Is It Okay For Guinea Pigs To Eat Newspaper/Cardboard?

     Have you ever had to go by your guinea pigs' cage because you heard an odd sound like paper ripping? Once you got closer, you realized your piggies were munching on some of the newspaper bedding like it was a piece of cucumber. You instantly become concerned. You try to get them to stop, but they don't. So, is it okay for guinea pigs to eat newspaper and cardboard? They do it a lot, but can it affect their health? Let's learn some more about these paper products. 

    Basically, guinea pigs' stomachs aren't super durable, but they aren't extremely fragile, either. They can digest paper easily enough. But not in excessive amounts. So, yeah, it's okay if your piggie wants to crunch on their cardboard hut. In fact, eating cardboard is a great pastime for guinea pigs and also helps their teeth. Because guinea pigs' teeth grow throughout their lives, they need some kind of chewing toy. And cardboard works perfectly. (Here are my thoughts on this chew toy that you might want to try out!)

    Another question people ask is, "What about newspaper ink?" The ink isn't toxic on most papers, so it should be okay. 

    A problem that could occur with pigs devouring newspaper is intestine blockage. As this site states, "The significant risk of guinea pigs eating paper is blocking of their intestines. Paper's material can not be broken down in pieces there in the digestive passage. So if guinea pigs eat large amounts of paper, it can cause constipation." Guinea pigs, however, tend to rip the paper into small pieces, so it shouldn't cause blockage. 

     I hope you enjoyed this post and I hope it was helpful! Comment down below if you have any further questions. Be sure to share this! Bye!