I have two guinea pigs that are in one of those old cages I bought like 5 years ago, but lately I've noticed they seem kind of stressed and I want to move them to something bigger. What's the minimum size they need and what materials do people with experience recommend?
Guinea pigs need a minimum of 7.5 square meters if there are two of them, so you can imagine how tiny a traditional cage is. The best thing is to build them a pen with panels (the "C&C" ones made with plastic cubes and grid) because it's affordable, easy to clean, and they have space to run around without getting stressed. The materials that people who've been with rodents for a while recommend are fleece on the floor (absorbent fabric), untreated cardboard or wood for chewing, and corners to hide in - no toxic plastic or really wide bars. By switching them to something like that you'll see their stress drop a lot, they'll behave more calmly, and it's way less of a hassle keeping them clean.
I have two right now and I'm telling you that the C&C panels mentioned above work great, but pay attention to the square footage - most sources talk about a minimum of about 7.5 square meters for two, though some experts say that's even tight if you want them to be really comfortable. The important thing is that it's rectangular (not round, which is a nightmare) and that you can put in decent bedding like fleece or aspen shavings, because that makes a huge difference in stress. The panels are the best because you can build them to whatever size you want, they're cheap compared to store-bought cages, and you can clean without hassle - just make sure the cubes are transparent so you can see your little guys well!
The material of the panels matters too - corrugated plastic or acrylic work well, but make sure it's resistant to urine because it breaks down fast if it isn't. For the floor use newspaper or puppy pads under the bedding so you can better control moisture and keep your guinea pigs from ending up in a swamp.
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