School of Environmental and Animal Sciences, Unitec Institute of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand.
N Z Vet J. 2022 Jul;70(4):228-232. doi: 10.1080/00480169.2022.2050320. Epub 2022 Mar 31.
To describe the size and type of housing used by owners for pet guinea pigs () in New Zealand.
A survey was distributed via social media (3 September 2020 to 3 November 2020) to guinea pig interest groups and animal agencies in New Zealand. Participation was self-selected by respondents who were asked a range of questions regarding the housing and husbandry of their oldest guinea pig. Data regarding conspecifics, cage location and type, time spent out of the enclosure and size are reported here. Descriptive statistics were calculated and the associations between housing type and size were assessed.
A sample of 330 owners provided details of housing for their guinea pig. Most respondents housed their guinea pigs in groups of two or more (283/330; 85.7%). The most frequently reported housing types were a hutch or cage with an attached run (155/330; 47.0%) and inside the house in their own area (90/330, 27.3%). The mean size of enclosures was 3.3 (SD 4.3; median 2.0; min 0.3: max 37.5) m and the mean area provided per guinea pig was 1.4 (SD 1.6; median 0.9; min 0.2; max 10) m. Of the owners using enclosures, 59/284, (21.1%) provided less cage space than the minimum recommended by the Royal New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RNZSPCA; 1.0 m per pair of guinea pigs). Nearly two-thirds (89/318; 59.4%) of respondents provided their guinea pigs daily time in a different area to their main living area (pen, garden, house, deck or garage) on a daily basis.
While mean cage size reported by respondents was greater than that recommended for pet guinea pigs by the RNZSPCA and fell within the range recommended by animal welfare groups internationally, a notable proportion of guinea pigs were housed in cages smaller than the recommended size. Furthermore the majority of guinea pigs were not provided with time outside this cage. Further work to investigate the effect of housing size on welfare of pet guinea pigs is required.
描述新西兰宠物豚鼠（）主人使用的住房大小和类型。
通过社交媒体（2020 年 9 月 3 日至 11 月 3 日）向豚鼠兴趣小组和新西兰动物机构分发了一项调查。参与者由回答一系列关于其最年长豚鼠的饲养和饲养问题的受访者自行选择。此处报告了关于同种动物、笼位位置和类型、离开围栏的时间和大小的数据。计算了描述性统计数据，并评估了住房类型与大小之间的关系。
330 名业主提供了其豚鼠住房的详细信息。大多数受访者将其豚鼠成群饲养（283/330；85.7%）。报告最多的住房类型是带附设跑笼的畜栏或笼（155/330；47.0%）和在室内自己的区域（90/330；27.3%）。围栏的平均大小为 3.3（SD 4.3；中位数 2.0；最小 0.3：最大 37.5）m，每只豚鼠提供的平均面积为 1.4（SD 1.6；中位数 0.9；最小 0.2；最大 10）m。在使用围栏的业主中，284 名中有 59 名（21.1%）提供的笼位空间小于新西兰防止虐待动物皇家协会（RNZSPCA）建议的最小空间（每对豚鼠 1.0 m）。近三分之二（318 名中有 89 名；59.4%）的受访者每天都让他们的豚鼠在与主要生活区（畜栏、花园、房屋、甲板或车库）不同的区域活动。
尽管受访者报告的平均笼位大小大于 RNZSPCA 为宠物豚鼠建议的大小，且处于国际动物福利组织建议的范围内，但相当一部分豚鼠的笼位小于建议的大小。此外，大多数豚鼠没有时间离开这个笼子。需要进一步研究住房大小对宠物豚鼠福利的影响。
