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8 DIY Guinea Pig Toys You Can Make Today (With Videos)
Every Guinea Pig owner knows how curious, inquisitive, and playful cavies are. There's nothing more entertaining than seeing a Guinea Pig squeak in delight at a new toy, and they always seem to have the most fun with whatever we give them to play with. Playtime is important for Guinea Pigs, as mental and physical stimulation allows them to perform natural behaviors that they would do in the wild.
In this post, we've collected eight great DIY Guinea Pig toys for you to try your hand at making, from the complex to the incredibly simple. Your Guinea Pig is sure to love them all, and it's always worth the time and effort to see your cavy playing happily with something you created! Whatever your time restraints or skill level, we have plans for toys that suit all owners and Guinea Pigs alike. Take a look below to see what you need to get started!
The 8 DIY Guinea Pig Toys
1. Easy Cardboard Toys
| Materials: | Cardboard or cardboard rolls, sticky tape, hay/pellets/treats (for filler) |
| Tools: | Scissors |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
These cardboard-based toys are some of the most simplistic yet wonderfully creative we’ve come across, and all you need is a cardboard tube (such as a toilet roll tube) and some scissors! The use of different cuts in different places creates diverse shapes and sizes that your Guinea Pig will love interacting with, and the addition of some tasty hay or a few Guinea Pig nuggets can ramp up the fun factor.
We love these designs because some take more time and are more complex (though still simple), while others only take a few moments to create!
2. Foraging Tube Toys
| Materials: | Toilet roll tubes, hay, pellets (optional) |
| Tools: | None |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
Nothing is simpler yet more effective than these DIY tube foraging toys. You’ll select different sizes of toilet roll tubes or cardboard tubing and stuff them full of tasty hay. Then, place them into your Guinea Pigs' enclosure and watch the fun begin! Guinea Pigs are naturally curious animals, so they’ll get a real kick out of exploring and discovering what's inside the toilet roll tubes. No tools are involved with this plan, so the tubes can easily be created in a few minutes.
3. Guinea Pig Curtain & Foraging Bag
| Materials: | Fabric, twine/string, brown paper bag, hay |
| Tools: | Scissors |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
This is another excellent compilation video that creates three different DIY toys for Guinea Pigs. We loved the fabric curtain and foraging bag ideas; they are novel toys that will pique your Guinea Pigs' interest and allow them to display natural behaviors (particularly the foraging bag). These designs are very simplistic and can all be whipped up in a few moments using items from around the home, so there's every reason to try them!
Just make sure the fabric you use for the curtain isn't going to transfer any dye if it's nibbled, and always supervise your Guinea Pigs while they're using it because of the string. The curtain has strips of fabric with holes in the top, through which the twine is threaded. The foraging bag is simply a brown paper bag with many holes made in the sides. You’ll fill the bag with hay (and greens) and pull some through to tempt your cavy.
4. Simple Hanging Toy
| Materials: | Leafy greens on a stalk, e.g., kale or broccoli, string |
| Tools: | None |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
This toy is ridiculously easy to make, but the level of enjoyment you and your cavies will get from using it is amazing! Simply tying one end of a bunch of leafy greens with the leaves hanging down with some string, and hanging it upside down inside the cage, is all there is to this toy.
The end of the string is tied to the cage’s roof, so your Guinea Pigs have to stretch to reach the tasty treat, and it’ll begin to swing pretty quickly. This DIY video also has some other craft toys similar to the ones we’ve covered, but the hanging toy crafted at 02:27 made us smile with its simplicity and fun level. Just make sure to supervise your pets when they use it because of the string.
5. Agility Jump
| Materials: | Three long cardboard tubes |
| Tools: | Scissors |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
This video details five DIY toys for Guinea Pigs, but the one we most enjoyed was the Guinea Pig agility jump that begins at 4.59. This hilarious DIY is the perfect way to ensure your Guinea Pig gets enough exercise, and it’s very easy to put together. Cutting diamond-shaped holes into certain places on the outer cardboard rolls means the middle can be easily slotted in, and extra cardboard can be added to elevate the “jump” bar in the center!
6. Guinea Pig Kebab
| Materials: | Yarn or string, fruits and veggies |
| Tools: | A thick needle |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
This sweet treat is a great way to enrich your Guinea Pigs' diet and keep them entertained. This is a simple DIY that only takes minutes to create, but it'll take a little prep time to cut the fruits and veggies to be threaded with the yarn. A thick needle needs to be used, so make sure to craft this DIY away from your pigs!
This video contains a few crafts, but the Guinea Pig kebab plan begins at 03:18. Remove any fruit or veggies that aren’t eaten while you supervise your cavies enjoying their new kebab. Good fruits and vegetables to use include cucumber, peppers, romaine lettuce, and strawberries.
7. DIY Fun Tunnel
| Materials: | Clean oatmeal container/ large cardboard container, pet-safe glue, natural hemp string |
| Tools: | Paintbrush, knife |
| Difficulty Level: | Medium |
This is an excellent addition to any Guinea Pig’s cage and a great way to recycle old cardboard containers. This plan is moderately difficult because of the use of a knife to cut out the bottom of the cardboard container to create a tunnel. The hemp string is then glued around the cardboard to create an incredible play tunnel filled with all sorts of tasty treats. Filling the tunnel with hay and hiding small pieces of vegetables can create a scavenger hunt that will keep your pigs entertained for hours!
8. Toffee Apples
| Materials: | Guinea Pig safe wooden ball with a hole in the bottom, wooden dowel or willow stick, soy paint, pet-safe glue |
| Tools: | Paintbrush |
| Difficulty Level: | Easy |
This cute DIY is incredibly customizable and can be adapted to any celebration or holiday. Toffee apples suit a Halloween theme, but any round fruits such as cherries, oranges, and candies can be painted on with a little creativity! You should paint the wooden ball in whatever design your Guinea Pigs would love the most, and then the willow stick should be inserted into the hole with glue. Ensure the toffee apple is completely dry before giving it to your Guinea Pigs. The wooden ball and stick should also be Guinea Pig safe, as they’ll nibble it and toss it around. Willow is a good choice, along with apple tree wood, hazel, and beech (but not the nuts of these trees).
Why Are Toys Important for Guinea Pigs?
Guinea pigs are very intelligent animals. In their natural habitat in the Andes of South America, they spend most of their time performing social and active behaviors such as grooming and foraging for food. Therefore, interaction and boredom breakers like toys are important to keep captive Guinea Pigs happy, and they can stop negative or repetitive behaviors such as chewing on cage bars or over-grooming.
In Conclusion
Guinea Pigs are intelligent, highly social animals that thrive when their brains are engaged and they have problems to solve. Making DIY toys for your Guinea Pigs is entertaining, and it’ll keep your cavies happy for hours! Several of these DIYs are easy to make using commonly found items that can be recycled once your pigs are finished with them, and they all cost very little. We hope you found the perfect DIY toy for your Guinea Pigs, and we hope you had lots of fun getting creative!
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Sources
Featured Image Credit: scigelova, Shutterstock
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Beth is a mom to two babies: one with four legs, and one with two. Beth has years of practical experience as a veterinary care assistant, working in both the operating room and in consult, expanding her knowledge to gain certification in her favorite subject: feline behavior and well-being! When she's not writing about her favorite topics (cats, dogs, and creature comforts), she's looking after her two-year-old daughter and her energetic eight-year-old Nebelung, Kiba. When she gets a moment's respite, Beth loves to read fiction books. Horror is her number one genre, with fantasy and rich history being her second option.
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