As winter wraps its chilly arms around us, it’s time to ensure our pets are as snug as a bug! Here are some top tips and fun facts to keep your furry friends warm and toasty during the colder months!
How Cold Is Too Cold?
• For rabbits, their ideal temperatures are between 10-20°C… therefore, anything below 10°C means they will be too chilly.
• Guinea pigs are really sensitive to the drops in temperatures. Anything below 15°C will make them far too cold. From 15°C and lower, they should be housed indoors, if possible, at a temperature of around 17-20°C.
• Hamsters are super similar to us humans for their ideal temperature, they can bear a little higher or lower than 20-22°C. When it comes to hamsters, even a few hours of being too cold can be detrimental.
• For temperatures less than 0°C, we would recommend moving your pet inside.
Inside Can Get Cold Too…
Although small pets will be safe inside, temperatures will still be lower than usual. Therefore, here are things to keep in mind…
• Move pet housing away from drafts, open windows or anything that could make them colder!
• When moving them, make sure they aren’t going anywhere they will overheat, for example, next to radiators.
It’s ‘Winter Bod’ Time…
• Forget summer bodies – feed your furry friends a little more to keep them warm and full of energy.
Turn Up the Heat!
Extra bedding! Aka, lots of soft insulating straw! It is important pets can burrow into and keep warm. Straw is better than hay due to its hollow nature.
• Make sure to change their bedding more regularly so pets do not have a wet and cold cage.
• If you have more than one pet (of the same kind), ensure they are together to keep each other warm!
Outside House Rules!
• Ensure their housing is positioned so wind and rain can’t come in.
• Acquire some waterproof hutch covers; bear in mind they shouldn’t be close enough that they could chew or that there is no ventilation.
• Check regularly that their water supply is in good health as water or the nozzle may be frozen!
• Make sure they can still run around; their coats are used to the cold, so they should have access to free runs and play!
Our last top tip – make sure to always make time for your small pet, even in winter with the chaos! Human interaction is quite often the best part of your pets day.
14 November 2023