One of the most frequent questions I get asked is how often can you give a guinea pig a bath? While hygiene is certainly important for your guinea pig, you may be surprised that bathing is not mandatory.
Can you bathe guinea pigs?
Yes, you can certainly bathe guinea pigs. If you notice your guinea pig is getting dirty or develops matted hair, you should definitely give them a bath. You should also bathe your guinea pig if you notice they smell bad.
It is important to note that if your guinea pig continually smells bad or their stool stinks, it could be a health issue. Most of the time it is a sign that something is wrong with their digestive system. Additionally, you might need to bathe your guinea pig if they have mites or lice.
How often should you bathe your guinea pig?
You should bathe your guinea pig whenever they get dirty, smell bad, or develop matted hair. That being said, I would not bathe your guinea pig more than once every three months. It is possible that your guinea pig could develop dry skin or even bald batches if you bathe them too much. Most guinea pigs will only need to be bathed once or twice a year. However, if you have multiple guinea pigs you might need to bathe them more frequently.
How to bathe a guinea pig?
There are two easy ways to bathe a guinea pig, either with a cloth, or in a small tub or sink. I will cover both methods below.
Cleaning your guinea pig with a cloth
This is definitely the fasted method to clean your guinea pig. I would recommend using a cloth if you just want to spot clean your guinea pig when you notice a certain sport of their body is dirty. All you have to do is damp a soft cloth and then gently rub the dirty sport on your guinea pig.
Afterwards, be sure to dry the wet spot on your guinea pig. You can do this with a dry rag, or with a blow dryer on the lowest power setting. If you do use the blow dryer, make sure to keep it away from their face. If your guinea pig has dirty ears, you should check out my article on How to Clean Guinea Pig Ears.
Submerging your guinea pig in a bath
This method takes a bit longer (around 5 minutes) but should be used when you want to give your guinea pig a complete. I suggest doing this if your guinea pig is really dirty, especially if they have some poop stuck on their butt.
- You should fill up a bucket with warm water. I suggest filling it up to about the one inch mark. Then, starting with your guinea pig’s feet, slowly put them in the water. Make sure your guinea pig’s head is not close to being submerged.
- Once your guinea pig is in the water, slowly start splashing some of the water onto your guinea pig’s fur. Make sure not to splash near their face. After your guinea pig is wet, put s little bit of shampoo on their body.
- Next, rub the shampoo into their fur. After your guinea pig is lathered in the shampoo, start washing it out with the water. I would suggest scooping the water onto your guinea pig until the shampoo is no longer visible.
- After you have rinsed out the shampoo, take the guinea pig out of the bucket. Next, wrap your guinea pig in a dry rag to dry them off. Make sure not to cover their face and don’t squeeze too tightly.
- Next, take a hair dry and slowly use it to fan your guinea pig’s fur. Make sure you only put the hair dryer on the lowest heat setting. Once your guinea pig is completely dry, you can return him/her to their cage. It is very important that your guinea pig is completely dry, as guinea pigs get very uncomfortable when they are wet.
- If you have multiple guinea pigs, I suggest bathing them in the same day. If you only bathe one of your guinea pigs, it could cause conflict when they are back in the cage. This is because guinea pigs use scent to identify each other, and your dirty guinea pig might not recognize the guinea pig that you just cleaned.
What can you use to bathe a guinea pig?
You can use guinea pig shampoo to bathe your guinea pig. Most guinea pig shampoos can be purchased online for less than $10.
You can also use kitten shampoo, as it is very gentle on the skin.
Can you bathe a guinea pig with baby shampoo?
You should not bathe a guinea pig with baby shampoo. Although baby shampoo is made for sensitive skin, it still too harsh for guinea pig’s skin. It can cause dry patches in their skin.
Can you bathe a guinea pig with dawn?
No, you should never use dawn to bathe a guinea pig. Dawn contains a lot of sodium which is too harsh on a guinea pig’s skin. Even just a couple drops of dawn soap can cause your guinea pig’s skin to dry up.
What to do if your guinea pig is always dirty?
Similar to cats, guinea pigs will naturally groom themselves. This means that they will not need to be bathed frequently. For this reason, guinea pigs are not high maintenance.
However, if you notice that your guinea pig is frequently getting dirty, it can mean two things. Either you are not cleaning their cage enough, or your guinea pig might have a health issue.
Start by making a better effort to clean your guinea pig’s cage. If they continue to get dirty or develop matted fur, you should take your guinea pig to the vet.