Can Guinea Pigs Eat Cardboard?

A question that often seems rather silly but is useful to know is, ‘can guinea pigs eat cardboard?’

We know hamsters and gerbils absolutely love chewing through cardboard, and it is a fundamental part of their daily habits. But can guinea pigs eat cardboard as well?

Whenever I have put my guinea pigs in a room they have often nibbled at cardboard or paper but I never been concerned about it being bad for them to eat.

Light cardboard is absolutely fine for them to eat, the kind that you can get for toilet roll middles or for paper hand towels. Tissue boxes are also great as well.

Here are some other thoughts about guinea pigs eating cardboard

  • Make sure that they don’t eat too much of it, as it may cause a blockage
  • Most will just chew it and you may just find pieces on the ground
  • Its nice to have something else for them to chew on besides hay. Lots of variety for a guinea pig is a good thing.
  • You could also try getting wood sticks for them to chew on as well
  • Often its good to make them little houses out of cardboard boxes and then cut out the door. Its great to have cardboard in the hutch and run for them to play around with anyway.
  • Toilet roll middle’s make a great place to stuff full of hay,parsley or other vegetable and they love being able to play with it as well as enjoy what’s inside the toilet roll.

Can Guinea pigs eat cardboard boxes (heavy duty)?

The heavy duty corrugated boxes are not good for them. They do contain all kinds of dirt, sand, and metal shards so steer clear of them.

The glue that is used to stick them together as well as the staples that are found in corrugated cardboard boxes are very dangerous for guinea pigs. Its better to use lighter cardboard that you get from tissue boxes or toilet and hand towels.

Can guinea pigs eat cardboard that has been recycled?

As long as you are sure of what it is made of. If it is a lighter cardboard, it should be fine.
Be careful with heavy duty cardboard as you just do not know what it has been made of.

Can guinea pigs eat coloured cardboard?

Coloured cardboard should be fine. Some might be concerned about the inks on the cardboard, but these should not be poisonous due to the many safety measures packaging companies have in place today.

Verdict – can guinea pigs eat cardboard?

Lighter cardboard is fine for guinea pigs to eat, just don’t let them have too much. Steer clear of heavy duty corrugated cardboard boxes and some recycled cardboard though.

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