It has been an idyllic couple of weeks welcoming our piggies into the family and they are growing up so fast…
I desperately want them out of the house – much to the kids dismay! This means I have to make sure that the habitat I get them is super nice with plenty of space. I have already mentally divided off a section of garden especially for them. Lots of space for their new digs and when the children visit.
Research has become my life this past weekend, factoring in everything three growing guinea’s could need or want. I found this amazing site rabbit-hutches.co.uk who make fantastic hutches of a very large design and very high quality. Definitely take a look at their site if you are looking for a hutch or inspiration. Safety was a huge factor for me. There are a lot of neighbourhood cats and I had nightmares that we would wake to find parts of piggies around the garden, the whole Fox in a hen house scenario.
I finally decided to go for the Balmoral hutch because it has two levels and an added run as well as locks and strong treated wood. It did come with a pretty price at £199 but I feel it’s worth every penny – I also signed up to their newsletter and got a 20% discount – Yay! I can’t believe the amazing quality. It took me approx 30 mins to put together following the instructions, which could have been a little clearer, but I got there in the end. Once built the size is perfect and I am in love, I’d move in myself if I could.
Due to the time of year, I know I have to keep them warm. Also because every time I mention putting them outside I am met with resistance from all fronts, even Andy, that if they catch a cold, I will be shunned! I purchased the additional fitted cover with lots of transparent windows so you can see what they are getting up too. It’s also really high quality and arrived in its own storage bag. I had to use a hair dryer to heat the plastic slightly to get it unwrapped, this was advised on the attached note. It fits the hutch perfectly.
I’m really pleased with it. And it’s sunshine yellow, not a ghastly brown or green like so many other covers. It matches my grey and yellow theme I’ve got going in the garden too.
As I literally can’t stop stamping my mark on everything that enters the front door, I have decided to embellish their new home, not that it doesn’t look amazing already.
I researched which paints were pet friendly and decided to paint the outside a nice silver grey. I had previously purchased a ‘hello‘ sign from bombayduck.com, which I had intended to use inside, but thought this would set off the grey nicely and seem cute and welcoming.
I bought tiny fencing, which I painted and used this to separate the hutch area from the rest of the garden. There is now an area where the guineas can eat real grass and the kids can sit and hold them. It had crossed my mind that the hutch may rot from the bottom up if popped straight on to the grass, especially with all the rain we have been having.
Andy suggested levelling the ground off and laying down some slabs to sit the hutch on. This was a great idea, but it turned my little design job into a much larger landscaping chore. I didn’t want my fur babies hurting their feet on cold slabs so bought some rubber kennel lining from eBay. Andy placed the slabs and then the mat and he also put some turf down as the garden had been churned during the slab laying. The newly painted hutch was then placed on top.
I had purchased some solar string lights from the Black Friday sale on amazon – who doesn’t love a good lightning deal – and strung these up along the fence too. Night lighting to create a little atmosphere.
I added a wooden tunnel, a spare bit of plastic guttering tube that we placed through a small hill and toys they could play with in the guinea garden. I added some wood chip and made a stone area with bridge for a little hiding house that I decorated with the same paint.
B&Q sold yellow pots that hang over your fence with fresh herbs growing inside. I thought this would make a great addition to the whole set up as we could pick them and feed them to the guineas as an extra treat.
The whole space really comes together and I think it looks amazing.
On moving day there were no tears but smiles from all and I can tell they love their new digs. They come down to the ground level when they hear us come outside in the morning and start squeaking for food and cuddles.
I think we did an amazing job and I’m really happy with the finished result. We have had quite a few compliments, but the ones that really count are the tiny squeaks and chuffing noises we get from the inhabitants.
Helloyellowdoor 