pets that don’t require as much maintenance. Having said that however if you plan to clean your guinea pig cage daily or several times a week at very least, there will be no foul smell and no need to keep guinea pigs outdoors. Lets take a closer look at the pros and cons of guinea pig housing and habitats in the indoor as well as keeping guinea pigs outdoors.

Indoor VS Outdoor Housing of Guinea Pigs
Theoretically a guinea pig can both be housed outside or inside as the are naturally a outdoor dwelling animal however it is highly imperative to remember when planning to keep guinea pigs outdoors that they have much weaker hearts than most rodents and are very susceptible to contracting pneumonia. Always be sure to keep the guinea pig out of the wind and rain because this can actually promote sickness and always be certain that when keeping guinea pigs outside that you provide plenty of shelter in the way of hay so that they can burrow down and protect themselves from the elements. Hay is a perfect example of something for the guinea pigs to hunker down in because they not only need hay daily to provide health to the teeth, it also provides warmth in the winter as well as shade in the summer away from the blazing sun.

The other thing to remember when intending to keep guinea pigs outside is that they are also very likely candidates to suffer from severe heat stroke to the point of death. These animals can get heatstroke in record short periods of time and direct sunlight is not a good thing for them to suffer through for even a brief period of time so make sure that you keep them out of the sunlight. As well, if it is incredibly hot it is wise to give the guinea pigs that you keep outside some ice cubes in order for them to get some relief from the heat. They really do not do well with heat and this is a major downfall when deciding whether or not to keep guinea pigs outdoors.

One thing is for sure, jumping guinea pigs is not a very common thing and there doesn’t seem to be a lot of information as to the fact that there are jumping guinea pigs and this fact does truly play a role when deciding on getting one for a pet. However before we dive too deeply into the jumping guinea pig we should first know that the guinea pig has a fabulous history and has traveled literally all over the world in order to find its way over into the western civilizations. Next time you look at a jumping guinea pig or any guinea pig in general, you will be looking at something that has traveled from afar and were actually once used to trade furs as well as meat from the Incas Tribes in Peru. However, that is only where the good stuff starts.

A Bit of Guinea Pig History
The Incas tribe in Peru first found these little creatures and immediately discovered the worth of them even though they were quite small. The Incas hunted the jumping guinea pigs and used the fur to trade to European traders as well as using the meat for nourishment. They carried on this way for many years and eventually a few of the European traders decided to take the jumping guinea pigs back to Europe with them. When the Europeans got their hands on these creatures they immediately fell head over heels in love with them and many began keeping them as pets. This is how the jumping guinea pig was domesticated and it first took place in Europe.

The began to grow in popularity in Europe and soon many people rushed out to find one for themselves to domesticate and house as a family pet. There is much discrepancy over the name of the jumping guinea pig when it was first introduced to Europe but in those days, these pets cost around one Guinea so many believe that it is actually a reference to the cost of the creature that it acquired its name.

What About Jumping Guinea Pigs?
As mentioned above, although they have the name jumping guinea pigs or guinea pigs, they are not really of the pig family. Guinea pigs can jump just like rabbits jump with the exception of maybe not as high in height but they most certainly can jump. Remember this often over-looked fact when you are building a habitat for your new guinea pig because if it doesn’t have a roof, it can definitely jump out and have a free run session.