[Gpdd] Gpdd (Care) [Floor Time and Cage Size, Part 1]

[Ellen Garrison]

Hi Everyone,

I was reading about cavy cages, and the size they should be. I feel a bit
guilty about this.  I work full time, 40 hours a wheek, live with 8 piggies,
a bunny, and a chinchilla. I do about 3-4 loads of piggy laundry 4-5 times a
wheek. Each of the 4 boars have his own cage measuring 16"X28" on the bottom
of the base (top of cage base (wall) is slightly wider). We also use, from
time to time, a larger size cage of 16"X37" on the very bottom and wider on
top (same "make"), of these I have only two, and since the walls are higher,
I place a couple phone books in the corner where the water bottle is, so the
pig can reach his water.  I clean the water bottles every 24 to 36 hours in
very hot water, and change them each week.  For water, we use cool reverse
osmosis water, from the store, we fill up in clean jugs. Actually it is just
me, the human slave, who does this for them, as I am using the plural tense
to include the cavies here.
All 4 boars live side by side, smack up against each other's cages, in a
rectangle of four cages on a twin size bed.  I want to come up with a remedy
for allowing some floor time, for the boars. The 4 sows live in a larger
pen, 16 square feet.  I could rotate them in the 2 bigger cages, but since I
only have two of those, I would just have to rotate them weekly or so,  I
have considered pairing them, but I am reluctant because Kaloey is a little
aggressive---got in a fight with Li'l Guy (my first one) one time, I am a
little traumatized since there was a scarey fight between Rufie and Li'l Guy
about 5 years ago, and of course I had never even heard of the GPDD at the
time. My finger was bleeding heavily after Li'l Guy chomped on it.  So I am
nervous to pair them, butif I could then they could go in some larger cages
that could go on the floor. The sows occupy my sofa, and there is no room
there for me to even sit! LOL oh well, it was for them, anyway.
>From Ellen, with more to come!