can guinea pigs swim

Can Guinea Pigs Swim?

You may be in a situation where you have have access to water such as having a pond or a swimming pool.

What if your guinea pigs fall in or what you want to see if they will appreciate a swim on a cool day?

They question is ‘Can guinea pigs swim?’

can guinea pigs swimGuinea pigs are natural swimmers.

If you do put your guinea pigs in water, some may love it , some may hate it.

Just like humans really!

They can swim but do find it very distressing if they are forced to swim, just like us!.

They will swim if placed in water because they have to, but it is not something they would choose to do such as the case with dogs or animals like that.

image: wikipedia

They are related to good swimmers such as the the capybara, which love the water, that love to live on the riverbank, eats aquatic vegetation, and can stay submerged for five minutes.

However, domestic cavvies are not used to swimming and most will find it very distressing because they are just not used to having been breed in a domestic dry environment.

Just like other animals like cats. Just because they can do it, doesn’t mean they like it.

How to see if your guinea pig likes water

A good way to test out whether the like it or not is to put them in a few inches of water in the bath. This will serve as a good bathing time, but also as a useful session to see if they are the kind of guinea pig that likes to be in water.

Different owners tell of different experiences with guinea pigs and water.

Some tell of their guinea pigs loving being in water and being naturally drawn to it, some speak of their guinea pigs hating it and being very distressed when placed in any kind of water.

If you do decide to bathe your guinea pig or let it swim in water, start with just a small amount of water and take it from there.

See how it responds.

If it doesn’t like it, reassure it and be ready to take it out. Don’t leave it in the water feeling distressed as this really isn’t good for the guinea pig.

Can guinea pigs swim in a chlorine pool?

No even if they enjoy swimming, the chemicals are not good for them at all. Don’t try it!

Can guinea pigs swim in salt water?

yes they can. it is better than chlorine water, but still not great for it particularly if the swallow the water. Fresh water is much better if you must do it.

Don’t do this though!

Whatever you do don’t throw your guinea pig in a pool of deep water and see if it swims.

This really isn’t good for it.

It’s the same with humans, we don’t like it when we are forced into a situation, especially being thrown into a pool!

34 thoughts on “Can Guinea Pigs Swim?

      1. How do you know that? Can it talk? You do not know anything about Guinea Pigs. Swimming is most unnatural for them. No Guinea Pig swims if it is not forced to!

  1. Today was the first day I’d ever saw my boys swim. They really love playing in water so when we pulled out the paddling pool for my brother I thought we’d give it a try. It was amazing. Fight didn’t want to come out and Dexter climbed onto my brothers knee in the pool and the dived in swam a while then climbed back up to relax a while before doing it again. Will defiantly have to try it again.

  2. I have 2 Guniea Pigs and 1 HATES the water but he’s the dirty one
    and the other one Loves it so I may try to let him swim!

    1. mine has really a really thick coat and long at the back ….cold water would not bother her … I don’t know bout the short hair ones though ….

  3. I found out by accident that my little girl loves it … I don’t have A/C … but I hooked up a portable fan to one end of her huge house… but then I thought I wonder if she would like a shower ….so I sprayed her with a mister …she just thought that was awesome… Next step …what about the bathtub …. so I filled it up with cool water …not really deep …and she just thought that was awesome .. as long as I was there with her …. I would not do it if its not necessary but during the hot months it was almost like a treat for her ….

  4. I had 2 Guinness pigs and one didn’t mind the water if it was shallow and one hated it was kind of funny seeing how he would try to get out but I kept his baths short and with only a little water so he wouldn’t be too stressed out

  5. I have a two year old guinea pig whos not that big but yet she falls out both of my hands. I’m a little nervous to put her in the water and whether she would enjoy it since the hot days or if she would hate it.

  6. Are you mad? Guinea pigs hate water! This is not cute! This is the worst animal cruelty. Guinea pigs only swim in situations of danger and if there is no other chance to survive. If a guinea pig is forced to swim, it is scared and very very stressed. You gave yours the shock of its live. Guinea Pigs also are not able to swim longer than some minutes. And if the head is under water, the lung fills with water very fast and the animal smothers.

  7. Vincent. Calm down. Nobody in this page has any desire to engage in animal cruelty.
    Once a week I bath my pigs. I fill the tub 1/4 way full with warm water and I put their plastic dome in there so they have the CHOICE to perch or swim while I am cleaning their cage.

    Sometimes one chooses to dive in and paddle around. They have a choice.
    They especially like rinse time when then are put gently under the running water briefly. They both hold completely still as if they are be treated at a spa.
    Their favorite part is the cuddle time when they are being hand dried and return to a bright, shiny habitat.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *